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JAINISM AND WORLD PROBLEMS
deal of disciplinary training in other directions is undergone at the same time. One must gradually train oneself to undergo hardships and suffering and severe self-denial before the mind will stop dwelling on the effects of an experience.
Bhakti Yoga in Hinduism aims at the attainment of the goal by devotion to a god (perhaps also a goddess ?). In Jainism it is stated that no outside god or goddess can confer Immortality, Bliss, and Omniscience on the Soul. Surely these attributes are the very nature vi the Soul itself ; they can be had from within one's own being, never from the outside. Devotion in Jainism only means devotion to the attributes of Divinity, so that those attributes should also be. come manifest in the devotee's own life. The outer Gods are only examples of what can be achieved, of what has been achieved by others, who have gone before on the Path ; They merely serve the purpose of guidance by example. Devotion thus is a kind of hero-worship in Jainism ; in Hinduism it is very different, and is tantamount to begging for favour.
Jnana Yoga in Hinduism is deemed to teach the doctrine that knowledge is the equivalent of salvation. In Jainism it is said that Belief and Knowledge and Conduct must combine to lead to the attainment of an ideal. Without belief conduct will not be sustained in the face of difficulty and hardship ; without knowledge one will not know what one is to do ; without conduct, that is the doing of the right thing at the right time, one will remain precisely where one stood before. But Jnana (knowledge) is very necessary, for it is the slayer of desire ; it burns up the seed of ignorance and uproots the tree of lust.
Hatha Yoga by itself would only amount to a system of contortions and distortions, so to speak. By Hatha Yoga it may be possible to strengthen the body or develop the bodily organs, e.g., breathing exercises may develop one's chest. But salvation is not body-culture. Posture may even help in relaxation of nerves and muscles, but such relaxations can
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