Jaina Ethics

Author(s): Dayanand Bhargav
Publisher: Motilal Banarasidas

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Jaina Ethics
as the real point of view. This is a state of complete freedom from attachment and aversion.
From practical point of view, however, it is actionconsciousness (karmacetana) which predominates. The aspiant has not as yet risen above the sense of being an agent of an action (kartytvabhāvanā). He has, therefore, not transcended moral obligations of life. He has not wiped away passions and has, therefore, always to choose between the good and bad. He comes the role of human efforts (puruşārtha). We cannot escape the responsibility of being overpowered by passions if we choose to follow the immoral path. A common man cannot be led by consideration of determinism, which is a feature of knowledge-consciousness (jñānacetanā) only. Knowledgeconsciousness is not to be confused with action-consciouness, because both of them are exclusive of each other and cannot exist side by side. A man with action-consciousness aims at knowledge-consciousness, but it is not possible to attain knowledge-consciousness without perfect detachment. The path to supra-ethical plane of life is only through practical path of morality and not through immorality.
The doctrine of karman, therefore, does not license us to act in a wanton manner. The ultimate aim is the complete cessation of all activities and attainment of knowlegde-consciousness and from this point of view determinism may be justified, but a man with action-consciousness has no knowledge of future and from his standpoint of view everything is indetermined. It is only his effort and exertion which brings him nearer his goal.
Pandita Țodara Mala has put the problem in this way? : The self makes effort and brings about its liberation. Other factors of time or fate or subsidisation of delusive karmans syncronise with human efforts. Efforts on the part of self automatically imply that the time and fate is favourable and the delusive karmans have subsided. It is human efforts (puruşārtha) which leads to liberation ; the other two factors of time and fate are passive. In fact, we have no knowledge of our future ; and even though it may be determined we can depend only on our efforts.
1. Todaramala, Mokşamārgaprakāša, Mathurā, 1948, pp. 279-280.