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Contribution of Acārya Umāsvāti to the Concept of Existence
SAMANI MANGAL PRAJNA
The contribution of Acarya Umāsvāti regarding the concept of existence is twofold: (i) he is the first to give the definition of existence as possessed of origination, cessation and persistence. Though this concept is already available in the canonical literature of the Jain as, yet this specific definition of existence was given by Acārya Umāsvāti for the first time. This definition has been accepted later by all the Jain thinkers unanimously. (ii) In his auto-commentary on Tattvärthasūtra, 5/31 Acārya Umāsvāti has classified existence into four categories. This classification is his contribution which has later been explained in his commentary on that by Acarya Siddhsenagani.
Two Aspects of Existence
While describing the nature of existence we find its two dimensions: (1) Being, and (2) Becoming. The idealistic systems accept the reality of either of the two, condemning the other as only a fiction of mind. For example the Vedāntins would accept the reality of Being, condemning the phenomenon of Becoming only as an illusion. The Buddhists, on the other hand, accept the reality of Becoming, condemning Being only as an imagination. The Vaiseṣikās found out a third way. According to them both
