Can a samyagdrishti jeev get intense kashay? Can a samyagdrishti jeev get anantanubandhi kashay? In detail
Answering in line with standard Jain karma-siddhānt (mainly Tattvārtha-sūtra and its commentaries), accepted by both Digambar and Shvetāmbara:
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1. Can a samyagdrashti jīva get intense kaṣhāya?
Here we must be precise what “intense” means, because in Jain philosophy the four kaṣhāya (krodh, mān, māyā, lobh) are divided into four intensities:
- Anantānubandhī – the most intense, soul‑ruining form
- Apratyākhyānāvaraṇī
- Pratyākhyānāvaraṇī
- Saṁjvalanī – the mildest form, compatible with high levels of spiritual conduct
So, “intense” can mean different things:
(A) After true samyakdarshan has arisen
A true samyagdrashti (one who has attained samyakdarshan, i.e. is in at least the 4th guṇasthān) has:
- Destroyed:
- And cannot have:
Once samyakdarshan is attained:
- Anantānubandhī kaṣhāya are not possible again.
But the samyagdrashti:
- Can still have:
So in simple words:
- A samyagdrashti jīva can still get strong anger, pride, deceit, or greed in the sense of aprtyākhyānāvaraṇī or pratyākhyānāvaraṇī intensity.
- But he cannot fall to the worst, soul‑destroying intensity called anantānubandhī.
This is why we see in scriptures that:
- A samyagdrashti household Jain may still commit serious faults, may get very angry, etc., but
- If his samyakdarshan is real (not just verbal belief), he will never fall into the spiritual condition created by anantānubandhī kaṣhāya.
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2. Can a samyagdrashti jīva get anantānubandhī kaṣhāya?
No. By definition of the guṇasthāna system:
- Anantānubandhī kaṣhāya are compatible with only the lowest stages (mithyātva etc.) and are fully opposed to samyakdarshan.
- To attain samyakdarshan, the jīva must have already destroyed anantānubandhī kaṣhāya (and the relevant darshan-mohanīya karmas).
Therefore:
- A samyagdrashti cannot newly rise anantānubandhī kaṣhāya, and
- As long as he remains samyagdrashti, those anantānubandhī forms do not come back.
If such a jīva were to truly develop anantānubandhī kaṣhāya again, that would mean:
- Loss of samyakdarshan, and
- Fall back to mithyātva-guṇasthān (complete wrong belief).
But classical Jain doctrine teaches that real samyakdarshan is very stable; it is not casually lost by one outburst. The disappearance of samyakdarshan involves a deep re‑emergence of wrong-belief karmas, not just “I shouted once.”
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3. Why are anantānubandhī kaṣhāya impossible with samyakdarshan?
Characteristics of anantānubandhī:
- They block samyakdarshan in the present and also bind the karmas that will prevent samyakdarshan for a very long time in the future.
- They are called “anantānubandhī” because they cause very long‑lasting bondage and deep spiritual downfall.
Since:
- Samyakdarshan = right faith, seeing the Tattvas correctly (soul, non‑soul, karma, moksha, etc.), and
- Anantānubandhī kaṣhāya = that very passion‑state which destroys and blocks this right faith,
the two states cannot coexist.
So, the standard teaching is:
- Before samyakdarshan: anantānubandhī kaṣhāya may exist and must be uprooted.
- After samyakdarshan: anantānubandhī kaṣhāya do not arise again as long as samyakdarshan remains.
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4. Digambar and Shvetāmbara perspective
On this specific karma point, both traditions are essentially the same:
- Both accept:
Differences, where present, are more in terminology or small classificatory details, not in the main conclusion:
- A samyagdrashti cannot have anantānubandhī kaṣhāya.
- He can have lower‑grade passions, which are exactly what he has to keep purifying further on the path.
You can also see a simple explanation of mohanīya karma and kaṣhāya here
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In short
- Can a samyagdrashti jīva get intense kaṣhāya?
- Yes, in the sense of non‑anantānubandhī strong passions (aprtyākhyānāvaraṇī / pratyākhyānāvaraṇī). - These disturb conduct but do not break samyakdarshan itself.
- Can a samyagdrashti jīva get anantānubandhī kaṣhāya?
- No. - Anantānubandhī kaṣhāya and samyakdarshan are mutually incompatible. - To become samyagdrashti, the jīva must have already destroyed anantānubandhī forms of passions, and as long as samyakdarshan remains, they do not arise again.