GOMMATSARA KARMA-KANDA
PREFACE.
This translation was made in 1917 at Indore after I had finished my translation of Jiva Kanda (Volume Fifth of the Sacred Books of the Jainas). Only this, Part I, was translated. My official duties, health and may similar circumstance obstructed both a future translation and an earlier publication. In this, as in the publication of my other long-lain manuscripts, I am beholden beyond repayment to my beloved and revered brethren Jaina Dhrma Bhushana Brahmachari Sital Prasadaji and Pandit Ajit Prasada, M.A., LL.B., both of whom have been doing this labour of love and piety at Lucknow from August 1926.
Karma Kanda in brief, is a scientific analysis of Evil, of Sin. Evil is material, as God or the Pure Soul is certainly immaterial. The Jiva Kanda deals primarily with the Soul; the Karma Kanda with the material and self-forged Karmic fetters of this soul. It describes the matter and manner of this bondage, so that true and accurate knowledge may help the imprisoned, embodied soul to live a life leading to freedom and Bliss.
Indeed the only use of true books-the “Bibles” of the world-is to teach people how to live. Otherwise they are a “dull and endless strife”, and the over production of books on all subjects and in all countries may well be called a prostitution of the press, and distraction and dissipation of the human intellect. The Press is like the Frankenstein of old, which created by man, has mastered him to the strangling point. The fiction Magazine with its teachings of crime and lasciviousness, the daily newspaper with its reports of divorcees, dacoities, and all the dirty details of human defects and aberrations are the greatest interments of the Devil. Our costly and artificial systems of Education and Government also seem to be open to the same objection mostly. Well have the Conquerors of pain and ignorance (the Jinas) prohibited frivolous talk, jests, pranks, stories of sex, crime, political gossip, etc., etc., as Pramada (carelessness) leading to entanglement in Samsasra (mundane life), and obscuring the real qualities of the soul. As it is impossible to improve upon that wonderful gem of Jaina Sacred Literature, the Jaina Bible, I have purposely quoted at length, in the Introduction, from Saint Umasvami’s Tattvartha Sutra, as it gives eternal, patent remedies and procedure for lessening and removing human ills.
It is a very long process to show the application of these remedies to our many and complex needs of every-day life; and its is obviously impossible to indicate their application to individual needs. But the remedies are these, and every man and woman, knowing his or her own faults and frailties, needs and desires, can easily find guidance after studying these general rules of right human conduct. The test of the pudding is in the eating thereof; and the test of the value of these teachings is when a man follows them and finds that they cure his weakness and sorrow and give him peace, power, calmness, a noble delight in his own work and life, and joyous co-operation and brotherly service in his relations with his neighbors and living beings generally. In one work, these teachings instill into one on insight of his being a chip of the eternal Omniscience and Omnipotence which we call GOD, and at the same time excite him into an easy, almost instinctive, realisation of his being a happy member of the Universal Fraternity of all Living Beings.
Whatever is correct in this volume, is due to the grace of the Tithamkaras and the kindness of my devoted friends at Lucknow; but whatever is a mistake in matter and manner is entirely due to my unworthiness and laziness, i.e., to my Pramada.
INDORE,
NEW YEAR’S DAY, 1927. J.L.JAINI
INTRODUCTION
Gommata-Sara, Karma-Kanda is really a complement of Shri Nemi Chandra Siddhanta Chakravarti’s Jiva Kanda of Gommata Sara. For gerneral remarks of the whole book, reference may be made to the Introduction to my translation of Jiva Kanda Volume Fifth of the Sacred Books of the Jainas. Here only Karma Kanda will be dealt with.
The Six Substances.
Space and time are co-extensive and infinite. Space consists of the Universe (Loka), and the Non-Universe (Aloka). The Universe consists of two substances: Living (Jiva) and non-living (Ajiva). The Living alone has consciousness, power to attend and to know. The non-Living has neither Consciousness, nor Attention, nor Knowledge. This is of 5 kinds: (1) Matter (Pudgala) i.e., table chair, brick, stone, etc. (2) Principle of Motion (Dharma) which is an essential auxiliary of the motion of soul and matter. (3) Principle of Rest (Adharma), which is a similar auxiliary of the cessation of the movements of souls and matter. (4) Time (Kala), in virtue of which things become old, new, or continue in their existences. (5) Space (Akaha), which gives their place or location to all substances. These six, Jiva, Pudgala, Dharma, Adharma, Kala, and Akasha, are called the six substances or Dravyas.
Dravya.
Dravya literally means flowing or continuing. It is so-called, because it flows or continues the same through all its modification. It is called “St” or Existence also. Existence or substance is a collective name for a trinity-unity of Birth (Utpada), Decay (Vyaya) and continuance (Dharauvya).
Attributes (Guna).
A Substance further is group of attributes and modifications, As there are 6 substances, some attributes are general or common; others are special. Samanya-guna, or common attributes are found in all substances; there are the attributes which are necessary for the existence of the group, as a group or substance.
These are infinite but 6 are principal:
1. Astitava, Is-ness; Indestructibility; permancence; the capacity by which a substance cannot be destroyed.
2. Vastutva, Functionality; capacity by which a substance has a function.
3. Dravyatva, Change-ability, capacity by which it is always changing in modifications.
4. Prameyatva, Know-ability : Capacity of being known by someone, or of being the subject matter of knowledge.
5. Agurulaghutva, Individuality; capacity by which one attribute or substance does not become another and the substance does not lose the attributes whose grouping forms the substance itself.
6. Pradeshatva, Spatiality, capacity of having some kind of location in space.
Chetanatva, Consciousness …..
Amurtatva, Immateriality …..
Are common attributes of the class of substance, or group of attributes, called
soul.
Achetanatva, Unconsciousness …..
Amurtatva, Immateriality
Are common to Space, Motion, Rest and Time.
Achetanatva, Unconsciousness
Murtatva, Materiality ……
Are commons to matter.
Vishesha guna are special attributes of a particular substance. These are the attributes which distinguish one group from the others.
Vishesha-guna or special attributes of each substance are:-
1. Jiva-Soul
1. Knowledge. In its full form it arises only in the absence of knowledge-obscuring karma.
2. Conation. In its full form it arises only in the absence of conation-obscuring karma.
3. Bliss. In its full form it arises only in the absence of all the 4 destructive karmas, etc.
4. Power. In its full form it arises only in the absence of obstructive karmas, etc.
5. Right Belief In its full form it arises only
6. Right conduct in the absence of deluding karma
7. Avyavadha. Undisturbable, due to the absence of vedaniya or feeling karma; neither pleasure nor pain.
8. Avagaha, Penetrability, due to the absence of age-karma.
9. Agurulaghutva, due to the absence of family determining karma.
10. Sukshmatva, fineness due to the absence of body making karma.
The first 6 are Anujivi attributes, which co-exist in and constitute the substance.
They arise fully only on the destruction (kshaya) of the 4 destructive (Ghatiya) karmas; Conation and knowledge-obscuring; Deluding; and Obstructive.
The last 4 are Pratijivi attributes, which merely indicate the absence of their opposites.
The last 4 are Prativivi attributes, which merely indicate the absence of their opposites.
They arise fully on the destruction (Kshaya) of the 4 non destructive (Aghatiya) Karmas; Feeling, age; Family-determining and Body-making karmas.
2. Pudgala, matter has for its special attributes:-
1. Touch;
2. Taste;
3. Smell &
4. Colour.
3. Dharma, has for its speical attribute the quality of being the medium of motion.
4. Adharma, medium of rest.
5. Akasha, Space; its special attribute is to give place to all substances.
6. Kala, Time; its special attribute is to bring about modifications.
Modifications (Paryaya).
Modifications occur only with reference to attributes. This alone is what is meant by Birth and Decay. Modifications or conditions change:- i.e., a new condition is born, i.e. comes into existence (Utpada), and the old one decays, i.e., goes out of existence (Vyaya). The essential attributes of the substance always persist through all these modifications. It must be clearly understood and constantly remembered that substance is one; the birth and decay in its modification, and the continuance of the substance itself are only 3 aspects of viewing one and the same thing. Also Substance (Dravya), Attribute (Guna) and Modifications (Paryaya) are three mutually interpervasive aspects of the one trinity-unity; attribute is noting different from substance and modifications. So for all the three. When we talk or think of one, we necessarily talk or think of the remaining two. The threefold distinction is merely for the purpose of exposition and explanation by our limited knowledge to others of limited knowledge. The soul with Omniscience sees the whole trinity unity in its entirety at one and the same time.
The Embodied Soul.
In the Universe, the Jiva Dravya or Soul is found mixed with non-living matter. Even the most ordinary and the least civilized men, even animals, exhibit their recognition of this fact. For Death is a most universal and eternal phenomenon. The living body is living; when death intervenes, the body becomes lifeless, or dies. Life has left the body. This life is the Soul; the body represents the grossest and most visible form of matter, with which the Life was clothed, and which was “Living” only so long as Life or Soul was united with it.
The 7 Tattvas.
The Soul (Jiva)and the Non-soul (Ajiva) are the first two Tattvas. The most important non-Soul is the Pudgala Dravya or Matter-Substance. The most important combination of soul and matter is our body.
It is also manifest that this body is constantly changing, in virtue of our activity of mind, speech and body. A feeling of modesty in the mind of the maiden paints her cheeks with blush. A sad thought gives one a long face. Criminal broodings breed a criminal look in a man or woman. The pious chanting of a hymn or prayer gilds one with the calm detachment and glory of the halo of a priest or devotee. Our food, dress, play and work, all bring about constant changes in the body.
Matter attracts matter. Generally the law of nature is “like to like.” The matter of bad thoughts attracts matter of bad thought, and ultimately becomes the father of a bad habit. This attraction of good or bad matter by the soul in virtue of its mental, vocal, or bodily activity, is called Inflow (Ashrava).
When the attracted matter ha actually become a part of our body, i.e., when it has become bound to the soul as the body is already bound to it, it is called Bondage (Bandha). The Persian word bandah “bound” for man, is literally true in this sense of Jainism. The Christian “Fall of Man” by the obsorption of Sin by man, is a parallel doctrine.
If by pious attention and right conduct, the Inflow is stopped; it is Stoppage (Samvara).
The gradual shedding of the matter already bound is shedding (Nirjara).
The total separation of Soul from the bondage of all matter is Liberation (Moksha).
In brief, Jiva or Soul plus Karma or Matter is what it is now in its embodied, mundane condition; and the embodied soul minus all matter is what the soul will be in its Pure and Liberated condition in Moksha.
Matter.
This matter (Pudgala) is of 6 kinds :-
1. Gross-gross, of very gross matter (solid), e.g. a mountain, a pillar of iron, etc. This class of matter when divided, cannot be united without the use of a third something;
2. Gross (liquid), e.g. water, oil, etc. On division this can be united without the intervention of a third thing;
3. Gross-fine, e.g. shade, sunshine. It is interesting to compare this with the corpuscular theory of light in Western physics, before it was replaced by the modern wave-theory of Huygens. It is matter which looks gross or tangible, but cannot be grasped;
4. Fine-gross, e.g. fragrance, sound, sweetness etc.; the distinction between this and gross-fine being that gross-fine is more gross than fine because it can be seen as light, shade, etc.; whereas fine-gross cannot be seen, although its origin may be gross. The gases of science would be fine-gross. Fine-gross included all things that may be perceived by the senses of touch, taste, smell or sound;
5. Fine, matter capable of becoming karmie matter. It cannot be perceived by the senses;
6. Fine-fine, matter which has for its atoms the combination of two or more ultimate atoms (paramanu). According to some Saints it is the ultimate atom itself. (Vide Jiva Kanda, Gathas 602-3. Outlines of Jainism, Pages 21-22.)