In Jainism, consciousness (chetna) is the essential, living nature of the jiva (the soul). It is not something added from outside; it is the soul’s true, inner awareness—its capacity to cognize, feel, and will.

Key points from a Jain perspective:

• The jiva is conscious by its very nature. This consciousness is infinite in pure, liberated states but is temporarily veiled when karma attaches to the soul.
• Karma is like a coating that covers and diminishes the jiva’s natural awareness. By right belief, right knowledge, and right conduct (the three jewels), a practitioner sheds karmic bondage and gradually reveals the pure consciousness within.
• The goal is kevala jnana (omniscient knowledge) achieved by a liberated soul, when all karmic veils are removed. For ordinary souls, consciousness is finite and conditioned by the karma that surrounds the soul.

Differences between Digambar and Shwetambar traditions:

• Both traditions affirm that the jiva is conscious and bound by karma, and both aim for the removal of karmic obstructions to realize full consciousness.
• There are textual and interpretative nuances in the two traditions about the exact nature of liberation, the means to purification, and the status of certain epistemic states; however, the core view that consciousness belongs to the soul and is obscured by karma is shared.

If you’d like, I can present brief sutra-statement (in original form) and its Jain-arth (meaning) from Digambar and Shwetambar sources to illustrate how consciousness is described in canonical texts.