JAIN BBS
Jain Study Cener of North Carolina
FEDERATION OF JAINA
                                                      Article prepared by:
                                                      Shilpa P. Shah
                                                      401 Farmstead Drive
                                                      Cary, NC 27511
                                                      09-12-87
 
 
                        The Teachings of the Atma Siddhi
 
 
             Seeking to teach his disciples true religion, Shrimad Rajchan-
 
        dra, a great religious teacher, wrote many well known literary works.
 
        Born in 1848 in Vavania, Gujarat, he wrote the Atma Siddhi in one
 
        sitting.  The Atma Siddhi is a 142 stanza poem explaining the science
 
        of self realization.
 
             Shrimad Rajchandra explains in the Atma Siddhi the proper rela-
 
        tionship between the spiritual teacher and the disciple, as well as
 
        the relationship between the soul and karma.  He explains the quali-
 
        ties of a true teacher by saying that the teacher must have knowledge
 
        of the soul and of the highest scriptures.  He must have equal 
        
       feeling to contradictory pair, such as pleasure and pain, praise 

        and censure,
 
        and gain and loss.  Therefore, he should lead a worldly life only due
 
        to past karmas and not because of any present attachments.  He must
 
        also have a unique speech characterized by sweetness and beauty, as
 
        well as authority and truth.
 
             The Atma Siddhi, similarly, describes the duties of a true 
disci-
 
        ple.  The true disciple should faithfully follow the guidance of his
 
        teacher and read the scriptures suggested by him.  He must accept the
 
        protection of the true teacher as well in order to overcome faults,
 
        such as anger, pride, deceit, and greed.
 
             Shrimad Rajchandra describes the characteristics of and untrue
 
        disciple, as well, by saying that he takes for a spiritual 
teacher one
 
        who has renounced the world, but has no knowledge.  He takes a per-
 
        verse view and assumes that his own religion or caste is the 
cause of
 
        liberation.  The untrue disciple does not understand the true charac-
 
        ter of the path of liberation, but yet he prides himself of vows that

        that he has taken.  He does not supress his passions and still 
remains
 
        attached to worldly life.  Such a disciple, therefore, neither gains
 
        any knowledge, nor practices any means of liberation.
 
             The Atma Siddhi portrays, on the other hand, the characteristics
 
        of a true disciple, by saying that such a student considers 
having a
 
        true teacher to be a blessing.  He behaves obediently through his
 
        mind, speech, and body.  The true disciple supresses his 
passions, and
 
        so has only one desire--attaining liberation.  He shows 
compassion for
 
        all living beings and has only one sorrow--having to continue 
with the
 
        cycle of reincarnation.
 
             The Atma Siddhi, along with explaining the characteristics of
 
        the spiritual teacher and the disciple, explains the relationship
 
        between the soul and karma by the following six propositions:
 
                   1. The soul exists.
                   2. It is eternal.
                   3. It is the doer of its own actions.
                   4. It enjoys the results of these action.
                   5. There is liberation.
                   6. There is a means of liberation.
 
             Shrimad Rajchandra explains the existence of the soul by saying
 
        that even though the body itself sees, hears, feels, etc., it is the
 
        soul that really senses his surroundings.  Each individual sense 
knows
 
        about its own function, but the soul, unlike the body, knows 
about all
 
        five senses.  He also points out that many people with small bodies
 
        are extremely intelligent, while many people with large bodies lack
 
        intelligence.  If the body and the soul are the same, then there 
would
 
        not be such a difference.
 
             Along with explaining the existence of the soul, Shrimad 
Rajchan-
 
        dra proves the eternity of the soul by saying that the soul 
cannot be

        born because consciousness cannot originate from any lifeless matter
 
        and vice versa.  He proves that the soul cannot die because any sub-
 
        stance that does not originate from anything, cannot be destroyed by
 
        anything.  If the soul is not born and cannot die, it is, therefore,
 
        eternal.  The soul is also immortal because passions observed in ani-
 
        mals result from previous births.
 
             The Atma Siddhi explains that the soul does karmas.  Only a pure
 
        liberated soul is free from karmas.  Since the soul on earth experi-
 
        ences, it performs thoughts and actions and acquires karma.  
Since the
 
        body cannot think, it is, therefore, the soul who does karmas.
 
             Not only is the soul the doer of karmas, but it also enjoys the
 
        fruits of karmas.  Shrimad Rajchandra says in the Atma Siddhi that
 
        while karmas posses no knowledge about their effects, the soul 
experi-
 
        ences their fruits.  He proves this by pointing out that the reason
 
        why we have rich people as well as poor people is because the soul
 
        enjoys the fruits of good and evil karmas.
 
             Shrimad Rajchandra proves in the Atma Siddhi that the soul can
 
        gain liberation by pointing out that since good and bad actions 
result
 
        in good and bad karmas, actions without any attachments result in no
 
        karmas.  Ridding one's self of good and evil thoughts cause the pure
 
        nature of the soul to emerge.  The separation from this cycle of 
karmas
 
        is liberation, the status of Siddha, where the soul enjoys infinite
 
        bliss.
 
             Anger, pride, deceit, and geed are the causes of karma.  
Breaking
 
        through these causes by forgiveness, humility, straight forwardness,
 
        and charity is the path of liberation.  Liberation can be acheived
 
        through right belief and right conduct.  Right belief is gained by
  
        enlightenment about the nature of things through knowledge, observa-
 
        tion, and experience, while right conduct is gained by 
non-attachment.
 
             With the knowledge of these six propositions, a person's ignor-
 
        ance disappears.  He also feels detached from the body and worldly
 
        possessions.  By becoming a true student and following the 
guidance of
 
        a true teacher, he may soon reach his goal of liberation.

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