Ethnicity and Religious Heritage

Author(s): T U Mehta
Publisher: T U Mehta

Page 60

Anekantvad and Its Importance In Life Part-I
as "Dravya" while the other two namely existence and cessation are mere changing modes and are known as "Paryayas". Thus the reality consists of two characteristic - one of which is eternal and the other is temporary. This is known as "Dravyaparyatmakam". The theory of Anekant recognizes both these elements of "Dravya" and "Paryaya" to comprehence the true nature of reality. Base of Anekant
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At the base of Anekant are the theories of "Nayavad" and "Syadvad". "Naya" means a standpoint or an aspect. Truth or reality is always complex and has many aspects all of which are not always known to humans. More over, the complex reality has not only infinite number of qualities and aspects, but also infinite number of relations. Therefore, in order to judge properly a particular phenomenon, one has to know not only as many aspects thereof as possible but also the quality and quantity of its relationships. As Acharya Siddhasen puts it, "Anekantmakam Vastu Gocharah" i.e. a thing is