Vikas Ka Mukhya Sadhan - Book Summary

Here's a comprehensive summary of the provided Jain text, "Vikas ka Mukhya Sadhan" (The Main Means of Development) by Sukhlal Sanghavi, in English:

The text, "Vikas ka Mukhya Sadhan" by Sukhlal Sanghavi, posits that responsibility (jawabdehi) is the primary and most crucial factor for human development. The author distinguishes between two types of development: physical and mental.

Physical Development:

While physical development is observed in all living beings, from humans to animals and birds, it's not solely dependent on external comforts like food, shelter, and freedom from worry.
For humans, true physical development requires a well-developed and integrated mental faculty (buddhi-yog or mano-vyapar) alongside physical provisions. Without this mental engagement, physical growth remains incomplete.

Mental Development:

Mental development is inherent to all humans, though its full potential is achieved through physical means.
Crucially, mental development depends entirely on the proper direction and engagement of the mind (mano-yog or buddhi-vyapar). Even with excellent physical health and resources, a lack of mental focus or proper thought processes hinders complete mental growth.

The Paradox of Development and the Role of Responsibility: The author observes a paradox: individuals who are financially secure and have inherited wealth or status often exhibit less mental development. Their children, royal heirs, and landlords, despite abundant external resources and educational opportunities, often show a stagnation in their intellectual and creative capacities. Conversely, those from less privileged backgrounds, without inherited advantages, frequently demonstrate exceptional mental development.

This disparity leads the author to question the true source of development. The simple answer, he asserts, is responsibility (jawabdehi).

Responsibility as the Seed of Development: From a psychological perspective, responsibility possesses a unique power to drive development. It hinges on the awakening of the sattva (virtuous) aspect of the mind. When the rajas (passionate) and tamas (inert) aspects of the mind dominate, the sattvic, pure thinking capacity is obscured. The dominance of rajas and tamas is characterized by pramad (carelessness or negligence).

Lack of responsibility leads to the stagnation of the mind's progress and an increase in carelessness. This is akin to overburdening the body, leading to a loss of its agility and strength. The mind's natural sattvic thought process becomes inactive due to the burden of Rajasic agitation and Tamasic inertia.
When we evade or fail to fulfill our responsibilities, the sattvic aspect of the mind weakens, while the rajasic and tamasic aspects strengthen. This results in stunted mental development, often skewed towards superficial or misdirected growth.
Irresponsibility is therefore deemed the most dangerous element for humanity, leading individuals away from their true human potential. This underscores the paramount importance of responsibility for development.

Types of Responsibility: The text categorizes responsibilities into two main types:

Conditional and Limited Responsibilities: These arise from fleeting emotions and attachments, such as:
- Attachment/Infatuation (Moh): Responsibility felt towards a loved one, often exclusive and prone to change.
- Affection/Love (Sneha/Prem): Parental love for their child, which can be selective.
- Fear (Bhay): Acting responsibly out of fear of consequences, which ceases when the fear is gone.
- Other Rajasic and Tamasic tendencies like greed, anger, and ego also give rise to forms of responsibility.
These responsibilities are unstable, limited, and impure. They are driven by momentary sentiments and can shift or disappear when circumstances change or when a more appealing object of attachment arises. The satisfaction derived from fulfilling these responsibilities is often temporary and can lead to inner turmoil if the underlying sentiment is impure (like un-metabolized food). Examples include a soldier acting out of fear, or European nations failing to help Abyssinia due to a lack of personal fear or vested interest.
Unconditional and Pure Responsibility: This arises from the true experience of life-force (jeevan-shakti). This type of responsibility is:
- Unchanging: It doesn't falter or diminish upon arising.
- Universal: It is not limited or confined.
- Pure: It is not tainted by impurities.

The True Experience of Life-Force: The text elaborates on the nature of life-force. It's not simply breathing or prana, but a deeper, fundamental force. Spiritual experiences identify this force as consciousness (chetana). Consciousness is a stable, luminous power that illuminates all physical, mental, and sensory activities.

Alongside consciousness, there is resolve or will-power (sankalp-shakti), which translates conscious understanding into action. Together with vital energy or vigor (virya or bal), these three form the triune life-force. Experiencing this triune force – its existence and potential – within oneself and others is the "true experience of life-force."

The Impact of True Experience of Life-Force: When one experiences the triune life-force, their perspective towards themselves and others transforms. This leads to the realization that this life-force (often described as Sachchidananda – existence, consciousness, bliss) is one and indivisible, or at least uniform everywhere.

This realization fosters an unwavering and comprehensive sense of responsibility towards all beings, regardless of kinship or social standing.
This responsibility, originating from a natural, sattvic state, is not subject to Rajasic or Tamasic influences and therefore remains steadfast and pure.

Historical Examples of Pure Responsibility: The text highlights individuals like Buddha, Mahavira, Socrates, Jesus, and Mahatma Gandhi as exemplars of this pure, life-force-driven responsibility. Despite immense challenges, temptations, and threats of death, they remained committed to their callings of human upliftment and truth.

Conclusion: The author concludes that this capacity to embrace or generate the natural, sattvic state, which stems from the true experience of life-force, is humanity's most precious gift and the main means of development. This state of being, where one understands the world as their family, is not merely intellectual but arises from within. It is the foundation of spiritual science, the yogic path, and the ultimate fulfillment of human life.