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JULY, 1987
Umasvati is the first man who has laid down the philosophical foundation on which the beautiful palace of later Jainism is erected. His definition of reality which consists of seedling idea of reconciliation of different philosophical view-points is a remarkable contribution to Indian philosophy in general and to Jaina philosophy in particular. His definition of reality became a basis of anekāntavāda (i.e. the doctrine of manysidedness of reality) or the doctrine of non-absolutism, which tries to reconcile, harmonise, the doctrines of almost all the non-Jaina systems of thought.
According to Umasvati reality (substance) consists of production, destruction and permanence. A substance is permanent in respect of its essential qualities and also subject to generation and destruction in regard to its changing modifications. When a substance, conscious or unconscious originates without leaving its own nature, it is called origination. Destruction is loss of existence in a thing that had it before. Permanence is the essential characteristic of substance, which remains unchanged in both the conditions, viz., in origination and decay. To cite an example, a jar, originates from clay without leaving the nature of clay. Clay leaves its former mode or shape when it becomes jar but the essential nature of clay remains un-changed in both the conditions. There is no contradiction involved and no violation of law of contradiction in applying opposite predicates to the same thing in different capacities because, they are applied to its different aspects such as matter, state, space and time. It is seen that mutually contradictory elements can exist in one and the same thing in difierent capacities such as, the same man is a father to his son, son to his father, husband to his wife, brother to his sister and so on. This kind of definition is also accepted by the Mimamsaka system. It means, everything in the world is complex in its structure and as such has many aspects. To attain a complete truth, each entity is to be viewed from all possible view-points. This definition of reality paves the way to the famous synthetic doctrine of anekāntavāda according to which, reality is neither absolutely real nor unreal, neither one nor many, neither particular nor universal, neither identical nor different, but both real and unreal, one and many, particular and universal, unity in diversity from different points of view.8
3 T.S., V. 29. Part I. • Sarvarthasiddhi, V. 32, pub K. B. Nitve, Kolhapur, Saka 1839, p. 17;
Tattvartharajavartika, L-6, ed. Gajadharlal Jain, pub. S. J. Granthamala, Kasi,
1915, p. 26. 5 Mimamsaslokavartika quoted in Darsana aur Anekantavada, Pt. Hamsaraj G.
Sharma, pub. A. J. P. P. Mandal, Agra, 1928, p. 133-149. Saddarsanasamuccaya-tika, Gunaratnasuri, ed. Jain, Mahendrakumar, pub. Bharatiya Jnana Pith, Kasi, 1969, p. 34.
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