The Doctrine of Karman in Jain Philosophy

Book excerpt: The doctrine of karman, the law of action and its results that is central to Jainism, Hinduism, and Buddhism, is uniquely formulated in Jain philosophy. Simply stated, karman is here considered to take the form of material particles, which inhere in the soul, thus causing bondage. This process and its rationale, how it occurs and how one stops it, are minutely detailed in the Jain Karma-granthas. They also describe how one rids oneself of the karmic particles already accumulated, thus attaining liberation. The Karma-granthas form the basis of the present book, the only book in English on this subject of fundamental importance.