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Rishibhashit : A Study
45
head and toe is the living being or soul. As burnt seeds do not sprout, a destroyed body is not created again.
Thus this chapter presents pure materialistic theory which is also known as the Charvak philosophy in Indian philosophies. Mention of this type of materialistic doctrines is available in details in ancient Jain, Buddhist, and Vedic literature. The thoughts propagated in this chapter are available in Sutrakritang175 and Rajprashniya176 also. Similarly Buddhist tradition also has parallel theories in Payasi-sutta.177 As such, this chapter can be taken as representative of prevailent materialistic ideas of that period. Samvay ang178 mentions about 44 chapters of Rishibhashit. If is possible that this chapter may be a later addition to Rishibhashit, because this is the only chapter out of place with the other 44 chapters uniformly propagating spiritualistic ideas. The use of the term utkat for materialists is its originality. Also the five classifications : Dandotkat, Rajjootkat, Snetotkat, Deshotkat and Sarvotkat, are not available anywhere else, making it a speciality of Rishibhashit. The classifications like dehatmavadi, paramatmavadi, mano atmavadi etc, available in various works of Indian philosophy are different than those of Rishibhashit.
21. GATHAPATIPUTRA TARUN
The 21st chaptero f Rishibhashit179 contains the discours of Gathapatiputra Tarun. Besides Rishibhashit, his mention can not be found anywhere else in Jain, Vedic, or Buddhist traditions. His basic teaching in Rishibhashit is propagation of the path of knowledge. According to him ignorance is the ultimate anguish.
That again is the cause of fear. This world is the end product of this void of knowledge, in other words the living continues to be reborn in this world because of absence of knowledge, or ignorance. He states about himself, "Earlier I did not know, perceive, or comprehend due to ignorance; but now, due to knowledge, I know 'percieve', and comprehand, in the past, due to ignorance, I indulged in many immoral and unethical deeds under influence of passions; but now, having knowledge, I shall bring all the sorrows to an end and obtain the permanent and eternal abode, which is liberation.
Giving examples it has been shown in this chapter that because of ignorance how deer, bird, or elephant are caught in trap, how the fish
ait, and how the moth burn themselves kissing a flame Because of ignorance alone an aged lion jumps in water to fight its reflection, and ends its own life. Similarly mother Subhadra consumes her own son Supriya due to ignorance.
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