Philosophy In Jain Agams: Experience and Dissociation of Karmas

The Jain philosophy discusses different aspects of the karma theory. Generally, it is believed that as much you experience (pain, hindrance etc) that much of karmas will be shed. This too is a relative statement. There can be all possibilities, such as, more experience of pain but less karmas are eliminated and sometimes, even though the experience of pain is less but more karmas are shed. This fact is found apparently in the Bhagavatī.

For a śramaṇa (restraint ascetic), little experience may cause shunning off of major number of karmas, due to the loosened bondage of karmas. The denizens of the sixth and the seventh hell have to experience multiple and severe fruition, but, minimum karmas get shunned off^[1] The reason behind this is strong bondage of karmas. Higher intensity of experience of pains and higher number of karma's elimination is a general rule but little experience of pain and higher number of elimination of karmas is an exceptional case. The prime cause of nirjarā i.e. elimination of karmas is auspicious emotions and actions. The variation in karma elimination depends upon the purity of psyche. If there is equanimity while tolerating the experience of pain and hardships, more karmas are eliminated out of the soul and on the contrary, if there is intolerance and an imbalanced state of psyche while experiencing pain, less karmas are eliminated from the soul.^[2]

Illustration of Experiencing and Shunning off of Karma

There are four illustrations found in the Bhagavatī in regard to this context.

1. An ascetic following the rules of pratimā (intensive course of spiritual practice) tolerates severe pain with equanimity and patience, so there is massive elimination of karma.
2. The denizens of the 6th and the 7th hell do not endure their intensive pain with equanimity, so there is little elimination of karma.
3. The ascetic nearing liberation and devoid of all mental, verbal and physical activities (a state firm as Mount Meru) experiences little pain but because the level of equanimity is very high, so even though there is little pain, but massive elimination of karma takes place.
4. The celestials or deities of anuttaravimāna, the uppermost heavens feel very less pain and very less karmas eliminate over there.^[3]

Concluding the essence of all these four illustrations, Acharya Mahapragya presents that the soul who endeavours to effect falling away of karma, have avipākī nirjarā (falling away of karma which are brought to rise before their actual maturity through udīraṇā) and get rid of it. The first and the third illustration is the example of such elimination of karmas. Whereas the second and the fourth kind of examples are of vipākī nirjarā, i.e. falling away of karma due to natural fruition. In this case, there is no special efforts are undertaken to eliminate the karmas. Inauspicious or auspicious karmas come to the fruition state through the natural process, yield their results and turn away from the soul.^[4]

The above discussion about experiencing of pain, hardships and elimination of karma, clarifies the fact that tolerating pain, that comes by the way in life with equanimity causes elimination of a large number of karmas. Bringing unmatured karmas into fruition, through udīraṇā and tolerating them with equanimity is a special spiritual practice. This eliminates the karmas in greater number.

There is a special composition style in Bhagavatī that simplifies the facts, by using several illustrations. In the present context, by giving different illustrations, like those of clothes, food etc., it clarifies the concepts like mahāvedanā (massive experiencing) and mahānirjarā (massive falling away of karma).^[5]