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+ The Sat-khandagama (SK) is the first ancient Digambara text to describe living beings through spiritual stages for which the author uses the term "jīvasamāsa" ( abridgment or categorization of the living beings under spiritual stages). It seems that there are many ways of such categorization on different bases like senses, embodiments etc. Later, this term was designated as "jīvastāna" and "guṇasthāna" in order to avoid terminological confusion. The term “guṇasthāna" has later developed as quality-based.
Q. What are the fourteen märgaṇasthānas ?
A. Tam jaha - 3, and they are enumerated in verse - 4:
Gai indiye kaye joge vede kasãe ṇāṇe sanjame dansaṇe lessãe bhavie sammatte saņņi āhārae cedi - 4
The living beings are studied under fourteen mārgaṇasthānas, which are: gati (destiny), indriya (senses), kaya (embodiments), yoga (activity), veda (libido), kasāya (passion), jnāna (knowledge), samyama (restraint), darsana (conation), lēśya (aureole), bhavyatva (liberatality), samyaktva (righteousness), sanjni (instinctive) ähāraka (intakership).
Q. Why there is in this verse the use of locative case in each of the terms like destiny?
A. This is meant to denote that the mārgaṇasthānas like destiny etc. are the substratum for the living beings.
Q. Does the case of investigation stand scrutiny here as its four elements investigator, object, method and means being not mentioned, but are required for the study of anything in the world? A. Though the question is valid, the assumption of the absence of elements is not. The elements of investigation are found in the following contests: 1] The investigator is the faithful living being believing in the categories of the living and nonliving beings etc. 2] The object is the living beings and other entities. 3] The methodology is the investigation of destiny etc. which form the substratum for the objects. 4] The means is the teacher.
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Q. Why this verse has described only the investigations and not the other three elements?
A. Since the investigations are invariably related with the other three elements, their inclusion is found within the description of investigation.
Jain Education International
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