Religion and Philosophy of the Jainas

Author(s): Virchand R Gandhi
Publisher: Jain International Ahmedabad

Page 95

62 RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY OF THE JAINAS above these little things and proceed on our path to salvation or liberation, which is the real aspiration of the soul. There is power of matter itself, but that power is lower than the power of the soul. If there was no power at all in the body or in matter, the soul would never be influenced by it, for mere non-existence will never influence anything; but because there is such a thing as matter, when the soul thinks that there is a power of the body and a power of the matter, these powers will influence it. Bodily power, as we see it, is on account of the presence of the soul. There is a power in matter, us cohesion, etc. and this will work although the soul does not think anything about it. If the moon revolves around the earth, there are soine forces inherent in the earth and moon. What I mean to say is that the influence of these material powers on the soul powers depends on the soul's readiness or willingness to submit to these powers. If the soul takes the view that it will not be influenced by anything, it cannot be so influenced. What is Its Origin ?
This being the soul's nature what is its origin ? Everything can be looked upon from two standpoints, the substance and the manifestation. If the state of the soul itself is to be taken into consideration, that state has its beginning and its end. The state of the soul as living in the human body had a beginning at birth and will have an end at death, but it is a beginning and end of the state, not of the thing itself. The soul taken as a substance is etemal; taken as a state every state has its beginning and end. So this beginning of a state implies that before this beginning there was another state of the soul. Nothing can exist unless it exists in some state. The state may not be permanent, but the thing must have a state at all times. If, therefore, the present state of the soul had a beginning, it had another state before the beginning of this state, and after the end of this state it will have another state. So the future state is something that comes out of or is the result of the present state. As the future is to the present so the present is to the past. The present is only the future of the past. What is true with regard to the future state is true with regard to the past and present states. The acts of the past have determined our present