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by Jayaram V In Jainism, a jiva is the embodied being. It is the subject, the knower and the enjoyer. In its original and purest state it is eternal and bliss consciousness. Unlike the atman of the Upanishads which is considered to be infinite, without form, without qualities and without blemish, in Jainism, the Jiva or the soul has variable dimensions and liable to change, expanding and contracting, depending upon the size of the body and the nature of karma. It remains small, like a seed in the in the womb before birth. After the birth, it grows in proportion with the body and envelops the latter from all sides. Jains believe that jiva cannot be smaller than the body in which it resides. It has to be larger to be able to fully grasp the sense objects through its sense organs. At the time of death, it contracts and becomes a tiny seed once again to start a new life in a new body according to its karma. According to Jainism, the jivas are infinite in number and exist in the universe eternally. No one created them and none can destroy them. Their number also remains the same through out, though they may move from one plane of existence to another and also assume different forms in different things, depending upon their level of evolution and previous activity. Some times multiple jivas or clusters of jivas may occupy one body forming complex organisms. Some jivas reside in gross matter, which is within the grasp of the sense and some occupy subtle bodies which are beyond the reach of senses. Nigodas are huge aggregates of innumerable jivas who live together like complex organisms in the subtle world and fill the vast spaces of the earth, supplying souls whenever an empty space is vacated by a departing soul. Jain scriptures of Jainism mention the following categories of jivas. 1. Nirtya Siddhas- the ever perfect souls. 2. Muktas- the liberated souls who would never take birth again. 3. Baddha: the bonded souls, who are bound to this world, undergo repeated births and deaths and are subject to continuous inflow of karmic material into their bodies. Having been freed form all notions of association with matter and bondage, the mukta jivas enjoy unlimited consciousness, infinite knowledge, infinite perception, infinite power and infinite joy. The ordinary jivas suffer from ignorance and illusion. They remain enmeshed in the matter till they are liberated. Besides in their ordinary state they are never free from the inflow of karma into their bodies. According to Jainism, karma is not a mere effect of some action, but a kind of subtle matter or flowing energy that enters the body of a jiva and imparts to it varying degrees of grossness, making the liberation of the jiva increasingly difficult.

Suggested Further Reading The Concept of Jiva or Embodied Soul in Jainism, Part 2 An Introduction to Jainism or Jain Dharma Essential Concepts and Beliefs of Jainism The philosophy of Jainism Jainism and the theory of karma Buddhism and the concept of anatta The Not-self Strategy by Thanissaro Bhikkhu Anatta, the Buddhist concept of no-self

Wednesday , September 21, 2011

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