NEGATION OF WRITING FALSE WORDS

Someone asks here - we have known in this way the tradition, but how could we believe that in this tradition, only the right words with their exact meanings were written and were not intermingled with false words?

Answer: Composing of false words is not possible without intense passion, because due to such false composition by which many Jivas may be badly harmed traditionally and as a consequence of such a great injury, the self will have to go to hellish and Nigoda* form of life - such a great sinful act is possible only on being empowered by the intensest anger, pride, deceit and greed passions; but in Jain religion such a highly passioned person does not take birth.

The first basic preceptor Tirthankara - Kewali (the omniscient) is free from all passions due to complete annihilation of Moha (delusion and attachment, etc.). Next originators of Shastras are the Ganadharas andAcharyas who because of feeble rise of Moha karma (attachment) have forsaken all sorts of external and internal possessions; hence are extremely dispassionate. Owing to the presence of feeble passion in them they are found possessed with somewhat proclivity of Shubhopayoga (auspicious thought activity) and no other purpose is found. And if the right-faithed Shravakas (house-holders) also compose the Shastras, they too are not highly passioned; if they had intense passions how could they cultivate interest in Jina-Dharma (Jainism) which is the destroyer of all sorts of passions by all means? Or, if someone owing to the rise of perverse faith, nourishes the passions by other (temporal) deeds, he may do so but by going against Jina's preachings (Maxims), if he nourishes one's passions, he loses Jain-identity.

Thus, in Jainism such a highly passioned person is not found, who shall by composing false words, spoil others as well as his own lot in this birth and the births hereafter.

Question: If someone "so-called" Jaina under the influence of intense passion mixes false words in Jain Shastras and then his tradition continues, what to do in such case?

Answer: As someone mixes artificial pearls in the ornament of real pearls but the shining does not match, so by examining it the examiner does not get cheated also, except the ignorant one who gets cheated in the name of real pearls, and his tradition also does not continue; soon someone starts disapproving the artificial pearls. Similarly, in the Jain-Shastras which are a collection (treatise) of true words, someone may intermix false words, but the purpose shown in the words of Jain-Shastras is of uprooting the passions and of reducing worldy affairs. And the false words which are intermixed by that sinful person, serve the purpose of nourishing the passions and accomplishing the worldly affairs. Thus the purpose does not match; therefore, after examination, the wise person is not cheated. The ignorant alone gets cheated by the name of Jain-Shastra and his tradition also does not continue, rather someone immediately contradicts the false words.

The other aspect is this that such highly-passioned, the so-called Jains, are found here in this bad time only; many good regions and periods are also there wherein such people are not found. Therefore, it should be understood that in Jaina-Shastras the tradition of false words does not continue.

Further, he asks that one may not mix false words out of passions but since the scripture-writers possess Kshayopashama Jnan, therefore, if due to miscomprehension someone mixes wrong words then his tradition may continue?

Answer: The basic scripture composers are Ganadhara Devas (Chief Acharyas); they themselves possess four kinds of knowledges and they listen to omniscient's divine spech (Diuya-Dhwani) directly; by virtue of its glory (divineness) the right meaning only is comprehended and accordingly they compose the Shastras; therefore how can the false words be entwined in those Shastras? And the other Acharyas, etc. who compose the Shastras they also possess the right knowledge as per their capacity and they compose the Shastras by following the tradition of the original scriptures. Moreover, they do not compose those words which are not known to them and compose only those words which are well-comprehended by them with the authenticity of right knowledge. So, firstly by taking such due precautions, the false words are not intermixed and sometimes if they themselves have mis-comprehended the meaning of the words of original text (scripture) and also it may appear to be right in their knowledge then there is no escape but this happens with someone rarely and not with all, therefore, those who have comprehended it rightly, they, by negating the same, do not allow the wrong tradition to continue.

Further, let it be known that the rightfaithed Jains do not have misconception about Deva-Guru-Dharma etc. and Jiva-Ajiva, etc. Tattvas by the misconception of which the Jivas become miserable; these are prominently described in the Jaina-Shastras. And there are some such deep meanings which may even be misconceived under illusion but because of faith in omniscients' preachings there will be no spiritual harm to Jiva. If out of them someone draws wrong conclusion about some subtle meanings even then it is not his great mistake. The same is said in Gommattasara:


Meaning:- The right believer (Samyagdrishti-Jiva) believes in the preached true words and (sometimes) under the instruction of an ignorant teacher, believes also in wrong words.

Moreover, I also do not possess vast knowledge but I am very much afraid of going against the omniscients' preachings; due to the strength of this concept only, l am daring to write this book (shastra). So, in this book also I shall be describing the Tattvas exactly in the same way in which these are described in the old texts (Shastras). Or if at some places in the old books the description is uneleborated and deep, I shall describe the same here elaborately. In describing in this manner, I shall remain very careful but even besides taking all due precautions if at some place something deeper in meaning gets misinterpreted, it is my humble request to the intellectual savants to correct the same properly. In this way I have decided to write this Shastra.

Now, "what types of Shastras are worth reading and listening and what kind of discoursers and listeners of those Shastras should be there", the same is being described here.

*Nigoda - inferiorest one sensed beings undergoing 18 times births and deaths in one respiration.