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CHAPTER TWO
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whose period of enjoyment is equivalent to this latter period.
Whether the life-quantum earned by way of karmic bondage will be earned in an apavartanīya or an anapavartaniya form is not something that happens automatically but it depends on the intensity or mildness of the mental perturbation of the time concerned. Thus life-quantum for the immediately next birth is earned by way of a karmic bondage some time during this birth. And if at this time the prevailing mental perturbation happens to be mild the resulting bondage of life-quantum is loose—so that when an occasion is available the period that was its due at the time of bondage can well be reduced. On the contrary, if at that time the prevailing mental perturbation happens to be intense the resulting bondage of life-quantum is tight—so that even when an occasion is available the period that was its due at the time of bondage is never reduced, nor is it possible to enjoy it away at one go. Just as the row of persons standing in an extremely tight formation is unbreakable while that of persons standing in a loose formation is breakable or just as the plants born of the denser sown seeds prove hard of entry for the animals whole those born of the seeds sown with a wide spacing prove easy of entry for them—similarly, the life-quantum that was subject to tight bondage on account of the intensity of the then prevailing mental perturbation is not exhausted before its due period is over however much one might employ weapon, poison etc. against the person concerned, while on the other hand the life-quantum that was subject to loose bondage on account of the mildness of the then prevailing mental perturbation can well be enjoyed away-may be within the space of one muhūrta-even before its due period is over but as soon as one happens to employ weapon etc. against the person concerned. It is this sudden enjoying away of life-quantum which is called apavartana—that is, time-reduction-orakāla-mrtyu-that is, untimely death; on the other hand, the enjoyment of life-quantum for a period that was its fixed due is called anapavartana—that is, impossibility of time-reduction-or kāla-mptyu—that is, timely death. The life-quantum open to time-reduction is necessarily
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