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506 : Scientific Contents in Prākrta Canons
oja-hara ), (ii) diffusible ( through hairs, roma-hara ) and (iji ) morsel ( kavalāhāra ). In contrast, Virasena29 has given six types of foods on this basis : (i) absorbable, (ii) morsel, (iii) Kārmic intake, (iv) Quasi-kārmic intake, (v) Mental/emotional intake and ( vi ) intake by covering or massaging. The last one may be a form of diffusible intake. It is also said there that the living beings under transitional movements, salvateds, extricating soul-points ( samudghāta-gata ) and omniscients with and without activity stage do not have any intake. Lodha3o does not seem to be right when he translates absorbable food as a process of assimilation. The term means a process similar to digestion starting after the intake. The term, oja-āhāra ( intake of, say, solar energy ) should mean intake by absorption which could occur on outer or inner surface. The surfacial absorption of solar heat or air by our body or plants is an example of this process. That is why, Mahāprajña31 has called this class as energy intake.
The roma-āhāra ( intake through soft skin hairs ) may be called the process of diffusion or osmosis. It always occurs in plants and body cells. Intake by skin and touch consists of the same process, involving hairlines. It also occurs during foetus development. It is a constant intake. It is invisible to the eye, but now it could be verified by experiments on plants. Virasena's massaging may also partially involve this process.
The 'kavalāhāra' (morsel, mouthful or swallowed-up) is the intake of solids or liquids by mouth.
All these three classes of foods are common to all living beings (except 1-sensed ). The feeds-in-actuality class of Sūtrakrtānga involves these three types of intakes.
However, when the Jaina ācāryas observed effects of emotions and commotions on living beings, they included the different karmas, quasi karmas and pshychic volitions among the class of foods. It is surprising that these ettects were observed qualitatively in India in early centuries. In reality, all these three types are forms of fine energies of different nature.
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