In Jain Dharma, “granthi‑bhed” is a spiritual inner process, not an outer ritual.

• Granthi = “knot”

These are the tight knots of: - anger (krodh) - pride/ego (maan) - deceit (maya) - greed (lobh)

These four are called kashāya and they tie the soul to karma.

• Bhed = to pierce, cut, or break

So granthi‑bhed means: breaking the deep inner knots of kashāya, so that the soul becomes freer from karmic bondage.

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How does “granthi‑bhed” happen? (Process in simple steps)

This is an inner journey, over many births. Very briefly:

1. Right Vision (Samyak Darshan) arises

- The person develops true faith in: - soul (jiva), - karma, - Tirthankars’ teachings, - moksha. - This weakens gross wrong beliefs – first soft knot loosens.

1. Careful conduct and self‑control begin

- Following small vows (anuvrat), rules of food, non‑violence, truth, etc. - Doing pratikraman, swadhyaya, samayik. - Slowly, intensity of anger, pride, deceit, greed reduces. - Outer layer of the knot is cut.

1. Deep awareness in every action

- Watching one’s thoughts: “Now anger is rising… it is not my real self.” - With this awareness, person stops reacting strongly. - This is samvar – stopping new karma. - One more part of the knot breaks.

1. Strong tapas and meditation (dhyān)

- Fasting, limits on food and comforts, long samayik, kayotsarg. - Mind becomes steady, passions become very light. - Old karmas start to fall (nirjarā). - Granthi becomes very thin.

1. Subtle inner break (true granthi‑bhed)

- At advanced stages (high guṇasthāns), - wrong belief is fully broken, - strong kashāya no longer arise, - soul clearly knows: “I am pure consciousness, separate from body, mind, and karma.” - Here the deepest knots of karma are pierced. - This leads finally towards keval‑jñān and moksha.

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Is there a different meaning in Digambar / Shvetambar?

• The basic idea is the same in both traditions:

- granthi = bondage‑knot of kashāya and karma - bhed = inner breaking through right faith, conduct, and meditation.

• Text names and technical details of stages may differ,

but the spiritual meaning is identical: freeing the soul from the tight grip of passions and karmas.

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In short: Granthi‑bhed is the inner spiritual process of cutting the deep knots of anger, pride, deceit, and greed, by right vision, right conduct, and deep meditation, so that the soul moves step‑by‑step toward moksha.