Book Title: Jainism Christianity and Science
Author(s): Champat Rai Jain
Publisher: The Indian Press Allahabad

Previous | Next

Page 111
________________ CHAPTER 16 THE ATTRIBUTES OF DIVINITY The Jaina idea is that the form of God is only that of man. The soul of the Perfect Man retains permanently the stamp of His form, and that is the Divine Form; but Gods have no sex. Sex pertains to the body; when the bodies are rid of completely, then sex also disappears. Jainism does not endorse the view that a God can be a shapeless mass, or a flame-like thing. It also refuses to accord its assent to the supposition that the entirety of the universe can be taken as one organic whole to be termed god. Gods are not all-pervading; their size is about that of the physical body, from which Godhood was attained. When soul's agitations cease, then its form becomes fixed permanently. Divinity enjoys unbroken bliss eternally. The Christian views on the subject are as follows : 1. (Divinity not all-pervading) :" They were misled by what 18 said in the Book of Wisdom : He pervades and passes to all by reason of his purity '; since they did not understand that this was said of Wisdom, which was the first of the creations of God."-(Clement) A.N.C.L. vol. xii. p. 274. "These philosophers (Strato, Ænesidemus, and Heraclitus) maintain the unity of the soul, as diffused over the entire body, and yet in every part the same."-A.N.C.L. vol. xv. p. 439. "But it is not as a portion of God that the spirit is in each of de ..."-(Clement) A.N.C.L. vol. xii. p. 278. " This is the mystery of the hebdomad. For He Himself is the rest of the whole who grants Himself. as a rest to those who imitate His greatness within their little measure. For He is alone, some-, 99

Loading...

Page Navigation
1 ... 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219