with any desires for the fruit.  It is only when a person can so restrain himself as to perform only the last kind of action that he ceases to accumulate any new karma for giving fresh fruits.  He has thus only to enjoy the fruits of his previous karmas which have ripened for giving fruits.  If in the meantime he attains true knowledge, all his past accumulated actions become destroyed, and as his acts are only of the as’uklak@r@s@na type no fresh karma for ripening is accumulated, and thus he becomes divested of all karma after enjoying the fruits of the ripened karmas alone.

The Jains think that through the actions of body, speech and mind a kind of subtle matter technically called karma is produced.  The passions of a man act like a viscous substance that attracts this karma matter, which thus pours into the soul and sticks to it.  The karma matter thus accumulated round the soul during the infinite number of past lives is technically called karmas’arira, which encircles the soul as it passes on from birth to birth.  This karma matter sticking to the soul gradually ripens and exhausts itself in ordaining the sufferance of pains or the enjoyment of pleasures for the individual.  While some karma matter is being expended in this way, other karma matters are accumulating by his activities, and thus keep him in a continuous process of suffering and enjoyment.  The karma matter thus accumulated in the soul produces a kind of coloration called les’ya, such as white, black, etc., which marks the character of the soul.  The

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idea of the s’ukla and k@r@s@na karmas of the Yoga system was probably suggested by the Jaina view.  But when a man is free from passions, and acts in strict compliance with the rules of conduct, his actions produce karma which lasts but for a moment and is then annihilated.  Every karma that the sage has previously earned has its predestined limits within which it must take effect and be purged away.  But when by contemplation and the strict adherence to the five great vows, no new karma is generated, and when all the karmas are exhausted the worldly existence of the person rapidly draws towards its end.  Thus in the last stage of contemplation, all karma being annihilated, and all activities having ceased, the soul leaves the body and goes up to the top of the universe, where the liberated souls stay for ever.

Buddhism also contributes some new traits to the karma theory which however being intimately connected with their metaphysics will be treated later on.

2. The Doctrine of Mukti.