Jainism · Acharya Umaswati
The one text accepted by Digambara and Svetambara Jains alike: the whole Jain path in short Sanskrit sutras.
सम्यग्दर्शनज्ञानचारित्राणि मोक्षमार्गः
Awaiting review by a scholar of this tradition. Original texts are public domain; the plain meanings and notes are written by IndiaDigital and are being checked. We describe what each tradition teaches, in its own terms, and never rank faiths. Report a correction
This chapter describes the jiva, the living soul, whose defining mark is upayoga, active consciousness. It lists the soul's five kinds of states, sorts worldly souls by the number of senses they have, and explains the kinds of birth, the five kinds of body, and how a soul travels from one life to the next. In Jain teaching, karma, a subtle matter bound to the soul, shapes its body, senses and lifespan. The Digambara text counts fire and air beings as immobile; the Svetambara text counts them as mobile.
औपशमिकक्षायिकौ भावौ मिश्रश्च जीवस्य स्वतत्त्वमौदयिकपारिणामिकौ च
aupaśamikakṣāyikau bhāvau miśraśca jīvasya svatattvamaudayikapāriṇāmikau ca
The soul's own states (bhava) are five: from the subsidence of karma, from its destruction, mixed, from its rise, and inherent.
द्विनवाष्टादशैकविंशतित्रिभेदा यथाक्रमम्
dvinavāṣṭādaśaikaviṃśatitribhedā yathākramam
In that order they have two, nine, eighteen, twenty-one and three subdivisions.
सम्यक्त्वचारित्रे
samyaktvacāritre
The states from subsidence are right faith and right conduct.
ज्ञानदर्शनदानलाभभोगोपभोगवीर्याणि च
jñānadarśanadānalābhabhogopabhogavīryāṇi ca
The states from destruction are knowledge, perception, giving, gain, enjoyment, repeated enjoyment and energy, along with the two above.
ज्ञानाज्ञानदर्शनलब्धयश्चतुस्त्रित्रिपञ्चभेदाः सम्यक्त्वचारित्रसंयमासंयमाश्च
jñānājñānadarśanalabdhayaścatustritripañcabhedāḥ samyaktvacāritrasaṃyamāsaṃyamāśca
The mixed states are four kinds of knowledge, three of wrong knowledge, three of perception, five attainments, and right faith, conduct and partial restraint.
गतिकषायलिङ्गमिथ्यादर्शनाज्ञानासंयतासिद्धलेश्याश्चतुश्चतुस्त्र्येकैकैकैकषड्भेदाः
gatikaṣāyaliṅgamithyādarśanājñānāsaṃyatāsiddhaleśyāścatuścatustryekaikaikaikaṣaḍbhedāḥ
The states from the rise of karma are four destinies, four passions, three genders, wrong belief, ignorance, lack of restraint, not yet being liberated, and six leshyas (colourings of the soul).
जीवभव्याभव्यत्वानि च
jīvabhavyābhavyatvāni ca
The inherent states are life itself (jivatva), fitness for liberation (bhavyatva) and its absence (abhavyatva).
उपयोगो लक्षणम्
upayogo lakṣaṇam
The defining mark of the soul is upayoga, its active consciousness.
स द्विविधोऽष्टचतुर्भेदः
sa dvividho'ṣṭacaturbhedaḥ
Upayoga is of two kinds, knowing and perceiving, with eight and four subdivisions.
संसारिणो मुक्ताश्च
saṃsāriṇo muktāśca
Souls are either worldly (samsari), still in the cycle of birth and death, or liberated (mukta).
समनस्कामनस्काः
samanaskāmanaskāḥ
Worldly souls are with a mind or without a mind.
संसारिणस्त्रसस्थावराः
saṃsāriṇastrasasthāvarāḥ
Worldly souls are also mobile (trasa) or immobile (sthavara).
पृथिव्यप्तेजोवायुवनस्पतयः स्थावराः
pṛthivyaptejovāyuvanaspatayaḥ sthāvarāḥ
Earth, water, fire, air and plant beings are immobile.
द्वीन्द्रियादयस्त्रसाः
dvīndriyādayastrasāḥ
Beings with two or more senses are mobile.
पंचेन्द्रियाणि
paṃcendriyāṇi
There are five senses.
द्विविधानि
dvividhāni
Each sense is of two kinds.
निर्वृत्युपकरणे द्रव्येन्द्रियम्
nirvṛtyupakaraṇe dravyendriyam
The physical sense consists of the organ's structure (nirvritti) and its supporting parts (upakarana).
लब्ध्युपयोगौ भावेन्द्रियम्
labdhyupayogau bhāvendriyam
The inner sense consists of the capacity to know (labdhi) and its active use (upayoga).
स्पर्शनरसनघ्राणचक्षुःश्रोत्राणि
sparśanarasanaghrāṇacakṣuḥśrotrāṇi
The senses are touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing.
स्पर्शरसगन्धवर्णशब्दास्तदर्थाः
sparśarasagandhavarṇaśabdāstadarthāḥ
Their objects are touch, taste, smell, colour and sound.
श्रुतमनिन्द्रियस्य
śrutamanindriyasya
Scriptural knowledge is the object of the mind.
वनस्पत्यन्तानामेकम्
vanaspatyantānāmekam
Beings up to plants have only one sense, touch.
कृमिपिपीलिकाभ्रमरमनुष्यादीनामेकैकवृद्धानि
kṛmipipīlikābhramaramanuṣyādīnāmekaikavṛddhāni
Worms, ants, bees, humans and the like each have one more sense in turn.
संज्ञिनः समनस्काः
saṃjñinaḥ samanaskāḥ
Beings with a mind are called sanjni (rational).
विग्रहगतौ कर्मयोगः
vigrahagatau karmayogaḥ
While passing from one birth to the next, the soul moves by means of its karmic body.
अनुश्रेणि गतिः
anuśreṇi gatiḥ
This movement follows the straight rows of space points.
अविग्रहा जीवस्य
avigrahā jīvasya
The motion of a liberated soul has no turns.
विग्रहवती च संसारिणः प्राक्चतुर्भ्यः
vigrahavatī ca saṃsāriṇaḥ prākcaturbhyaḥ
A worldly soul's motion may also have turns, and is completed before the fourth instant.
एकसमयाविग्रहा
ekasamayāvigrahā
Motion without a turn takes a single instant (samaya).
एकं द्वौ त्रीन्वानाहारकः
ekaṃ dvau trīnvānāhārakaḥ
During this transit the soul takes in no material for a body for one, two or three instants.
संमूर्च्छनगर्भोपपादा जन्म
saṃmūrcchanagarbhopapādā janma
Birth is of three kinds: spontaneous generation (sammurchhana), from the womb (garbha), and in a special birthplace (upapada).
सचित्तशीतसंवृताः सेतरा मिश्राश्चैकशस्तद्योनयः
sacittaśītasaṃvṛtāḥ setarā miśrāścaikaśastadyonayaḥ
Birthplaces (yoni) are living or non-living, cold or hot, covered or open, or a mix of these.
जरायुजाण्डजपोतानां गर्भः
jarāyujāṇḍajapotānāṃ garbhaḥ
Beings born in a caul, from eggs, or without any covering are born from the womb.
देवनारकाणामुपपादः
devanārakāṇāmupapādaḥ
Celestial and hellish beings are born by upapada.
शेषाणां संमूर्च्छनम्
śeṣāṇāṃ saṃmūrcchanam
All the rest are born by spontaneous generation.
औदारिकवैक्रियिकाहारकतैजसकार्मणानि शरीराणि
audārikavaikriyikāhārakataijasakārmaṇāni śarīrāṇi
There are five bodies: gross (audarika), transformable (vaikriyika), projected (aharaka), fiery (taijasa) and karmic (karmana).
परं परं सूक्ष्मम्
paraṃ paraṃ sūkṣmam
Each is subtler than the one before.
प्रदेशतोऽसंख्येयगुणं प्राक्तैजसात्
pradeśato'saṃkhyeyaguṇaṃ prāktaijasāt
Up to the fiery body, each has innumerable times more units of matter than the one before.
अनन्तगुणे परे
anantaguṇe pare
The last two have infinitely more units than the one before them.
अप्रतीघाते
apratīghāte
These two are not obstructed by anything.
अनादिसंबन्धे च
anādisaṃbandhe ca
And they have been joined to the soul since beginningless time.
सर्वस्य
sarvasya
All worldly souls have these two bodies.
तदादीनि भाज्यानि युगपदेकस्मिन्नाचतुर्भ्यः
tadādīni bhājyāni yugapadekasminnācaturbhyaḥ
Beginning with these two, one soul can have up to four bodies at the same time.
निरुपभोगमन्त्यम्
nirupabhogamantyam
The last, the karmic body, is not a means of experiencing the objects of the senses.
गर्भसंमूर्च्छनजमाद्यम्
garbhasaṃmūrcchanajamādyam
The first, the gross body, comes from womb birth or spontaneous generation.
औपपादिकं वैक्रियिकम्
aupapādikaṃ vaikriyikam
The transformable body comes with upapada birth.
लब्धिप्रत्ययं च
labdhipratyayaṃ ca
It can also arise from a special power gained through austerity (labdhi).
तैजसमपि
taijasamapi
The fiery body too can arise from such power.
शुभं विशुद्धमव्याघाति चाहारकं प्रमत्तसंयतस्यैव
śubhaṃ viśuddhamavyāghāti cāhārakaṃ pramattasaṃyatasyaiva
The projected body (aharaka) is auspicious, pure and unobstructed, and only a monk at the stage of restraint with slight carelessness (pramatta samyata) produces it.
नारकसंमूर्च्छिनो नपुंसकानि
nārakasaṃmūrcchino napuṃsakāni
Hellish beings and spontaneously generated beings are neuter.
न देवाः
na devāḥ
Celestial beings are not neuter.
शेषास्त्रिवेदाः
śeṣāstrivedāḥ
The rest may be of any of the three genders.
औपपादिकचरमोत्तमदेहाऽसंख्येयवर्षायुषोऽनपवर्त्यायुषः
aupapādikacaramottamadehā'saṃkhyeyavarṣāyuṣo'napavartyāyuṣaḥ
Beings born by upapada, those in their last and highest body who will attain liberation in it, and those who live for countless years have lifespans that cannot be cut short.
Sanskrit sutras: Sanskrit Wikisource (public domain), with clear digitisation errors corrected and listed in our build notes. Meanings, summaries and Navkar text: IndiaDigital, awaiting review by Digambara and Svetambara scholars. Sutra counts follow the Digambara recension; Svetambara texts number some sutras differently.
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