________________
secretions of animals and humans' (sammurchim), and from the earth (udbhijja) e.g. moth (Dasaavaikalika Sutra: 4.39).
A worldly soul, accompanied with its subtle karmic and luminous bodies, transmigrates to another existence in a fraction of a second. Its motion may be in straight lines to the place of rebirth or with maximum of three turns; the impetus of the motion in a straight line is provided by its previous body, while the karmic body provides the impetus of the turns. The karmic body determines the destination and physical form of the living being, while the luminous body provides the preliminary energy for formation of the vital organs. The liberated soul always moves in a straight line to its destination in Siddhasilaa, the apex of the occupied universe. (Tattvartha Sutra: 2.26-2.31).
The different species have varied places of conception (yoni), which may be a womb, other physical centres or nuclei, and can be hot or cold, covered or open, living or non-living. Jain scriptures refer to 8.4 million types of nuclei that can give birth to the soul (table 6.3), to whom Jains ask for forgiveness in their daily ritual of penitential retreat for the harm done, knowingly or unknowingly (Doshi 1979:120-121)
Table 4.2 Types of nuclei for birth of the soul.
Senses One-sense
Types of living beings
earth-bodied water-bodied fire-bodied
air-bodied individual-bodied plant
Number 700,000 700,000 700,000 700,000 1,000,000
life
Two-senses Three-senses Four-senses Five-senses
common-bodied plant life
e.g. worms
e.g. ants e.g. butterflies birds, fish, animals
infernals
celestials human beings
1,400,000 200,000 200,000 200,000 400,000 400,000 400,000 1,400,000 8,400,000
TOTAL
Jiva possesses 'life forces' (praanas) essential for the soul to live, hence it is known as praani. The life forces are of two kinds: external or physical, and internal or psychic. Worldly souls possess both physical and psychic life forces, while liberated souls possess only psychic life forces. Praanas are essential to the jiva for its existence and for proper functioning of its sense organs. When a living being dies, the life forces cease to function.
Physical life forces are of ten types: the sense of touch, the sense of taste, the sense of smell, the sense of sight, the sense of hearing, mental energy, vocal energy, physical energy, respiration, and the span of life.
Psychic life forces are of four types: faith, knowledge, conduct, and spiritual energy,
128
