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Metaphysics, Ethics and Spiritual Development
home from a distant country. When she put the question to them, the pot on her head fell down on the ground and broke into small pieces. On seeing this, one astrologer said, "O Mother, your son has already been destroyed (dead), just as the pot is just now destroyed." The other astrologer stopped her and said, "O Mother, your son has already arrived. Please, go home to see him there." The old woman hurriedly went home and was very much pleased to see her beloved son there after a long time. This illustrates the vainayiki intellect. The prediction was based on the reasoning that just as the pot met its mother-the earth, even so the son too should meet his mother just then.
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The illustrative stories narrated in order to explain the karmajā intellect demonstrate the skill in arts and crafts. An experienced goldsmith can easily differentiate between pure gold and an alloy, while a layman is easily deceived.
One of the illustrative stories told to illustrate the pārināmikī intellect is as follows. There was a Jaina layman. He was observing a vow of abstinence from sexual intercourse with the wives of others. Once he was enamoured of his wife's female friend. The wife understood the whole situation. On seeing her husband infatuated with lust and pining for the sexual intercourse with her female friend, she said to him, "Don't be sorry and miserable. I shall get your desire satisfied." At night she dressed as her female friend dressed herself. Moreover, she put on ornaments exactly similar to those which her female friend put on. And in the guise of her female friend, she met her husband in a solitary place. After having sexual intercourse with her, the man became very sorry for the transgression or violation of the vow. When his wife told him the truth, his sorrow was allayed. He approached the spiritual teacher and requested him to show the proper atonement for the violation of the vow. The intellect of his wife was the pārināmikī intellect.
Thus with the explanation of the four intellects, we complete the treatment of matijñāna.
Now we take up the topic of śrutajñāna (verbal knowledge). Śrutajñāna means knowledge obtained from what is heard from others. In one sense, it is a scriptural knowledge. Generally that knowledge which is generated through systematic treatises relating to various sciences and arts is śrutajñāna. Any treatise or knowledge can be put to good or bad use. To be or not to be of use for the attainment of liberation (mokṣa) is not the fixed nature of a systematic treatise, for that depends on the worthiness
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