Page 160 - Courage Redifined

can attain salvation only from the human birth and not any
other births. However, noble the soul is, it cannot progress
towards the path of salvation without a favourable human
birth. Hence, the karmas of the human birth become useful
in attaining salvation. In that birth also, finding the right path
and coming in contact with the Almighty Tirthankar Lords
and Gurubhagwants is due to karmas. From this point of view,
karmas gains importance.

Why is purushartha (efforts) an independent factor ?

The question now arises that inspite of attaining the precious
human birth and coming in contact with good gurus, not
everyone can pave the path towards salvation. What is
responsible for this ?

Purushartha will solve your queries. Karmas provide an
individual with favourable situations and commodities. But
using it optimally for your spiritual progress rests on an
individual’s own efforts. Every individual possesses his own
inner strength. Using it effectively is termed as purushartha.
For e.g. a mother can at the most feed a child, but the child
himself has to take the efforts to chew it to enable it to pass
down the foodpipe.

Karma can gift us favourable objects but whether it is
effectively used or not depends on the efforts made.

On entering the last pudgala paravarta, karmas give a soul
everything right, from a human birth, long life, 5 senses in
working condition, good health family and the contact of
Arihanta Lords and gurubhagwants. But then, holding on to
religious preachings and having faith can be done only if
the soul makes efforts in that direction. Karma cannot do
this task. There is no human whose 8 karmas can give rise
to purushartha. Purushartha is the accumulation of the soul’s

150 Courage Redefined