ISJS Jainism Study Notes E5 Vol 02

Author(s): International School for Jain Studies
Publisher: International School for Jain Studies

Page 134

Every object has two types of existences namely:
Existence in its own nature (svarupāstitva) Existence like similar objects (sādṛśyästitva)
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There is not much distance between true. There is no bifurcation like one alternative is true and other is false; and that both are false if we accept that universal is independent of particular and particular is independent of universal. Both become true when they are both considered relative to each other. Similarly both become false when they start rejecting each other and become true when each starts talking of its subject/ domain.
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Svarupasitva provides unique identity to the object that differentiates it from other objects belonging to similar or dissimilar classes of objects. Due to it only various modes of the object keep themselves different from the modes of other objects. Further it assists the object to maintain its identity over a period of time in all of its modes and keeps it aloof from other objects. Svarupāstitva is also called vertical universal or urdhavtä-sāmānya. This is called the substance as it flows through its serial modes i.e. results in its generations.
Sādṛśyāstitva causes the feeling of similarities between two different objects. This is also called tiryaka-samanya (horizontal universal) or sadrya-samanya. It is not correct to imagine existence of one entity or universal like cow-ness or man-ness in a number of independently existing cows and men. They cannot be accepted as the combined modes of two dissimilar substances as two objects of extremely different spaces cannot be the material cause in one mode as the spontaneous reaction takes place only after receiving an indication. A person who develops a feeling of sameness amongst many persons after observing some common parts / features amongst them can only experience existence of man-ness amongst them (due to the existence of sadṛśya-samanya amongst them). Hence we should accept existence of sadṛśyästitva as the cause of similarities amongst different objects that is present to some extent in each object. Vertical universal or svarupāstitva had been discussed earlier and so we accept two types of universal attributes.
Similarly the part / component which cause the serial transformation from one mode to another in a substance are called particular / specific or visesa. Specific / particular or visesa cause the feeling of difference between two objects is called vyatireka-višesa. This implies that the feeling of same in two modes of an object is due to vertical universal while the
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