Acharanga Bhasyam: Sūtras 166-170 : Affluence And Poverty With Respect To Self-Discipline

2.165 duvvasu muṇī aṇāṇāe.

The monk who does not obey the commandment is poor in spirituality.

Bhāṣyaṃ Sūtra 166

The monk who does not abide by the commandment of the Jina is a poorly disciplined person. The commandment of the Jina consists in not to succumbing to ennui and relish, endurance of pleasing and unpleasing sound and touch, inhibition of interest in material things, shaking off of the karma-body, consumption of insipid and dry food. The commandment of the Jina is truly the treasure. The monk who transgresses the commandment is unlucky. He is poor in the practice of the discipline. The internal reason for not following the commandment is the rise of the past karma. The external cause is environment.

2.167 tucchae gilāi vattae.

The monk who is not loyal to the discipline fights shy of expounding the truth.

Bhāṣyaṃ Sutra 167

A person without wealth and fortune is materially empty. The person not following the commandment is spiritually empty. This is why he fights shy 0f telling the truth. It is a universal truth that a person devoid of good conduct cannot speak the truth. He does not propound the pure discipline because he hankers after personal admiration, glorification and the like. If he is empty of the basic virtues, he would decline to explain them. If he is empty of secondary virtues, he would propound them in a perverse way. This empty state or lack of good conduct is the main cause of wrong exposition of the discipline, which results in a mass of excuses advanced in support of the wrong way of living.

2.177 esa vire pasaṃsie.

The courageous observer of the discipline is praiseworthy.

Bhāṣyaṃ Sūtra 168

A person of such courageous attitude is well confirmed in the commandment. He is endowed with the wealth of discipline. He has spiritual plenitude, as he is the practiser of good conduct. Such person is not tired of preaching the pure path of non-possession whether asked or not. That a person of good conduct can never speak what is untrue is a truism. Owing to his power of the genuine exposition of the discipline, as a courageous person of strong will he finds an honourable place in the heart of the people.

He transcends the worldly involvement.

Bhāṣyaṃ Sūtra 169

It is only the person of such strong will that can transcend his association with the world.

Here 'world' stands for things like gold, silver and the like or the Nations like mother, father, etc., or the possessive instinct. Various types relationship are determined by these objects. Only the courageous ones can do this.

2.170 esa ṇāe^[1] pavuccai.

He is called the guide.

Bhāṣyaṃ Sūtra 170

The person who transcends the association with the world is worthy of being called the religious guide. The person who is entangled in wealth or family is not entitled to guide. The chief merit of the spiritual guide is the power of renunciation.