Answer

If you want to understand karma, rebirth, life-cycle, bondage, liberation, and the whole Jain view of samsara, the best way is to read in this order:

1. Tattvartha Sutra

The most important Jain philosophical text for understanding the nature of soul, karma, bondage, and liberation.

1. Karmagranthas

These are very important for understanding karma in detail — how it binds, matures, and affects the soul.

1. Dravyasamgraha

A clear and compact text on the Jain view of soul, matter, karma, and reality.

1. Ratnakarand Shravakachar

Very useful if you want to understand how a householder should live while reducing karmic bondage.

1. Samayasara

For deeper understanding of the soul, karma, and the difference between the real self and worldly identity.

Explanation

If your focus is “karmic debt,” the closest Jain understanding is not debt to a God, but karma bondage:

• Actions, thoughts, speech, and passions attract karma.
• Karma binds to the soul.
• That karma later gives results in this life or future lives.
• Liberation comes when karmas are stopped and destroyed.

So for a complete picture, read like this:

Beginner level

• Tattvartha Sutra
• Dravyasamgraha

Intermediate level

• Karmagranthas
• Ratnakarand Shravakachar

Advanced level

• Samayasara
• Pravachansara

If you want just one book to start with, choose Tattvartha Sutra with a simple commentary.

Spiritual Understanding

In Jain Dharma, understanding karma is very important because it helps us see:

• why suffering happens,
• why rebirth continues,
• how passions create bondage,
• and how the soul becomes free.

This understanding is not only philosophical. It is practical. It teaches:

• restraint,
• non-violence,
• self-control,
• forgiveness,
• detachment,
• and inner purification.

Takeaway

If you want a strong foundation, start with Tattvartha Sutra. If you want a deeper study of karma specifically, read the Karmagranthas next. If you want, I can also give you a simple Jain reading path for beginners in 5 steps.