Mahavira and his Philosophy of Life

Author(s): Kamalchand Sogani
Publisher: Jain Vidya Samsthan

Page 49

the needle with thread is not lost. vi. Dhyāna: It represents the concentration of mind on a particular object. The object of concentration may be profane or holy in character. The mind may concentrate either on the debasing object or on the object which is elevating. The former is Aprašasta-Dhyāna and the latter is Prasasta. In dealing with Dhyāna as Tapa, we are concerned with the Prasasta type of Dhyāna, since it is only relevant to spiritual realization. It is the indispensable, integral constituent of right conduct, and consequently it is directly related to the actualization of the divine potentialities. It is the clear and single road by which the aspirant can move straight to the supreme good. All the disciplinary observances find their culmination in Dhyana, and they form an essential background for the performance of Dhyāna. The practice of the fourfold virtue of Maitri (friendship with all creatures), Pramoda (appreciation of the merits of others), Karunā, (compassion for those who are in trouble) and Madhyastha (indifference to those who are irrational), constitute the mental pre-requisite conditions of Dhyāna. The aspirant should avoid those places which are inhabited by the vicious, hypocrites, gamblers, drunkards, harlots and the like, and should choose a bank of river, an island, a cave, a summit of a mountain and other places of seclusion for practising spiritual concentration. For him, whose mind is immaculate, stable and detached, every posture, every place, and every time is fit for meditation. Many places in the body have been enumerated for mental concentration, namely, the two eyes, two ears, the foremost point of the nose, the forehead, the place between the two eye-brows etc. Praśasta-Dhyāna is of two types, namely, Dharma and Sukla. The best kind of Dharma-Dhyāna is to meditate
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Mahåvira and his Philosophy of Life