जै · The Jain Encyclopedia
A ladder of the Prajñāpanā · 5 rungs

By five destinies

अल्पबहुत्व

The five destinies, from fewest to most: humans, hell-beings, gods, siddhas, animals and plants.

Five destinies, one order: humans fewest, then the beings of the seven hells, innumerably more; then the gods, innumerably more than those; then the siddhas, infinitely more - every soul that has ever been liberated is still a soul, and still counted; then the animals and plants, infinitely more than the siddhas, because the Nigoda hold infinite souls in every body. The humans' rung is the only countable one.

In the text's own words the ladder reads - fewest: humans; innumerably many times more: hell-beings; innumerably many times more: gods; infinitely many times more: siddhas; infinitely many times more: animals and plants. Source: Prajñāpanā 3.

The multitudes: every class of being, fewest to mostPrajñāpanā 3 - an order, never a count; four words for every stepthe bands are the atlas's three magnitudes: countable, innumerable, infinitehumans are the only countable rung; plants top every ladder they stand onTHE COUNTABLETHE INNUMERABLETHE INFINITETHE FIVE DESTINIEShumans×asaṃkhyātahell-beings×asaṃkhyātagods×anantasiddhas×anantaanimals and plantsBY SENSESfive-senseda little morefour-senseda little morethree-senseda little moretwo-sensed×anantaone-sensedBY BODYmoving beings×asaṃkhyātafire-bodiesa little moreearth-bodiesa little morewater-bodiesa little moreair-bodies×anantaplant-bodiesBY GENDERmale×saṃkhyātafemale×anantaneuterTHE SEVEN HELLSthe seventh×asaṃkhyātathe sixth×asaṃkhyātathe fifth×asaṃkhyātathe fourth×asaṃkhyātathe third×asaṃkhyātathe second×asaṃkhyātathe firstthe steps: a little more · countably many times · innumerably many times · infinitely many times more - Prajñāpanā 3not to scale: the heights follow the text's word for each step, and no scale could hold a countable rung and an infinite one
The multitudes: fewest to most - By five destinies highlighted

Measurements and counts

Fewesthumans
asaṃkhyāta-guṇahell-beings
asaṃkhyāta-guṇagods
ananta-guṇasiddhas
ananta-guṇaanimals and plants

Connected

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समयं गोयम! मा पमायए

Do not be heedless, Gautama, for even a single samaya.

Uttarādhyayana Sūtra 10