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Biology in Jaina Treatise on Reals
that plants have been kept in the end as all the preceding four are the cause of their origin and their varieties are infinite. (b) Mobile beings
There are five kinds of mobile beings- 2, 3, 4-sensed, 5-sensed instinctive and non-instinctive. (The celestials and infernals are also five sensed mobiles). 5. Vitalities in the Living Beings
Every living being is physically characterised by vitalities. The explanatory mentions (i) 4 vitalities (out of 10) in 1-sensed beings, (ii) six in 2sensed, (iii) seven in 3-sensed, (iv) eight in 4-sensed, (v) nine in 5-sensed noninstinctive and (vi) ten in 5-sensed instinctive beings. 6. Senses
The senses are the insignia of the powerful soul. They are formed due to specific karmic fruitions. These are cognitive senses. The mind is not a sense in the real sense as it is unsteady and it works prior to the functioning of the senses. It is, therefore, known as quasi-sense. The functional senses have not been mentioned here as only the conscious activties are referred here.
Each of the cognitive senses has two varieties - (i) physical and (ii) psychical. The physical senses are formed due to karmic fruition and they have two varieties each - (i) structural formation and (ii) support formation - each of which has further two varieties- (i) internal and (ii) external. These have been examplified by the sense of sight-eye.
Each of the psychical senses has also two varieties - (i) attainment (of specific karmic destruction-cum-subsidence) and (ii) functional conciousness They have been defined. Both the above two types of cognitive senses have five varieties each which are well known. Their order has been justified on the basis of importance and functions. The order also refers to living beings who develop them gradually as per 2.23. The senses may be one and many when manifold predication principle is applied.
These senses have their specific objects to be known through them. All these objects are mattergic in nature. The Vaiseșika theory of earth as tetradic and so on has been refuted by proper inferences like
"The air has colour etc. because it has touch like the earthen pot.” and the fact that many seemly non-perceptible qualities can be inferred like the existence of atoms. However, the difference and non-difference between these
ributes may be learned through the application of manifold predication principle.
The embodied earth, water, fire, air and plants have one sense of touch only. This sense senses all the functions (of other senses) in them.
The class of worms, ants, bees and human beings (along with infernal and celestial beings) have cognitive senses gradually increasing by one in each case in order.
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