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390
Jaina Philosophy and Religion
evil deeds; we should abstain from them.
We clearly see that those who have accepted the world-creator God have done so in order that man might not indulge in evil activities, and those who have rejected Him have done so to achieve the same purpose. The aim of the propounders of the two doctrines is the same. Their aim is that man may become righteous and consequently happy.
Those who subscribe to the doctrine of spiritual monism maintain that ultimately there is only one Reality. It is One Soul. They say that the idea of duality is the cause of transmigratory existence. A believer in the doctrine of One Soul is not soiled by narrow, selfish thoughts. He never thinks in terms of his own and of another's interest. He has no self-interest, nor selfish motives. He understands that his interest is included in the interest of the entire world. He thinks that his welfare or good can never be different from that of all beings. He, therefore, does not commit sins which one who hankers after one's own individual interest commits. As a result, he remains free from sins or evil acts and thoughts. On the other hand, those who uphold the doctrine of dualism contend that ultimately there are two fundamental elements or substances—the sentient and the insentient. He thinks: “I am soul. Though I am soul, I am associated with non-soul matter. My soul is soiled with the foreign substance. On account of my association with matter, I am subdued by passions, I make a fool of myself, I do not behave justly and honestly with other living beings who are sentient like me, I do injustice to them and oppress them. This is not good for me. As I am caught in the infatuating and enticing net of matter and material objects, I behave as their slave. As a result of it, I myself become miserable and cause misery to others. So, I must break this painful bondage of maddening matter."
Thus, the spiritually beneficial results that follow from these two doctrines, viz., monism and dualism are the same.
I would like to reproduce here some verses from my Dvātrimsikā entitled 'Anekānta-Vibhūti (='Greatness of Non-one-sided View or Outlook'):
Dvaitādvaitavāda (Dualism and Non-dualism)
dvaitas yathārtham jada-cetanābhyām advaitam apy ātmavikāsadrstyā / ittham dvayam tat patu sangamayya śāntas tvayā tāraka ! tadvirodhaḥ //9// Dualism is true because the world is really constituted of two fundamental substances—one sentient and the other insentient. As the soul is the only Reality or substance which one should realise and attain, the
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