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JAIN PHILOSOPIIY & MODERN SCIENCE
was made, till very recently, for an 'atom' also, but it proved to be false. Nature has not entirely revealed its mysteries to mankind. In future also whether nature is made to reveal further secrets by the hands of man, or not; it is impossible that man, with the limited power of his five senses, can reach that knowledge which the seers with the sixth sense or ultra-sensuous power have imparted to us
Molecule vs. Skandha
'Skandhas' are the units of visible homogeneous material bodies In other words it is obvious that all material bodies are the results of the union or combination of two or more, to infinite 'paramanus'. There is, however, an important correction to be made in this statement viz that union of two or more 'Skandhas' or molecular bodies, may also result in a new body and the breaking up of a big body into smaller fractions also produces independent bodies.
Modern science has also discussed the molecular properties of matter at length It is shown that "material bodies are made up of molecules which are constantly 'in motion'. In gaseous state, molecules are in a state of violent agitation moving around in all directions and pushing one another as though they were people in a highly excited crowd." In principle a molecule is explained thus.
"If a piece of chalk is broken into two and two into four and so on into countless minute grains, but each one still retaining all the properties of chalk."