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distinguised from the ordinary soul who are under Yogic wisdom and are in a position to rc:neinber their past lives. Saiikaräcārya points out that the transition of these supermen from one body to another is voluntary and they are born with all their faculties of recollection in tact. Compare the following statement of Sarkara
खातन्त्र देहानान्तरमन्यव सारन्तः खाधिकारनिवर्तनाय अपरिगुपितस्मृतय पत्र देहन्द्रिया निसियामानय सान उगताग वा रितिष्ठन्ति । न चत जातिस्म।
I '70 si rapida
They are not like ordinary yogis gifted with the power of remeinbering their past lives. We are reminded here of specific instances of great souls of some supercosmic regions coming down to the level of earth-consciousness of their free will. Many concrete instances may be multiplicd in this connection. Their descent and activities do not really fall within the scope of the subject matter of the thesis as they are supposed to be above the laws of karma and yet within the jurisdiction of the supercosmic universal activity of the great Lord.
There are many similar instances of descent in the human life which we have dealt with in the Chapter on the Paurāņika Literature. We are informed by the Ägamas there are two kinds of souls which take their birth as human beings on carth--Most of these souls reincarnate under the law of karma to make good their past human history and function on the earth by way of retribution of their past history. Their lives have to be explained under the law of karma in the usual acceptation of the term. All these souls are supposed to belong to the sakala type, but we should remember that even Adhikarika souls belonging to the nigher worlds of pure matter may take their descent in the regions of praksti specially in the realms of Brahmānda. These souls need not be ordinary Pasus. They may be of the regenerative type. Who have shaken up their animal nature under the influence of Divine Grace or Suddhavidya and are now inhabiting as Adhikārika souls in the regions of pure matter as regenerated souls
1. Sänkara Bhüşya an Brahma Sūtra, 3.3,32.