Some Jain Concepts and Conduct

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

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[Some Jain Concepts and Conduct
an example from our daily life. A white cloth having prolonged association with dirt appears to be black but when it is washed again and again, it regains its whiteness. This analogy is well applicable to the soul also. This mundane soul is bound by karmas since time infinite. It can liberate itself from the bondage by persistent efforts spread over the span of several bhavas, life cycles. The ultimate form of the soul, devoid of passions, is the purest form of Ātman, free from all karmic impurities. It should be noted here that as in the case of the cloth, the whiteness was not regained by outward imposition, rather it, became manifest when the cover or dirt was removed from the cloth, similarly the absolute purity of the soul is its intrinsic quality which becomes manifest due to the nirjară of all types of karmas attached to soul.
Soul is sentient and upayogamaya. Upayoga is defined by Pujyapāda in the Sarvārthasiddhi as follows :
Ubhayanimittavaśādutpadyamānaścaitanyānuvidhāyi pariņāmo upayogaḥ. "32
The activity of ātman due to the relationship with consciousness is upayog. Upayoga is two fold-darśanopayoga and Jñānopayoga. Darśanopayoga is attributed to the ordinary aspect of cetana which perceives whereas Jñānopayoga is an extra-ordinary aspect of cetana which knows. When the soul is in its purest form, its upayoga is without any impurity. However, the upayoga of a mundane soul is impure due to rāga and dvesa, attachment and aversion and is known as aśuddhopayoga. There are two categories of aśuddhopayoga (1) Subha and (2) Aśubha. Aśuddhapayoga is the sole cause of the bondage of the soul with the karmas. This bondage results into various modes of the mundane soul. As soon as the soul attains Suddhopayoga it becomes free from the bondage of karmas, and gets freedom from the life cycles to become siddha. This division of souls into the categories of mundane and liberated occupies the central