Mahavira and his Teaching

Author(s): C C Shah, Rishabhdas Ranka, Dalsukh Malvania
Publisher: Bhagwan Mahavir 2500th Nirvan Mahotsava Samiti

Page 116

BHAVYATVA AND ABHAVYATVA
109 beings, 'fools and wise alike'. The Jains (and also the Buddhists) evidently found both these claims repugnant and might have taken a counterposition (1) that salvation was not for 'fools', and (2) even for the 'wise it was not automatic. It is impossible to be sure, given the present state of our knowledge of the ājivika scriptures, whether the terms bala' and 'pandita' (as reported by the Samañña-phala-sutta) had any special technical meaning in the system of Makkhali Gosāla; nor if these were two categories as fixed in character as bhavya and abhavya. The Buddhist texts would lead us to believe that the term 'bala' indicated a person given to the most gross forms of evil views (miccha-diţthi), precisely those views which were held by their rivals, particularly by Makkhali Gosāla. As a matter of fact the Buddha considered Makkhali the most dangerous of all tirthikas and is reported to have said: "I know not of any other single person fraught with such loss to many folk, such discomfort, such sorrow to devas and men, as Makkhali, the infatuate”.1 Buddhaghosa, in his Atthakathā on the Puggalapaññattı singles out Makkhali Gosāla as an illustration of a person that can be called a Buddhist ‘abhavya'. While commenting on a sutta passage which describes a person who is called 'once drowned, drowned for ever',2 Buddhaghosa states that such a person is possessed of totally evil views (such as nihilism, the theory that there is no cause, and no efficacy of karma) and is consequently 'drowned for ever'. As if he was reporting an ancient belief, Buddhaghosa further adds: "For such a one they say that there is no rising
(Contd) (b) n'attht duaram sugattyä niyatim kankha, Bi jaka/
sukham vā yadı và dukkham, niyatıyä kira labbhatı
samsārasuddhi sabbesam, mâ turittho anāgatel/Jätaka, VI, p. 229. nāham bhikhave aññam ekapuggalam pi samanupassamı yo evam bahujanahithya patıpanno bahujanāsukha ya bahuno janassa anatthaya ahıta ya dukkhāya devamanussänam yathaydam bhikkhave
Makkhalı moghapuriso/ Anguttara-nika ya, I, p. 33 2 idha bhikkhave ekacco puggalo samannāgalo hoti ekanla-kalakeht
akusalehi dhammehi, so sakım nimuggo nimuggo va hot/ Puggala-paññattt, VII, 1.