20. Samayasar Gatha 73-75

Now the disciple enquires that by which practice the asravas are discarded?  In answer the following Gatha is stated:

Gatha 73 : The Gyani considers that “ In reality I am one, pure, detached, and full with knowledge and vision.” In this manner remaining immersed in my conscious self, remaining within that experience , I destroy all the anger etc. kashayas.

Commentary :  I am this soul, directly accessible, indivisible, flame of infinite consciousness alone.

How am I ? - Beginingless-endless, always manifesting , I am one due to my nature of being like a dense block of knowledge.

I am beyond the activities of all the six predicates of karta, karam, karan, sampradan, apadan, adhikaran , different from them , pure conscious experience form pure self alone.

I  am detached and never ever manifest myself in the form of anger etc. bhavas, which are spread all over the universe and  which are owned by pudgala dravya.

The nature of substance is general-specific. The conscious brightness is also substance; therefore with general-specific forms  of knowledge –vision, I am complete within myself. 

 - Thus like akash etc. dravyas, I am a real substance having special nature.

In this manner discarding all other dravyas from the nature of self, stationary within self, blocking all the special mischievous waves generated out of the nimitta of other dravyas in the conscious self, I destroy the bhavas of  anger etc. generated due to own ignorance within the soul.

Thus deciding the nature of the soul, just as a sea which had captured a ship within a vortex of waves for long and then released now; in the same way discarding all the vikalpas ( thoughts) – taking recourse to nirvikalpa (without thoughts) stationary pure soul, becoming like a block of knowledge , the soul gets rid of the asravas.

Explanation : Taking recourse to shuddha naya the gyani decides about the soul that “ I am one, pure, detached from all other dravyas and substance full of knowledge-vision”.  In this way when Gyani immerses himself within his own nature and experiences the self then the asravas of anger etc. get destroyed.  Just as if sea had captured a ship within votex of whirling waves for long time and then released ; in the same way the soul is released from the asravas.

Now someone enquires that how does the generation of knowledge and separation of asravas happen at the same time? In reply this gatha is stated:

Gatha 74 : These asravas are bonded to the Jiva , Adhruva(not permanent), Anitya (transient), asharan ( protection less), cause of misery and their fruits are also misery- thus knowing the Gyani separates himself from them.

Commentary : Asravas are like the tree and lac which have the relationship of hunter and the hunted. Just as in peepal etc. trees the lac is generated and the tree becomes bonded with it and later due to nimitta of lac the tree gets destroyed. In the same way the asravas are generated in the Jiva on their own, bonded, and harm the Jiva. Hence Jiva is the hunted and the asravas are the hunter. This way the asravas are bonded to the Jiva due to their property of hunted-hunter. They are bonded and have opposite nature to that of Jiva , hence they are not Jiva.

Asravas are like a disease which keeps increasing or decreasing hence are Adhruva (not permanent). While Jiva is conscious nature only hence Dhruva (permanent).

Asravas are like cold and hot fever which keeps oscillating hence is Anitya (transient). While Jiva with nature like  block of knowledge is stationary not transient.

Asravas are asharan ( without protection). Just as in the sexual intercourse once the Virya is discharged, then the sexual desire also disappears and nobody can prevent it. In the same way after fruition the asravas also disappear and cannot be prevented from doing so. Hence they are asharan ( helpless) while Jiva with his own conscious nature protects himself hence is with sharan ( can help himself) .

Asravas are always riddled with perturbation hence are cause for misery. On the other hand Jiva is always unperturbed by nature hence is blissful.

Asravas are cause for manifestation of pudgala in the form of perturbation in future which would result in unpleasantness.  On the other hand the Jiva is not cause for any manifestation of pudgala hence would not cause unpleasantness.

- Realising the difference between the asravas and Jivas in this manner, the fruition of karmas also becomes weak. Just as the with the reduction of gathering of clouds in a particular direction, that specific direction becomes purified; in the same way with the spread of unlimited conscious nature just as soul starts being like a dense block of knowledge, he starts getting rid of asravas. Conversely as he starts getting to be rid of asravsas, he becomes more and more like a dense block of knowledge.  

In this way till the soul keeps being like a dense block of knowledge, till then he keeps getting rid of asravas in the samyak way ( right way). Further as he keeps separating from asravsas , he keeps being a dense block of knowledge in the right way.

Thus the generation of knowledge and separation of asravas is at the same moment. 

Explanation : Realising the difference between the soul and the asravas, to whatever extent he keeps getting rid of asravas, to the same extent he keeps on becoming like a dense  block of knowledge. When the soul is totally separated from asravas then he is totally dense block of knowledge. In this way the separation of asravas and generation of knowledge occurs simultaneously.

The separation of asravas and the attainment of samvar (stoppage of karmas) – this is described in siddhant granths like Tatvartha sutra etc. in accordance with gunasthana hence it should be studied from there. Here the general topics in those contexts are described.

Here the term dense block of knowledge is used. The reason is that till the Jiva has Mithyatva , the knowledge is called ignorance. After removal of Mithyatva it is not called ignorance but “ knowledge or vigyan”. Although with the subsidence-destruction of karmas (kshayopasham)  the knowledge can be  less or more, however as the asravas keep separating the knowledge also starts getting to be more hence the term “Vigyan-ghan” ( dense block) is used here.

 Even then in the state without Mithyatva, even if the knowledge is less, he is not called ignorant.

Now the same is described in the next kalash with prelude of next gatha :

Shloka 48 : In this manner that pure soul, manifesting in the knowledge form observing and knowing  the  universe is illuminated.

What does he first accomplish and then how is he illuminated ? By following the procedure laid down  earlier, discarding the other dravyas totally in all respect, contemplating only the nature of knowledge form soul and remaining stationary within that without any perturbations or  doubts with surety.  Thus getting rid of ignorance generated practices of karta-karma which resulted in tribulations, he is illuminated.

Now the disciple  enquires that “ how does one identify a soul which has become Gyani? Tell us his features.” This is answered in next Gatha:

Gatha 75 : The soul who does not indulge in the manifestation of karmas or Nokarmas , and rather knows them alone is the Gyani.

Commentary : Definitely the internally generated manifestations of Moha-Raga-Dwesha , happiness-unhappiness are all manifestations of karma. The externally generated manifestations in the form of touch- taste-smell-colour, sound, structure, small-big etc. are all manifestations of Nokarma.

Just as a pot and mud has relationship of pervaded and pervader, which results in karta-karma relationship. In the same way truly all the karma and Nokarma manifestations and pudgala dravya have relationship of karta-karma.   The pudgala dravya has manifested independently and being karta is pervasive in all the pudgala manifestations. Those only have manifested internally which are pervaded in pudgala. Hence they are karmas of pudgala.

Just as a potter and pot do not have relationship of pervaded and pervader. In the same way the pudgala manifestations and soul do not have pervaded –pervader relationship. Hence they do not have karta-karma relationship either. Therefore soul does not indulge in acts of karma or nokarma.

It may be noted that in reality the knowledge of pudgala manifestation and pudgala do not have pervaded-pervader relationship just as  potter –pot do not have, hence it does not establish karta-karma relationship between them. However the manifestation of soul and the soul do have pervaded-pervader relationship like mud and the pot , therefore the soul as dravya is independent karta of the knowledge karma for which it is pervader. That knowledge has independently manifested in karma form with soul as pervaded. Hence knowledge of pudgala manifestation is the karma with soul as the karta , knowing himself.

In this way the soul manifests as gyani entirely different from the manifestation of pudgala in the form of karma-nokarma without becoming karta of them. Due to this the pudgala manifestation is not pervaded by the gyani person. Hence the  relationship of pudgala and soul of the form of knower and subject of knowledge is just Vyavahara and knowledge alone is the karma of the knower since knowledge is pervaded by knower.

The same is confirmed by means of the following kalash:

Shloka 49 : Pervaded –pervader relationship occurs where there is same thingness  and it is absent if same thingness is absent. Without pervaded-pervader relationship there cannot be karta-karma relationship. With this significant intelligence and with the all encompassing knowledge form illumination destroying the darkness of ignorance, the soul appears without having nature of being karta the moment he becomes Gyani.

Explanation :  The one which is pervasive in all states is the pervader and those which are specific states are pervaded. In this way dravya is pervader and paryaya is pervaded. The dravya and paryaya are inseparable. Whichever  dravya is the soul , the paryaya is also the same soul.  Such pervaded-pervader relationship is present only in same thingness and not without. This establishes that without pervaded-pervader relationship there is no karta-karma bhava. The one who knows this recognizes that there is no karta –karma bhava in pudgala and the soul. Thus being gyani, without having karta-karma bhava he is observer of the entire universe as knower-seer.