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universal benefit, which is the feeling of friendship. Where the feeling of universal service is not there, but there is a tendency to ignore them by thinking that they are miserable due to their own karmic retribution that we do not have anything to do with them, one tries to use all the available means, abilities and powers only for one's own use rather than using them for the benefit of all. In such a case there is no feeling of universality but of selfishness and where there is selfishness, there is no friendship but only desire for pleasure and enjoyment. Mundane pleasure is at the root of all misery.
Although the practical form of service is always limited due to one's own ability and capacity, but the volitional form of service is unlimited and can extend to the entire universe. This is the universal feeling of service. This universal feeling itself is in the form of affection or love for all. This itself is the feeling of friendship for all the living beings. In friendship there is love, which destroys attachment. All flaws come in only where there is attachment. The law of nature says "where there are flaws there is misery'. Thus, in order to be free from misery one should free oneself from flaws. In order to be free from flaws one must free oneself from attachment and the way to be free from attachment, is to have the feeling of love and love is nothing but friendship. Therefore, where there is a feeling of friendship for all living beings, there is a natural freedom from attachment, flaws, and misery. There is no doubt about it what-so-ever.
The feeling of friendship not only destroys attachment but also the feeling of aversion. The reason for this is that the opposite of feeling of friendship is the feeling of animosity and, therefore, to give up animosity and to adopt friendship means to give up aversion and to adopt love. Like this the feeling of friendship destroys the feeling of attachment and aversion. It is, thus, a way to practice total detachment, restraint and renunciation. As has been said in the Tattvārtha sūtra -
Maitrīpramodakārunyamādhyasthāni satvaguņādhikaklisyamānāvinayeșu |
- Tattvārtha sūtra, 9.6.
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Positive Non-Violence
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