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from the sensuous pleasures. Only such persons will be capable of subduing the mind. To attain all these things; viz., a humanitarian outlook, a noble birth, a prolonged life and learning and listening to the Jain Tirthankara' divine voice preserved in the sacred scriptures which preach the principles of Jainism to all and sundry require diligence and self-restraint. Likewise, to become adept in Right belief, Right knowledge and Right conduct is more and more difficult for a living being of this universe. All these achievements are impossible without self-restraint. In the absence of self-restraint no living being can enter the kingdom of heaven or taste the matchless fruits of salvation. Hence a human being must observe self-restraint. Rightly has it been said: "A man may conquer thousands and thousands of invincible foes, but that is of no real consequence. His greatest victory is when he conquers only his own self."
So long as all passions like a horde of wild sea animals exist in the clean and unfathomable pond of heart, the community of supreme virtues like supreme self-restraint cannot take shelter in that pond of crystal-clear heart. Therefore O Great souls! Try to subdue these passions taking help of the normal and severe methods of suppressing them, besides practicing the vows and perfect self-restraint. A learned person knows well the true nature of the self and the non-self. Therefore, he does not regard the worldly attachment, which are different from self as his real self; he renounces them from afar. This is known as the superb self- restraint of a wise man. He who meditates upon the enlightened souls, who are purified by self-restraint and gifted with Right faith, Right knowledge and Right conduct, is sure to annihilate all evil passions and thus he attains self-restraint.
Until and unless a living being practices self-restraint in life, he indulges in passions and senses. The very day he attains the bounds of self-restraint, he begins to shun the sensuous pleasures. Self-restraint originates by taking a very sensible view of things in a systematized form based on the power of discrimination. When the living being begins to comprehend the fundamental distinction between right and wrong, just and unjust, even the pleasure-giving, charming objects begin to appear to him as deadly poison.
One day the sovereign king (Chakarvarti) Vajar Dant sat in his royal court and his ministers, knights, nobles and military general stood at their proper places around him. Meanwhile the royal gardener brought a bunch of flowers and offered it to the king. No sooner did the sovereign king Vajar Dant holding the bunch of flowers in his hands begin to smell it, than he caught sight of a black bee crushed to death under the flower petals. Seeing this the king was filled with remorse. He began to ponder, "Alas! This black- bee has ruined its life overpowered by the sense of smell. Cursed be such sensuous pleasures." Thus ruminating, the king Vajar Dant developed a feeling of detachment for worldly allurements. Soon he summoned his sons and spoke, "My sons! Now take charge of the burden of the kingdom. I shall get initiated to Digamber Jain monkshood henceforth." The sons said, "O worthy father! O worthy father! Why are you discarding the pleasures of royal life so soon?" The sovereign king replied, "The administrative business of a kingdom is the root cause of sins. A king, who does not renounce the royal pomp and show and takes pride in scepter and crown goes to hell, in case he dies meanwhile." At this the sons
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