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STAGES OF SPIRITUAL DEVELOPMENT
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As soon as the mithyātva (delusion) is controlled or inoperative, then there comes out the contrary quality called samyaktva. The tva' means ness.
The essential for the appearance of this state is that the worst degree of anger, of pride, of deceitfulness, and of greed are removed, or at least controlled and inoperative. Then a right attitude of thought, a right attitude towards truth, comes out. You are, for instance, convinced that to kill a living being is wrong. There is a relish of such convictions
A man's whole progress depends upon his acquiring this samyaktva; and it is present in each of the remaining eleven gunasthānas or stages of development. It is, therefore, present in the next guṇasthāna to be described, namely the 4th. All philosophy so-called and concenration are of no use or are all false unless this state is reached. How, then, is this samyaktva to be reached ?
The man who wishes to obtain samyaktva must pass through three stages or processes. They are called respectively : yathāpravịtti-karaņa, apūrva-karaṇa, and anivịtti-karana. But before describing them something must be said about the duration of karmas and the Jaina idea of time.
The first of these three processes lessens the duration of the karmas, and that is the first thing to do in order to obtain the samyaktva. Time
Time is the duration of the modification of substances.Duration is the fact that a given state of anything or being stays for a certain length of time. The modification (or state that is) lasts for a certain length of time. Time is not, therefore, any mysterious mystery, it is quite plain and graspable. Maximum Durations of the Karmas
The maximum time that the karmas could last is as follows; that is to say that any given karma which is in combination with the soul, would naturally be worked out during the time as given below : but then it is to be understood that while this particular karma is working out, the individual
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