Book Title: Practical Path
Author(s): Champat Rai Jain
Publisher: ZZZ Unknown

View full book text
Previous | Next

Page 69
________________ TAE PRACTICAL PATH. (xii) Dharma bhāvanâ.--Dharma (religion) without mercy is but a form of inithyâtva (falsehood); dharma is the reflection of the divine effulgence of the âtman; without dharma, moksha (freedom) cannot be attained ; true dharma is the source of life and joy to all living beings; dharma, therefore, must be observed in all things.' 5. The endurance, with equanimity and cheerfulform-in some heavens satisfaction resulting from mere contact, in others from perception, conversation, and so forth-till it finally disappear in the graiveya kas, where there are no devângnas. Longevity also varies in the different heavens, becoming longer and longer as we go up, till the longest áyult in the last anuttara comprises no less than thirty-three sângaras (oceans) of years. The residents of the highest unuttaras have only one more earth-life to undergo before final emancipation. In the madhyaloka, human beings are found in different places, in the first two and a half continents which cover the entire region illumined by the Sun. The conditions of life differ in these regions also, owing to the influence of the motion of suns, stars, moons and other heavenly bodies. In some places men enjoy great felicity, almost equalling that of devas, while in others, such as our little earth, the conditions of life vary with the periods of time. As regards the conditions of existence in hells, life is more and more painful as we descend to lower and lower regions. Duration of life also increases proportionately in the lower hells, varying from 10,000 years in the first hell to thirty-three sågaras in the lowest, i.e., the seventh. The nigoda is the place into which fall all those who commit the worst kinds of sins. These are they who may be said to go to the outer darkness,' in the language of the Bible. Their case is hopeless, and, although they might come out of it again, no one can say how long they might have to remain there. Excruciating pain, extreme misery and unbearable torment at the hands of their neighbours and superiors are the characteristics of existence in hells. The residents of these unhappy regions are all neuter, and spend their time in lamentation and anguish. Jain Education International For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

Loading...

Page Navigation
1 ... 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268