Prakash Sancheti
Page 23
Text:
3. Remote Knowledge (Avadhi-Gyan):
The Jains believe in the capacity of Soul to know all things about time, distance and modes (atom substance). The past as well as the future can be perceived as vividly as the present. The soul is inherently capable of perceiving all things with all their characteristics - past, present and future. But the capacity of Soul is obstructed by Gyanavaraniya karmas (knowledge obstruction) which cover the Soul and permit it only an imperfect understanding of the world. The nature and extent of knowing capacity of a Soul therefore depend upon the nature of the cover. But there can never be a total covering of knowing capacity of the Soul. In this case the Soul would become as good as non-Soul. The knowledge of the Soul is never completely prevented by the cover just as the light of the Sun or the Moon is never totally covered even by the darkest clouds.
The possession of Avadhi-Gyan is natural to the residents of heaven and hell. The Avadhi Gyan in their case is bhavpratyay (due to birth). The Avadhi Gyan of the human beings is due to the removal of karmic cover. It is acquired by merit and is called gunpratyay (due to merit). By Avadhi one can intuit only those things which have shape or form. The intuitions differ in time and distance with different persons on account of the difference of the merits. The highest type of the Avadhi Gyan can intuit past, present and future of all the things having form or shape throughout the inhabited universe.
