Studies in Jaina Philosophy

SR No.: 001616
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Nathmal Tatia
Publisher: Jain Cultural Research Society
Publication Year: 1951
Total Pages: 366
Language: English
Classification: Book_English, Philosophy, Knowledge, Yoga, & Epistemology
File Size: 9 MB

Page 74

II]
MATI-NANA : AVAGRAHA
37
into arthāvagraha (object-perception). The consciousness is there from the very instant of inception, though it is not felt due to its undeveloped existence.2 It is not possible for any ordinary man to know all the contents of the mind even when he is wide awake, inasmuch as a countless number of conscious states emerge during the course of a single day. Let us now come to arthāvagraha (objectperception).
The Nandi Sūtra states that in the last instant of the vyañjanavagraha (contact-awareness) there emerges a cognition such as 'This is sound' though the exact nature of the sound is not cognized there. This is called avagraha. Jinabhadra interprets this statement as recording only the occurrence of the cognition and not its specific content. The arthāvagraha (object-perception) lasts only for an instant, and it is not possible that an instantaneous flash should be of the determinate form 'This is sound'. The cognition 'This is sound' is not arthāvagraha (object-perception) but apāya (perceptual judgment) inasmuch as it is determinate cognition having the exclusion of everything else other than sound' as its characteristic.6 Jinabhadra refutes at great length the position of the opponent who regards arthāvagraha (object-perception) as determinate cognition. We do not know of any logical treatise, prior to the Višeşāvaśyakabhāşya of Jinabhadra, which regards avagraha as determinate cognition, except the Sarvārthasiddhi of Pūjyapāda Devanandi, which defines avagraha as 'the first cognition after the instant of the contact of the object and the sense-organ' and further says 'On the contact of the object and the sense-organ, there occurs intuition (darśana) and the cognition of the object thereafter is avagraha, for instance, the cognition 'This is white colour' by the organ of sight is avagraha.'8 The Sarvārthasiddhi regards vyañjanāvagraha (contact-awareness) as 'indeterminate and arthāvagraha (object-perception) as determinate.'' Jinabhadra, however, as an exponent of the Āgamic conceptions, insists on the indeterminateness
1 Cf. ViBh, 195. Yasovijaya, however, concedes as an alternative that vyañjanāvagraha is a cognition only by transference of epithet, being the condition of arthāvagraha which is a cognition.-JTBh, p. 3.
2 Cf. ibid., 196. 3 jagganto vi na jāņai chaumattho hiyayagoyaram savvam
jam tajjhavasäņāim jam asamkhejjāim divaseņa.-Vibh, 199.
4 Cf. se jahānāmae kei purise avvattam saddar suņijjä teņam saddotti uggahie, no ce 'va ņam jāņai ke vesa saddai--NSū, 35. 5 Cf. ViBh, 253.
& Cf. Vibh, 254. ? viņaya-vişayi-sannipäta-samayānantaram adya-grahaņam avagrahaḥ.
=SSi, I. 15. A vişaya-vişayi-sannipāte sati darśanam bhavati, tadanantaram arthasya grahanam avagrahaḥ, yathä сakşuşā śuklam rūpam iti grahaņam avagrahaḥ.
-Ibid. 9 arthāvagraha-vyañjanăvagrahayor vyaktăvyaktakrto višeşaḥ ---SSi, I. 18,