On Life and Liberation

Author(s): Mukesh Chhajer
Publisher: Mukesh Chhajer

Page 23

On Life and Liberation
The amount of effort needed will depend upon the current state of the jiva. The necessary qualities by themselves are always present but a person has to uncover and expand them. For example, the capacity for affection is ever present in all jiva but how and where one allows it to be manifested depends on the individual. Even a very cruel person is filled with affection for his own child though he may fail to extend that same feeling to another child. On the other hand, a saint extends his sense of affection to all equally. No quality that is needed for liberation can be destroyed or created. Perfection and purity are intrinsic qualities of a soul. These qualities are only temporarily hidden until a jiva is ready to uncover them either by the process of natural evolution or by its concerted efforts. Even in 3rd and 4th ara not everyone attained liberation because even though the conditions were right, not all of them put the necessary efforts or had the opportunity to do so due to being at various stages in their eternal journey.
In this respect, even the names of various aras are also very instructive. The first two aras, sukham-sukham and sukham, are period of only pleasure and happiness. When a jiva is enjoying life, the thoughts of Moksha are usually far from the mind. Such unalloyed and long lasting joy can generally be had only in heaven. Therefore, these two time periods may also correspond to a jiva's stay in various heavens. Similarly, during the last two aras of dukham and dukham-dukham, a jiva is full of sorrow and hardship and mostly dealing with immediate needs. Such extreme conditions of prolonged suffering generally exist only in various hells. At that time again, the thoughts of Moksha are far from the mind. When the jiva is going through a life where happiness and sorrow come like a wave (the middle two aras of sukham-dukham and dukhamsukham, a general state of jiva in human and tiriyanch life forms), the jiva is beset by conflicting thoughts. He is perplexed