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Restraint (samvara), in this case, means to ward off the karmic influx through the eye, the ear, the nose and the tongue -- the same meaning as the Jaina usage of the word, samvara. Furthermore, in Dhammapada 281:
vācānurakkhi manasa susanvuto kayena ca akusalam na kayirā ete tayo kammapathe visodhaye, ārādhaye maggam isi ppaveditam || (281)
Guarding his speech, restraining well his mind, let a man not commit anything evil with his body. He who keeps these three ways of action pure, will achieve the way expounded by sages.
The verse also mentions "restraining well his mind" (saṁvaru). This expression, "the way expounded by the sages," indicates that the religious thought pre-dates Buddha.
2.3 Mahāvīra preached the restraint of the sense organs. In the explanation of five great vows (panca mahavvaya), he used the restraint of sense organs to check karmic influx. In the Āvārngasutta 11.15 (the section titled Bhāvaņa) panca mahavvaya is stated as follows:
sotaenam jive maņunnaiṁ saddāim suņei, manunnāmanunnehim saddehim no sejjā, no rajjejjā, no gijjhejjā, no mujjhejjā, no ajjhovajjejjā, no viņigghāyam āvajjejjā, ...na sakkū na aouṁ saddā soyavisavam āgatā rāga dosā u je tattha tam bhikkhū parivajjae || sodo jīvo maņuņņāmaņuņņāim saddaim suņei... (Ed. by Muni Jambuvijaya)
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