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Lesya, according to the Jain theory of karma, is the coloring of the soul on account of its association with the karmic matter. The colour of leśyā varies from person to person depending on the psychic states and mental activities behind an action.[1] The coloring of the soul is explained through the analogy of crystal, that acquires the color of the matter associated with it. In the same way, the soul reflects the qualities of colour, taste, smell and touch of associated karmic matter, although it is usually the colour that is referred to when discussing the leśyās.[2] Paul Dundas notes the key text expressing this Jain doctrine, explaining how the literary form of the text is helpful in dating and reconstructing the history of transmission.
A full statement of the theory of lesya occurs in chapter 34 of the Uttaradhyayana, one of the fundamental sutras of the scriptural canon. Inspection of the metrical structure there, which consists of a cluster of old sloka verses amplified by twice as many verses in the arya metre, makes clear that a great deal of ancient editorial care was taken to ensure that an original rudimentary description of this dimension of karma became fully cogent.[3]
- ^ Dundas, Paul (2002). John Hinnels (ed.). The Jains. London: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-26606-8. p.100
- ^ Wiley, Kristi (July 2000). "Colors of the Soul: By-Products of Activity or Passions?". Philosophy East and West. 50 (3). Hawai'i: University of Hawai'i Press: 348–366. ISSN 1527-943X. JSTOR 1400178.
- ^ Paul Dundas, The Jains, (Routledge, 2002), p. 100.