Jainism and Democracy

Author(s): Indra Chandra Shastri
Publisher: I A S S Jain Conference New Delhi

Page 92

THE WAY OF INNER DEVELOPMENT
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degree of passions. In the thirteenth stage passions are destroyed completely. Still the karmic influx continues .owing to the activities of yogas. But the particles accummulated in that stage are without the capacity of giving fruit or enduring for a period on account of their being not accompanied by passions.
An activity is either beneficial or harmful. Beneficial activity is not induced by passions. The karmic accummulation resulting from it does not give bitter fruit. On the other hand harmful activity causes such accummulation as puts the soul to suffering and miseries. Both types of activity are known as Āsrava meaning the influx of karman. It has five types of Mithyātva (wrong attitude), Avirati (indescipline), Pramādn (negligence), Kaṣāya (passions) and Yoga (three types of activity).
One has to refrain from all the five types of Asrava to check the karmic influx. The aspirant aiming at the -complete freedom from karmic bondage has to stop the new influx, as well as consume up the accummulated stock. The process of this consumation is called nirjarā. "The Jain literature prescribes various penances and -other practices for it, namely, twelve types of penances (tapas), twelve contemplations (bhāvanās), four meditations (dhyanas), the vows of a monk and a householder and such others. Kundakunda, Jindabhadra, Pujyapada, Haribhadra, Subha Candra, Hema Candra, Yosovijaya and other scholars have written systematic treatises on the subject. The reader is advised to consult them for a detailed study.
The above is a short account of the process of selfrealization as prescribed by Jainisın. It is useful not