Jaina Mysticism and Other Essays

Author(s): Kamalchand Sogani
Publisher: Prakrit Bharti Academy

Page 52

the existence of other beings. In fact, to negate the existence of other beings is tantamount to negating one's own existence. Since one's own existence can not be negated, the existence of other beings also can not be negated. Thus there.exists the universe of beings in general and that of human beings in particular. (dta eri ai 372415ad, अत्ताणं अक्भाइक्खेज्जा।जे लोगं अब्भाइक्खति से अत्ताणंअब्भाइक्खति, जे अत्ताणं अब्भाइक्खति से लोगं 34 Higmafa). The Ācārāṇga tells us that after properly comprehending the different types of beings one should adopt an attitude of Ahiṁsā towards them and make them fearless. (लोगं च आणाए अभिसमेच्चा अकुतोभयं)"
For a living being, self has been necessarily recognised in addition to the material body. Thus living beings mean conscious selves alongwith the body. These selves are endowed with cognitive, affective and conative tendencies, by virtue of which they see and know, they like pleasure and dislike pain, and they are engaged in actions. These beings are the doers of actions and the enjoyers of the results of those actions. These living beings (empirical selves) both human and non-human are reacting with one another through their actions. The Jaina Āgama classifies living beings (Jīvas) into five kinds, namely, one sensed to five-sensed beings." This classification of jīvas into five kinds is used for the measurement of the degree of Ahiṁsā. The more the senses the more the evolved consciousness. As for example, two-sensed Jivas are more evolved than the onesense beings, five sensed beings are more evolved than the one, two, three and four-sensed beings. Thus Ahimsā will be directly proportionate to the Ahimsā of the beings (Jīvas) classified. Ahimsā as a ethico-social value gives importance to outward behaviour of human beings. It regards outward behaviour of individual human beings and sociopolitical organisations as socially valuable.
Now for the progress and development of these beings, Ahiṁsā ought to be the basic value guiding the behaviour of human beings. For a healthy living, it represents and includes all the values directed to the ‘other' without over-emphasizing the values directed to one's own self. Thus it is the pervasive principle of all the values. Posit Ahiṁsā; all the values are posited. Negate Ahiṁsā, all the values are negated. Ahimsā purifies our action in relation to the self and other
Jaina Mysticism and other essays