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Jaina Ethics
apūrvakarana, but this time consciously. As this has never happened before, it is known as apūrvakarana.1 If yathāpravritikarana, is not followed by apūrvakaraña and anivsttikarana, it is futile. Even abhavyas experience yathāpravrttikarana, but without any use. The apūrvakarana further reduces the duration and intensity of karmans. This is made possible by the following five processes : (1) sthitighāta-destruction in the duration; (2) rasaghāta-destruction of the intensity; (3) gunaśreņi-conversion of karmans of longer duration into those having a duration of not more than a muhūrta; and (4) gunasaṁkramaņa---conversion of the karmans of intensive degree into those of milder degrees.
The third step is anivrttikaraṇa. Here the struggle ends in favour of the aspirant. The most intense type (anantānubandhi) of passions and vision-deluding karmans are annihilated and the aspirant reaches the fourth stage of spiritual development.
Two śreņis :
Before coming to the description of gunasthānas, it will be in the fitness of things to mention that the aspirant ascends the stages of spiritual development either by subsidence (upaśama) or by annihilation (kşaya) of karmans. These are called two ladders (śreņis) of spiritual development.
The aspirants belonging to the first śreņi are those who subside their delusion. The dirt in the bottom comes up in the water, similarly the delusion gives a defeat to the aspiring spirits and they fall down from the arduously attained height. These aspirants cannot go beyond the eleventh stage of development. The other aspirants are those who rise through destruction of delusion. One can climb the ladder of subsidence only twice in one life.
According to the Karmagrantha, a person who has climbed
1. Virasena on Satkhan dagama, 1.1.16 (Vol. I, p. 180). 2. Ibid., 1.9-8.5. (Vol. VI, p. 222). 3. Ibid., 1.9-8.5. (Vol. VI, p. 221). 4. 'Ibid., 1.9-8.14 (Vol. VI, p. 317). 5. Cf. Pravacanasāroddhāra, 700-708. 6. Cf. Ibid., 694-699.
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