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alternative truth while all together contain the total truth' of a situation in which any feature predicated of a real is investigated. The reason why the number of modes is neither more nor less than seven is because, it is believed, any complex situation is amenable to treatment by this seven-fold technique if one is an adept in using it. It means every conceivable problem' regarding a factual situation can be reduced to the terms of these seven angles from which it can be viewed. Any attempt to add or subtract a mode will be found to be impossible since addition finds the mode already there, among one of the existing seven modes, and the subtraction will mutilate an essential limb from scheme." In the event of a fresh situation arising with regard
JAINA THEORIES OF REALITY AND KNOWLEDGE
1. Jinabhadragani sums up the complex position of Syadvāda in the following gathā: sabbhāvāsabbhāvobhayappio saparapajjaobhayao/kumbhākumbhavattavvobhayarūvāibheo so// VBJ., gå. 2232. Explaining this ga. Maladhāri observes:.. tatha hi-svaparyayaiḥ, paraparyayaiḥ, ubhayaparyāyaiś ca sadbhavena, asadbhāvena, ubhayena, carpito viseşitaḥ kumbhaḥ kumbhakumbhāvaktavyobhayarüpādibhedo bhavati-saptabhangi pratipadyata ityarthaḥ SHM in VBJ, p. 910. In a similar Vidyananda and Samantabhadra sum up the entire position in two and four kärikäs, respectively. See AMS, 14 and 16; and TSV, p. 128, 49-52.
manner
2.
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For instance, applying syädväda to the postulation that reality is one we get the following conclusions: the reality is one (syadekaḥ); the reality is non-one or many (syadanekaḥ); the reality is both one and many (syadekaścānekaśca); the reality is inexpressible (syadavaktavyah); the reality is one and also inexpressible (syädekaścāvaktavyah); the reality is many and also inexpressible (syädanekaścävaktavyaḥ); and, the reality is one, many and also inexpressible (syadekaścānekaścāvaktavyaśca). Cf. bhangassattvadayassapta samsayassapta tadgatāḥ/ jijñāsāssapta sapta syuḥ praśnāssaptottarani ca// quoted in SBT, p.8. This refutes objections such as the one by Kumarila who feels that "When
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