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Chapter - 9
Samayasāra (Evam hi) In the same way, (sāvarāho cedā) the soul which is guilty (of longing for alien possession), (samkido [] uham tu bajjhāmi l’]) remains apprehensive that “I am guilty, and hence, I will be arrested,"[-is always full of fear and anxiety.of incurring the bondage of karmu]; (jai puņu) on the other hand, if (nirāvarāho) the soul is (innocent and) guiltless, (nissamko ham na bujjhāmi) then he is doubtless that “I will not be bound,”[i.e., he is free from doubt and anxiety of bondage). Annotations :
In actual life, crime is punishable by law. The laws are enacted by the government of the land and are enforced by various means including the police force. Stealing is a crime almost everywhere. A thief is apprehended by the police and produced and prosecuted in a court of law and punished. The punishment is generally imprisonment for duration of time depending upon the gravity of the crime. In these circumstances, it is but natural that, a person who has committed a crime, say, of stealing, always moves in the public with fear and anxiety of being apprehended and punished. His guilty conscience would not permit him even a moment to remain free from anxiety or fear. On the other hand, honest people who have no desire to commit theft, because they do not covet and long for other people's property, move about in the public places without fear or anxiety of being apprehended by the police. Since no crime has been committed by them, their conscience is free from being guilty and since they do not covet alien wealth, they are free from the anxiety of ever committing a crime.
The author uses this simple analogy-a common condition of everyday lifc-lo illustrate the difference between the guilty and the guiltless, in the spiritual life. In the everyday life, the alien property which is liable to be stolen is in the form of cash, jewelry, cattle and the like. In the spiritual life the alien property consists of characteristic attributes possessed by non-self, i.e. physical existence which is alien to the soul. Whenever the soul commits the mistake of coveting or claiming the alien characteristics as its own, it becomes guilty of a spiritual crime and is liable to be punished, and the punishment is in the form of bondage of karma, besides suffering the misery of a guilty conscience. On the other hand, the soul who has no desire and does not covet or claim the impure
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