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The Unknown Pilgrims
onslaughts of bodily abrahma, but there always remains the possibility of subtle infiltrations of the passions through words and thoughts. Most of the texts on this subject provide proof of a delicate knowledge of psychology on the part of their authors, who excel in the art of unmasking all possible and imaginable ruses. We might add that these texts have been edited by men ascetics for their disiples and colleagues, of whom the chief enemy, source of all stumbling and slipping on the path, is womankind.51
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To avoid falling into various snares, to guard against negligence and loss of fervour, to be capable of struggling and conquering, to remain rooted in this attitude of detachment and not to succumb to sense attractions which present themselves not infrequently in crafty guises, there is the help and solid tower of defence of the bhāvanās. We must not forget that the sadhvis live an itinerant life; it is true that a strict discipline is conducive to interior stability, but they are to be found none the less on the roads and highways, in densely populated cities, in daily contact with the world. The rules were formulated at a time when life was more simple, more tranquil and if these rules are still valid today in regard to what is essential, yet the manner in which they are to be kept must be adapted in accordance with place and circumstance.
The bhāvanās of brahmacarya comprise five sorts of renunciation: To renounce listening to provocative tales about women, contemplating the beauty of their bodies, recalling to mind past sexual pleasures, consuming inflammatory drinks and foodstuffs and wearing finery.5
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Certain texts replace the last bhavana by this other one: to abstain from using an asana or bed, rug or mat, that may have been used by a
51 Cf. AS I, 2, 4, 3; 5, 4, 4-5; 8, 1, 16; DS VIII, 53-57; SkrS I, 4, 1.
52 striragakathāśravaṇa-tanmanoharanganirikṣaṇa-pūrvaratānusmaraṇavṛṣyestarasa-svaśarirasaṁskāra-tyāgāḥ pañca. TS VII, 7; cf. ADh IV, 101, MA V, 143; US XVI.
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