Book Title: Jaina Psychology
Author(s): Mohanlal Mehta
Publisher: Sohanlal Jain Dharm Pracharak Samiti Amrutsar

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Page 120
________________ EXTRA-SENSORY PERCEPTION 103 veils, there occur two varieties of super-normal perception, viz., clairvoyance and telepathy. Normal perception, i.e., sensory and mental cognition as well as imperfect super-normal perception, i.e., clairvoyance and telepathy, is conditioned by the obstruction of karmic veils, inasmuch as in these states of cognition, the dissociation of the obscuring veils is not final and complete. The distinction between normal perception and imperfect super-normal perception lies in the fact that the former is conditioned by the services of the senses and mind, while the latter is directly derived from the self independent of any assistance of these media, and hence, it is called direct perception. Omniscience is completely free from all the obscuring veils and is directly derived from the self, hence, it is direct as well as perfect. CLAIRVOYANCE Clairvoyance is confined to the objects having form. Only those things which have shape, colour, etc., can be perceived through the faculty of clairvoyance. This faculty differs in scope and durability with different personalities due to the difference of destruction-cumsubsidence of karmic veils. The highest type of clairvoyance can perceive all the objects having form. With regard to space, it extends over a space that could be occupied by innumerable space-points (pradeśas) of the size of the universe. As regards time, it penetrates innumerable cycles of time, both past and future. It cannot perceive all the modes of all the things. It knows only a part thereof.2 The lowest type of clairvoyance can cognise an object occupying a very small fraction of space. In the technical language of the Jaina, it can extend to very small fraction or an 'angula' (a measure) and know the things having form that lie therein. As regards time, it can penei rate only a small part of time which is less than a second. Regarding modes, it can know only a part of all the modes of its object. We shall not take into account the Jaina concept of the relative subtlety of time, space, matter, modes, and the like, inas 1 Rupişvaradhch. Tattvārtha-sūtra, I. 28. 2 Paramohi asamkhejjā logammittă...... Višeşāvaśyaka-bhāsya, 685. Argulassa asamkhijjai bhāgan jānai pāsai. Nandi-sūtra, 16.

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