Jin puja

Author(s): Harendra Shah
Publisher: USA Jain Center Northern Calfornia

Page 14

Jin Pujä
But kindly allow me to continue to worship you. I have paid my respects the best way I could and I request that you go to your respective places.
4. Ärati, Mangal Divo and Shänti Kalash
4.1. Ärati
There are many meanings of Ärati. One meaning is to experience the spiritual joy from all directions (Ärati = A + Rati; Ä means from all sides and Rati means Joy - spiritual joy). When a religious activity is concluded with success, we do Arati to express our spiritual joy. Arati also means to seek the end of "Art" (misery). This material world (Samsär) is full of misery, and the aspirant is performing Arati to free himself/herself from the cycle of the misery of the material world, cycle of birth and death. Third meaning is that to fill our inner selves with spiritual joy, and to end the mental unhappiness.
To free from the miserable cycle of the material world (Samsär), one needs to have bright light of five types of knowledge. That's why we light five Dipaks (which has candle like flame). In front of these five lights, there is a symbol of a snake which indicates that delusion (Moha) is like snake and as snakes are afraid of fire, the delusion is conquered by the true knowledge.
The symbol of These five Dipaks are also symbol of five great vows (Panch Mahä Vrat) through its practice, one attains the salvation. Five Dipaks are also symbolic of practicing five Samitis (Restraints), It is also representative of restraining negative activities of five senses and five characteristics of Samyak Darshan (Right Perception).
Another way to understand the purpose of performing Arati is that, to free our selves from the miserable cycle of material world, we need to detach our selves from all worldly attachments as five supreme beings (Panch Parmeshthi) have done it. To pay our spiritual tribute to these five Panch Parmeshthi, we light up five Dipaks, and we mentally contemplate that "I want to also give up all worldly attachments, and want to initiate myself (take Dikshä) to become a Sädhu (or Sädhvi) to free my self from four Sämsarik destinies and to attain the fifth destiny, Moksha.
4.2. Mangal Divo
Mangal means to eradicate bad karma (päp), to free our selves from Samsär (material world), to remove the darkness of ignorance, to have an auspicious opportunity to practice Right Religion and to practice the path that is beneficial to the Self (soul). Only path of Moksha is beneficial to our Self that is attained by eradicating all karma. By removing the darkness of karma, one enlightens himself / herself with the Absolute Knowledge (Keval Jnäna). One Dipak is used in Mangal Divo to symbolize the one and only Perfect Knowledge, Keval Jnäna through which the darkness of the ignorance is permanently removed, the miserable cycle of birth and death is permanently ended, the association with the foreign dust of karma is completely terminated, and the true qualities of the souls are forever realized. In other words, one Dipak in Mangal Divo symbolizes the one and only path of Moksha as expounded by Tirthankars. We should mentally contemplate while performing Mangal Divo that "I want to enlighten my inner Dipak (self) just like this Mangal Divo by attaining the perfect knowledge, Keval Jnäna by practicing the path of Moksha as expounded by Tirthankars."
Compiled by Harendra Shah
6/20/02