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22
THE JAINA GAZETTE
Q. 97. What is Right conduct ?
A. Right conduct consists of Equanimity, Recovery of Equanimity after a fall from it, pure and absolute non-injury, all but entire frecdom from passion and ideal and passionless conduct.
Q. 98. What are austerities.
A. Austerities are of two kinds, external and internal. External austerities are six. They are (1) Fasting ; (2) Eating less than one has appetite for ; (3) Taking a mental vow to accept food from a house-holder, only if a certain condition is fulfilled, without letting any one know about the vow; (4) Daily renunciation of one or more of the six kinds of rasas, viz. ghee, milk, curd, sugar, salt, and oil; (5) Sitting and sleeping in a lonely place devoid of animate beings; (6) Mortification of the body so long as the mind is not disturbed.
The internal austerities are also six. They are (1) Expiation; (2) Reverence; (3) Service to the saints or worthy people; (4) Study of scriptures ; (5) Giving up attachment to the body ; (6) Concentration.
Expiation are of nine kinds :-Full and voluntary confession tc the head of the order : Self-analysis and repentance for faults ; Doing both confession and self-analysis ; Giving up a muchbeloved object such as a particular food or drink : Giving up attachment to the body ; Penance; Cutting short the standing of a saint by way of degradation ; Rustication for some time and Fresh re-admission into the order.
Reverence is of four kinds :-Reverence for Right Knowledge; Reverence for Right Belief ; Reverence for Right Conduct and Reverence in worship.
Service is of ten kinds as it relates to the Head of an order of saints, Precep!or, Student saint, Invalid saints, Brothers of the same order, Fellow-disciples of the same guru, Sangha, Sadhus, and popular saints.
Study is of five kinds :-Reading, Questioning, Reflection on what is read, Memorising and Delivering sermons.
Giving up attachment to worldly objects is of two kinds :of external things and of internal passions.
Concentration is confining one's thought to one particular object. It is of four kinds :-Painlul concentration, Wicked concentration on unrighteous gain, Righteous concentration and Pure concentration. The last two are the causes of Liberation while the first two lead to bondage in Samsara.
(To be continued.)
Shree Sudharmaswami Gyanbhandar-Umara, Surat
www.umaragyanbhandar.com
