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The Jaina Philosophy
words relating to sacrifice as the literature of the Brahmans. The due presentation of sacrificial offerings formed the very kernel of all religious service. Hymn, praise and prayer, preaching, teaching, and repetition of the sacred words of Scripture were only subsidiary to this act.
Every man throughout his whole life rested his whole hopes on continually offering oblations of some kind to the gods; and the burning of his body at death was held to be the last offering of himself in fire (antyeshti) In later literature, Karma, in addition to the above meaning, also meant duty and good and bad actions. In the Jaina literature we have a fuller meaning. It is any energy which an embodied being generates - be it vital, mental, or moral - and which keeps him in the mundane world - the Sansara. Karma, in short, is the whole Sansaric make-up of an embodied being. It is entirely divested of the sacrifice idea. Karmas which keep the individual in a backward condition are known as Papa; those which help him in advancement are Punya. The Jaina philosophy gives a detailed enumeration of Karmas, and explains, how they are attracted (Ashrava) how they is in or of the universe may be classified under two heads: (1) Sentient, animate or conscious beings (a liberated beings; b, embodied beings); and (2) Insentient, inanimate or unconscious things or substances.
There is not an inch of space in the universe where there are not innumerable minute living beings. They are smaller than the minutest things we can see with the aid of a microscope. Weapons and fire are to gross to destroy them. Their life and; death depend on their vital forces, which are, of course, related to the surroundings. Clay, stones, etc., as they come fresh from the earth have life. Water, besides being the home of many living beings, is itself an assemblage of minute animate creatures. Air, fire, and even lightning have life. Strictly speaking, the physical substance of clay, water, stone, etc., is a multitude of bodies of living; beings. Dry clay, dry stone, boiled water, are pure matter,
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