Acharya Tulsi
Jainism recognises the doctrine of self—responsibility. Lt means that the individual is himself the creator of his joys and sorrows, fortune or misfortune, victory or defeat, superiority or inferiority. From this point-of-view, it is not reasonable to blame another for a particular situation in one’s life. If a man’s efforts are not properly directed, the possibility of_ happiness is stalled for him. But if his action flows from awakened consciousness, no harm can ever come to him. Even if, because of extraneous factors, he is visited by misfortune, he is quite capable of changing it into good fortune. That is why it is said, "Go into the causes; understand them thoroughly. But a cause is, can never be, the final determinant, and no cause can withstand the hurricane of right effort."
Right environment and favourable circumstances awaken a man’s valour. This is a common observation. But to say that without the right environment and opportunity, a man cannot exert at all, would be a partial observation, and those who base their action on a partial truth, are obliged to halt midway, or turn away from their goal. The smoke rising from the corridors of circumstances often compels a man to close his eyes, but the man, who can endure this smoke unperturbed, marches ahead without any obstruction, and his footsteps serve as a guiding light to others.
Those who have deep faith in the efficacy of effort are possessed of an aspiration to make a path of their own and live their life in their own way. It is a marvellous art to create and live a life of one’s own. Only those people can master this art, which are fully alive to the importance of character as an indivisible part of their being. The man, who is negligent about his character, loses all his powers. A life glowing with the virtue of character has grandeur of its own. In order to preserve this glory, it is necessary to awaken one’s capacity for denial. The man, who rejects temptations, becomes his own master; through his very denial, he becomes the creator of his own destiny. Uninfluenced by outside circumstances, he learns the lesson of self-responsibility. Such a man is possessed of right vision, right knowledge, right experience and right conduct. Vision and conduct—between these two banks flows the river of joy and sorrow, of fortune and misfortune.
