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The Jaina Philosophy of Non-Absolutism
to be true to reality that in its abstract form it seems to have little or no logical value. “A pen cannot both be and not be' seems to be a self-evident proposition. But a little reflection will show that its self-evidence is only apparent. "A pen cannot both be and not be' - is a proposition which is understood to illustrate the Law of Contradiction. Let us try to understand the relation of being and non-being. Being and non-being, that are thought to be incompatible, may be understood in an absolute or relative sense. Absolute being is never other than being irrespective of difference of time, place and circumstances in which it may manifest itself. But such absolute being is only an idea and an abstraction, and in so far as experience is regarded as a proof, it must be asserted to remain unproved. So also with regard to absolute non-being. If the incompatibility of such absolute being and absolute non-being is denied, that does not give us any aid in the determination of the st and relation of facts experienced by us. If, by the terms being' and 'non-being,' however, we are to understand concrete being and concrete non-being as exemplified by the objects of experience, the law as formulated is misleading and untrue. Is it a fact that the pen cannot both be and not be? The pen is a pen in so far as it is a pen, that is to say, in so far as it retains the character of pen. It is again a pen so long as it exists as a pen, that is to say, in its own time. It is again a pen only in the area of space where it is and in so far again as it possesses the qualities and functions that belong to it. The being of the pen is thus to be understood in reference to a definite individuality that it possesses in virtue of its intrinsic determinations. It is not a fact in respect of a different setting and of a different individuality. It is thus a fact and not a fact even at the same time. It is a fact quâ pen, but is not a fact quâ other than a pen. Again, as a determinate existent it occupies a particular span of time and area of space, outside which it is not a fact. Again, as possessing a magnitude it is a plurality of parts. The parts do not, taken by themselves, possess the pen-character, but the pen is not absolutely different from the parts, as it has no being outside them. As viewed in other relations the pen is not a pen. The pen is a substance, but substance is not the pen. The terms being' and 'notbeing' as elements in the formula have thus to be understood in
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