Jainism from the View Point of Vedantic Acaryas

Author(s): Yajneshwar S Shastri
Publisher: B J Institute

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Jainism from the view point of Vedāntic Acāryas ity, criticised the Syādvāda as a self-contradictory doctrine. They criticise this doctrine on the ground of the impossibility of contradictory attributes co-existing in the same thing.
The Vedāntic Ācāryas present Jainism as Purvapaksa (prior view) in their Brahmasūtrabhāsya and refute it. They have presented Jaina principles in authentic way. They have not done any injustice to Jainism while presenting it as Purvapaksa. But they took the world Syād either in the sense of probability or 'may be' or 'somewhat' and criticise it. There are total four sūtras in second Adhyāya of second pāda of Brahmasūtras of Bādarāyana, which Vedāntic Acāryas consider as a refutation of Jainism. In the versions of Brahmasūtras, accepted by Sankara and Nimbārka, The Sūtras are numbered as thirty-three to thirty-six (Brahmasutra, II.II. 33-36), while in Rāmānuja's version of Brahmasūtra, they are numbered as thirty-one to thirty-four (B.S. II.II. 31-34). The Brahmasūtra of Bādarāyaṇa takes note of only two Jaina doctrines, viz., Anekāntavāda or Syādvāda and the Dehapramāņavāda (the doctrine according to which size of the soul is, body size) of the Jiva. Among these four Sūtras, only one Sūtra is concerned with criticism of Syādvāda and remaining three are devoted to refutation of the concept of size of the soul of Jaina. Thus, these Vedāntic Ācāryas' criticism is centered round on refutation of Syādvāda and the concept of the size of the soul of Jainism. Now, let us see, how Nimbārka, Sarikara and Rāmānuja refute these doctrines of Jainism.