In Jainism

General definition (in Jainism)

Source: archive.org: Trisastisalakapurusacaritra

Karmārya (कर्मार्य) refers to a sub-division of the Ārya classification of men born in Mānuṣottara and in the Antaradvīpas, situated in the “middle world” (madhyaloka), according to chapter 2.3 [ajitanātha-caritra] of Hemacandra’s 11th century Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacaritra: an ancient Sanskrit epic poem narrating the history and legends of sixty-three illustrious persons in Jainism.

Accordingly:—“In these 35 zones on this side of Mānuṣottara and in the Antaradvīpas, men arise by birth; [...]. From the division into Āryas and Mlecchas they are two-fold. The Āryas have sub-divisions: kṣetra (country), jāti (caste), kula (family), karma (work), śilpa (craft), and bhāṣā (language). [...] They are called Karmāryas who earn their livelihood by sacrifices, making sacrifices for others, by study and teaching of the śāstras, or by suitable occupations”.

Source: Encyclopedia of Jainism: Tattvartha Sutra 3: The Lower and middle worlds

Karmārya (कर्मार्य) refers to “civilized people with activities” and represents one of the five classes of āryas without extraordinary powers (ṛddhi). These Ārya (civilized people) represent one of the two classes of human beings, according to the 2nd-century Tattvārthasūtra 3.46.

How many types of civilized people with activities (karma-ārya) are there? They are of three types who indulge in activities namely:

1. with attachment (sāvadhyakarma-ārya),
2. with small attachment (alpasāvadhyakarma-ārya),
3. without attachment (asāvadhyakarma-ārya).

context information

Jainism is an Indian religion of Dharma whose doctrine revolves around harmlessness (ahimsa) towards every living being. The two major branches (Digambara and Svetambara) of Jainism stimulate self-control (or, shramana, ‘self-reliance’) and spiritual development through a path of peace for the soul to progess to the ultimate goal.

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Sanskrit dictionary

[Sanskrit to German]

Karmarya in German

context information

Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.

See also (Relevant definitions)

Partial matches: Arya, Karma.

Starts with: Karmaryayani.

Full-text: Shilpa, Vidhya, Masi, Vanijya, Krishi, Asi, Savadhyakarma.

Relevant text

Search found 1 books and stories containing Karmarya, Karmārya, Karma-arya, Karma-ārya, Kārmārya; (plurals include: Karmaryas, Karmāryas, aryas, āryas, Kārmāryas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:

Trishashti Shalaka Purusha Caritra (by Helen M. Johnson)

Part 29: The people in the Manuṣyaloka < [Chapter III - The initiation and omniscience of Ajita]

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