Aptavani-8
77
(sankhyat) and the animals and plants (tiryancha); lower life-
form population is innumerable (asankhyat). Asankhyat
(innumerable) means that it cannot be counted; you will run out
of numbers. Even when they count over a billion, they can go on
counting, but it will never end. That is called innumerable
(asankhyat); it will not end even when you run out of numbers.
Human beings alone are numerable (sankhyat); you could
count perhaps four or five billion, and that would be a good
estimate. However, the animals and plants (tiryancha), are
innumerable (asankhyat), and even the celestial beings (deva)
are innumerable. The living beings in the infernal realm (nark
gati) are innumerable; with the exception of human beings, all
other living beings (jivas) in the worldly interaction (vyavahar)
are innumerable (asankhyat).
The living entities of the unnamed state (avyavahar rashi)
are infinite (anant), and even in the realm of Liberated Souls
(Siddha gati) there are infinite liberated Souls (Siddhas). Infinite
(anant), means beyond innumerable (asankhyat), limitless, never-
ending; so it would be futile to count them. You can try and
count the numerable (sankhyat), but what do you do, when the
innumerable (asankhyat), has no number (sankhya)? Ten million,
a hundred million, a billion..., however much further you go on
counting, this account (hisaab) will still not come to an end. That
is why it has been categorized as innumerable (asankhyat);
because it does not come into counting (sankhya) – it cannot be
allocated a number!
This world has puzzled itself. Why is that? It is because
these jivas (living beings) are forever moving in the flowing
current of an eternal (anaadi) stream. Just like the flowing waters
of the Narmada (river), these living entities (jivas) are constantly
flowing along.
Matter (dravya), location (kshetra), time (kaad) and inner
intent (bhaav) are constantly changing. Even their location keeps