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Jaina Philosophy and Religion
is not for it. The eleventh and the twelfth both the stages are characterised by perfect equanimity, but the only difference between the two is that the former is not permanent whereas the latter is permanent. In other words, the fall from the former is certain, whereas there is no possibility whatsoever of the fall from the latter.
Let us understand the difference between subsidence and destruction. Generally, it is said in explanation that to extinguish fire by pouring water on it is its destruction while to cover it with ashes is its subsidence. Though deluding karmic material particles are totally subsided, they do rise again. Subsidence is a sort of spiritual purity that comes about as a result of complete cessation of the rise of deluding karmic particles, which are still dormantly present in the inmost recesses of the soul, just like the clarity appearing in water in which dirt has gathered at bottom. But how long will this purity last? The subsided deluding karmic particles rise again within a short period of time and soil the soul as soon as it is internally agitated, just as the dirt particles settled down at bottom at once come up and spread throughout the entire water as soon as it is slightly agitated. As a result of this, the soul falls down to the lower stages. The soul who has attained the total subsidence of delusion invariably falls down to the lower stages. On the other hand, the soul who has attained the total destruction of delusion at once gains kevalajñāna (omniscience, the pure knowledge). It is so because after its destruction, there is no possibility of the rise of delusion again. At this twelfth stage of spiritual development the soul enters into the pure trance (śuklasamādhi), the highest meditation, totally destroys the deluding, knowledge-obscuring, vision-obscuring and obstructive karmic matter, and as a result attains kevalajñāna (omniscience).
13. Sayogakevali-guṇasthāna And on the attainment of omniscience, the spiritual practiser attains this stage. In the name of this stage, there occurs the term 'sayoga' which means 'possessed of yoga'. The term 'yoga' in the Jaina philosophy has a technical sense. It means 'activity of the mind, the organ of speech and the body'. Even after the attainment of omniscience, a person performs mental, vocal and bodily activities. He walks, speaks, etc. As he is having threefold activity, he is called 'sayoga'. And as he is possessed of kevalajñāna (omniscience), he is called 'kevalī. Thus, he is the omniscient with threefold activity (sayogakevalī). So, this stage is equivalent of what is known
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