Book Title: Jainism a Theistic Philosophy
Author(s): Krishna A Gosavi
Publisher: Parshwanath Vidyapith

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Page 299
________________ JAINA VIEW OF GOD COMPARED WITH world that befits the unseen moral deserts (adṛṣṭa) of individual souls and serves the purpose of moral dispensation. This is the atomic theory of the Vaiseṣikas. It is rather teleological than mechanistic and materialistic like other atomic theories.67 With regard to God and liberation of the individual soul, the Vaiseṣika theory is substantially the same as that of the Nyāya. VII. 3. (vi) Jaina View of God Compared with the Mimāṁsā System 283 The Mimāmsā (Pūrva-mīmāṁsā) school is founded by Jaimini. Its primary object is to defend and justify Vedic ritualism. In course of this attempt it had to find a philosophy supporting the world-view on which ritualism depends. The authority of Vedas is the basis of ritualism, and the Mīmāmsā formulates the theory that the Vedas are not the works of any person and are, therefore, free from errors the human authors commit. 68 The aim of the Mīmāmsā philosophers was to revive, the undifferentiated pre-class collective life and efficacy of primitive magical beliefs and rituals, and hence their philosophy was developed to justify beliefs on which ritual depended. This is the reason Mīmāṁsā insisted on truthfulness and reliability of Veda's knowledge. Few scholars think that the original purpose of the Mīmāṁsā as well as Jainism and Buddhism was to revive the primitive ways of the life in the society at that time. Jainism and Buddhism, however, condemned the corrupt practices of the advanced and sophisticated sacrificial cults and rituals, but the Mīmāṁsakas attempted to revive their original form taught in Vedas. According to Dr. N. N. Bhattacharya" unfortunately most of the modern scholars like Max Muller, Keith and Radhakrishnan have missed this point, as a result of which they have been baffled with the inherent puzzles of the 67Dr. Chatterjee & Datta, "An Introduction to Indian Philosophy", P-37 68 Ibid, P-45 69 "Dr. Bhattacharya, "Jain philosophy, Historical outline", P-214 Jain Education International For Personal & Private Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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