Jaina Philosophy Historical Outline

Author(s): Narendra Nath Bhattacharya
Publisher: Munshiram Manoharlal Publisher's Pvt Ltd New Delhi

Page 130

The Sophisticated Stage 109 called 'the assertion of possibilities' (syād-vāda) or 'the sevenfold paralogism' (saptabhangi-naya). Umāsvāti or Umāsvami, the celebrated author of the Tattvārthādhigama-sūtra,' dealt with the doctrine of Pramana or right knowledge and also with the different kinds of Naya or the 'mood of statements. The first Jain writer on systematic logic was, however, Siddhasena Divākara of the sixth century in whose Nyāyāvatāra' we come across a comprehensive treatment of the valid sources of knowledge, terms of syllogism, various types of logical fallacies and the methods of judgements. Of the logicians, Siddhasena Gani and Samantabhadra commented on the Tattvārthādhigama. The former's work is known as Tattvärthațīka in which the logical principles of the sources of knowledge and the method of comprehending things from particular standpoints are fully discussed. The latter's work, known as Āptamīmāmsā, consists of 115 st Sanskrit in which a full exposition of the seven parts of the Syādvāda has been given. The great savant Akalanka of the eighth century wrote a commentary on the Āptamīmāmsā mentioned above under the title Aşpasati. His independent work on logic is known as Nyāyaviniscaya which was the source of Māņikya Nandi's celebrated Pariksāmukha-sūtra in which we come across exhaustive analysis of the characteristics of valid knowledge (Pramāņa-svarūpa), direct apprehension (Pratakşa), indirect apprehension (Parokşa), object of valid knowledge (Visaya), result of valid knowledge (Phala) and semblances or vallacies (Ābhāsa). Māņikya Nandı has also mentioned in his work the Lokāyatas, Saugatas, Sāmkhyas, Yogas, Prābhākaras, Jaiminiyas and others. He flourished about the ninth century AD and his illustrious contemporaries were Vidyānanda and Prabhācandra. Vidyānanda wrote a commentary on Samantabhadra's Aptamimāmsā which is known as Astasähasri and in which the doctrines of the Sāmkhya Yoga, Vaišeșika, Vedānta, Mīmāmsā and Buddhism are severely criticised. Another logical treatise called Pramānaparikșă is attributed to him. Prabhācandra's Prameyakamalamārtanda is a commentary on Māņikya Nandi's work. He was also
e author of Nyāyakumuda-candrodaya which is the commentary on the Laghiyastraya of Akalanka.
Of other Jain ligicians of the ninth and tenth centuries reference should be made to Rabhasa Nandi who wrote a commentary entitled
Eng. tr. J.L. Jaini; cf, Hoernle in IA, XX, pp. 341ff. 'Ed. and tr. S.C. Vidyabhusana.