Jainism a Theistic Philosophy

SR No.: 006918
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Krishna A Gosavi
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith
Publication Year: 2012
Total Pages: 358
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 6 MB

Page 231

JAINA VIEW OF SOUL COMPARED WITH ......
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seeds of Paramātman which status it will attain, when freed from karma - matter.
Jaina View of Soul Refuted by Samkara
Śaṁkara refuted Jaina view the dehaparimāņavāda on the ground that as bodies of different classes of creatures are of different size, it might happen that the soul of a man-which is of the size of human body-when entering in consequences of its former deeds, on a new state of existence in the body of an elephant, would not be able to fill the whole of it. The same difficulty would moreover arise with regard to the successive stages of one state of existence infancy, youth and old age. If it be said that the soul consists of an infinite number of parts capable of undergoing compression in a small body and dilation in a big one, the question will arise whether the countless particles of the soul may occupy the same place or not. If the former is admitted it follows that the infinite number of particles cannot be contained in a body of limited dimension, and if the latter is admitted, it follows that since the space occupied by all particles may be the space of one particle only, and hence soul must be of minute size. Nor can the doctrine of soul having the same size as the body be satisfactorily established by means of the hypothesis of the successive accession and withdrawal of the particles, which involves the souls undergoing changes and the like. This would mean that the soul is non-permanent, like the skin or similar substances by which it is impossible to establish its states of bondage and release. If it be said that the soul consists of some permanently remaining parts, it would be impossible to determine which the permanent are and which the temporary parts are. Since the soul is immaterial it cannot spring from material elements and reenter the element. According to the Jaina logic itself the soul is of indefinite nature and also the size of the particles and departing is itself indefinite.
The above refutation noted by Śamkara by Dr. N.N. Bhattacharya is regarding Jaina's belief that soul as equal in extent
Dr. N. N. Bhattacharyya, "Jain Philosophy, Historical Out Line”, 1999,P-221