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CHAPTER IX
DHARMA IN PRACTICE
It will be now evident that Jainism aims not at turning mankiad into an army of hungry beggars, constantly begging for boons from some real or imaginary superhuman agency, nor at converting its votaries into fanatics of unrequited love, revolving, moth like round some luminous spiritual ' magnet,' to be ultimately absorbed by it, but at raising everyone who cares to follow its method to the supreme status of Godhood, characterised as it is by many kinds of perfections, including those in respect of knowledge and bliss and power. In other words those who follow Jainism become not attendants upon some real or mythological god or goddess, but Gods themselves and, endowed with omniscience and all other divine qualities, live for ever in the enjoyment of perfect freedom and bliss.
The reader who has followed us thus far cannot have failed to notice the correspondence between the injunctions of the Scripture and the divine attributes of pure spirit, which come into manifestation by their observance. The fact is that dharma is the nature of the soul itself, so that its ten features--forgiveness, and the like, described on page 29 ante, only represent the natural and divine attributes, or traits of character," i.e., disposition,' of a pure, perfect soul.
This natural purity (dharma) increases by practice, imparting fresh vigour and strength to the soul at every step. It is for this reason that dharma is competent to support and sustain a soul in the moment of temptation and trial, and possesses sufficient energy to carry it to the other shore '--the land of Perfection and Bliss. It has, however, to be adopted before its assistance can be availed of in the fullest degree, though the practising of any of its injunctions-even in a second-hand* manner
# The natural correspondence between dharma and the divine attributes of the soul is possible only where religion is placed on a scientific basis, and is not to be found in those cases where faith is tinged with superstition or error, except in so far as they embody the borrowed precepts of & scientific creed. Those who practise such borrowed injunctions are said to follow them in & scond-hand manner.
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