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Lokatattvanirnaya by Haribhadrasūri
R. S. Betai
Introduction :
Before we probe into the contents of the work "Lokatattvanirnaya" by Haribhadrasūri, it would be in fitness of things to know the author, his works, his times etc., by way of introduction. About his time there is considerable difference of opinion. Munishri Jinavijaya went into the details of the problem and came to the conclusion that this great philosopher of Jainism belongs to the eighth century. He hailed from Chittod and was a Brahmin pundit and royal priest, who preferred to be initiated into the Jaina dharma in course of time. More than twenty works are known after him, though according to a conventional belief, he had composed 1440 works. In his works, the ideal of this Nyāyāchārya was that all that is good and convincing to the intellect, should be accepted and adopted, without attachment or jealousy. In enrichment of knowledge there can be no likes or dislikes. He therefore states in one context that “Mahavira is no relative of ours and other Gods are not our enemies. Again, no God has been visualised by us." (Lokatattvanirnaya-32)
Pandit Sukhlalji therefore knows Haribhadra as “Samadarshi”. Four of his prominent works are on yoga * and Havfrue is a renowned work of this philosopher. In this work, he objectively analyses the six well-known systems of Indian philosophy and then proceeds firmly to establish Anekāntavāda as a system that resolves all problems. This profound Pandit composed the first ever Sanskrit Vrtti on the Jaina Āgamas=Anekāntajayapatākā. This renowned scholar, extremely insistent that he was of sterling purity of a character, without any fear or hesitation whatsoever, gathered together the best from anywhere and everywhere. One of his works, perhaps a little less known, is his Lokatattvanirnaya.
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