Jain Sutras Decoded

Namo Arihantam!

Here Mahāvīra starts, Namo arihantanam, I bow in reverence to arihantas, who achieved the highest Truths. They are not only who achieved, but who are also radiating the Truths so much that others who go near them are also inspired to achieve.

Understand, an important Truth, arihanta does not mean a person who teaches, it means a person who inspires. You can't reproduce enlightenment by teaching, no. If you can, long before we would have started selling enlightenment. We would have created stores, created websites saying, 'Please visit our website to get enlightened!' And we would have created an 'enlightenment guaranteed' shop. No. Fortunately or unfortunately, you can't create enlightenment in some being by teaching, no. Only by inspiring you can create enlightenment. You can reproduce enlightenment only by inspiring.

Arihanta is the person who radiates the Truth so powerfully, so strongly,His presence is so intense that anybody who comes near him, even if they spend a few minutes around him, they are inspired. The fire is ignited, the transmission of the lamp happens. They feel this is the best state to live in, this is the best space to exist in, this is the best thing which can happen to me in my life.

Understand, if you go near an enlightened being, even if you have spent just two or three minutes around him, suddenly you will feel this is the best thing which can happen to me. If you had that thought in you, only then he is enlightened. Otherwise be very clear, something is seriously wrong with His enlightenment! If he cannot radiate, if he cannot create that inspiration in you, forget about him, there is something seriously wrong in His enlightenment.

Arihanta is a person who has not only become enlightened, but who also radiates it. Just inHis very presence, you will feel God. He will become a fantasy in you. He will inspire you so much. He will occupy your inner space so much, either you start working towards achieving that state or you feel I am not able to. Even if you feel 'I am not able to' that's okay. At least you have taken the first step, you have started.

Understand, respect towards an enlightened being is the first step towards enlightenment. It means you wanted that state, because you will not respect anything unless you agree with that ideology. Unless you have a little bit of attachment and feeling towards that ideology, unless you get the subtle feeling that you should also have the same, you will not have respect for that.

If you respect somebody beautiful or handsome, be very clear, you have a subtle desire to be in that state, to have that quality. In the same way if you respect a rich person, there is a subtle desire to have wealth. Anything you respect automatically enters your inner space. When you say, 'I bow in reverence to an enlightened being,' you give respect to enlightenment. Here you are not bowing down to someone who will help you when you are in fear. No. You are not bowing down to a king. No. You are not bowing down to a rich person who will give you money. No. You are not bowing down to a person who will give you logic, philosophy or words. No. You are bowing down to a person who inspires, who puts the seed of enlightenment in you, who helps you to achieve enlightenment.

There is a beautiful commentary or explanation of the Jain Sutras which says, when you sit in front of an arihanta, the ultimate conscious being, without your knowledge, without even your conscious understanding, your whole being is integrated towards that one goal, enlightenment. Understand, as of now you are not one being as you think. Your head is pulling and calling you in one direction. Your eyes are pulling you in the other direction. Your ears are pulling you in another different direction.

Just the other day I was facing a question, 'Swamiji, in all organizations there is so much of politics. Why are you creating one more spiritual organization? And you know there is going to be so much of politics.' I told him, you need to understand this important Truth, you don't need even two persons to create politics, one is more than enough. See, in the morning you will be doing something and in the evening your mind will be telling something else, it means there is politics inside you.

You don't need two persons for politics, one is more than enough. In the morning your mind will be telling something, and you will work towards that. By evening your mind will be telling something else, and you will try to put your effort towards that. What does it mean? You are already a politician!

You are afraid of politics because of too many different opinions. And you think you don't have politics inside! So you don't need two persons for politics, one person is more than enough to create politics. A single person is more than enough to create politics.

The other day I was reading an article in the Wall Street Journal. It says, the Bhagavad-gītā is taking a big shape, and is getting an important place in many corporate companies of the US where they are using it for management.

Mahāvīra is not talking anything about karma yoga. You can easily use the teachings related to karma yoga for management. He is not talking anything. He simply does something in your consciousness, you become a leader. He is not telling that you should become a leader. He just makes you a leader. He creates a beautiful inner space. One important thing you should understand: when your inner space is expanded, when you are living with inner richness, the outer richness follows you. The outer richness not only follows you, it even becomes your servant.

I should tell you a true incident about how God suffers by the politics of the trustees. There is politics amongst the trustees but ultimately God is put to suffering. In a famous South Hinduism temple, there was a fight between the trustees who paid for the rituals and the pujaris who did the rituals. The fight started for the simple reason - whether you should put a U-shaped mark or the straight vertical mark on the forehead of the temple elephant. Among the Vaiṣṇavas marks, there are two to three varieties. They call it vadagalai and thengalai. It means it is just a straight line or Ushape. Curve or straight line – that is the problem. And not even on god, this was a fight on the temple elephant that somebody had donated!

Understand, it really happened. I wanted all of you to know, it may look funny, but it happens in every temple. You may not publicize all these things, but it happens in every temple.

The fight was whether to put the U-shaped mark or the straight line mark on the temple elephant. The pujaris said, 'It should only be Ushaped,' and the person who paid for the elephant said, 'No, it should be only straight line because I paid for the elephant.' And the pujari said, 'You may pay for the elephant, but we are only going to do the mark.'

So the fight went to the local court, the local court gave the judgment: the god who is going to sit on the elephant is wearing only the U-shaped mark, so only the Ushape should be put on the elephant. But the trustees had enough money, so they went to the higher court. The High Court said, the person who paid for the elephant only should decide.

Now the pujaris were very strong with their ideology, they went to the Supreme Court.

Really, understand, I am not telling a story, I am telling the history! Finally the Supreme Court gave the judgment: whenever god is traveling on the elephant it should have the mark of the god which is U-shaped, and whenever the elephant is free without the procession, it can have straight line.

And an important thing, two days after the judgment the elephant died - because the process took fifteen years!

Don't think the story has ended. The story does not end here. Somebody donated one more elephant. Now the pujaris came and wanted to put the mark according to the Supreme Court judgment. The trustees said, 'No, that judgment was for that elephant, not for this elephant. Let us go to the court again!' And till now, for at least twenty five years god is going in procession by walk, not on an elephant! For the last twenty five years he stopped riding on elephant! The fight is between the trustees and pujaris and who is suffering? God.

The same thing happens to us. When your indriyaiḥ (senses) suffer, when your indriyaiḥ fight among themselves, your consciousness suffers. Understand, when your senses and your mind fight among themselves, your consciousness, your inner space suffers.

The Power of the Presence

Arihanta is a person in whose presence all your senses and the mind are integrated by themselves. Understand, in front of a warrior, automatically you will feel that you are supposed to behave with respect. Just by his presence, you will not talk anything. It is called sthana bala. In Sanskrit we use the word sthana bala. Anybody who holds that seat, that very sthanam, you just go in front of him and sit silently and come out. Just the very sthana bala, you will be frightened.

You know he has killed all his enemies, so if you give him an idea that you are also his enemy, simply you will be killed. You will keep quiet. In the same way all your senses and your mind know an Arihanta has killed his enemies. Arihanta is one who has conquered all his enemies, so naturally your mind feels he will kill it also.

But when it comes to enlightened beings, remembrance is invoking their presence. It is called avahanam. When you remember enlightened beings, they are there in front of you. You invoke their presence because constantly they are waiting, they are available .

One more very important thing you need to understand: enlightened Masters even if they leave the body, will have to retain their sukshma sareera, subtle body, till all their disciples and followers become enlightened.

In the same way, in the presence of the arihanta, just the very presence, just the sthanabala, your senses will be integrated. Your inner personality, your mind, indriyaiḥ, buddhi, chitta, everything will be integrated. Because all your senses know - he has killed all his enemies; and any moment he may kill me also, so let me be silent.

For example, if you go and sit in front of a person who has committed a hundred murders, will you dare to talk? Will you oppose him? No, unless you are mad!

So the mind says, 'Better let me keep quiet.' Your personality will be integrated just by his presence. Understand, this bowing down and remembrance will invoke the presence of these Arihantas.You need to understand an important thing, remembrance is not just thinking. In the case of ordinary things like a flower or a sweet, remembrance is just thinking.

They are waiting just to help you. Please understand, when you remember some object of the outer world, that object doesn't have the intelligence or power to appear in front of you, to be there in front of you. But enlightened beings are not objects. They are energy and intelligence.

They have to make themselves available. They have to be available for all of you. Please understand, till you all become enlightened, they can't disappear, even if they have given up their bodies.

Presence Beyond the Body

One more thing, for an enlightened being, even while he is in the body, he is not touched by the body. I always tell people, enlightened Masters are not present as you think, and they are not absent as you think. See, always when some enlightened Masters die, you think they are absent. No. In the same way, when some Master is in the body, you think he is present just like you. No. Enlightened Masters are not present even while they are in the body as you think. They are not present, it is their presence.

Understand, when an enlightened person is in the body, he is not present as you think. He is present in a totally different dimension. He may be in front of you but he is not present as you think. He is in a different space. His body may be visible to you, but he is in a different space. In the same way even after he leaves the body, he is not absent as you think.

A small incident which happened in the life of Nisargadatta Maharaj, a great enlightened being who lived in Bharat:

Somebody asked him, 'Master, you say enlightened beings don't have karma. Then how are you speaking with us? How are you able to talk without getting the karma of that action?' Nisargadatta Maharaj says, 'I am not talking to you.' He is talking and he is saying 'I am not talking to you!'

The disciple was completely confused. He said, 'What are you saying 'I am not talking to you?' You are talking to me, and you are saying 'I am not talking to you!' Then Maharaj says, 'Because you want, you are getting the answers from this system. This system is programmed to respond like a voice mail, it is an automatic intelligence which responds to you, that's all. Otherwise this system itself does not have an ego like you.'

Understand, you can't say an automatic replying machine is a living mechanism. No. It just responds to you because you wanted somebody to respond. Maharaj says, 'I am responding to you because this is the way you wanted.' And he says beautifully, 'If somebody approaches me with an attitude of dasa bhava, as a servant, I look like a leader. If somebody approaches me with the attitude of a disciple, I look like a Master. If somebody approaches me with the attitude of a son, I look like a father. So whatever attitude they have, I just reflect it. I just fulfill what they want. Otherwise I myself don't have any identity or ego.'

He says, 'I am not talking to you. You are listening to the answers which you want to listen, which you need to listen.' That's all. It is an automatic replying system. So enlightened Masters are not present as we think.In the same way, enlightened beings who have left their body, are not absent as you think. When they had a body, their presence had a body. When they leave the body, their presence does not have a body, that's all. Otherwise having a body or not having a body is in no way going to disturb or change your connecting with that Master.

Understand, as far as Masters are concerned, whether they have the body or not, it does not disturb them. It does not change anything. They don't miss anything. So do not think, just because they don't have a body, you can't experience their presence. This simple remembrance can invoke their presence immediately, in that very moment, wherever you are. Remembering them will simply create their presence because they are waiting - they are waiting to be called. In the advertisements you see, 'Operators are waiting for your call, please call now, call now, call now!' In the same way Masters are waiting, 'Please chant now, chant now, chant now!' They are waiting, available. All you need to do is remember them.

Just the remembrance is enough. You will see that their presence is in front of you. They are not absent as you think. Just because you are not able to see the stars, you can't say the stars don't exist. In the same way just because you don't see them with your eyes, you can't say Masters don't exist.

Only one benefit if the Master is with the body is, you may be able to feel him with all your five senses. If he is without the body you have to feel him, experience him only in the inner space which is beyond body, that's all. But you can verily experience him because Masters can't disappear till you become enlightened.

Before every initiation, all the Masters, enlightened beings, take a vow. Understand, during initiation don't think only you take vows, or only you make commitments. Master also makes commitments.

He says, 'Till you become enlightened, the energy which is working through this body, even if this body is dropped, will help you and assist you till you reach the same state in which I am living.' That is the commitment all the Masters give. Till you reach, achieve that same enlightened state, even if the body drops, the energy promises to guide you. That is the commitment that a Master makes.

Understand, even if Mahāvīra left the body, he has to make himself available to all of us till we become enlightened, till we achieve enlightenment. He has to make himself available. The moment you remember these great Masters, you will see their presence is there in front of you.