Essay name: Paumacariya (critical study)
Author:
K. R. Chandra
Affiliation: Research institute of Prakrit, Jainology and Ahimsa Vaishali
This is a critical study of the Paumacariya: the earliest Jain version of Rama's life story, written in Prakrit by Vimalasuri dating to the 4th century AD. In this text, Rama (referred to as Padma) is depicted with lotus-like eyes and a blooming face. The Paumacariya places emphasis on the human aspects of characters rooted in Jain values, contrasting with the divine portrayal in Valmiki鈥檚 version.
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ECONOMIC, POLITICAL & RELIGIOUS CONDITIONS 477 naraya, tirikkha, m膩峁噓sa & deva 2. 89-92). In relation to their birth
they are of three kinds鹿, viz. uterine, instantaneous and spontaneous.
The first kind of living beings are born of the womb by the union of
a male and a female, the second ones are the celestial and hellish beings
who rise instantaneously and form the fluid body and the third ones are
those who are produced by coagulation like cells (Gabbhay膩..
Suranarayauvav膩y膩鈥︹�︹�︹�︹�︹�︹��. Sammucchim膩 102.97). The uterine
beings are further of three kinds viz. those who are born from egg are
called incubatory, those who get born in a flesh envelope or yolk sack
just as a human child are termed as umbilical and those whose birth is
without any sack or shell just as a cub of a lion or a kitten are called
unumbilical (an岣嵞乽yapoy膩uyajar膩uy膩 gabbhaj膩 102.97).
Pudgala or Matter:-The very etymological meaning of 'pudgala'
differentiates it from other non-living substances. 'Pud' means to
combine and 鈥榞ala' means to dissociate. Therefore 'Pudgala (is that
substance which undergoes modifications by combinations and dissoci-
ations. The PCV鲁 further categorically refers to five kinds of material
bodies viz. aud膩rika, vaikriya, 膩h膩raka, taijasa and k膩rma峁嘺. They
are said to be successively subtler in form. Their details can be known
from elsewhere.4
2 Nine-Principles:-The PCV at 102. 181 refers categorically to the
nine principles (J墨v膩墨y膩峁嘺 navapayatth膩峁嘺峁�), and at other places the
individual principles such as J墨va, Aj墨va, Punya (75. 19), P膩pa (31. 26),
Bandha (14. 9), Nirjar膩 (14.11) and Mok峁 (14. 9) are referred to.
The remaining principle is the Asrava.5
These are the different
conditions of J墨va bound with Pudgala. They denote the connection of
soul with matter i. e. the way in which a soul is kept bound to the
matter and the way it dissociates from matter and is completely
liberated. This is the ethical classification of Padartha.6
Mok峁 (5.41) is variously called as Siddhi (5.53), 艢iva峁� (5.167)
and Nirvana (14.120). It is the pure state of a soul (arayaviraya
vimala 6.146) which has no blemishes. There is no obstruction
(avv膩b膩ha 5.250), no decay, no death (ajar膩maraniraya峁� 103.134),
1. See TS, 2. 32-34.
2.
See Jain Philosophy & Modern Science, p. 44.
3. Or膩liya峁� viuvva峁� 膩h膩ra峁� tejasa峁� ca kammaiya峁�/
Suhuma峁� para峁僷ar膩e gu峁噀hi sa峁僷ajjai sarira峁�// 102. 98. See also TS, 2.
37-38.
Outlines of Jaina Philosophy, p. 78.
4.
5.
See Uttara, 28.14; Sth膩峁嚹乶ga, 665.
6. For details see TS, 6.1鈥�4; 9.1鈥�3 & 10.1.
