________________
•
METAPHYSICS
sive consistent system of thought that is explanatory of the nature of our surroundings, and, therefore, capable of being harnessed into service for the obtainment of the highest good. This definition is all the more important for our purpose as we are not concerned here with every form and type of mental speculation, but with that alone which has a bearing on religion. We are also not interested in, nor can afford to be interested in compiling a history of human thought or in collecting what speculators of different countries and times have thought with reference to religion. Such treatment of the subject will not only be quite irrelevant and unnecessary for our purpose, but will also involve an amount of time and labour altogether beyond the scope of the present lecture and the capacity of the lecturer before you.
122
We shall, therefore, confine our investigation to the region of the practical, that is to say, to those schools of metaphysics which are associated with the prevailing religions; and with respect to these even we shall not attempt anything like a thorough criticism except where this is absolutely necessary to understand the fundamental tenets of any particular system.
I shall begin my investigation with the monistic Vedanta which teaches that there is only one reality behind this phenomenal show that is termed the material universe. This one reality is termed Brahman, and as it is the only existent being or thing, everything else necessarily has only a seeming being. The
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
