GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF JAINA MONKS: ACHARYA, UPADHYAYA AND SADHUS

Now, we look into the characteristics of Acharya, Upadhyaya & Sadhu (all possessionless naked Jaina monks):

He (the right believer) who having become dispassionate and indifferent to worldly pleasures, relinquished all kinds of possessions and attachments and accepted Shuddhopayoga (pure passionless conduct of self-absorption) form of monk's conduct, experiences internally through that Shuddhopayoga his own self to be the self-soul only; never feels I-ness in other objects and believes one's own sentient nature only as one's own, never feels mineness in alien dispositions, and whatever other substances and their characteristics appear in knowledge, he, of course, knows them but does not have attachment-aversion feelings in them by treating them as agreeable or disagreeable; the body undergoes different changes, various instrumental causes get associated externally but (in those situations) he does not feel happy or unhappy at all, and the external (bodily) activity suitable to his (spiritual) status takes place in natural course, he does not involve himself in it forcibly, and he does not allow his Upayoga (active consciousness) to deviate or ramble too much, he rather holds deviationless (stable) condition by becoming stoical and dispassionate. And, occassionally, due to rise of mild-passion, Shubhopayoga (auspicious thought activity) is also caused, owing to which he gets inclined towards the external means of Shuddhopayoga but knowing such inclination also to be relinquishable, wishes to uproot it. And due to the absence of rise of intense passions there exists no Ashubhopayoga (inauspicious thought activity) of indulging in violence, etc., and having attained such an internal state of self, he has accepted the Digamber posture (totally possessionless naked state) of quititide and serenity, has become free from the acts of decorating the body, etc., lives in forest, caves etc., follows unbreachedly 28 Moolgunas (basic rites), endures 22 types of Parishahas (afflictions), adores 12 kinds of Tapas (penances), sometimes becomes motionless like an idol by holding the meditation-posture, sometimes engages himself in external pious activities such as study of scriptures etc, sometimes attentively engages oneself in food-taking and making movement, etc., which activities are fit for him for the sake of maintaining the body, being the associating cause of Muni Dharma (monk's religion).

Such is the state of a Jaina-monk and this applies to all Jaina monks.