Dr. Samani Mangal Pragya
According to Jain philosophy, atoms of karmic matter are possessed of four kinds of touch.[1] The cluster of karma particles are spread all over the cosmic space. The soul receives relevant particles through its auspicious and inauspicious activities and converts them into karma. Although the karma particles are spread all over the cosmic space, the soul cannot receive all of these karma particles. The soul receives only those karma material clusters which pervade the same space as occupied by its body, neither the space pervading immediately near to its body nor the space away from its body. It means that the soul receives only those karma particles, which are situated on the space units that are occupied by the soul itself.[2]
Karma particles (kārmaṇa vargaṇā) are pervaded all over the cosmos. This fact depicts that where there is soul, karma particles are also present over there. It is not necessary that the soul would only accumulate the karma particles occupying all over the space of soul-units. Sometimes, the soul appropriates karmic clusters occupying one, two or many soul-units, and sometimes, the clusters occupying all the soul-units. Both these kinds of karmic clusters are appropriated by all the soul-units.[3] It does not happen that karmic particles residing on particular soul units are received by those units only but all the soul units take part in the reception of karmas. This fact has been found in karma-Prakṛti also.[4] In the Bhagavatī Vṛtti also, the same law has been explained, accepting it as an intrinsic activity of the soul.[5] In one instant of time, the soul at once, completely receives all the karma particles that are supposed to be received.[6] Regarding the process of reception of karma, there is a concept of 'savveṇaṃ savve' in the Bhagavatī, which states that the soul receives all the karmas that it is supposed to receive through all of its units at once. There is no hierarchy in the reception.
