Jainism the Creed for All Times

Author(s): D S Baya
Publisher: Prakrit Bharti Academy

Page 33

the Arhantas feel obliged to propound and preach the true faith, as seen and realised by them, for the greater good of all. It goes without saying that such a true faith, preached by such perfect Prophet-propounders, is bound to be for the betterment of one and all. The Arhantas not only propound and preach the faith but they also establish a sound four-fold socio-religious order, consisting of ordained monks (Sadhu) and nuns (Sadhvī) and lay male and female followers (Śrāvaka and Śrāvilkā) to ensure that the faith so propounded and preached by them is propagated down the ages. Such a religious order is known as “Tīrtha' and the Prophet-propounders who set up such orders are called “Tīrtharikaras?
It is quite right that every follower of the Jaina faith, a beneficiary of the precepts propounded and preached by the Arhantas, remembers and bows to them the first thing in the morning every day of his life.
Siddha
Siddha means a person who has accomplished what he has set out to accomplish. As the ultimate goal of every soul is to achieve the ultimate spiritual purity and liberation from the miserable mundane existence, spiritually speaking the term Siddha means the soul that has attained complete freedom from the karmic bondage, which soils it, and achieved spiritual salvation or nirvāṇa. They are the ultimate role models for every spiritual aspirant and every one looks forward to duplicate their accomplishment and resultant perfection that is manifested in the infinite quartet of infinite perfect vision or omni vision (Ananta Darśan), infinite or perfect knowledge or omniscience (Ananta Iñāna), Infinite (spiritual) prowess (Ananta Vīrya) and Infinite bliss (Ananta Sukh). The freedom from karmic bondage means completely separating or shedding of eight types of karma that bind the soul and keep it tied to mundane existence. They are -
BENEDICTION : 5