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The Jains through Time
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together. Some things taken from here, Scripture: Truth's Witness some things taken from there, are then tied The scriptures are based upon truth that is together and joined or yoked. It is through self-evident. Truth always touches the this same type of collection and binding consciousness of humanity as a whole, and together that some 'holy books' come into in our culture, truth is always coupled with being.
welfare. So the vision of truth also reflects a
picture of the lifting of the consciousness of The sense that the word granth conveys is the entire universe. Though the material also found in the Hindi verb gunthana, sciences also unveil the truth, they do it which means plaited together. When a from a purely intellectual standpoint. It is gardener makes a garland, he knots flowers not founded on experience of the exaltation together on a thread or a piece of string of human consciousness, so I do not include First, he picks up a flower, ties it to the it in the realm of scripture. thread, and next he ties a knot. Then he takes up another flower, threads it, ties We are also of the opinion that scriptures are another knot after it, and so on until the the voice of the sages and seers. Yask has garland is ready. Similarly, a book is a garland defined the word seer as rsih darśanāt", of thoughts strung and tied together. which means the seer envisions and Without knots there is no garland. In the experiences the truth. However, not every same way a granth will not be prepared ascetic is a seer. Only he who can vividly without knotting the collected thoughts experience the truth by means of his together. This implies that a granth or book rationally refined knowledge and his does not necessarily require original piercing wisdom is a seer in the real sense. thought; it is more a compilation or a The Vedas, therefore, depict a seer as a singer compendium, a string of thoughts and of truth. According to the Vedic and the Jain beliefs. The same is not true in the case of traditions, sagacious speech (ārsa-vāni) reveals genuine scripture.
first-hand knowledge which elucidates and
Nirukra, 2/11
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