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SANATANA JAINA. pleasures of life, and preferring even ject to it. The first is not looked upon here to spend his life in intellectual 88 an effective remedy. It can only be and moral culture in the calm solitude attended with partial and temporary of forests away from the busy haunts success. Our sutferings may arise from of men, claimed amalgamation or equa- the wrongful acts of others, and though lity with the deity as his highest re- law and public opinion are some checks ward.
on those acts, they can not stamp out We propose to examine the theory injustice and wickedness, that may be of hapiness as promulgated by the Jain oppressing us. We may feel some wants, saints. It is hardly necessary to say and be unable to satisfy them. And if that in its broad outlines ibis resem one of our desires is fulfilled, ten bles the theories of the other systems others may spring up. We may receive of Hindu philosophy, and to a certain hatred in return for love, and ungrateextent easily follows from the commuu fulness in return for kindness, In short metaphysical ideas which Jainism shares we cannot obtain periect control on with those systems. That the soul is things, outside our own mind. “Ah ! immortal, that in its essential state it vanitas vanztutum ! which of us is is perfect, and becomes imperfect by happy in this world ? which of us has its association with Karmas or deeds, his desire ! or, having it, is satistied!" that the Karmas good or bad, must So exclaims Thackeray at the end of a produce their effect befere the soul is well-known work of bis, and such 18 : liberated from them, & nd that the soul the feeling which Jainism seeks to imis therefore compelled to wander about press on mankind. in the Sangara or world, assuming If this is so, any remedy for overvarious shapes of men, animals, 80 coming sutfering should be applied to even plants according to its Karma, the mind. This as regards our own. that the world is full of endless misery, selves. As regards the outer world, we which can not be extinguished object should not by any act of ours add to ively; these are ideas met with in all the amount of sudering in it and in the the principal Bindu systems and are earlier stages of spiritual advancement in fact ingrained in the Hindu mind. Should even do what lies in our power And these ideas form the basis of the to increase the material happiness of Jain theory also.
our fellow-doings, in fact, ot all living Jainism therefore starts from the beings. We should not in any way inasumption that there is suffering in jure the feelings of any human being; the world, and gets to itself the problem we should not give pain to the lowest how to conquer that suffering. Two animal. This is our primary duty; this sorts of remedies would suggest them- is ahinsa. selves, viz., a change in the external Having therefore realiscd how diffiburroundings which bring about the cult it is to secure happiness in this suffering, or in the mind, which is sub- world without some bitterness ; how
Shree Sudharmaswami Gyanbhandar-Umara, Surat
www.umaragyanbhandar.com
