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Concept of Nikşepa in Jaina Pnilosophy : 51 1. Nāma-vargaņā 2. Sthāpanā-vargaņā 3. Dravya-vargaņā 4. Kșetra-vargaņā 5. Kāla-vargaņā, and 6. Bhāva-vargaņā In Şatkhaņdāgama and Dhavalā all the prakaraņas are defined having used these six types of nikṣepas. In Ślokavārtika', Vidyānanda maintains that there may be infinite number of Nikṣepas but all can be included in above mentioned four types of Nikṣepas maintained by Tattvārtha-sūtra. (1) Nāma-nikṣepa (Namal Positing) The namal positing refers to the name especially the proper name arbitrarily given to an object or person without considering its etymological meaning and irrespective of the qualities suggested by the name. Mostly it is gathered on the basis of convention set up by the father, mother or some other people." For example the name of an ugly person may be 'Sudarsana' (good-looking) or the name of a very poor person may be Lakşmī Nārāyana. However, if the names given to the individuals do acquire the connotation suggested by the name, it would be bhāva-niksepa, The namal positing refers to proper names, but some proper names have their various modes of expressions or synonyms suggesting different meanings. For example Indra is also called Devendra, Surendra, Purandara, Śakra etc. But a proper name given to an individual or a cowman (Gopālaputra) cannot be exchanged to any one of these synonyms. Indra is always called Indra. The words which are meaningless or who evolved accidentally like Dittha and Davittha, when used as symbols (samketa), are called nāma. Thus the identity of name with its object is conventional (upacāratah). With points of view of time (kāla) Nāma-niksepa has two aspects: one is permanent and the other is temporary. The names, which are
