Prakash Sancheti
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Text:
ARIHANTAS
The word 'ari' means enemy and 'hanta' means destroyer and therefore destroyer of enemies. These enemies are not external enemies but internal enemies of the Soul. They are known as Karmas. They can be divided into two. First four major karmas (ghati karmas) are as follows:
- Attachment karma (Mohaniya Karma): These are the kings of karmas. They are anger, pride, deceit and greed. These play a major role in the bondage of the Soul.
- Obstructing karma (Antraya Karma): They provide obstructions for the attainment of purity of the Soul.
- Knowledge covering Karma (Gyanavarniya Karma): The Soul is omniscient. Because of covering of these karmas it cannot achieve pure knowledge.
- Covering of vision (Darshanavarniya Karma): They cover the vision of the Soul.
Any living being who has destroyed all the internal enemies completely is known as Arihant. This is the highest aspiration to achieve for a living being. Owing to the destruction of four enemies, he achieves twelve supreme qualities of the Soul i.e.:
- Infinite prowess or omnipotence
- Right Vision
- Right Conduct
- Right Penance
- Equanimity
- Infinite strength of body
- Symmetrical body
- Thirty four extra-ordinary qualities
- Thirty five virtues of speech
- One thousand eight characteristics
- Honour by Indra
- Perfect knowledge (omniscience) which means unlimited knowledge of past, present and future about the entire universe and the non-universe or all the galaxies.
When Arihant presents and preaches sermons, there appear eight divine things which are as follows:
- Ashok tree
- Three umbrellas
- Holy Throne
- Two devine flywhisks
- Showering of flowers
- Devine orchestra
- Devine Light
- Devine Speech
Their sermons can be heard thousands of miles away. Gods, men and demons sit together in the assembly. Born enemies like lion-goat, peacock-snake and snake-mongoose give up there enmity and sit together. Those present in this assembly hear the preaching of arihant in their own language. Wherever there is an Arihant there will be neither famines, nor floods, nor storms nor epidemics.
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