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DISCOURSE 70
295
ACT ACCORDING TO YOUR TRADITION
You must realize one point very clearly. These ordinary principles are being described for those people who are traversing the approach-road to the path of Moksha. Whether a person is a Jain, or a Shaivait or a Vaishnava or a Buddhist; whatever may be the religious tradition to which he belongs, if that man is a marganusari i.e., one who is traversing the approach-road to the path of salvation; if he does not despise the path of Moksha; these ordinary principles will be present in his life or he would be living in accordance with these ordinary principles or he will be endeavouring to live by these principles. Men should worship the Almighty in accordance with their respective religious traditions. You are all Jains, so the Jain system of worship has been explained to you. Of course, the system of worship followed by the Digambar Jains is not like our system. In the same manner we find some big or small differences among the various other religious traditions, (Gachchas). In the past, many controversies took place in respect of these ways of worship.
NO CONTROVERSY
You should not be entangled in such futile controversies. On account of their entanglement in such controversies people forget the basic point namely the devotion for the Paramatma. The love for the Paramatma will be lost. Therefore, you should not enter such controversies and wranglings. Another point is this. You have no knowledge of the shastras. How can you participate in a controversy without the knowledge of the Shastras, and without a knowledge of the science of logic ? If you desire to enter controversies, begin studying the Shastras. You study the Tarka Shastra (logic) and the Nyayashastra (the science of reasoning). Will you study those shastras ? or do you want to carry on arguments and controversies without studying them ? If that is your idea you will be unwise. Nowa-days, the number of such unwise people has been increasing in our society
If a man listens to one or two hundred discourses. delivered
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