Manava Dharma

Author(s): Bhurmal Shastri, Nihalchandra Jain
Publisher: Aacharya Gyansagar Vagartha Vimarsha Kendra

Page 28

6 / MANAV DHARMA considers the dramatic performance as his own real self, then this Jivatma (taicht) assumes various organic appearances. Sometimes he assumes the body of a heavenly being or a being of infernal abode (front) or of an animal or of a man; sometimes of a woman or of a person or bird, but this Jivatma thinks that very omagic shape as his real self and deeply indulges oneself in that embodied soul. HE (Jivatma) considers himself weak with the weakness of the body and feels fresh, when the body appears to be fresh and to its relatives, say, son and wife, he considers them as his own son and wife; and he expresses his wisdom in their love and fascination and performs various activities to keep them happy. In this way he is totally forgetting its real immortal and imperisable state of the soul which is a spark of Divine Bless.
Let us understand it through an illustration. Suppose a cub, whose mother had died just after giving birth to him, was reared up by sucking up the milk of a She-Jackal and started growing up with her youngsters. A long time passed in this state or condition and he began to recognise she-jackal as mother and youngsters as his brothers. One day a lion came and rushed towards jackals to eat them up. Fearing the Lion, the jackals began to run, but with them the cub, too ran. The Lion was highly surprised and told the cub that, brother! those jackals might run but why he was running. Then calling him as his brother, he reminded him of his real birth and strength like a lion, and asked him not to fear at all. But the cub failed to understand and believed on the words of a lion, taking him as a deceit. The cub again remarked that he was not of different species than jackal, rather a brother of them and had always been living with them since long.
Assuring not to eat anyone of them the lion, then, asked all of them to stay there. Then he took them to the bank of a calm pond where all stood in a straight line. The new comer lion then asked the cub to see his reflection in the calm water and decide with whose shape and form he resembled to his (lion's) shape or to the shape of the comrade youngsters. The cub observed that his shape and the bunch of hair on the shoulder is alike and similiar to that of the lion. He too, had the same spots on the body as the Lion had and which were not visible on the bodies of the jackal. Then the cub lion was compelled to think that the statement of the Lion seemed to be true but he wanted to note its hidden secret. He approached the she-jackal named Amba and said “Mother! why is there the facial difference between me and my brothers? Be kind enough to tell me the truth". The mother replied, “Really you are not my son, but that of a lioness. Your mother had died as soon