________________
368
Epistemology of Jainas
2. According to the Jaina an omniscient knows all the objects simultaneously in the same cognition. The Mimāṁsā holds that certain things like virtue (dharma), vice (adharma). etc. are the exclusive field of the Vedas. They cannot be known by any other source. Regarding other things also the Mimāṁsā holds that all the objects cannot be known through the same source of knowledge.
3. According to Jainism the knowledge of an ompiscient is perceptual and purely spiritual. The Mimāṁsā holds that it is indirect based on the authority of the Veda. The Omoiscient of the Mimāṁsā, is just like the śrutakevalin of Jainas.
The Buddhist, like Jaina, believes in the direct knowledge of Dharma etc. for which the Mimāṁsā depended solely upon the Veda. It is not irrelevant if we state here briefly the underlying idea of the two notions of omniscience as direct knowledge and that as indirect koowledge. The exponents of these views intended to establish the authority of their respective canons. The Mimāṁsā held them eternal, not composed by any body, the systems of Buddhism and Jainism held them as composed by an omniscient and faultless person. Naturally, the Mimām saka could not rely on any person, human or superbuman for the validity of the Veda. He attributed the validity to the Vedic text itself and gave it with supreme authority. The Buddhist and Jainas held their scriptures as composed by competent persons. There are two conditions of this competency. The person should have complete knowledge and he should be faultless. The Buddhist meant by complete knowledge the knowledge of virtues and vices, or the things that are desirable or undesirable. Dharmak Irti says that it does not matter whether a person does or does not apprehend all the objects. What matters is that be should know the relevent things. No purpose is served by knowing the number of insects.
The Jainas on the other hand contend that it is difficult to make a distinction between relevent and irrelevent thing. All the objects of world are so interconnected that the knowledge
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
