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Epistemology of Jainas
The third step is anivṛttikaraṇa, where an aspirant definitely gets the right attitude (samyagdrsti ). This is the starting point of spiritual journey. The Jaina divides it into fourteen stages.
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Fourteen Gunasthānas (the ladder of spiritual journey)
In the ladder of gunasthana the first step is mithyādṛṣṭi i. e. wrong attitude. The aspirant does not rise above it until he unloosens the tie of moha existing in the form of darśanamoha. The second step is sasvadana which is touched when the aspirant with Upaśamaśreņi falls down. The third is miśra gunasthāna meaning a mixture of the right and wrong attitudes without a firm belief. This gunasthana may be touched both in ascending as well as the descending condition.
The fourth step marks a definite progress in the spiritual journey. In this stage the effect of darsanamohaniya is weakened and the aspirant gets the right attitude along with a firm faith in reality. We can compare it with the beginning of prajnāpāramitā of the Buddhist, Brahmajijñāsā of the Vedantist and Kaivalyapragbhāra of the yoga system. The aspirant, at this stage finds out the right path and firmly believes in its efficacy to lead to the final goal. But, he stops with the faith only and does not start marching. The effect of caritramohaniya does not allow him to put the decision into practice. This gunasthana is known as avirata samyagdṛṣṭi (right attitude without observation of the rules of conduct).
In the fifth gunasthana the aspirant is partially freed from the effect of caritramohaniya and takes to the vows of a householder. This stage continues upto the stage of complete renunciation.
It should be mentioned here that caritramohanlya is divided into four grades based on the intensity of passions. Anantānubandhi is the first grade, where the passions are so intense that the person under its influence is debarred from
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