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Five-sensed organisms such as human beings and some animals have a mind and are called samjni jivas; others do not have mind.
Every living being has at least one sense, the sense of touch, and has the potential to have five senses. The attainment of additional senses depends upon the merit of bodyproducing karma. The scriptures mention the size, shape and spatial functional capacity of the senses. Their functioning depends upon direct or indirect contact with external objects and their natural capacity is subject to body-producing karma.
Senses are of two types: physical and psychic. The physical senses have a material structure. The psychic senses represent the power or function of the self. Thus, the sensory organs (indriya) have two forms: a physical portion (dravyendriya), created by body-producing karma, and a psychic portion (bhaavendriya), created by the shedding of knowledge-obscuring karma. The physical part is further divided into the organ itself (nirvrutti) and its protective covering (upkarana), such as the eye-lid. The psychic part is also divided into two: labdhi and upayoga. Labdhi is the manifestation of the specific sensory experience obtained through the removal of knowledge-obscuring karma (psychic impediment). Upayoga is the psychic force determining the specific sensory experience arising from the contact of the particular sense organ with an object of stimulation. It also depends upon the degree of shedding of knowledge-obscuring karma.
The newly embodied transmigrated soul carries the karmic body, in the form of particles, from its previous existences. The karmic particles, which are collected and attached through the actions of previous existences, have an 'unconscious' presence in the newly formed body. They are dormant but have the potentiality to manifest themselves and can be realised under certain circumstances in the conscious mind, when they exhibit sinfulness or virtue. Jain texts term the possession of karmic particles from previous existences as bhava mala (dirt of existences'), and the potentiality of the soul to act through the psychic mind as labdhi. It is the bhava mala that inhibits the individual from knowing one's true identity and characteristics as a soul, but enhances one's identity as a material body and the activities concerning it.
Jains divide the mind into the psychic and the physical: the psychic is the equivalent to software and physical equivalent to hardware; the psychic mind transfers the potentiality of the soul through the karmic body to the physical mind. The consequence of this transference may result in action taken by the physical mind, and Jain seers emphasise the paramount importance of restricting this transfer of karmic influence into the physical mind, thus, attenuating any potential action. Jain ethics and their essential duties are intended to reduce karmic influence. The practice of treating other souls as equal to our own, virtuous thinking and meditation, all help to nullify the potentiality of the karmic body in harming others as well as ourselves. By virtue of transmigration, and deep insight into its understanding and knowledge of the soul, Jain seers can perceive the status of the mind in all its ramifications. Thus, this 'long view' explains the psychology of unexpected behaviour, and Jain psychology allows us to understand, in a logical way, the pattern of life through karmic influences from the past.
T.G. Kalghatgi (Some Problems in Jaina Psychology) describes the Jain view of the structure of the differing sensory organs, noting that they are not uniform. The internal area of the ear is like the kadamba flower or like a ball of flesh. The internal eye is the size of a grain of corn. The sense organ of smell is like a flower. The organ of taste is like the edge of a knife. The sense of touch is more varied. The protective covers of
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