Ekendriya or ekendriya jīva are a class of spiritual beings (Jīvas) mentioned in Jainism believed to be one-sensed nature spirits which only have the sense of touch. Souls reincarnate as ekendriya as a result of their karma and spend different amounts of time existing as ekendriya, depending on how much good karma or bad karma souls that are reincarnated as ekendriya have. Because the natural world is believed to be filled with nature spirits, Jains avoid causing harm to any forms of Earth life and the environment (see Ahimsa in Jainism).
The oldest canonical Jain text, Ācārāṅga Sūtra, condemns violence towards such beings.[1]
Various types of ekendriya are listed, each said to be the spirits of different natural elements. These include:
Pṛthvīkāya ekendriya, spirits of the element earth said to dwell in things belonging to the Earth such as clay, sand, metal, chalk, salts, stones, diamonds, other minerals, etc. Lifetimes souls can spend as this type of ekendriya before reincarnating into another kind of lifeform can last anywhere from forty-eight moments to twenty-two thousand years.
Apakāya ekendriya, spirits of the element water said to dwell in rain, fog, dew, ice, melted snow, melted hail, etc. Lifetimes souls can spend as this type of ekendriya last anywhere from one moment to seven thousand years.
Teukāya ekendriya, spirits of the element fire said to dwell in fire, lightning, etc. Lifetimes souls can spend as this type of ekendriya can last anywhere from one instant to three days.
Vāyukāya ekendriya, spirits of the element air said to dwell in wind, whirlwinds, monsoons, cyclones, gas, west winds, trade winds, etc. Lifetimes souls can spend as this type of ekendriya can last anywhere from one instant to three thousand years.
Vanaspatikāya ekendriya, believed to be the souls of plants such as trees, vegetables, flowers, etc. Some Jains will avoid eating certain types of vegetables because of the belief that killing such vegetables might harm more than one soul. Lifetimes souls can spend as this type of ekendriya can last anywhere from one instant to ten thousand years.[2][3][4]
Detailed information on such creatures and their souls have also been presented in the oldest canonical scripture of Jainism, the Ācārāṅga Sūtra. The six lessons (second through seventh) of the first lecture of the first book of the Ācārāṅga Sūtra describe these beings.[5]
