Jain Science and Spirituality
by Medhavi Jain | 2020 | 61,419 words
This essay studies the elements of Jainism and investigates how Jain science and philosophy can give the world answers to through science and spirituality. Instead of interpreting it as a confined, strict philosophy, it is shown that Jainism represents a path towards self-awakening through self-improvement....
5.4. Nayavada and Karma
Explaining the point of views of the beginning less relation of karma with soul, it is described beautifully in Samayasara by Acarya Kundakunda:
jive kammam baddham puttham cedi vavaharanayabhanidam
suddhanayassa du jive abaddhaputtham havai kammam
—(Samayasara 141)‘The statement that the space-points of karmic molecules pervade the spacepoints of the soul, or that they touch the soul, has been made from the empirical point of view (vyavahara naya). From the transcendental point of view (nishcaya naya), the soul neither gets bonded with nor touched by the karmic matter.’[1]
Again it’s the viewpoint from which the relationship of the soul with the karmic matter is seen. In a general way we say that the soul is bound with karma since time immemorial whereas in a transcendental way the soul is considered to be omniscient at all times, which stays under infinite layers of karma, which need to be removed in order to get acquainted with its true nature.
Mankind’s pursuit to peep into philosophy leads him to enquire about the smallest indivisible part of space, time, matter and consciousness.
‘The applied starting points of Anekantavada can be followed back to the essential Jain tenet that everything in the Universe, with the exception of soul (atma) and paramanu, is an aggregate (skandha), comprising of at least two constituents.’[2]
What we see in the physical world is not their true form but the accumulation of particles caused by karma.
‘Two things can join in various ways and show numerous properties, at various occasions, under various conditions, prompting various modes. No one but soul can be in an unadulterated state and thusly it can exist in this state perpetually, however when soul becomes unclean by consolidating with karma particles, it moves toward becoming jiva (living being) and jiva can take numerous structures, contingent upon the condition of karmas.’[3]
The beauty of each living being is that at the core it is the same, pure soul. It gets different bodies merely because of the karma it performs during its journey.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
[2]:
SPJ. pp. 19
[3]:
SPJ. pp. 19