Jaina Psychology

Author(s): Mohanlal Mehta
Publisher: Sohanlal Jain Dharm Pracharak Samiti Amrutsar

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JAINA PSYCHOLOGY
special causes constituted by certain specific activities.1 Hostility against knowledge, disregard of a true doctrine and its commandments, rebelliousness and lack of discipline towards the devotees of knowledge, and the like are the causes of the binding of both apprehension and comprehension-obscuring karmas, inasmuch as apprehension and comprehension are two different stages of the same faculty of cognition. Respects for parents and the like, pity, gentleness, keeping of vows, giving of alms or some other help, interest in noble and spiritual activities may be cited as some of the causes of the pleasure-producing karma. The contrary causes produce the karma that gives pain. The teaching of a false faith, the hindrance of the true religion, the blasphemy of saints and gods, the misuse of sacred objects, and the like cause the bondage of the beliefdeluding karma. The actions produced by the outbreak of passions cause the bondage of passions. The mind confused through joking, liking, disliking, etc., causes the karma that produces quasi-passions. Slight passionate desire, inclination for right conduct, etc., help in binding the male-sex. Jealousy, deceitfulness, high sensuality, adultery, etc., cause the bondage of the female-sex. Intense attachment for pleasure and strong passions directed towards sexual intercourse with male and female cause that of the third sex (napumsakaveda). Hellish age is bound by the actions of a person who tortures and kills other beings and strives after passions extremely. A deceitful and fraudulent person binds animal age. An humble and sincere one binds human age. A person possessing right belief, having slight passions binds celestial age. Honesty, gentleness, absence of desires, purity, and the like produce the good physique-making karmas, whereas the reverse causes produce bad ones. The recognition of the excellence of others, reverence towards teachers, the desire to learn and to teach are some of the causes of the bondage of the karma that is responsible for high family-surroundings, while the contrary causes produce the karma that furnishes low family-surroundings. The withholding of food, drink, lodging, clothing, and the like cause the bondage of the power-obscuring karma.
The binding of karma can be checked through the means of controlled activities of the body, mind, and speech (gupti), carefulness is walking, speaking, lifting up, and laying down a thing
1 Karma-grantha, I, 54-61.