With the different
karmans a definite abadha-kala is assumed i.e. an interval during which
the k is existing, but is not practicing its molesting effect. One arrives
at that if one puts 100 years instead of 1 kotakoti of sagaropamas. The
maximum abadha of the veilings of knowledge amounts, therefore, to 3000
years, that of the passions, to 4000 years, etc., (and) the abadha of the
minimum sthiti with all prakrtis to less than 48 minutes (Kg II 25a, 32a).
About sthiti and abadha
there are still a number of other special regulations which in this
connection can just as little be discussed as the differences of opinion
which exist between the several teachers concerning the duration of the
karmans.
The maximum-duration of
all ks, even of the good ones, with the exception of the celestial, human
and animal ayus is considered as bad, the minimum duration as good. Those
of the 3 ayus mentioned are always considered as good. The duration of the
karmans of a jiva is dependent on the tenure of his mind (adhyavasaya),
and, therefore, on the strength of the kasayas. The more sinful a being
is, the larger s the sthiti of the karman; the purer the being is, the
smaller is the sthiti. Of the 3 ayus mentioned, however, the sinful is
binding a smaller, the pure a larger sthiti.
THE INTENSITY (rasa or
anubhaga) OF THE KARMAN
Kg. II, 52b., Ps. 564.
Just as the nimba fruit
has in the different kinds of preparation a more or less bitter, a sweet
dish a more or less sweet taste, so, likewise the karman practices its
effect, according to circumstances, in a more or less intense manner. The
intensity of the effects of the karman corresponds to the compactness or
the karman-matter; it is conditional upon the weakness of strength of the
kasayas. According to the 4 degrees of the passions, 4 degrees of the
strength of the karman are recognized.
With the bad prakrtis the
strongest, the 4th degree of the rasa is produced by the most violent
passions, those of life-long duration. The 3rd degree is caused by the
apratyakhyanavaranakasayas, the 2nd by the pratyakhyanavarana-kasayas, the
1st (the weakest) by the flaming-up passions. With the good karman-species
the samjvalanas cause the 4th (the strongest), the
pratyakhyanavarana-kasayas the 3rd, the apratyakhyanavarana-kasayas the
2nd (the weakest) degree. A rasa of the 1st degree does not exist with the
good prakrtis. Of the bad prakrtis only 17 have the rasa of the 1st
degree, namely the 5 hindrances, the first 4 veilings of knowledge, the
first 3 veilings of undifferentiated cognition, male sex, and the
flaming-up passions; the other bad prakrtis have, like the good ones, only
a rasa of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th degree. The reason for the absence of the
1st degree in the case of most of the karman-species in their peculiar
arrangement in the gunasthanas, of which more will be said later.
The different rasa of a
karma-prakrti can be exemplified most clearly by the desaghatis. The 4
first veilings of knowledge, for instance, are working so strongly at the
anubhaga of the 4th and 3rd degrees that knowledge is quite impossible, at
the intensity of the 2nd degree they hinder knowledge totally or
partially, at the rasa of the 1st degree only partially (Kg. II, 56b).
The most sinful a jiva
is, the longer the duration of his karman, the stronger the effect of his
bad, the weaker that of his good prakrtis, whilst with an increased purity
the duration of the bound karman and the intensity of the bad prakrtis
decrease and the rasa of the good prakrtis grows (Kg. II, 43b).
THE QUANTITY OF THE
PRADESAS OF THE KARMAN.
(Kg. II, 68b seq., Tattv.
VIII, 25).
The atoms are, according
to the number in which they are found together, divided into categories (vargana).
Atoms which are found alone, from the 1st vargana, aggregates (skandha) of
2 atoms the 2nd vargana and so forth.
A vargana the aggregates
of which are comprising a certain minimum of pradesas and which is
according to its condition (parinama), is not too high a degree gross (sthula),
can be assimilated by the jiva to the physical body. This is the minimum-audarika-vargana.
If one adds an atoms to each aggregate of the vargana, one obtains the 2nd
audarika-vargana, which is somewhat fine, but more compact than the
preceding one. If one continues in this way, one finally obtains the
maximum audarika-vargana. If one atom is added to each skandha of the
latter, there results the minimum audarika-agrahana-vargana: the complex
is not gross enough and contains too many atoms in order to be capable of
being assimilated to the physical body. Again, to each aggregate an atoms
is added till the maximum audarika-agrahana-vargana results ; still one
atom more, and the complex contains enough atoms and possesses a
sufficient degree of subtlety (suksma-parinama), in order to be capable of
forming the minimum vargana for the transformation-body. On the maximum-vargana
follow again vaikriya-agrahana-varganas, and then in constant change the
grahana-and-agrahana-varganas of the translocation-body, of the fiery
body, of the speech, of the breath, of the thinking organ, and finally of
the karman.
From the preceding result
two essential peculiarities of the karman-complexes, through which these
are distinguished from the other kinds of the varganas, which the jivas
assimilate. Firstly the karma-varganas are exceedingly fine, finer even
than those which the jiva requires for speaking, breathing and thinking.
And, secondly, a karman aggregate surpasses in regard to the quantity of
atoms of which it consists, all other skandhas.
About the condition of
the karman-aggregates, we further learn, that there exist with them 2
odors, 5 colors, 5 tastes, and only 4 touches, namely cold, warm,
adhesive, and rough (whilst with the skandhas of the physical body all 8
sparsas are found).
The jiva assimilates
karman-matter which is within his own pradesas, not matter lying outside
of them, just as fire only seizes inflammable material which is lying
within its reach. Every part of the soul is, therefore, filled with karma-pudgalas,
which, if the necessary conditions are fulfilled, adhere to the jiva like
dust to a body besmeared with oil. The jiva seizes a karman-particle
simultaneously with all his parts, because an exceedingly close connection
exists between all the pradesas of a jiva, as with the links of a chain.
The karman-particle
absorbed by the jiva develops into the 8 species of the karman, as food
consumed at a changes itself into blood and the other humors of the body (Jacobi
ad. Tattv. VIII, 5). The shares which fall to the 8 mula-prakrtis differ
from one another; their measure corresponds to the length of their sthiti.
Ayus receives the smallest part, a greater portion goes to naman and gotra,
which both obtain equal portions. More than the latter go to the two
avaranas and antaraya, each of which gets an equal portion. Still a larger
part than these falls to mohaniya; by far the greatest of all, however, to
vedaniya.
The part falling to a
mula-prakrti is then further divided among the uttara-prakrtis. Among the
jnanavaranas the veiling of omniscience receives an infinitely small part
(as it is sarvaghatin), the rest falls to the 4 other prakrtis. At the
darsanavarana the part which has sarvaghati-rasa is divided into 6 parts
(for the veiling of absolute undifferentiated cognition and the 5 kinds of
sleep), the remainder, provided with desaghati-rasa is divided into 3
parts. The part falling to vedaniya becomes completely sata or asata, as
only one of these two can be bound. The part of the mohaniya provided with
sarvaghati-rasa is divided into 2 portions, one of which falls to
darsana-mohaniya, the other to caritra-mohaniya. The former becomes
entirely mithyatva, the latter is converted into the 12 kasayas. The
remainder has desaghati-rasa and is divided into 2 parts, of which the
first belongs to the 4 flaming-up passions, whilst the other falls to one
of the 3 sexes, to joking and liking (or to disliking and sorrow,
according to which was bound) and to fear and disgust. The part of the
ayus belongs altogether to one of the 4 uttara-prakrtis, as only one of
them can be bound. The part of the naman is separated into as many
sub-divisions as uttara-prakrtis can be bound, the sub-divisions of color,
odor, taste, touch, body, samghatana and binding obtain portions from the
one particle falling to the mula-prakrti. The part of the gotra is
attributed entirely to the high or low gotra, as both are not bound
simultaneously. The part of the antaraya is equally distributed between
the 5 uttara-prakrtis.
If a certain prakrti can
no more be bound in a particular gunasthana, the quantity of matter that
would fall to it, is attributed to the other prakrtis which belong to the
same class (jati). If also those are no more bound, the karman-particle
falls to the mula-prakrti, and is divided between the still remaining
parts. If also the mula-prakrti is no longer bound, it falls to another
mula-prakrti. For example, if nidranidra, pracalapracala and styanarddhi
are no longer bound, the dravya which would fall to them becomes nidra and
pracala, which both belong to their class. If also nidra and pracala are
no longer capable of being bound the matter is converted into the still
remaining kinds of the darsanavarana. If the binding of all the
darsanavarana is no more possible (as in the 11th gunasthana), the
particle becomes sata-vedaniya.
Devendasuri shows (Kg.
II, 77a et seq.) in a detailed manner in what proportion the number of the
pradesas of an uttara-prakrti stands in maximum and minimum towards the
quantity of the pradesas of the other uttara-prakrtis belonging to the
same class. I do not wish to reproduce these long explanations in extenso,
and therefore content myself with an example:
"Of darsanavarana, if the
maximum number of pradesas in taken into consideration, the number of
pradesas of pracala is comparatively very small; in proportion to it, the
number of nidra is larger (visesadhika); in proportion to it, that of
pracalapracala is larger; in proportion to it, that of nidranidra is
larger; in proportion to it, that of styanarddhi is larger; in proportion
to it, that of kevala-darsana-avarana is larger; in proportion to it, the
number of the pradesas of avadhi-darsana-avarana is infinitely larger; in
proportion to it, that of acaksur-darsana-avarana is still larger; in
proportion to it, that of caksur-darsana-avarana is again larger."
"Of darsanavarana, if the
minimum number of pradesas is taken into consideration, the quantity of
the pradesas of nidra is comparatively small; in proportion to it, the
number of the pradesas of pracala is larger; in proportion to it, that of
nidranidra is larger; in proportion to is that of pracalapracala is
larger; in proportion to it, that of styanarddhi is larger; in proportion
to it, that of kevala-darsana-avarana is larger; in proportion to it, that
of avadhi-darsana-avarana is infinitely larger; in proportion to it, that
of acaksur-darsana-avarana is still larger; in proportion to it, that of
caksur-darsana-avarana is again larger."
The smaller the number of
prakrtis between which a karman-particle must be divided, and the higher
organized the being is who assimilates the karman, the larger is the
number of the pradesas which fall to a prakrti (Kg. II, 89a). The height
of the physical development of a jiva corresponds to the degree of his
activity (yoga), through which he produces the attraction of karma-pudgalas.
A completely developed thinking being assimilates, therefore, more matter
than a creature only incompletely developed and with only one sense. If
now this great quantity of matter is only divided between a few prakrtis,
because most of the prakrtis are no more bound, then naturally arises with
each of these prakrtis a greater number of pradesas than if the same
matter would fall to a great number of prakrtis. This consideration shows
that the greatness or smallness of the pradesa-bandha of the different
prakrtis does not upon ethical factors, as with sthiti-bandha and
rasa-bandha, but upon mechanical ones.
