World Of Jainism

Author(s): Vishwanath Pandey
Publisher: Vishwanath Pandey

Page 79

THE WORLD OF JAINISM
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The Jaina Yoga
The term yoga has a long history. In the pre-Panini literature it is usually used to convey the meaning of 'connecting' or 'yoking'. In Panini's time and after that it was frequently used in the sense of 'meditation'. Patanjali uses yoga in this sense only, although the term still has other connotations. The early Jaina literature used the term yoga, as stated earlier, in the sense of vibration set in soul, which produces an influx of karmic dust into the soul and thus impurifies it. This is union, samyoga, between the self and the not-self. This meaning of yoga is diametrically opposite to that of the Yoga-sutra and other such texts concerned with meditation. Early Jainism used the word 'samyag-carita' (right conduct) to connote what we understand by yoga to-day. However, later Jainism adapted this word in the same sense in which it is used in the Yoga-Sutra.
As has been stated earlier, the ethical considerations are of supreme importance in Jainism. It treats life full of suffering whose goal lies in final liberation of soul from the bondage by rigorous mental and physical discipline. "All the professors, conversant with pain preach renunciation. Thus thoroughly knowing karma, observing the commandment, wise, unattached (to the world) recognizing thyself' as one, subdue the body chastise thyself, weaken thyself just as fire consumes old wood"." Early Jainism has, as it were, absolutely sure solution to offer to get away from all the troubles and turmoils of this mundane life. "Subdue yourself, for the self is difficult to subdue; if your self is subued, you will be happy in this world and in the next". Now how to subdue the self, is suggested in the Sutras in a very interesting dialogue between two monks. The master monk says: "The passions are the fire, knowledge, a virtuous life, and penances are the water; sprinkled with the drops of knowledge the fire of the passions is extinguished and does not burn me". Thus the aim of yoga in Jainism, or for that matter in all other systems of Indian thought, is to destroy passions by gaining knowledge which works like fire, and burns down all the bad karmas of man.
Vratas or Virtues
But to gain knowledge, one has to live a virtuous life without which, the Indian mind believes, knowledge is not possible. Jainism shares this belief with other systems of Indian thought. Again, virtuous life involves mental and physical discipline or purity. Jainism recommends the following ways for cultivating mental and physical purity: (1) by threefold control
45. Uttaradhyayana. I. 15.
44. Akaranga, I. IV. 3. 46. Ibid, XXXIII, 53.