Some Jain Concepts and Conduct

Author(s): Sushma Singhvi
Publisher: B J Institute

Page 72

The Concept of Ātman)
[61
para-viveka) is cognition. This activity to know any padārtha by soul is due to its Jñānacetana. The vibhāva pariņāma of soul gives rise to the bondage and fruition of karmas. All the activities whether good or bad of the soul in which Pudgala karma is an instrument and which are taking place uninterrupted are due to the karmacetana of Jiva. Pleasure and pain are the fruits of the karmas. Jiva experiences these pleasures and pains according to the bondage of karmas and this experience is due to its Karmaphala Cetana.?! Karmaphala cetana can be well understood by a gross example: the moment out hand comes in contact with a hot thing, it automatically is taken off the hot object. The movement of the hand is symbolic of the outcome of the act of touching the hot object. This is sufficient in itself to distinguish between animate and inanimate because inanimate, being insentient, does not show any reaction which is shown by sentient animates. Thus karmaphala cetana may be accepted as an external evidence of the existence of the soul possessed of conciousness. As the organs in the form of bahirātmā are indicator of the existence of the soul, in the same way karmaphala cetana also points out towards the entity of Atman.
Karma may be classified into two catagories-Dravyakarma and Bhāva-karma. Dravya-karma is the outcome of pudgala and is attaracted towards the soul because of Bhāvakarma. Bhāva-karmas are the outcome of the thought activities of the soul. These thought-activities are extremely subtle and cannot be perceived by sensory organs. They are subject to the realization by the self, One, who has realization, is the soul. The soul in its purest form is devoid of dravya-karma and bhāvakarma and discloses kevalajñāna. All the attributes of the soul and fully manifest in this state, hence it is known as paramātmā. The soul whose activities are entirely governed by jñānacetana is known as paramātmā.
The process of purifcation of self can be illustrated by