AcharyaKund Kund Ka Maulik Chintan

Here is a comprehensive summary of the Jain text "Acharya Kundkund ka Maulik Chintan" by Rushabhchand Jain, focusing on the key philosophical and spiritual concepts attributed to Acharya Kundkund:

The book highlights the significant and universally respected position of Acharya Kundkund within the Jain monastic tradition. Both Shvetambar and Digambar sects hold him in high esteem, with the Digambar tradition even commemorating him alongside Lord Mahavir and Ganadhar Gautam. His influence is so profound that a specific lineage of Jain monks, the Kundkundānvaya, derives its name from him, and they proudly identify with this lineage even today.

Acharya Kundkund is believed to have authored 84 texts, but only a select few, including Samayapāhuḍa, Pravacanasāra, Pañcāstikāya-saṅgraha, Niyamasāra, Aṣṭapāhuḍa, Rayaṇasāra, Bārasa Aṇuvekkhā, and Prākṛta Bhaktiyāṁ, have been discovered. His works are considered to present the teachings of Kevalins (omniscient beings) and Shrutakevalins (those who possess complete scriptural knowledge). He himself states this in the auspicious verse of Niyamasāra. His writings are rich with original spiritual and philosophical ideas, which the book aims to summarize.

Key Original Thoughts of Acharya Kundkund:

• The Concept of Niyama (Rule/Law):

  • In Niyamasāra, Kundkund defines "Niyama" as that which is to be done by rule, specifically identifying it as right knowledge (samyak jñāna), right perception (samyak darśana), and right conduct (samyak cāritra). The term "Sāra" (essence) is used to negate its opposite: wrong perception, wrong knowledge, and wrong conduct.
  • He interprets "Niyama" as the path to liberation (moksha-mārga) comprising these three principles. The ultimate goal of this path is Nirvana.
  • Kundkund employs two epistemological standpoints (nayavāda): niścaya-naya (absolute/ultimate truth) and vyavahāra-naya (conventional/practical truth).
  • From the vyavahāra-naya perspective, right knowledge, perception, and conduct are described as the path to liberation.
  • From the niścaya-naya perspective, Kundkund defines Niyama as the meditation on the self, achieved by renouncing the creation of auspicious and inauspicious words and the passions like attachment (rāga) and aversion (dveṣa). The commentary by Padmaprabh Malladhārideva further elucidates that this Niyama leads to the bliss of liberation.
  • The book notes that the term "Niyama" for the path of the three jewels is not found in earlier Āgamas or Sanskrit texts, indicating Kundkund's unique usage.

• The Fourfold Path to Liberation and the Trifold Path:

  • In Darśana Pāhuḍa, Kundkund states that liberation is attained through the combination of knowledge, perception, conduct, and austerity (tapas). He asserts that beings achieve perfection through the combination of these four with right perception. This suggests that the tradition of a fourfold path to liberation existed during his time.
  • However, his texts extensively elaborate on the threefold path (knowledge, perception, and conduct), possibly because the concept of a formless, odorless, unmanifest, conscious, soundless, and ungraspable liberation was also emerging. He merely mentions the fourfold and indeterminate paths while detailing the threefold path, which lacks any definable form.

• Nishcaya-naya and Vyavahara-naya (Absolute and Conventional Truth):

  • Acharya Kundkund extensively discusses the nature of the self (ātman) through the lens of niścaya-naya and vyavahāra-naya.
  • Niścaya-naya describes the soul's pure nature, devoid of qualities and transformations, as eternal.
  • Vyavahāra-naya describes the soul's various transformations due to the influence of karma.
  • He states that the soul undergoes both pure (svabhāva) and impure (vibhāva) transformations.
  • The book points out that Kundkund was the first to explicitly name these two modes of understanding as niścaya and vyavahāra. These concepts, though not named as such, were present in earlier texts like the Bhagavatī Sūtra concerning the soul and other permutations.
  • In Niyamasāra, niścaya-naya is equated with dravya-arthika-naya (that which focuses on substance) and considered absolute and true (paramārtha, bhūtārtha).
  • Vyavahāra-naya is equated with paryāya-arthika-naya (that which focuses on modes/qualities) and considered un-absolute and impure (abhūtārtha, aśuddha).

• The Six Substances (Ṣaḍdravya) and Five Astikāyas:

  • The six substances (soul, matter, dharma, adharma, space, and time) are referred to as "Tattvärtha" (principles or entities).
  • With the exception of time, the other five are called astikāyas (substantial entities) because they are multi-dimensional and possess a "body" or substantial existence. Time, being one-dimensional, is not considered an astikāya.
  • In Pravacanasāra, Kundkund states that "Artha khalu davyamayo" (meaning, entities are made of substance). Pañcāstikāya-saṅgraha is a dedicated text by Kundkund explaining the five astikāyas and the six substances.
  • Understanding these entities liberates one from the sorrows of the world. The term aṭuṁ (entities) is used in Pañcāstikāya-saṅgraha for these substances.
  • The faith in these substances is considered samyaktva (right faith). This is supported by the Pañcāstikāya-saṅgraha.

• Substance and Mode (Dravya and Paryāya):

  • Kundkund emphasizes the distinction between substance and its modes. He was the first to clearly articulate the concept of svabhāva-paryāya (natural modes) and vibhāva-paryāya (unnatural or affected modes).
  • Svabhāva-paryāya refers to the soul's pure, unconditioned state, devoid of karmic attachments.
  • Vibhāva-paryāya refers to the soul's transformations into states like hell-beings, humans, animals, and celestial beings, caused by karmic results.
  • For the substance of matter (pudgala), svabhāva-paryāya is the atomic state, while its transformation into aggregates (skandhas) is vibhāva-paryāya.
  • The other four substances (dharma, adharma, space, and time) only have svabhāva-paryāya as they do not undergo transformations.

• The Threefold Nature of the Self (Ātman):

  • Kundkund categorizes the self into three: Paramātman (Supreme Self), Antarātman (Inner Self), and Bahirātman (Outer Self).
  • Paramātman: Characterized by freedom from all afflictions (hunger, thirst, etc.) and possessing infinite qualities like perfect knowledge, perfect perception, perfect vigor, and perfect bliss. Arhats and Siddhas are considered Paramātman.
  • Antarātman: The self engaged in monastic duties, free from internal and external distractions, and absorbed in meditative practices (dharma-dhyāna and śukla-dhyāna).
  • Bahirātman: The self lacking in essential duties, prone to internal and external arguments, and devoid of meditation.

• The Nature of the Atom (Paramāṇu):

  • Kundkund provides a detailed and subtle description of the atom. He defines it as the indivisible substance that is the beginning, middle, and end of itself, imperceptible by the senses.
  • He differentiates between cause atoms (responsible for the origin of elements like earth, water, fire, and air) and effect atoms (produced from the disintegration of aggregates).
  • He states that atoms are bound by qualities of stickiness (snigdha) and dryness (rūkṣa), and the loss of these qualities leads to the disintegration of aggregates.
  • He considers atoms as the fundamental substance of matter, and the atom itself as the pure, unconditioned mode of matter.

• Types of Spiritual Engagement (Upayoga):

  • Kundkund asserts that the soul is characterized by engagement or application (upayoga).
  • Upayoga is of two types: knowledge (jñāna) and perception (darśana).
  • He further categorizes jñāna-upayoga into svabhāva-jñāna (natural knowledge) and vibhāva-jñāna (affected knowledge). Natural knowledge is independent of the senses, while affected knowledge includes right knowledge (saṁjñāna) and wrong knowledge (ajñāna).
  • Similarly, darśana-upayoga is divided into svabhāva-darśana (natural perception) and vibhāva-darśana (affected perception). Natural perception is independent of the senses, while affected perception includes visual, non-visual, and clairvoyant perception.
  • He also classifies upayoga into three types: aśubha (inauspicious), śubha (auspicious), and śuddha (pure).
  • Śuddhopayoga is defined as conduct that is free from attachment, balanced in pleasure and pain, and associated with right knowledge and asceticism. A monk practicing this becomes omniscient and attains liberation.
  • Śubhopayoga leads to heavenly bliss, while aśubhopayoga results in suffering and transmigration in the cycle of birth and death.

• The Six Essential Duties (Ṣaḍāvaśyaka):

  • In Niyamasāra, Kundkund elaborates on the six essential duties. While the specific names and order may differ slightly from later texts (like Mūlācāra and Avaśyakasūtra), the core concepts are present.
  • These duties are related to rectifying past faults (pratikramaṇa), renouncing future faults (pratyākhyāna), confessing present faults (ālocanā), undergoing penance (prāyaścita), achieving equipoise (samādhi), and attaining supreme power (parāśakti).
  • He defines "āvaśyaka" as that which is not dependent on others. Such actions are karma-destroying and lead to cessation.
  • A monk who is self-controlled, free from external influences, and meditates on his pure self performs āvaśyakas. Those who are attached to external states are not performing true āvaśyakas.
  • The book notes that Kundkund's tradition of the six duties is ancient, and later scholars refined and modified it.

• Omniscience (Sarvajñatā) through Nishcaya and Vyavahara:

  • Kundkund explains omniscience from both niścaya-naya and vyavahāra-naya.
  • From the vyavahāra-naya perspective, the omniscient being (Kevalin) knows and sees everything in the universe.
  • From the niścaya-naya perspective, the omniscient being truly knows and sees only their own soul.
  • This distinction is considered significant as it clarifies the scope of omniscient knowledge. Kundkund's detailed discussion on the subject of knowledge and the known is unprecedented.

• Simultaneity of Knowledge and Perception in Omniscience:

  • Kundkund states that the knowledge and perception of an omniscient being are simultaneous. He uses the analogy of the sun's heat and light occurring together. This example has been adopted by later philosophers. This is contrasted with ordinary beings, whose knowledge follows perception, as they cannot experience both simultaneously.

• Self-Illuminating Nature of Soul, Knowledge, and Perception:

  • Kundkund clarifies the self-illuminating nature of the soul, knowledge, and perception.
  • He argues against viewing knowledge as solely illuminating others, perception as solely illuminating the self, and the soul as illuminating both.
  • He explains that from the vyavahāra-naya, both knowledge and perception are seen as illuminating others, and the soul as illuminating others.
  • From the niścaya-naya, knowledge illuminates itself, perception illuminates itself, and the soul is self-illuminating.
  • He strongly asserts that the soul knows its own true nature, and knowledge is the very essence of the soul. Therefore, knowledge and perception are both self-illuminating. He is considered the first Acharya to provide such a clear explanation of this concept.

• The Seven-Pointed Predication (Saptabhaṅgī):

  • The book acknowledges that Jain philosophy views objects as having infinite qualities, which is the principle of anekāntavāda (non-absolutism).
  • The syādvāda (doctrine of conditional predication) explains these infinite qualities through relative statements.
  • The saptabhaṅgī is the method used in syādvāda to describe an object from seven different standpoints.
  • Kundkund is credited with being the first to explicitly mention the seven bhaṅgas (predicates).

In conclusion, the book emphasizes that Acharya Kundkund's writings contain a wealth of ancient Jain philosophical material and that he articulated many core Jain concepts for the first time, thus demonstrating the originality of his thought. He is lauded for preserving many fundamental aspects of the tradition.