Chapter  I - Samayasara Samayaprabharitam

 

          In the first, and lowest stage, the soul is subject to right-conduct deluding and right-belief deluding karmas.  The 25 kinds of right conduct-deluding karmas, and wrong-belief the 3 kinds of right belief-deluding karmas all these 28 causes of delusion may be present in this stage.  From here the soul always goes to the fourth, and may go to the 5th or even the 7th stage.  The soul, having fallen from the 4th may go up to the third on the operation of mixed right-belief �deluding karmas.

          In the second stage, the 3 kinds of right-belief-deluding karmas are existent, but in an inoperative condition.  The remaining twenty-five are operative.  The duration of this stage is the shortest, viz., at the most 6 Avalis, or winks or twinklings of an eye.  This is a stage, which is never touched by the soul in its progress.  It is only one of the possible 3 stages, which the soul occupies if it suffers a downfall from the 4th stage.  These 3 downward stages are the lst, 2nd and 3rd.  If the soul�s rightbelief of the 4th stage gets mixed up with wrong-belief, by the operation of the mixed-wrong-and-right-belief-deluding karmas, the soul falls down to the 3rd stage.  From the 3rd, it may come down straight to the 1st or rise to the 4th stage.  But the operation of the error-feeding passions without operation of wrong-belief brings about the downfall of the soul from the 4th to the 2nd stage, Hence also, it falls back into the first stage, the universal pit of Delusion and wrong-belief, in which rests the bottom rung of the ladder of Progress, and from which the soul once more rises to the 4th stage, to try to rise higher, if possible.

          In the third stage, only 22 causes of delusion are operative namely, 21, i.e., all except the 4 error-feeding passions of right-conduct-deluding karma, and only one, i.e., mixed-right and wrong-belief of the right-belief deluding karma.

          In the fourth stage, only 21 are operative.  There is no right-belief-deluding karma, except in the condition of destruction-subsidential-right-belief, where there is operation of the 3rd kind of right-belief-deluding karma, I,e,., when the right-belief is clouded by slight wrong-belief.

          In the 5th stage, only 17 are operative.  Four more, i.s., the partial-vow-preventing passions become quiescent.  From here the soul never goes to the 6th; but always to the 7th stage.

          In the 6th stage, only 13 operate.  The 4 total-vow-preventing passions become quiescent.  The 6th stage is also a retrogressive one.  It is reached by a soul which is going down from the 7th stage.  But such a downfallen soul may regain the 7th stage from the 6th.  Indeed this ca go on for a long, long time.

          In the 7th and 8th stages 13 operate.  But their operation is mild.

          In the 9th stage, 7 operate, 6 slight passions of risibility, indulgence, ennui, sorrow, fear and disgust subside or are destroyed.

          In the 10th stage, only the slightest greed remains.

          In the 11th stage all the 28 causes of delusion subside.  Here the soul can stay at the most for one antar-muhurta.  From here the soul must fall down gradually to any of the lower stages up to 7th, so that from the 7th it can go up the destructive ladder to the 8th and higher stages, skipping the 1st or the highest point of the subsidential ladder on its way from the 10th to the 12th stage, the highest point of the destrucrtive ladder, where delusion does not subside but in entirely destroyed.

          In the 13th, the soul is subject to mundane vibratory activity due to body-making karma.

          In the 14th there is no vibration at all.  It is perfectly steady.

          Thus, it will be seen that all these fourteen spiritual stages are due to wrong belief, vowlessness, carelessness, passions and vibratory activity.  Carelessness (Pramada) in intensity or mildness lasts from the first to the sixth stage of imperfect-vow.  Therefore the first six stages are referred to by the word �Pramatta.� All the other eight stages are meditative and free from carelessness in pursuing the path of self-realisation and are described by the author as �Apramatta.�  The stages are indices of degrees of progressing thought-activities.  They are mere steps of a ladder to reach the abode of Liberation.  When the top is reached, the ladder is left behind.  Thus the soul in its essence is devoid of any distinction of stages.  It is the pure Soul substance full of the infinite attributes of Omniscience, Omnipotence, etc.  In one word, the soul is itself GOD.  For further details of stages consult Gommatasara Jiva Kada, - S. B. J., Vol. V, pp. 8-51.

 

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          7.  From the practical (point of view) (right) conduct, belief, and knowledge are predicated of the knowing soul.  But (from non-differential point of view there is) neither knowledge nor conduct nor belief.  The knower (is) pure (knower itself).

 

Commentary.

          For practical purposes, we speak of the attributes of the soul, its right-belief, knowledge and conduct.  But it is an indivisible unity.  All attributes are implicit in its nature and merely mainfest themselves in different aspects of the activity.  Every individual substance is an inter-mixed, one inseparable group of an infinity of all-pervading attributes.  The Soul is also such a group of infinite attributes, of which the most important are the sacred trinity of right-belief, right-knowledge and right-conduct.  He who realises this, does not lose himself in distinctions, but becomes absorbed in his own self and enjoys the nectar of his own eternal essence.  For the not-knowing pupil, the wise teacher (Achraya) selects some of the special qualities, and describes the substance by them, so that the pupil may properly understand that substance as distinct from others.  Thus it is possible only for this practical purpose to make divisions of its qualities.  The substance is really an indivisible whole, and can be known truly only by the realisation of the entire wholeness.

 

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          8.  But as a non-Aryan (is) never capable of understanding without a non-Aryan tongue, so without practical standpoint, an exposition of reality is impossible.

 

Commentary.

          Here the author points out that the practical point of view is nothing but a mode of representing the reality.  An Arab or an Englishman, ignorant of Samskrit, cannot understand the truth in that language.  So the unadvanced seeker after truth cannot understand the language of Reality, unless it is translated into the language of practice and outer comparison and realisation, which alone can be properly grasped by worldly people.  Thus the practical standpoint (Vyavahara Naya) is essential for the exposition of the inner reality (Nishchaya Naya) of things.  The Absolute Reality transcends all our experiences of matter; hene the inadequacy of language for explaining it; but language and a distinct phraseology has to be adopted as of necessity.

 

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          9.  The saints, (who are) the expounders of the Universe, all him a knower of scripture, who in reality, from knowledge of the scriptures, knows this very soul (to be) absolutely pure.

Commentary.

          The author points out that although a shruta-kevali has full knowledge of all the scriptures, yet from real standpoint he can only be terned shruta-kevali, when he realises the absolute and pure soul.  It is so because the object of scriptural knowledge is to procure self-realisation, which alone is the cause of internal and eternal peace and happiness and of shedding off of the karmas, which binder soul from attaining its full and perfect status.

 

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          10.  The Conquerors call him a knower opf scriptural knowledge who has all scriptural knowledge; because the soul (is) all knowledge, therefore (it is also) the knower of scriptural knowledge (Shruta-Kevali).

 

Commentary.

          This Gatha gives an illustration of the practical point of view, which has been said to be a means for explaining the real point of view.  It is only with reference to his being possessed of all scriptural knowledge that a Shruta-Kevali is called as such from the practical point of view; and in view of his realisation of the self, he is termed so from the real point of view.  As knowledge of scriptures is not distinct from all-knowledge, the attribute of the pure soul, this description from practical standpoint merely indicates that a Shruta-Kevali is really the knower of the self in its reality.