Philosophy In Jain Agams: Vanaspatikāya (Vegetation Body)

The beings having vegetation like creeper etc. as their bodies, are called Vanaspatikāya^[1] These are of two types i.e. subtle and gross. Both of them have further two divisions namely developed and under-developed.^[2] The gross developed bodied Vanaspatikāyika beings have two divisions - common-bodied beings and individual-bodied beings.^[3] The common body inhabited by infinite number of living beings (souls) is called as common-bodied beings. These are born together and the functions such as formation of body, ingress and egress of vitality, breathing in and breathing out (of air) and in-take of aliment etc. take place together in them. All these beings are similar in nature.^[4]

Individual-bodied beings are those, whose each soul has its own individual body.^[5] In these types of beings, each soul possesses an individual single body. The subtle-vegetation-beings always share common body and infinite souls reside in a single body. These are spread in the whole cosmic area and gross living beings of vegetation reside only in a particular part of this cosmos.^[6]

Consciousness of Vegetation

Vegetation is a living being having birth, old age, life, death, colour adoption, food intake, disease and cure - all these factors prove the consciousness of a tree, which is vegetation being life^[7] In Ācārāṅga, comparing the human beings with plant bodies, it is said-

This (human body) is subject to birth, so too the plant. This (human body) is subject to growth, so is the plant body. This (human body) is endowed with consciousness, so is the plant body. This (human body) withers, so does the plant body. This (human body) needs nutrition, so does the plant body. This (human body) is impermanent, so is the plant body. This (human body) is non-eternal, so is the plant body. This (human body) is subject to metabolism, so is the plant body. This (human body) is subject to change, so is the plant body.^[8]

Among the immobile beings, the plant-bodied beings have conscious­ness, in a quite expressed form. In the earth-bodied beings and the like, the consciousness is not as manifest as in the case of a plant. This is why the former has not been compared to the human body. The comparison of the human body with the plant body is possible in all respects. Characteristics of birth, growth, nutrition, metabolism, death, disease, states of childhood, adulthood and the like and characteristics of consciousness and the like are found in most expressive manner in both human body and plant bodies.

The Ācārāṅga Cūrṇi mentions the different characteristics in the plant bodied beings like dream, longing during pregnancy (dohad)^[9], diseases etc. As regarding longing during pregnancy, it is mentioned that flowers and fruits grow when this longing is generated, developed and fulfilled.^[10] In Ācārāṅga Vṛtti, there is a mention of longing, but references to dreams in plants are not available.

Weapons for Vanaspatikāya

All the means by which the beings of vegetation can be killed are the weapons against it. In Ācārāṅga Niryukti, the weapons injurious to the plant-beings are enumerated as:

1. Weaponry tools - Scissors, axe, sickle-like heavy knife, spade, chisel, hatchet etc.
2. Parts of the body - Hand, feet, mouth etc.
3. Homogeneous weapons - weapons made of wood such as stick etc.
4. Heterogeneous weapons - weapons made of materials other than wood e.g., stone, fire etc.
5. Weapons made of a mixture of wood and other than wood, for instance, axe which is made of wood and steel and the like.
6. Psychic weapon - non-restraint.^[11]
   

The biggest class of living beings in this world are the beings of vegetation only. It is an endless storage of living beings. Living beings of this class can live for infinite time in vegetation class however with repeated birth and death.

The world of the long-bodied beings (dīrghaloka) refers to the vegetation world.^[12] It is so called because of three reasons -

1. Its body is long in size
2. Infinity in the quantity of its substance
3. The plant is in the world of long-lived beings as it is born repeatedly in a similar kind of body for a prolonged period. The rest of the living beings have smaller bodies than the vegetation body. The number of living beings and their sustenance in one particular birth of other class of beings is less in number than in vegetation.