Introduction:
Shri Lalluji Maharaj being sick in Surat requested SHRIMADJI for Samadhi Maran. In reply, SHRIMADJI wrote the famous letter of six fundamental truths, and inspired Lalluji Maharaj not to fear death.
This letter is the theme, of which "ATMASIDDHI" is the development. Shri Lalluji Maharaj appreciates this letter as follows:
"This letter has helped us to remove all our stray ideas and wandering thoughts, it has removed our doubts, confirmed our faith in the fundamentals of Jainism and those of all religions in general, namely the nature and development of soul.
It has taken us out of our prejudicial attachments to the Jain sects; it has kept us clear of fixing our faith in the Vedanta; it has, in brief, re-established our pursuits in the nature of the Self and its knowledge.
Thus, this letter is uniquely wonderful in many ways. If the disciple is deserving, the constant meditation on this letter, on the truths contained in it, would put him to the path of Self-realization."
LETTER OF SIX FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS
Bombay Falguna, Vikram Samvat 1950
Salutations with extreme devotion to Shree Sadgurudeva, the sole giver of protection.
The knowing saints who have realized their pure self have declared the following six steps as the best abodes of Samyaka Darshana or right vision of reality:
Step One:
'Self exists.' As there are objects such as pots and cloths, so there is the Self. As one can prove the existence of an object by its specific quality or characteristic, with reference to pot and cloth, similarly the proof of the existence of Self is the presence in it of a quality of consciousness, which not only illuminates itself but also all others around it.
Step Two:
'This Self is permenant or eternal', Pot and cloth etc. exist only to some time, but the Self is present in all times, past ,present and future. Pot and cloth etc. are objects by contact or combination of circumstances, the Self is by nature an independent existence or a substance because we do not experience any circumstances which can create it. Consciousness cannot manifest itself by the help of any object created by collocation of circumstances. So it is uncreated. Since it does not involve any combination of objects, it is imperishable. Because that which cannot be brought into existence by any combination of circumstances, cannot merge or disappear by its transformation to anything else. In short that which is never created, is never destroyed.
Step Three:
'Self is the author of its actions.' All objects have meaning and are active, they are always found to be affected by something else and in their turn, they affect something else in their contact i.e. they are subject to the law of cause and effect. Self is also affecting something i.e. it is active and so it is the creator of its actions. This creativity is shown by Shree Jin Bhagawan, threefold. (1) Philosophically or metaphysically as it maintains its own nature it is the author of its nature, (2) Anupacharita or empirically it is the author of Dravya Karma or its bodily activities by its attachment to its body. (3) By upachara or attribution coming into contact with external objects , it is the author of house, city and the rest.
Step Four:
'Self is the enjoyer, or sufferer of its actions or deeds.' Whatever activity it may be, it is always brining some result, soon or late, it is never uncreative of any result- Direct experience proves that every act done by its author, makes him enjoy or suffer its consequence. Take poison and die, take sugar and feel its sweetness in the mouth, touch fire and suffer the burns, from, there touch snow and feel cold- thus every action is connected with its results or consequence and there is no exception to this rule. Similarly kashayadi= whatever modes or passions etc. or Akashayadi = non passious whatever the Self or Soul undergoes, their results also the Self has to bear or suffer. Since the Self prompts an act, it has to hear its results. Thus the Self being the author of its activities, has to suffer the results of these activities.
Step Five:
There is liberation. 'As we showed the authorship of activities of a Jiva by Anupacharita Vyavahara = empirically and as we showed on the basis of this authorship, the Jiva's responsibility to enjoy or suffer the results thereof, still further in this line, we are now to show that the actions done, can also be destroyed because in direct experience there may be strong effect of Kashaya etc. but by not repeating it, by not establishing any contact with it it, by quietening it down, it can be gradually destroyed. Every action is a Bandha Bhava or feeling of bondage and the Self can be freed from such feeling of bondage. When the Jiva or Soul gets free from all bondage, it enjoys liberation. Thus freedom from all binding actions of the Soul is known as Soul's liberation or Moksha.
Step Six:
'There is a method of obtaining liberation from bondage of Karma or actions.' If Karma bondage goes on happening and increasing, then release from it, can never occur, but things or means possessing a quite opposite nature than that of binding actions, are available in direct experience and they are knowledge, vision or perception, Samadhi or Yogic concentration, non-attachment, devotion etc., by employing which means, Karma bondage slackens down, it quietnes very much, it gets awefully reduced and in the end, totally removed or destroyed. Therefore they-knowledge, vision or perception, sense-control, non-attachment etc. are surely the available means for liberation.
Here I have briefly shown these six steps shown by all-knowing saints-the steps which are the principal residence of Samyakdarshan or right vision of Jiva. They are worthy of being proved most effective and helpful to a Soul very near to its liberation in his natural thinking and reflection. He can very easily see that these six steps are the highest decisions of the human Soul. If these steps are well followed then they can easily give birth to a fine discrimination in the human Soul. These six steps are totally true or correct, beyond all possible doubt, and this is indicated by the very high person Bhagawan Mahavira. The discrimination of these six steps has been given by him to help a Jiva to rightly understand and realise his own forms and nature. This direction of six steps is shown by all knowing great saints with a view to help a Jiva to shakeoff its ego, developed by its suffering its beginningless dream state, and its strong feeling of mine and thine and so to be completely free from it. If the Jiva realises that its real nature is free from this dream state, then in a moment it wakes up and achieves Samyakdarshana or right vision or perception and attaining right vision, it can quickly obtain liberation as its own real nature. Then it would not experience either joy, sorrow, contact about any perishable impure or any such object or Bhava = passion.
Thinking this way the Jiva finds purity, perfection indestructibility or imperishability, highest joy and freedom from all distinetions and distancess (Anatarahita = freedom from all differences.)
The Jiva has felt oneness in all shades of vibhava or natures of objects of opposite nature that its own by only a strong Adhyasa or superimposition and it should quickly realize that it is quite seperate from all these objects of opposite nature and this realization should be experienced, clear, direct, extremely direct and immediate or Aparoksha.
When the Jiva has such immediate, direct experience, he is not at all bothered by any contacts with other objects, nor does he at all think about their desirability or otherwise and he becomes completely self-satisfied by experiencing that his real nature is totally free from bondages like birth, oldage, death, disease, etc. All the persons who have determined to realize their Self with the help of these six steps to liberation as shown by that great All knowing Bhagawan Mahavira, have attained their own nature as liberation and they have been free from Aadhi =outside troubles, Vyadhi = bodily and mental troubles and upadhi = self-imposed troubles in the past and by following similar way, all other persons are likely to attain liberation in the present as well in future.
Our Salutations with all devotion to those great saintly persons who have preached this path of leading a Jiva to its original nature and powers, by destroying the bondages in the form of birth, oldage and death. Our Self-nature shines out even by constantly daily remembering his Nishkarana Karuna = compassion without being asked for. Let the lotus feet of such great saints remain firmly fixed in our hearts!
I have no power to define the virtue of that great saint who told these six steps by which the real nature of the Self is proved and immediately it shines out in the jiva by accepting these six steps and by manifestation of the Self's real nature the Jiva feels joy for all times and becomes totally free from all fears.
I again offer my salutations with all devotion to that All knowing Saint who obliged us with this Soul-saving six steps resulting in our Paramatmabhava - or our real nature as great soul or Paramatma without seeing any merit in us and without inquiring whether we are his disciples or not or whether we worship him or not and keeping the same attitude towards all other living beings - his obligation it is not in our power to repay.
The great saints have advised devotion to Sadguru-right preceptor, purely for the higest good of their disciples; when such a devotion turns into a life's mission, the devotee's mind and being constantly remain in the activities of the Self of that Sadguru or right preceptor and he clearly sees unprecendented virtuous qualities in the Sadguru and thereby all other unthinking or ignorant behaviour remains no more and his self-knowledge immediately shines out and knowing this, the high type of devotion is advised by the great saints. Therefore my repeated salutations for all time to such devotion and to the advisors of such devotion, namely the great saints!
Though manifestly there is no happening or existence of absolute knowledge or Kevala Jnana in the present time, but by thinking of those teaching and whose power, I have clearly known that there is absolute knowledge and in the form of deep faith and in the form of deep thinking, I have experienced absolute knowledge, or in the form of desire I have experienced absolute knowledge, and from the purpose of main Naya (Mukhya Naya = fundemental point of view. I find absolute knowledge prevailing in me - that absolute knowledge manifest all unobstructed happiness, and by whose contact, instantaneously this Jiva became fit for self-realization, my salutations and salutations with all highest devotion, to the obligation of the great saint - all knowing Bhagawan Mahavira!
--SHRIMAD RAJCHANDRA
