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they never flit across our span of vision. Even then they are referred to in Sruti and Smrti works. Hence the doubt as to their existence (1867-8).
Mahavira tells Mauryaputra to entertain no such doubt, for even if he set aside Sruti and Smști works, he could apprehend directly four kinds of gods — Bhavanapati, Vyantara, Jyotiska, Vaimānika -- who had come to attend the Samavasarana in order to pay their homage to him (Malāvīra) (1869).
There was no reason for Mauryaputra to doubt the existence of the gods even carlier for the jyotiska gods, sun, moon, etc. can be perceived by him; and if he directly perceives one group of gods it is not reasonable to doubt the existence of the different types of gods. Moreover no one doubts the existence of a king who shows favour or disfavour to his subjects; the gods too are known to make some people prosperous and to ruin others and hence one cannot possibly have any doubt as to their existence (1870).
It may be questioned that sun, moon, etc. are but abodes and so it cannot be said that the jyotiska (stellar) gods are directly perceived, as these abodes like cities may be just vacant, devoid of inhabitants. It is not so; an abode is always seen to be occupied by someone, is Devadatta and others live in the aboles of Vasantapura, etc.. Sun, moon, etc. to be abodes must have some inhabitants and these should be gods. Men cannot live in these abodes which are distinct and different from the abodes of men and so which must have inhabitants too of a distinct type, viz gods as distinct from men. Å bodes are, it is true, not always occupied by inhabitants, they may be at times vacant as are the abodes of men. But they are not always unoccupied. Abodes certainly have inhabitants in them some time or the other in the past, in the present or in the future; so they are occupied by inhabitants and are not always unoccupied. Hence gods can be looked upon as the denizens of such abodes as moon, etc. if not now at least in the past or in the future (1871).
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