Jain Theism

Author(s): Hemant Shah
Publisher: Hemant Shah

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Jain
Theism
ontology, metaphysics, philosophy, epistemology. mythology, ethics, ritual and the rest..."*1.36
According to the belief of the orthodox Jains, the Jain religion is eternal and it has been revealed again and again in every one of the endless succeeding periods of the world by innumerable Tirthankaras.'1,37 (3) Jaina Darshan
In order to lead the reader to have a proper grasp about what Jainism is and to understand it in a theistic perspective, which is the aim of the work, let us have a glance of it in a broader outlook. Ot course, we are going to deal with its logic, its ethics and its philosophy of soul in a greater details. I have simply made to be incorporated in the succeeding chapters.
Jainism does not believe in a personal God as traditionally the popular Hinduism believes, It does not believe God to be creator of the universe as well as to be the moral dispenser of Karma, Jainism considers the universe to be from the beginningless of time or Anādi. The world is real and is eternal. without beginning or end. What Jain metaphysics mainly discusses are the following topics : (i) Soul & Non-Soul. (ii) Substance and Attributes (iii) The Karmas or Actions (iv) The Seven Principles (Tattvas) (v) The Nine Padathas. (Categories). And (vi) Stages in the Evolution of the Soul.
(i) Soul & Non-Soul
Jainism discusses two great categories : soul, Jiva; and nonsoul, Ajiva. “The whole universe falls under this division, which is logically perfect, it is division by dichotomy.”].38 The souls are further divided as Sthāvar (immobile) and Trasa (mobile). The mobile souls differ from those that are immobile mainly in the sense that one can move at its own will, while the other can not. It discusses nine qualities of the soul out of which the chief one is consciousness or Chetanā. Soul in its pure form has limitless powers. The whole universe is its scope.
(ii) Substance and Attributes Substance, technically called Satta has three states : Utpāda
136. Dr. J.P. Jain, Religion and Culture of the Jains (1977) p. 2. 137. Prof. S.N. Dasgupta, A History of Indian Philosophy Vol. 1 (1975) p. 169. 138. J. L. Jaini, Outline of Jainism (1979), p. 7.