The special point is this that here in human beings some particular power is
found. The kings, etc. have more rise of Sata Karma and the
Ksatriyas (militants) have the rise of high family status determining
Karmas also. And the association of wealth, relatives (kith and kin) etc.
is found particularly.
Or, the distresses of womb state, etc. are known clearly. As a worm is
generated in feces, similarly, this Jiva is born in the womb, forming
his body out of the union of sperm and ovum. There the growth of knowledge,
etc. and of body takes place gradually. The pain of staying in womb is
extreme. There, one completes the period in the contract form and procumbent
state with hunger and thirst feeling, etc. When he comes out of the womb then
he suffers from great misery in childhood. Some people say that in childhood
misery is less; it is not so, but due to weak power it is not manifested.
Afterwards the miseries of indulging in business, etc. and satisfying the
passion desires, etc. get manifested. The perturbation caused due to agreeable
and disagreeable feelings continues persisting and in old age he becomes
languid and then he becomes extremely unhappy. These miseries are evidently
seen happening. What more should be stated? One who does not recognize the
evidently happening miseries of human life, how would he like to listen to
their description? Someone, by chance, meets with the rise of somewhat Sata
(auspicious prakritis) that too is full of perturbation. And the ranks of the
personages like Tirthankaras, etc. are not attained without attaining
the path of liberation. Thus, in the human life, miseries alone exist.
In human life, if someone wishes to make effort for self-benefaction then he
can do so. For example, the root and the top insipid portions of a
worm-eaten sugarcane are not at all worth sucking and the middle pieces being
worm-eaten are also not worth sucking. If someone greedy to taste spoils
them he is free to do so, but if those are sown then many sugarcanes will be
produced out of them and their taste will also be very sweet. Similarly,
the childhood and the old age of human life are not worth enjoying and the
middle age is full of diseases and distresses; happiness cannot be there.
If someone greedy of carnal pleasures spoils it he is free to do so, but if it
is used in the observance of religious conduct then he will attain a very high
spiritual status. There, high degree of imperturbable happiness is
found. Hence, here (in this human birth) one should make effort for
self-benefaction and should not lose it in vain under the delusion of
happiness.
Miseries of Celestial beings
In the celestial state of existence, the power of knowledge etc. is somewhat
more than the others. They have false-belief about the Tattvas
due to perverse faith. Their passions are some what feeble. The
passions of the Residential (Bhavanavasi), the peripatetic (Ventura)
and the Stellar (Jyotiska) orders of celestial beings are not very
feeble and tehir Upayoga (active consciousness) is very fickle;
they possess some power is increasingly more. Hence, due to decrease in
restlessness anguish also decreases.
Here in the celestial beings, the anger and pride passions are found but the
motivating cause is less; so, the acts of those passions are not predominant.
The lower classes of Devas (celestial beings) are found indulging in
causing harm and humiliating others due to forlicsomenss, etc. But this type
of behavior is found in lesser measure in the higher class of Devas (Vaimanika).
It is not predominant. And the causes of deceit and greed passions are
found there; that is why the acts of those passions are predominant. As
such the acts of deceiving, desiring the objects of sensual pleasures, etc.
are chiefly found in them. These acts too are found in lesser measure in
higher and higher Devas.
Further, the motivating causes of laughter, liking quasi-passions are found in
greater measure; hence, the acts of these passions are predominant. And
the causes of disliking, sorrow, fear, disgust, quasi-passions are less;
hence, the acts of these passions are not predominant. And the rise of
female sex-passion and male sex-passion is also found and the cause of
dalliance is also present, so they enjoy copulation; these passions are too
feeble in the higher and higher
Devas. The sexual desire is absent in the Ahmindras
(Self-Gods) due to feebleness of sex-passion.
In this way, the celestial beings too have passions and anguish is caused by
the passions only.
And as the degree of passions in Devas is of lesser measure;
accordingly, the degree of misery is also less. That is why they are
said to be happy in comparison to others. In spiritual sense the
passions are alive; hence, they are only unhappy.
In Vedaniya
Karma the rise of Sata Vedaniya is more. There also it
is less in the three (residential, peripatetic and stellar) classes of
Devas and is found in increasingly greater measure in higher & higher
Vaimanika (heavenly Gods). The association of favorite state of
body, goddesses (wives), palaces, etc. is found there. And rarely due to
some reason somewhat rise of Asta Vedaniya is also found.
It is found somewhat manifested also in the lower classes of Devas, but
it is not found manifested more apparently in the higher class of Devas.
And Ayu (life-time) is very long. The minimum life-time is ten
thousand years and maximum is thirty-one Saguaros. Without
attaining the right path of liberation no one can have more Ayu
(life-time) than this. So, for such a long period they (the Devas)
remain engrossed in the carnal pleasures. And the rise of all (Punya)
auspicious prakritis of Name-Karma like Devagati etc. is
found there; hence, are the causes, of happiness. And in Gotra Karma,
there exists the rise of Uchcha Gotra only, hence, they hold
respectable position.
Thus, owing to the specialty of the rise of Punya Karmas they
possess the association of agreeable things and due to rise of passions the
carnal desire is found. Therefore, they are found engrossed in enjoying
them. But the desire is excessively more; therefore, they do not become happy.
The higher class of Devas possess the rise of highest degree of
Punya (auspicious Karmas) and the passion is extremely feeble,
nevertheless the absence of desire is not found in them also; therefore, in
spiritual sense, they are assuredly unhappy.
In this way, everywhere in the world only miseries and miseries are found.
Here ends the description of miseries from the modifications (Paryaya)
point of view.
General Characteristics of Miseries
Now, the general characteristics of all sorts of miseries are being described.
The differentia of misery is perturbation and the perturbation is caused by
desire.
Four kinds of desires
Many kinds of desires are found in this mundane being:
(1) One type of desire is of enjoying the objects of senses, due to which one
wants to know and see; for example, the desire of seeing color, listening to
melody, knowing the unknown, etc. arises. No other pain is there but so long
as one does not know and see, he feels extremely perturbed. This type of
desire is called Carnal Desire (Vishaya Ichchha).
(2) The Second type of desire is of acting according to one's passionate
emotions, due to which one wants to indulge in actions like that of harming
others, humiliating others, etc. Here, no other pain is there but so long as
that work is not completed he remains highly perturbed. This type of desire is
called Passionate desire (Kashaya-
Ichchha).
(3) The third type of desire is of removing those harmful causes which are met
with either in the body, or are external to the body owing to the rise of
Papa-Karmas. For example, on association of disease, ache, hunger,
etc., the desire of removing these arises. So, here one believes this only as
to be the anguish. So long as it is not removed he remains highly perturbed.
This type of desire is called the rise of Vice (Papa).
In this way, all
Jivas feel unhappy on the rise of these three types of desires. This is
assuredly misery.
(4) The fourth type of desire is produced due to some external cause because
of which one desires to act according to above three types of desires.
In these three types of desires each type of desire has many varieties. The
causes of satisfaction of many varieties of desires are met with due to the
rise of Punya-Karma but their means are not met with
simultaneously; that is why leaving indulgence in one desire he engages
himself in other desire and afterwards leaves this also and involves himself
in another one. As someone has got different kinds of things, out of them he
sees any one thing, leaving it starts listening to melody; again leaves it
only; after seeing one object starts seeing some other object. Similarly, the
desire of indulging in various types of activities arises. So, this desire is
called the rise of Punya-Karmas (Virtue).
The world believes this to be happiness, but this is not happiness; this is
misery only. Because, firstly nobody gets the means of satisfying all sorts of
desires. And if in someway, the resources of fulfilling the desire are met
with then their availability is not simultaneous. So long as the means of
(satisfying) one desire is not obtained, the perturbation due to the same
continues. And after getting its means, at the same time the desire of getting
the means of another desire arises; then it causes perturbation. He does not
remain unperturbed even for a single moment. Therefore, it is nothing but
misery. Or he tries somewhat to eradicate the disease in the form of three
kinds of desires; so the anguish gets somewhat reduced. But the misery is not
fully removed. Therefore, it is nothing but misery. In this way, the
mundane beings suffer from miseries in every respect.
Further, it should be known here that the whole world is afflicted by these
three types of desires and the fourth type of desire, is evolved on the rise
of Punya and the bondage of Punya is caused by engrossment in
religious acts; but the
Jiva engages himself in religious acts only sometimes. Mostly Jiva
indulges in sinful acts. Therefore, the fourth type of desire is found
in some Jivas at sometime only.
It is to be remembered that from the point of view of Jivas having
similar desires the Jiva having the fourth type of desire is said to be
happy owing to the partial decrease in three types of desires. And in
comparison to the Jiva having fourth type of desire the Jiva
having very intense desire, though found with fourth type of desire, is more
miserable. Someone possesses lot of wealth and desires it too much, then he is
very much perturbed; and one who has got less wealth and his desire is also
less, then he is less perturbed. Or someone has got the (association of)
disagreeable thing but has less desire of removing it, then he is less
agitated. And someone has the association of agreeable things but he has more
desire of enjoying them and of collecting various other things, then that
Jiva is more agitated. Therefore, it is to be known that happiness or
misery are not dependent on external causes but are governed by desire.
It is stated that the infernal (hellish) beings are unhappy and celestial
beings are happy; this also is stated from the desire point of view. Because
the infernal beings have too much desire due to vehement passions and the
celestial beings have less desire due to feeble passions. Also human beings
and sub-human beings (animals, birds, etc.) are happy or unhappy on account of
desires only. Owing to intense passions, one who has excessive desire is said
to be unhappy and owing to mild passion, one who has less desire is said to be
happy. Spiritually, the anguish only is either more or less but there is no
happiness. The celestial beings, etc. are also believed to be happy; this too
is only fallacy. In them, the fourth desire predominates, so they are
perturbed.
Thus, the desire is caused due to wrong faith, wrong knowledge and wrong
conduct (incontinence). The desire is full of perturbation and perturbation is
nothing but misery. In this way all mundane beings are assuredly suffering
from different types of miseries.
