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Jaina Acara : Siddhanta aura Swarūpa
understood and practised religion with ease and felicity. In the middle period monks striculy observed the fourth vow i.e. detachment and nonpossessiveness. Gold and women they took as reciprocally and inseparably related. Some modern thinkers have written that they had women around, but this is an erroneous view altogether. It goes against the fundemental tenets of Jainism.
Jyestha—Even though emphasising good qualities, Jainism always had great regard for senior monks. Even a nun of very long standing bows to a freshly initiated monk.
The second meaning of 'Jyestha' is that during the times of twenty-two founders the emphasis was on daily meditation for equanimity but the first and last founders considered seniority, taking into consideration also some monks' reinitiation. Today dairy meditation has a secondary place in this regard. When a monk is expelled for some serious fault and then reinitiated later after due repentance, receives but just importance. Those reinitiated cannot claim seniority.
It bears also a third meaning. In case father, son, king, minister,a rich person, his accountant, mother, son etc., renounce the world all together or in case son, father, king, a rich person, mother etc.,had already accepted the vow of daily meditation and the father and like wish to discard the world, they must not be compelled to accept the rigour of reinitiation. Father and the like's seniority must not be affected in such cases.
Pratikramana-It is repentance for faults attaching to the soul. When negligence leads a monk astray or he is found remiss in his duties, his return to sanity is Pratikramana. It is incumbent on a monk to censure himself when by body, mind and speech he has commited or got committed or even seconded some sin. If he has indulged in violence, falsehood, theft, attachment and copulation, he must repent for it. If he has neglected his essential duties then also he should feel sincerely sorry for it. During the times of twenty-two founders they used to atone only for sins actually committed, because they were then wisely discriminating.
Instead of the five atonements viz. during the day, night, fortnightly,four monthly and yearly the twenty-two founders had only two viz. of day and night. Dasagani Mahattara has clarified that during the periods of the first and last founders there used to be regulations for confession, and repentance both in day and night, When a fault was committed, monks were expected to atone immediately in the form of walking carefully. During the intervening period a fault committed was instantly atoned for, thus obviating the necessity of other forms.
Masakalpa-Monks stay at one place for four months of the rainy season, but not for more than a month in other seasons i.e. for the remaining
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