________________
DISCOURSE 50
23
hours a day; and in doing so, they experience delight. Some people enjoy the noble company of spiritual heads; and for hours, they keep listening to their discourses. Some people experience delight in rendering service to people and to animals and birds. Throughout their lives, they keep rendering such service to people or animals and birds. In this manner, you should enjoy carrying out some noble activities. If you take delight in doing such noble things you will not take delight in doing wicked things. Sometimes, you may commit some ignoble actions; but you should not take delight in doing them.
RECOGNIZE YOUR ENEMIES AND DISCARD THEM
Desire, anger, avarice, arrogance, pride and sinful delight are the inner enemies and you have known them. These enemies appear in various deceptive disguises; and you must carefully scrutinize and recognize them; otherwise, they will catch you in their snares. When man recognizes and tries to discard those inner enemies, it becomes easy for him to exercise control over his senses. Do you want to exercise control over the senses ? Do you desire to achieve a victory over the senses? In order to achieve this you have to discard the inner enemies. For this, it has been said that it is absolutely necessary to get rid of the inner enemies. The way to achieve a victory over the senses is to achieve a victory over the inner enemies. The man who attains a victory over the inner enemies, will surely attain victory over the senses. The man who is enslaved by inner enemies cannot achieve victory over the senses even if he adopts millions of means. The senses are deeply related to the inner enemies like desire, anger, avarice, arrogance, pride and sinful delight.
The courtezan, Kosha, decorated herself in a fascinating manner and was dancing in the presence of Shri Sthulabhadraji; was she not? But her radiant beauty did not have any effect on his senses. Shri Sthulabhadraji's senses remained unmoved and unshaken by her fascinating appearance. Why were not his senses moved and fascinated by her beauty ? Her beauty could not fascinate his senses because he had achieved an absolute victory over his inner enemy Kama (desire). If he had not achieved a victory over his Kama or passion, he would have been
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
