Impact of Nyaya and Vaisesika School on Jaina Philosophy

SR No.: 269078
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Sagarmal Jain
Publisher: Z_Sagar_Jain_Vidya_Bharti_Part_6_001689.pdf
Publication Year: 2003
Total Pages: 7
Language: English
Classification: Article & Jainism
File Size: 331 KB

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The Impact of Nyāya and Vaiseșika School on Jaina ... : 187
discord the one-sided views of their conteniporary thinkers. Buddha's approach being negative one, culminated in Sūnyavāda but his penelrating vision led him to proclaim that the truth lies in the middle path. He opined that any kind of extreme view was likely to give rise to one-sided opinion, which by creating obsession may obscure our vision. Mahāvīra's approach being positive culminated in Anekānta vāda i.e. theory of Non-absolutism. This nonabsolutistic approach of both the schools are totally absent in NyāyaVaiseșika schools. By the emergence of Nyāya-Vaiścșika schools, the earlier phase of Jaina and Buddhist philosophy were well established. But this does not mean that Nyāya-Vaišeșika philosophy has no impact on Jajna philosophy. It has certain influence on later established concepts of Jaina philosophy, which we shall discuss in this article.
The history of the development of Jaina philosophy can be shown in following four phases: I. The Āgamic philosophy - 55 cent. BC to 3“ cent. AD
The period of Logical presentation of Jaina philosophy and
its theory of Anekantavada -4" cent. A.D. to 744 cent. AD Ill. The period of critical evaluation of other schools of Indian
philosophy and - 814 cent. AD to 15" cent. AD IV. The period of applying of Navya-Nyāya technique in Jaina
philosophy - 17th to 18' cent. AD.
Out of these five phases of the development of Jaina philosophy, the first phase may be called purely Āgamic. One cannot trace any impact of Nyāya-Vaišeșika schools on it. It was the second phase where some impacts of Nyāya-Vaiseșika school can be traced on Jaina metaphysical and epistemological concepts. In the third phase, Jaina thinkers, while making a critical estimate of Nyāya and Vaiseșika schools, adopted the Nyaya-Vaiścșika concepts and
also of their opponents. Jainas by synthesizing these opposite views