HOW THE MIND CAUSES ACCUMULANCE OF KARMAS

Every living being accumulate bad karmas by their body, speech and mind. According to the Jain Tradition a person can accumulate more karmas by his/her mind than body and speech. According to the last and 24th Tirthankar Lord Mahavir, if someone thinks or desires to kill any living being and he has not applied yet then he has accumulated the karmas of killing a living being. It is not important that he hasn’t killed physically but he has killed the living being mentally. His thoughts create vibrations that cause the microscopic particles to disturb and the particles makes creates such situations that the person who first thought to kill will somehow kill the opposite person in future. The time depends on the vibrations of his thoughts. It can come in action in his present life or in his next births. Here is a good example how violent thoughts can be harmful to the soul.

In ancient Jain scriptures there is a story of a monk who is walking in a jungle in darkness. He cannot see on the ground because of darkness. He is walking on a dry leafs and grass. He felt it and imagined as if he was walking on insects. Instead of stopping himself he continued walking with thinking and imagines that he is walking on insects. In fact he was walking on the grass and leafs. As a result he accumulated deep karmas of killing thousands of insects just by his thought and because he didn’t stopped him to walk there. He also never confessed about that and after completing his life he went to the hell and after that he went to the infinite cycle of birth and death. He washed out his chance of liberation!

From the above fact we can see that how destructive are thoughts. Jainism has given more importance to control of mind. Even Lord Buddha has said the same and has given more importance to control thoughts first. Recently I have read the book “The Secret”. The book deals on the importance of thoughts but saying that to accomplish your wish you should imagine mentally about your dream so the nature will create it for you! But there is not mentioned that how much time would it take? It can fulfill your dream before you die or in your next birth! The same thing has been mentioned in both Jainism and Buddhism. Both founded by the omniscient lords and is hundred percent correct. Instead of saying “to desire” these religions has the concept of “stop desires”, and control your emotions if you want liberation. Because your dreams and desires will extend your soul’s existence in mundane world. The main aim is purify your thoughts to destroy and accumulating new karmas.

Also read this example.

-Rahul Zota (Bhuj-Gujarat)

LORD NEMINATH: 22nd JAIN TIRTHANKAR

Lord Neminath was the 22nd Tirthankar or Ford-Maker of Jainism the present age. Neminath, who is accepted as a historical figure was connected with Sri Krishna and was Krishna’s younger cousin. The historical date of Lord Neminath was around 3100 B.C. He is also known as Arishtanemi. He along with Lord Rishabha is mentioned in the Rig Veda Samhita. Neminath was born to King Samudravijay and Queen Shiva Devi at Souripur in the Harivansh clan. His birth date is the 5th day of Shravana Shukla in the Indian calendar.


PAST LIFE

In his past life Arishtanemi was King Shankh, the eldest son of King Shrisen of Hastinapur. One day armies from all sides, smugglers, bandits, robbers, etc had covered the surroundings of Hastinapur. No body was safe from the attack of these bandits. Prince Shankh was an accomplished diplomat and strategist. King sent him to punish the bandits. He made such a plan that he won over the head of the bandit’s without any blood shed. On his way back he found a princess captured by a God of low category. He made efforts and relieved the princess. On looking at each other they felt in love and married. He was in deep love with his wife. This intensity made him feel upset sometimes and he use to think about the reason for such deep love for Yashomati. The answer he got was from a scholarly ascetic. He told him that this was their seventh birth as husband and wife and that is the reason of his and her intense love and this bond will be broken in their ninth birth where Shankh will be born as twenty second Tirthankar and Yashomati as Rajimati. And they both will choose the path of liberation.Shankh was now a king, but the feeling of detachment was there in him. He gave his throne to his son and went on the path of spiritualism. In the process of his vigorous devotion for the Arhat, Shankh earned Tirthankar-nam-and-gotra. He reincarnated as God in the Aparajit dimension. It was from here that this soul traveled all the way to the Earth to the womb of Shiva Devi wife of King Samudra Vijay of Shauripur to become twenty second Tirthankar.

BIRTH OF LORD NEMINATH

King Samudra Vijay was enjoying the day with his wife and nine brothers and nine sisters. Suddenly queen felt little upset as she wanted to discuss some important matter with the King. So, she asked the king to move back to the palace as she was not feeling well. On returning back when king asked why she was not feeling well, the queen explained her desire to ask some question to the King in privacy. She said that early that morning she had seen all the fourteen dreams that are seen by a Tirthankar’s mother. She got up early and started praying and performing religious activities. And also was dying to tell the news to him.


On the fifth day of the bright half of the month of Shravan queen gave birth to a son whom they named Arishtanemi. They named him because the queen had seen a dream in which she saw a disc with Arishta gems. Also, the special mention here comes of Vasudev, younger brother of King Samudravijay. He was a charming prince. His senior queen was Rohini whose son was Balram and junior queen was Devki whose son was Vasudev ‘Shri Krishna’. Balram and Shri Krishna were the ninth Baldev and Vasudev.

LIFE AS A PRINCE

Time passed by and Arishtanemi became young handsome prince. After few years the time of marriage of Arishtanemi approached. But he was completely detached person and didn't want to get married. His father went to Shri Krishna to convince Arishtanemi for marriage. Shri Krishna searched for a suitable match for Arishtanemi when one of his wife’s, Satyabhama, told him about her younger sister. Everything was finalized and marriage possession was organized. Arishtanemi was riding on a decorated elephant. Thousands of kings, prince etc were attending the marriage. While very near to the destination, Arishtanemi saw large fenced areas on the sides of the roads. Large number of wailing animals was bondage within those fences. On asking the reason of this bondage, the driver of the elephant said that these animals were to be used by the butcher, to prepare food for thousands of people who were to come in the marriage. Arishtanemi moved to his boots. He could not stand the idea of being the sole cause for the killing of thousands of innocent animals. He was filled with detachment.He asked the driver to immediately get the doors of the fences opened and release the animals and move back towards Dwarka. Rajimati was dressed in bridal dress, on hearing the news she went unconscious. When Arishtanemi was questioned about what he had done then he replied, “These animals were prisoners in the cages, we all are prisoners in the cage of Karma. Happiness lies in freedom and not in bondage. So I want to follow the path eternal bliss. So, please do not stop me.On hearing this news Rajimati also decided to become a saint and lead the rest of life as an ascetic.

RENUNCIATION

After a year long charity, Arishtanemi came outside the town of Dwarka in Raivatak garden. Under an Ashoka tree he removed all his worldly possessions, with five fists full removed his hair, with thousands other people, on the sixth day of the bright half of the month of Shravan, took renunciation and became a sraman ascetic.

OMNISCIENCE AND NIRVANA

Shraman Neminath spent fifty four days in deep spiritual practices and then went to Girnar Hill. On the fifteenth day of the dark half of the month of Ashvin, in the afternoon, under the bamboo tree Neminath attained omniscience and became twenty second Tirthankar.
After that, he delivered his first divine sermon. Rajimati also came to attend the Samosaran of Lord Neminath and along with her friends she attained renunciation and got liberated in the end.Lord Neminath preached Jain doctrine for very long time and wandered in many parts of India along with thousands of ascetics as an Omniscient saint. On the eighth day of the bright half of the month of Ashadh, Tirthankar Neminath destroyed all the Karmas attached with his soul and got liberated at the top of Mount Girnar in th present state of Gujarat, India.

A number of historians accept that Arishtanemi or Neminath, the cousin of Shri Krishna, was a historical figure who greatly contributed towards vegetarianism, compassion and Ahimsa (non-violence). This is the point where Jain prehistory fuses with history.