In Jain दर्शन, the jīva is anādi — without beginning. So it is not that a soul was “created” and then stayed in saṃsār for a long time. Rather, bondage itself has no first beginning.

Why is the jīva not free from the beginning?

1. Karmic bondage is beginningless

According to Jain philosophy, the soul has been associated with karma from time immemorial. There is no first moment when we can say, “from here bondage started.” So the question is not, “Why didn’t the soul become free after infinite time?” but rather, “Why did bondage continue without a beginning?” The answer: because karma and delusion keep supporting each other in an endless chain.

2. Infinite time does not guarantee change by itself

Anant kāl means infinite duration, but time alone does not remove bondage. Even in infinite time, if the causes of bondage remain present — such as:

• mithyātva (wrong faith),
• kaṣāya (anger, pride, deceit, greed),
• pramāda (carelessness),
• and yoga under karma,

then saṃsār continues.

3. The soul has freedom, but not automatic liberation

Jainism says the jīva has the capacity for liberation, but mokṣa happens only when the right causes arise:

• samyak darśana
• samyak jñāna
• samyak cāritra

Without these, the soul keeps taking new bondage.

4. Beginningless does not mean endless

Even though saṃsār is beginningless, it is not endless. Because once the soul destroys all karma through right conduct and austerity, it attains mokṣa. So Jainism teaches:

• saṃsār = anādi
• mokṣa = possible
• mokṣa = end of the beginningless cycle

5. Why didn’t liberation happen “from the start”?

Because in Jain logic, there was never a “start” of saṃsār where the soul was originally free and then fell. Instead, the soul has always been in bondage due to karmic association. Liberation is achieved when that bondage is finally removed.

Simple example

A lamp covered by layers of dust may have the power to shine, but until the dust is removed, its light remains hidden. Similarly, the jīva has infinite purity in nature, but karma obscures it.

In one line

The soul is not in saṃsār because it failed after infinite time; rather, saṃsār itself is beginningless, and liberation comes only when the causes of bondage are destroyed.

If you want, I can also explain this from the perspective of nigod, anādi-ananta jīva, or karma theory in Jain scriptures.