Jain Stutis

JAIN STUTIs[1]

darshanam deva – devasya, darshanam pāpa[2] – nāshanam,

darshanam svarga – sopānam, darshanam moksha – sādhanam

Even the heavenly Gods revere Tirthankar Bhagavān. Sincere obeisance to the idol of Tirthankar Bhagavān destroys all sins. It is the first step towards attaining heaven and obeisance to the idol of Tirthankar ultimately leads to liberation

mangalam bhagavāna veero, mangalam gautama prabhu,

manglam sthūlibhadrādyā, jaina dharmo’stu mangalam

Bhagavān Mahāveer is auspicious. Ganadhar Gautam Swāmi is auspicious

Sthūlibhardra and all true ascetics are auspicious. Jain dharma (way of life) is auspicious

arhanto bhagavanta indramahitāh, siddhāScha siddhisthitā,

āchāryā jinashāsanonnatikarā, poojyā upādhyāyakāh,

shree siddhānta – supāthakaa munivarā, ratnatrayārādhakāh,

panchai te parameShthinah pratidinam, kurvantu vo mangalam

The Lord Arihants (Omniscients) who have been worshipped by Indra (King of heavenly beings), the liberated souls who are the Siddhas (who reside in Siddhashilā – top of the universe), the heads of the religious order (Āchāryas) who reinforce the fourfold[3] order established by the Jinas, the revered Upādhāyas who are well versed in and the true teachers of the holy scriptures, the Sādhus (and Sādhavis) (Ascetics) who are the followers of the true path of liberation (bearers of the three jewels[4]). May all these five entities (beings) bestow blessings everyday and make your day auspicious

chattāri mangalam, arihantā mangalam

siddhā mangalam, sāhū mangalam

kevalipaNNatto[5] dhammo mangalam

chattāri loguttamā, arihantā loguttamā

siddhā loguttamā, sāhū loguttamā

kevalipaNNatto dhammo loguttamo

chattāri saraNam pavajjāmi

arihante saraNam pavajjāmi

siddhe saraNam pavajjāmi

sāhū saraNam pavajjāmi

kevali paNNatam dhammam sharaNam pavajjāmi

There are four auspicious beings/entities in the universe; the Arihantas are auspicious;

The Siddhas are auspicious; the Sādhus are auspicious;

The dharma explained by the omniscient is auspicious

There are four supreme beings/entities in the universe; the Arihantas are supreme;

The Siddhas are supreme; the Sādhus are supreme;

The dharma explained by the omniscient is supreme

I take refuge in the four beings/entities of the universe; I take refuge in the Arihantas;

I take refuge in the Siddhas; I take refuge in the Sādhus;

I take refuge in the dharma explained by the omniscient

tubhyam namastribhuvanārtiharāya nātha

tubhyam namah kshititalāmalabhūShaNāya

tubhyam namastrijagatah parameshwarāya

tubhyam namo jina bhavodadhishoShaNāya

O Lord, I bow down to you who are the remover of all the misery of the three worlds[6]

O Lord, I bow down to you who are the adorable ornament on the face of the earth

O Lord, I bow down to you who are the supreme being of the three worlds

O Lord, I bow down to you Jina who are the destroyer of the endless cycle of birth and death

sarva mangala māngalyam, sarva kalyāNa kāraNam

pradhānam sarva dharmāNām jainam jayati shāsanam

The Jain darshan (faith) and Jain dharma (way of life) are the most auspicious of all. They are the cause of the ultimate bliss (moksha) for all. They are the best and greatest among all religious philosophies. May the Jain darshan/dharma be victorious!

upasargā kshayam yānti, chhidyante vighnavallayah

manah prasannatāmeti, poojyamāne jineshware

All the troubles disintegrate, the shackles of obstacles break, the mind achieves a blissful state wherever and whenever the Lord Jineshwaras are worshipped

shivamastu sarvajagatah, parahitaniratā bhavantu bhūtagaNāh

doShāh prayāntu nāsham, sarvatra sukhee bhavatu lokah

May the entire universe attain bliss; may all beings be oriented to the interest of others; let all faults be eliminated; and may people/beings be happy everywhere

khāmemi savvajeeve, savve jeevā khamantu me

mitti me savva bhuesu, veram majjha na keNaï

I forgive all souls; let all souls forgive me; I am on friendly terms with all; I have no enmity towards anyone

In the Mombasa Jain Derāsar there are pratimās (idols) of 5 Tirthankar bhagavān namely:

Rushabhdev (1^st), Shāntināth (16^th), Nemināth (22^nd), Pārshvanāth (23^rd) and Mahāveeraswāmi (24^th). The following 5 stutis are for each of them respectively:

ādimam prithiveenātham ādimam niShparigraham

ādimam teerthanātham cha ruShabhaswāminam stumah

We worship Bhagavān Rushabhdev, who was the first king of the planet earth, who was the first to renounce everything (became a sādhu) and who was the first Tirthankar (of the current descending time cycle)

sudhāsodara vāgjyotsnā nirmaleekruta ding’mukhah

mruglakshmā tamahshantyai shāntināthajino’stu vah

We worship Bhagavān Shāntināth (whose emblem is a deer), whose speech is sweet like nectar, whose speech destroys ignorance and gives knowledge and whose speech enlightens and makes the whole world clear like the full moon

yaduvamshasamudrenduh karmakakshahutāshanah

ariShtanemirbhagavān bhūyādvo’riShtanāshanah

We worship Bhagavān Nemināth who was born in the yādav family. He was for them just like the full moon which enlightens the sea in a powerful way. May Bhagavān Nemināth, who is like the fire which destroys all karmas, destroy all problems and be auspicious to all

kamathe dharaNendre cha svochitam karma kurvati

prabhustulyamanovruttih pārshvanātha shriye’stu vah

We worship Bhagavān Pārshvanāth who, whilst in meditation, maintained perfect equanimity towards both Kamath[7] and DharaNendra both of whom did deeds according to their karma.  May Bhagavān Pārshvanāth be beneficial in increasing your wealth of knowledge

shreemate veeranāthāya sanāthāya’dbhūtashriyā

mahānandasarorāja marālāyārhate namah

We worship and bow down to Bhagavān Mahāveeraswāmi who possesses wonderful and marvelous wealth (i.e. not monetary, but that wealth which no one but Tirthankars have) and who is worthy of worship and is like a royal swan in the ocean of peace

sarasa shānti sudhārasa - sāgaram shuchitaram guNaratna - mahāgaram

bhavika – pankaja - bodha divākaram pratidinam praNamāmi jineshwaram

Jineshwara is an ocean of nectar of love and peace.  He is the purest of the pure.  He is the repository of great (jewel-like) qualities.  He is the sun who makes the lotus of prosperity bloom.  I offer my prostrations to Jineshwara every day

jinerbhakti jinerbhakti jinerbhakti dine dine

sadāme’stu sadāme’stu sadāme’stu bhave bhave

anyathā sharaNam nāsti tvameva sharaNam mama

tasmāt kārūNyabhāvena raksha raksha jineshwara

May I have uninterrupted devotion every day and always to Jineshwara in every birth that I may get.   Jineshwara, I have none else to give protection; you alone are my refuge.  So, have mercy upon me and save me (protect me)

dādā tāree mukh mudrāne, amiya najare nihādee rahyo,

tārā nayanomāthee jharatuⁿ, divya tej huⁿ jheelee rahyo,

kshaNabhar ā sansār nee māyā, tāree bhaktimāⁿ bhūlee gayo,

tuj murtimāⁿ mast baneene, ātmik ānand māNee rahyo

I look at your countenance (facial expression) with sweet love. I absorb the divine radiance flowing from your eyes. For a moment, I forget the illusions of this world while doing your devotional worship. I experience inner bliss by being absorbed in your idol/image

he! prabhu ānandadātā, gyān hamako deejiye,

sheeghra sāre avaguNoko, door hamase keejiye,

leejiye hamako sharaName, ham sadāchāree bane,

bhramachāree dharma rakshaka, veer vratadhāree bane

O Lord, thou, who are the giver of happiness, give us knowledge. Take away all bad habits from us. Take us in your refuge and may we have good conduct. May we take the pledge to be in pursuit of divine knowledge and protect dharma

dayā sindhu dayā sindhu, dayā karajo dayā karajo,

have ā zanjeeromāⁿthee, mane  jaldi chhuto karajo,

nathee  ā tāp sahevāto, bhabhūkee karma ni jwālā,

varsāvee premanee dhārā, hridayanee āg bujhavajo

O! ocean of compassion, be compassionate to me. Free me from this bondage of life and death. I can no longer bear this heat of the fire of ‘karmas’ (actions). Extinguish the burning fire in my heart by showering upon me endless love

antar nā ek kodiyāmāⁿ deep bade chhe jhānkho,

jeevan nā jyotirdhar ene nishadin jalato rākho,

ūnche ūnche udavā māte prān chāhe chhe pānkho,

tujne odakhu nāth niranjan, evi āpo ānkho

Somewhere in my heart there is a faint light. O! Light of my life, always keep the light burning. This soul desires wings to scale new heights. O Lord, Give me the vision to know you

prabhu ādishwara shānti nemijina ne shree pārshvaveera prabhu

e pānche jinarāja āj praNamu hete dharee he vibhu

I bow down today to the 5 Jineshwara Bhagavān - Rushabhdev (1^st), Shāntināth (16^th), Nemināth (22^nd), Pārshvanāth (23^rd) and Mahāveeraswāmi (24^th) with love

āvyo sharaNe tamārā jinavara karajo āsh pūree amāree

nāvyo bhavapār māro tum viNa jagamā sār le koNa māree

gāyo jinarāj āje harakha adhikathee param ānandakāree

pāyo tum darsha nāshe bhavabhav bhramaNā nāth sarve amāree

O Lord, I have taken refuge in you. Fulfil our desires. I have not been able to free myself from this cycle of life and death. Who else will take care of me apart from you? I have worshipped you today with extreme joy, O Lord, the giver of supreme happiness. Having had sight of you, O Lord,  may we be liberated from this cycle of life and death

purāyo hansa pinjar maaⁿ udeene kyaaⁿ have jāshe

bhale sāro agar buro nibhāvyo tem nibhavaje

karuⁿ pokār huⁿ tārā japuⁿ chhuⁿ rātadin pyārā

vinantee dhyānamaaⁿ laïne duhkhee ā bāl reejhavaje

I am stuck in the worldly struggles and the cycle of life and death – where shall I go?

I may be good or bad (have good conduct or bad conduct), take care of me as you always have

I sing your praises and worship you, O dear one, day and night

Take note of my request and give solace to this child of yours

Namaskaara (Navakaara) Mahaamantra
Namo ArihantāNam	I bow to the Arihantas (Tirthankars) (the perfected/enlightened souls)
Namo SiddhāNam	I bow to the Siddhas (liberated souls)
Namo ĀyariyāNam	I bow to the Āchāryas (heads of the Jain congregation – religious leaders)
Namo UvajjhāyāNam	I bow to the Upādhāyas (the religious teachers)
Namo Loë SavvasāhūNam	I bow to all Sādhus and Sādhavis (those who have taken renunciation - ascetics)
Eso Pancha Namukkāro Savva PāvappaNāsaNo	These five salutations (to the 5 types of great souls) are capable of destroying all the sins
MangalāNan Cha Savvesim Padhamam Havaï Managalam	This is the holiest of all Mantras, the most auspicious of all benedictions

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[1] A Stuti is a prayer/verse sung in praise of a God or Goddess or of the Jain Dharma and its principles

[2] The letter ā is pronounced as a long ‘a’ and is pronounced as ‘aa. The letter ū is pronounced as long ‘u’ and is pronounced as ‘oo’

[3] The fourfold order comprises the Monks and Nuns (ascetics) and Shravaks and Shravikas (lay followers)

[4] The three jewels – Right Faith (or Right Perception), Right Knowledge, Right Conduct

[5] A capital N in the middle of a word means it is the ‘aNa sound (e.g in the Gujarati word ‘pāNi’ – water) and not the normal ‘n’ sound

[6] The three worlds are the dev lok (heavenly beings), maanav lok (humans) and daanav lok (beings of the nether world)

[7] Kamath was a mendicant. Parshvanath saved a snake (nag) from Kamath’s sacrificial fire. Kamath was reborn as Meghmali (lord of rain) and to take revenge he disturbed Parshvanath who was in meditation. The snake was reborn as DharaNendra and came to the save the Lord from Meghmali’s actions. The Lord maintained perfect equanimity and showed no hatred towards Kamath (Meghmali) and no affection towards DharaNendra (who was the snake in the previous life)

Notes - Week 7 - Samvar & Nirjara

Week 7 Notes

Path of Purification

Samvar and Nirjara

Jain Dharma has attempted to reform and ennoble every facet of an individual’s life.  Life becomes distorted even if one facet is not properly disciplined and directed.

SAMVAR

At this stage everything that we have learnt is brought together under one roof, so you may see many repetitions eg Principles, virtues.  At the same time it demonstrates that the philosophy is very simple and straightforward to follow.  At advanced levels it just gets detailed yet remains a simple philosophy.

Jainism shows 57 ways of avoiding influx of karma.  These can be grouped into:

1.    Habit of Carefulness in daily activities (Samiti) – 5

Of the 5, pay particular attention to these as laymen:

·       Regulation of walking so as not to injure any living beings

·       Regulation of speech to avoid hurting others feelings

·       Regulation of eating of food, quantity, variety, frequency

2.    Control of Mind, Body and Speech (Gupti) – 3. Influx of karma takes place through at least through one of this, so it is vital to keep control over them.

·       Regulation of mind to allow only pure thoughts.  Master the mind.  Distraction, impure thoughts and ignorance should be removed.

·       Regulation of speech, observing silence or speaking only as much necessary

3.    Cultivation of virtues – 10.  To counteract the 4 inner enemies, we engage in virtues we learnt earlier - the 5 main principles plus austerity, humility, contentment, renunciation, self-restraint

4.    Bhavna – reflecting or contemplating on 12 concepts.

·       Most of the concepts will not be new to you by now.  But what Jainism calls for is conscious thinking, meditating, contemplating on these concepts. 

·       This is an intellectual exercise meant to convince, clarify and fortify your adherence to the path.

The 12 Bhavnas are

1.    Transitory nature of everything, impermanence of the world.  What causes us pain is our insistence of things of our liking remaining permanent

2.    No protection.  No one protects us from pain.  We are masters of our own Karma.  We have to learn to bear them on our own.

3.    Life and Death – the continuous cycle is endless.  A purpose must be found, if there is one.

4.    Loneliness – I am alone, I alone chart the course of my life, I alone bear the fruit of my karma, I cannot relieve others of their karma.

5.    Separateness – I am the soul, not the body.  The world, my family, my body are all different and separate from my real self.

6.    Impurity of the body – the body is impure made of blood, flesh and excrement.  But body must be looked after as it is the vehicle to liberation

7.    Ashrav – contemplate on the inflow of Karma and its effects.  All causes that create Karmic inflow should be avoided. 

8.    Samvar – contemplate on the ways of stopping influx.  Contemplate on the virtues that lead to stoppage of influx.

9.    Nirjara – contemplate on the ways of shedding Karma

10.                       Universe – contemplate on the nature of the universe, the four realms of existence (in the sathio).

11.                       Rarity of Enlightenment – it is difficult acquire the right knowledge.  Take the advantage to develop right authority.

12.                       Reflection on true nature of religion and on 3 fold path of liberation as preached by Tirthankars.

5.    Tolerating trouble and hardships.

NIRJARA

Karma come to fruition and are shed off, but at the same time new karma are bound.  Therefore Karma should be shed off before they produce new Karma.

The way to do this is by Penance or Tapa. Tapa can be split into internal and external.

Tap should be done with the right attitude.  Never to show off ones capability of doing Tapa.  Tapa is an individual’s effort.

EXTERNAL TAPA

1.    Fasting

2.    Semi Fastning – eating less than one’s needs or apetite

3.    Limiting variety

4.    Giving up delicacies

5.    Lonely habitation – Staying in a secluded place away from people

6.    Mortification – putting the body through hardship, but in a way that does not harm the mind

INTERNAL TAPA

1.    Confession or repentance of sins

2.    Reverence or humble and modest behaviour

3.    Rendering Service to saints

4.    Study of Scriptures

5.    Meditation

6.    Renunciation

Only a person who is imbued with full faith in the validity of the Jain philosophy and is possessed of the right knowledge of soul and matter can progress further on this path.

Here ends the introduction to the philosophy of Jainism.  Full faith and right knowledge is a must.  Deeper study of each Tattva is necessary.

Slides Week 7 - Samvar & Nirjara

Slides Week 6 - Path of Purification 1

Notes Week 6 - Path of Liberation 1

Week 6 Notes

Path of Purification

In the last class we spoke of Nav Tattva, the 9 Fundamentals or Realities.  This is the basis or the core of the philosophy of Jainism.  Everything else revolves round or comes out from this core.

When the goal has been determined, the next question arises regarding the way to achieve that goal.

Whenever we embark on a path, a journey, or decide to practice a philosophy, we make sure we have thought of everything, that we know where we are going and how we are getting there.

In order to undertake the journey we need to have sufficient TRUST or FAITH in what we are going to undertake, as well as the KNOWLEDGE how to undertake it and then DO the needful.

We have to have the RIGHT FAITH.  It is only the RIGHT FAITH, a firm belief that this way is the only correct way to get us to the destination.  We need the RIGHT KNOWLEDGE and we need to engage in the RIGHT CONDUCT to get to our destination.

In the same way, Jainism clearly states that the 3 Jewels (ratna-traya) which are:

SAMYAK DARSHAN (RIGHT FAITH/BELIEF) – firm trust and belief in what is the true reality, in accepting that Nav Tattva shows the path to liberation,

SAMYAK GNAN  – (RIGHT KNOWLEDGE), which only comes with believing what is the true reality,

SAMYAK CHARITRA – (RIGHT CONDUCT) to lead to liberation, only by having the right knowledge, are we capable of engaging in the right conduct,

together constitute the path to liberation.

The path to liberation is impossible without the unity or presence of all 3.

RIGHT BELIEF has characteristics

•    Believing Tirthankars as the true leaders, Nav Tattva is the true scripture, Gurus are the true teachers
•   Free from doubt about the truth or validity of Jain philosophy
• No liking for worldy enjoyment as nothing is permanent
•  Our bodies are impure but we need to look after them
• No inclination towards the wrong path, or inclined towards superstition
•   Praising the pious, not deriding those who falter in pursuit of religion
•   Desire to attain higher spiritual state
•  Freedom from pride – pride of knowledge, worship, family, power, wealth and achievements, penance, appearance of body
•   Equilibrium of mind

RIGHT KNOWLEDGE

Jainism lays down a rational approach to learning or acquiring knowledge –

• Correct use of words – reading, writing, pronouncing words correctly.  Reading must be done with care and faith
• Reading must be directed towards understanding the meaning, mechanical study serves no purpose.
• Questioning, repetition, contemplation, studying.
• This knowledge reveals the true nature of things, not insufficiently or falsely.  This knowledge is free from doubt, perversity and vagueness.

RIGHT CONDUCT

Only right belief and right knowledge translate into practical and spiritual discipline required for liberation.  The first stage of right conduct is for a layman to avoid 5 short comings:

• Doubt or Scepticism
• Desire of sensual pleasures
• Disgust of anything
• Admiring wrong believers
• Prasing wrong believers

In the powerpoint, slide 12 lists the above in a different way.

Householders are expected to observe 12 vows for Right Conduct in their daily lives in order to maintain constant progress in spiritual growth.

5 main vows – Ahimsa, Asteya, Satya, Aprigraha, Brahmacharya, undertaken in full by Ascetics

3 merit vows -

• Limit ones activities to specific directions
• Limit ones activities to certain distances or areas
• Avoid purposelessness activity

The next 4 set of vows encourages and helps a layperson in practice of religious duties:

•   Samayika – take a vow to devote a particular time every day to contemplate or meditate
•   Limitation in ones enjoyment of using consumables and non-consumables – eg eating 3 out of 10 varieties on the table
•   Doing charity
• Living the life of an ascetic for a limited duration – eg fasting in the manner they do

Jainism advocates a whole way of life – of virtues to cultivate, endeavours to be attempted, faults to be discarded, duties to be carried out.  This is called Marganusari.  A handout was given in the class, and lists in detail. 

Remember to take up vows not just to NOT to do things, but also take up positive things, TO DO things, eg doing charity and samayika are positive action vows.  Fasting are limitation type vows.

There are a lot of 4 of this, 5 of that, 10 of the other.  Familiarity only builds with constant reading, discussing with friends and practicing.  A lot of things get repeated.  It is not complicated or convoluted.