Book Title: Jaina Philosophy of Non Absolutism
Author(s): Satkari Mookerjee, S N Dasgupta
Publisher: Motilal Banarasidas

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Page 219
________________ Relations as cause until the concomitance of fire with smoke is observed. The Buddhist would conclude from this fact that the character of causality is only an ideal construction which is attributed to fire by uncritical thought. But the Jaina does not agree that the conclusion really follows from the premise. The nature of a real is constituted by an infinite number of attributes, which it is not given to us to know all at once and in one sweep. The fluxist believes that reals are momentary. This knowledge is reached at the end of an elaborate course of ratiocination, but the Buddhist would not, for the matter of that, accept the proposition that the fluxional character of reals is not true. There are attributes which are apprehended in an easy and simple fashion. But this is not true of all the attributes and even of the most important attributes. That 'material bodies gravitate' is a proposition which is the result of an elaborate process of thought. The Jaina would not again agree with those psychologists who think that the association of such subtle attributes, which are discovered by speculative reason, with the objects of experience is only an act of transference. The attributes are either real or attributed falsely to things. But if there is no proof of their falsity we must take them to be real characteristics of real things. As our knowledge advances our faculties of perception go on acquiring special refinement and proficiency. So what is unpresented to an untrained and uncultured person does present itself to a man of culture and knowledge. A thirsty man sees water and at once drinks it. He knows that water possesses the power of quenching thirst and he perceives it along with his perception of water. After all, it is not the physical organs that are the instruments of perception. The organs are but the channels or media through which the soul works upon the data. The percipient is ultimately the self, whose store of knowledge is constantly growing and with the growth of knowledge his powers of perception are being constantly improved and enriched. There is no logical necessity for supposing that the knowledge of attributes, which is reached by a laborious course of speculation, must be mental and subjective. To the question whether the attribute of causality is different from or identical with the entity the Jaina would give the characteristic answer. It is different and at the same time identical. Indentity-in-difference is the way of all Jain Education International 197 For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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