________________
142
ESSAYS AND ADDRESSES
now feels a growing longing to escape from this seething whirlpool of transmigration, and has already withdrawn himself to a marked degree from all kinds of worldly concerns. The vanaprastha period begins about the commencement of old age (say, the 55th year of life), after suitable provision has been made for the family, and is spent in the training of the mind and the body both to bear the severe strain of asceticism in sannyasa, which is the last asrama. The outlook of life is completely changed now, the earlier ideals are all gone, and the ascetic wholeheartedly aspires for moksha and nothing but moksha. He lingers in the world till he obtains nirvana or till death sends him to other regions where, with the merit accumulated by asceticism, he begins life afresh, better equipped to combat death and the forces of transmigration and karma.
Such, my friends, is the brief but scientific explanation of the divisions of life in the ancient Indian civilisation, which alone can help us in the speedy realisation of our cherished ideal of Eternal Felicity and Joy. Disharmony and discord are encountered only when things are done topsy-turvy. If you try to climb to the roof by haphazard jumps and flights in the air you will certainly come to grief. But this is simply because you do not resort to the ladder which is necessary to connect the different parts of a building, and to take you to the top. Similarly, the indiscriminate, chaotic mixing up and observance of the rules appertaining to the different asramas of life is only calculated to lead to trouble. If we would attain to the coveted heights of perfection that we seek, we should pass through the different asramas in their proper order, pausing every now and then to note our shortcomings and to remove them and their causes. Indiscriminate action, the failure to observe the proper order of the numerous stages and steps and even undue haste to pass from one stage into another will only end in bringing discredit upon yourself and your Dharma. It is true that we now and then read in our Puranas of men who reached perfection in sannyasa on the instant, but these are only exceptions. It is obvious that we all cannot hope to attain perfection that way, just as we all cannot expect to become rich like the man who left his home to earn his living, but who met with an accident and fell down in an adjoining field only to discover that he had stumbled
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
