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Concept of Liberation and its Pre-requisites
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soul as a natural certainty from the eternal times. As described in the Pañcasūtrakaṁ, the bonded soul known as jiva is an eternal entity. This theory agrees to what has been propounded in the Sankhya philosophy. This universe has a real entity, as a non-real thing cannot exist". Thus, the real thing should have a real cause and hence the eternality of the causal element. Gitā also speaks in the similar manner when it says that an unreal thing cannot exist and a real thing cannot have its negations.5 Cause of Bondage
Resting on the theory of cause and effect the Jaina philosophy lays down that the association of soul with the deeds is the cause of bondage. The soul in its pristine form must be pure and free from all activities. However, it becomes bonded when it comes into contact with deeds. This contact with deeds is also from eternal times and this also is the cause of constant flow of creation. Though this association is from eternal times, yet it does not mean that it cannot be terminated. By eternality it is meant that we do not know the origin. The bondage of the soul which is the cause of the world is due to the pre-existing cause and that is the association with deeds. Since, the deeds are produced they can have their end also. Apparently the two situations appear to be paradoxical. As propounded by Gitā, whatever is produced has an end and conversely whatever has an end has a beginning also. Thus, there will be no real liberation. A liberated soul can again transmigrate on coming into contact with deeds. This, however, is not the case according to the Jaina philosophy. A liberated soul cannot be subjected to re-birth as on the termination of the deeds there will be no cause to effect the re-birth. Thus the eternality in the case of association of soul with deeds is not absolute but conditional existing only till the state of deedlessness is acquired. Hence, according to Haribhadra sūri, the commentator, there is no contradiction in the two situations
Pancasūtrakam deals with this matter in detail in the fifth section, i.e., pravrajyāphalasūtram. Substantiating the view that the soul is bonded from eternal times, Pañcasūtrakaṁ quotes an example of gold in the ore form. As the gold is found in ore form and cleansed later on to bring it to its pure form, similarly the soul is bonded from the beginningless times and it acquires its pure form after setting aside the association with deeds. Had the soul been un-bound from eternal times and bound later on then there would have been no real liberation as it would have been bound again. With this continuous process of liberation and bondage again and again there would have been no real purpose of liberation.
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