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ego were the earth, and it suddenly discovered that the sun (or the self) was the centre of the planetary orbits and of the earth's orbit as well."37
The passion and hankering for the object of sense take place when one has some sense of want. Want is the sign of self-forgetfulness. When one has inner perfection, there is no want and hence no passion-no extroversion. The individual has the joy of soul (Atmananda) and thus loses all charms in the objects of sense (Visayananda). He thus attains celibacy and self-restraint. Thus Brahmacarya is the mark of self-perfection and self-awareness, It is the virtue which follows from enlightenment. In this state, one gets rid of the attraction for opposite sex and becomes Nirveda. According to Lord Mahavira, "In the state of Nirveda, there is detachment from all objects of sense and one attains perfection and freedom."38 He becomes Kevali. From the suffering and boredom of loneliness, he has the joy and peace of Aloneness (Kevali).
Thus to be in dharma is to be in self-consciousness. Dharma is thus enlightenment. It is freedom. The appearance of ten characteristics as described above vindicate that one is grounded in dharma. While the world is in the process of change and becoming, the self is the changeless being. Hence it is the self which is the real support. Jesus Christ has said, "The world is the bridge, cross it. Don't build house upon it." "Build your house upon the solid rock, and not on the sands." And that solid rock is the self. Hence Lord Mahavira has said, "In the torrential current of old age, disease and death, it is dharma which is the island, the support and the best refuge."
37. Jung, Modern Man in Search of a Soul, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London,
1961, pp. 80-81. 38. Uuttaradhyayan Sutra, 29/2. 39. Matthew, 7/24-25. 40. (Uttararadhyayan Sutra, 3/68)
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