Mankind

Mankind — Life Science of Jainism — Part 4

In the Part 4 of this series extracted from Shri Shantisurishwarji Maharaja’s “Jiva-Vichar”, we learn in detail about the 303 types of human beings. Follow the series here.

There are 303 types of human beings. To understand these types, let’s understand three concepts:

I) Adhi-dweep, where human beings live.

II) Types of birth

III) Paryapta and Aparyapta — this has been covered here

I) Adhi-dweep

Literally means two and half island. This is the land-mass where mankind lives in this universe. Hence it is also called as Manushya-lok. The motions of heavenly bodies that cause the phenomenon of day and night occur only in these region. Hence it is also called as Samay-kshetra.

The islands that make up the adhai-dweep are

1. Jambu-dweep
2. Dhataki-khand
3. Half of Pushkar-dweep

There are two oceans

1. lavana-samudra between jambu dweep and dhataki-khand
2. kalodhi-samudra between dhataki-khand and pushkar-dweep

Adhi-dweep measuresee 45 lakh yojan in diameter.

1. Jambu-dweep

Jambudweep is 1 lakh yojana long and 1 lakh yojana wide. At the centre is the mount meru which is a lakh yojana high.

In Jambu-dweep there are 7 Kshetras and 6 mountains as follows:

7 Kshetras

6 Mountains

Karma Bhoomi

Karmabhumi is a space where activities of Asi, Masi and Krushi takes place (Sword, Handicraft, Studying , Farming etc). The people born there can go to Moksh through penance and purification. Bharat Kshetra, Airavat Kshetra, Mahavideh Kshetra are all Karmabhumi.

There are 15 Karmabhumi as follows:

Akarmabhumi

The land where there are no activities of Asi, Masi and Krushi. A man born there can’t go to moksh in that birth.

As shown below, there are 30 Akarmabhumi:

Antar-dweep

At the end of east and west of 2 mountains of Jambudweep called as Laghuhimvant and mount Shikhari, 2 molartooth shaped (Dadha) comes out. On every molartooth lies 7 dweep. Like this there are total 8 molartooth on both Laghuhimvant and mount Shikhari and on every molartooth lies 7 dweep, therefor 8 * 7 = 56 Antardweep are there. Since these dweep are inside water, they are called as Antardweep. There are 56 such antardweep inhabited by Yuglik, Animals and Man.

2. Dhataki-Khand

1. Surrounding Jambudweep is Lavan-samudra with a width of 2 lakh yojana. The shape of Lavansamudra is round like a bangle. There are 56 Antardweep in Lavansamudra.
2. Around Lavansamudra is Dhataki-khand with a width of 4 Lakh Yojana. At the centre of Dhatakikhand, in the north and south lies mount Ikshukaar which divides Dhataki-khand into 2 parts : East and West. The shape of Ghatakikhand is also round like a bangle. In short except Jambudweep, the shape of all dweeps and oceans are round like a bangle. The shape of Jambudweep is round like a dinner plate.

3. Pushkar-dweep

1. Around Ghatakikhand is Kalodadhi ocean with a width of 8 lakh Yojana. The water of this ocean is black.
2. Around Kalodadhi ocean is Pushkaravar dweep with an expansion of 16 Lakh Yojana. Mount Manushottar is exactly at the centre of Pushkaravar dweep which divides the pushkar-dweep into inner and outer halves : Ardha-Pushkar-dweeep, each 8 Lakh Yojana. Like Dhatakikhand, here also lies mount Ikshukaar in the north and south. Therefore each Ardh-pushkaravar-dweep is furthre divided into 2 equal parts, east and west.

Adhai-Dweep

II) Types of Birth

There are two ways in which living beings re-produce:

1. With the help of a mother and father, with mother bearing the womb, nourishing and delivering the young one after maturity. These living beings are called as Garbhaj.
2. Those that reproduce without the help of mother and father, merely from environmental conditions are called Samurchim which literally means without desire or affection

Garbhaj living beings are further divided into 3 types:

1. Andaj : Birth from egg — Sparrow, Parrot
2. Jarayu : Birth from a womb of the mammal class — Human beings, Cow, Buffalo etc
3. Potaj : Are born directly in the form of young one, without Andaj or Jarayu — Elephant.

All living beings from Ekendriya to Chaurendriya are samurchim. Panchendriya are of both types Gharbaj as well as Samurchim.

So what does Panchendriya Samurchim mean?

• Panchendriya Samurchim reproduced from the dead body of the animal of same types.
• Panchendriya human beings (Samurchim) gets reproduced from the excreta, urine, cough, dirt from nose, vomiting, puss, blood, semen, the digestive juice produced in the gall bladder, mucus, dead bodies and other dirty places of Gharbaj human beings. The Panchendriya Samurchim are always Aparyapta.

When we leave food, that came in contact with our saliva, go waste Panchendriya Samurchim Aparyapta beings are born continuously. They die within 48 minutes.

This is the reason for the practice of wiping the plate clean and drying it with a cloth.

But note there are no division of Samurchim living beings in Naraka and Devloka.

Let’s Tally

In the beginning we said there are 303 types of human beings. This is how:

56 Antardweep + 15 Karma-Bhumi + 30 Akarma-Bhumi = 101

101 each Garbhaj Paryapta, Garbhaj Aparyapta and Sammurchim Aparyapta

Total 303