ARCHARYA KUNDAKUNDA

ARCHARYA KUNDAKUNDA
Great organizer of highly complex ideas

By Prof. Yashwant Malaiya, Colorado

In the southern state of Tamil Nadu, atop a hill known as Ponnur Malai, on a large stone under a certain champa tree pilgrims may come across an engravedpair of stylized footprints (charan). These footprints are symbolic of a thinker who, nearly tow millennia ago composed some of the most influential philosophical books in world history. Some scholars from generations since then remember the exact day of their first encounter with his spiritual masterpiece, the Samaya Sara.

Among the most famous of all Jain acharyas, Kundakunda, the celebrated author of the four renowned books Samaya Sara (Treatise of the True Self), Pravachana Sara (Treatise of Lectures), Niyama Sara (Treatise on Pure Rules), Panchastikaya Sara (Treatise on Five Universal Components) and Ashta Pahuda (Eight Steps), which is a collection eight texts. All his works are written in a Jain dialect known as Shourseni Prakrit. The organization of Jain ideas into certain relationships and structures taken for granted in more recent centuries was ultimately a product of his genius. Such has been his fame since early items, that many other books actually written by his pupils and others are popularly ascribed to him. In the Digambar tradition he is named immediately after Lord Mahavira and the preceptor Indrabhuti Goutam in the Mangalacharana (auspicious blessing) prayer, and Jains of the Digambar tradition dub their tradition Kundakund-anvaya (the order of Kundakunda). However, scholars of all sects study his books with deep veneration.

He was born around the beginning of the first century AD in South India in a place becoming a Jain monk was Padmanandi, but he is better known by the place of his origin. Kundakunda mentions that he was an intellectual descendant of Bhadrabahu I, the last Shrut Kevalin. Kundakunda belonged to an ancient order called the Nandi Sangha, wherein most monks assumed names ending in ‘nandi’. The Punyashrava Katha Kosh mentions that in his previous life, Kundakunda was a cow-herder who had found and preserved ancient texts and was blessed by a wandering monk. Acharya Kundakunda’s intense learning and moral character attracted royal disciples such as King Shivakumar. The story of Kundakunda is also surrounded buy legend- it is even said he could walk in air.

Kundakunda’s influence extends far beyond Jainism. India has always been a land where philosophical debate is a standard feature of intellectual life. The concise and systematized aphorismic forms he brought to Jain literature and the literary structures in which he explained Jainism’s most advanced scientific principles relating to such area as atomic structure, cosmic dimensions, the cosmic ethers, and psychology, rivaled anything produced up to that time anywhere in the world. Hindu and Buddhist thinkers were put to the task of finding ways to respond to his explications of Jain philosophy and conduct, and he thus set unprecedented levels of erudition and rationalism in India’s overall philosophical discourse which would last through modern times.

Out of enthusiastic respect, Acharya Kundakunda has been called “Light of this Dark Age”. Several commentaries on his Samaya Sara have been written in Sanskrit and modern languages. In more recent centrues, the Samaya Sara had greatly moved leaders and scholars like Banarasi Das, Taran Svami, Shrimad Rajachandra and Kanaji Swami.

Karma – asrava - influx (charging)

By Sreepalan VC

Quote:“My understanding is that JEEV charges new Karmas only in Manushya Gati. All other GATI is for discharge of KARM.”

Answer:Mumukshu is right in having informed you that influx of karma - both bhaava karma – feelings based and dhravya karma – substance based will be happening so long as the upayoga – thought activity of the soul is other than self – soul – pure thought activity suddhopayoga.
It may appear to us that in the 3 births – gathis – the souls are completely suffering, enjoying etc., but they do cause psychic conditions entailing influx ofkarma.

Soul’s capability, as you know, is only seeing – dharsanopayoga - and knowing – gynanopayoga, any doubt?

“Upayogo lakshanam” – Shri Thathvaartha sutra –Chp. 2 Slok – 8.
Consciousness – upayoga - is the differentia (distinctive characteristic) of the soul. it – upaadhana kaarana - functions ceaselessly with external and internal instrumental causes – nimitta kaarana. By this the soul is distinguished from body,though both are housed in one and the same place due to bondage.

“Sa dhvividho ashtachathurbedhaha:” – Do - Chp. 2 Slok – 9.
Consciousness – upayoga – is of two kinds viz., knowledge – gynanopayog and sight / perception –dharshanopayog and further the former carries 8 kindsand the later 4 kinds.

“kaaya vaak mano:karma yog:” - Do – Chp. 6 Slok – 1
Karma means activity – kriya. The action of the body, the organ of speech and themind is called yoga.

“Sa ashrava:” -Do – Chp. 6 Slok – 2.
It (threefold activity) is influx – asrava.
‘Samsaarino muktasca” - do – Chp.- 2 Slok 10
Again the souls are classified into two and are transmigrating - and emancipated souls based on bondage or no bondage –bandh.

“Mithyaadharsana avirati pramaada kasaaya yoga banda hetavah:” - Do - Chp. 7 Slok 1.
Wrong belief - mithyaathva, non-abstinence – avirata , negligence - pramaada, passions –kasaaya and activities – yog - are the causes for bondage

From the above mentioned agmic references, it might be now possible to arrive at a conclusion whether the soul in all the 3 births referred to viz., hellish,heavenly and animal including plant - gathis only sheds karma or causes influx and shedding?

More specifically, type of birth - gathi is not the criteria for the influx of karma but the soul’s psychic condition – bhaav – is the only criteria and the external causes – nimitta – may be any number. If that is so from deva gathi how soul goes to plant life etc. and even THIRTHANKAR Baghavaan MAHAVEER securedsamyakthva in animal birth but it took him 10 more births to secure Moksha.

Mityaathva – mithya dharshan – wrong belief is the very first among the causes as could be seen from the sutra that plugs soul in various births and the restother activities follow suit.
Besides, if discharging / shedding – nirjara - is the only activity that is taking place in three other births viz., hellish, heavenly and animal or plantlife, why then they should be born again, is a question that may remain a question unsolved, is it not?

More over, stopping of influx of karma – samvar - is a precondition for the real shedding of karma - nirjara – or otherwise the inflow will continue and bondagealso will continue. Hence the shedding of karma, which is taking place in the normal course – savipaak nirjara when its time comes or one’s effort – savipaaknirjara, should not form a cause for the influx of fresh karma. In short, dhrvya nirjara when it gives its effect, soul should decisively detach itself from its effect and be a knower only. It should not cause bhaav asrava and followed by dhravya asrav and the cycle to continue, is it sensed?

Human bodied soul has the capacity to develop discriminatory knowledge – bedha vigynaan –, which helps soul to observe equanimity – vitraagathva – thebasic requirement for building up purity in upayoga which only secures samyakthva to soul and passes on to Keval gynaan. Equally, it is possible and capable to degenerate and fall into even 7th narak as human bodied soul.

Attaining samyakthva is possible in all the 4 births – gathis - but attaining Keval gynaan and Nirvaan is possible only for human bodied soul. Complete sheddingand stopping of influx of karma is possible only inhuman bodied soul.

Conclusion:The influx of karma is ceaselessly going on in all the 4 gathis depending on the psychic condition and consequently transmigration is going on in all the 4gathis from the beginning less time and shall be so for endless time for all abhavyaas without any exception but chances are there for bhavyaas to getrid of the cycle and if they do not avail the chance theirs’ is not different from abhavyaas.