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soul, even liberated, will be free from clutches of all-pervading samskāras and these samskāras might bring liberated man back to this mundane world. So, it is not possible to prove the oneness of souls and it is more wise and practical to accept the view of plurality of selves.65
To sum up, Jainas point out that Advaitin's arguments that reality is one without a second, on account of māyā this world appears as many (vivarta) and this apparant world disappears after destruction of māyā and realisation of Brahman, and śravaņa, manana and nididhyāsana are the means of liberation, are meaningless like description of the barren woman's son, because the existence of non-dual Brahman or ātman cannot be proved by any available means of knowledge.66
Now, all these objections raised by Jainas are generally found in the writings of Rāmānuja 67 and Madhva.68 Possible answers are found in the works of stalwarts of Advaita Vedanta such as Sankara 68 and his followers which certainly need separate treatment. It is also very important to note that, though Jainas criticise some of the doctrines of Advaita, still some Advaitic trends are crept into Jainism.70 And there was trend to reconcile Jainism with Advaita and other systems of Indian philosophy. For instance, Yasovijaya71 a 17th century Jaina stalwart proclaims that Jainism has no quarrel with any other system of Indian thought.
[ January 1986 ]
65 S.M., pp. 1095-6. 65 S.S.P., p. 7.
Sribhas ya, part I, p. 77-135, ed. Vasudev Shastri Abhyankar, Nirnayasagara Press, Bombay, 1914. Anandatirtha (Madhva), Mayavadakhandanam, p. -25, pub. T.K. Venkatacarya,
Srividya Printing Press, Kumbhakanam, 1929. 69 (a) Works of Sankaracarya.
(b) Sambandha Vartika. (C) Advaita-siddhi, ed. Anantakrishna Shastri, Nirnayasagara Press, Bombay, 1917. (d) Madhvatantramukhamar danam, ed. Pt. Ramanatha Diksit, Hanumanghat,
Benares, 1941. 70 (a) samalam nirmalam cedami tidvaitam yada gatam
advaitam nirmalam brahma tadaikamavasis yate --Yasovijaya, Adhyatmopanisat Prakarana, II-40, p. 152. Adhyat masara, Adhyat mopani sad, Jnanasara Prokaranatrayi, pub. Sanghavi Nagindas Karma
chandra, Jamnagar, V. S. 1994. (b) 'Advaitic Trends in Jainism, The Jaina Antiquary, Vol, XXIUI, pp. 6-7, 1965. 71 abaddham paramarthana baddhanca vyavaharatah bruvanobrahmavedanti nanekantam pratiksipet
-Adhyatmopanisat Prakarana, I-50, and 45-49 and 51.
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