Jain Thoughts And Prayers English Gujarati

Author(s): Kanti V Mardia
Publisher: Yorkshire Jain Foundation

Page 33

If a true teacher comes along and wakes me up, only then will this attachment-induced sleep go away, and only then will the karmic thieves be stopped from gaining any entry.
Unless I am proactive in filling up my lamp of knowledge with the oil of austerity and cleansing my house (soul) of doubts, these resident thieves (my previous karmic matter) will not go. Following the five great vows and the five types of watchfulness ('samiti') will help me conquer the five senses and set in motion the full process of karmic decay.
Twelve Reflections 1. The kings, the great warriors, the emperors and the
elephant riders, all die one day, each turn by turn. 2. At the time of death, no one can prevent the soul from
leaving, not any physical power, nor gods, goddesses,
mother, father or family. 3. Poor people are unhappy because they do not have
money, and rich people are unhappy, spell-bound by the insatiable desire for wealth. There is no happiness
in this world. I have searched every nook and corner. 4. You came here alone, you will die alone. In a true
sense, this soul does not have any friend or relative. 5. Your body is not your own, nor is anything your own.
The house and the wealth are obviously not yours, but
even the family members are not yours. 6. This beautiful body is simply a bone structure caged in
a bed sheet of leather, and there is no dirtier place than
this body in the whole world. 7. The people are wandering forever in an attachment
induced sleep. Karmic thieves are everywhere; we are unaware that they are plundering all our soul's power.
10.
This occupied universe (Cosmic Man, fourteen 'rāju' tall) has been full of living beings since time immemorial. These living beings have been wandering aimlessly without(true) knowledge.
11. It is easy to gain prosperity, gold, and kingdoms; the
only thing that is not easily available in the world is true ultimate knowledge.
12. Seeking the wishing tree, which gives every
happiness, I spent nights in thinking and worrying what I should ask for. Then I realized that one gets happiness without seeking and without worrying.
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