Jaina Concept of Person — A Textual Study of Samayasara of Ācārya Kundakunda
By Vincent Sekhar
Summary
B. Vincent Sekhar offers a detailed exposition of Ācārya Kundakunda’s *Samayasāra*, a Prakrit treatise that articulates the Jain understanding of the self. He notes that Jainism distinguishes between *jīva* (conscious substance) and *ajīva* (non‑conscious matter). The soul is intrinsically pure, conscious and indestructible, but through beginningless ignorance it becomes bound to karmic particles that obscure its natural omniscience and bliss. Kundakunda classifies the self into three perspectives: the empirical or *vyavahāra jīva*, which experiences worldly existence; the experiential or *niścaya jīva*, which realises its own pure nature through right knowledge and faith; and the transcendental or *pārama jīva*, the omniscient liberated soul. This classification underscores the Jain doctrine of *anekānta*, acknowledging multiple standpoints (*naya*) on reality. Sekhar explains that liberation involves distinguishing the true self from its adventitious attributes. Kundakunda’s text warns that identifying the body, senses or mind with the self is delusion; instead, one must perceive oneself as the bare consciousness underlying all modifications. The right believer (*samyag-dṛṣṭi*) cultivates *raśmi* (detachment) and renounces passions, while the wrong believer remains attached to material pleasures and continues the cycle of rebirth. The paper highlights Kundakunda’s emphasis on introspective knowledge: the soul should observe its own modifications but not become entangled in them. By meditating on the pure self and practising the triad of right faith, knowledge and conduct, one gradually sheds karmic accretions and realises *kevala‑jñāna*, the omniscient state. Sekhar contrasts this view with Hindu and Buddhist notions of self, noting that Jainism neither embraces an eternal Creator nor denies the reality of the individual soul; instead, it affirms a plurality of souls whose liberation depends on their own efforts. The study underscores *Samayasāra*’s contribution to Indian philosophy: it provides a nuanced account of personhood that reconciles metaphysical realism with ethical self‑discipline.
Conclusion
Through a close reading of *Samayasāra*, Sekhar demonstrates that Jainism conceives the person as a self‑aware, eternal soul whose bondage and liberation depend on its knowledge and conduct. Recognising the distinction between the empirical and pure self is central to this path, and Kundakunda’s insights remain influential in Jain spirituality.