Karma Mimansa

Author(s): Berriedale Keith
Publisher: Berriedale Keith

Page 86

GOD, THE SOUL, AND MATTER 17 intention of the Vedanta Sūtra (IV, 3, 7-14) that the reference is to the lower Brahman, the soul passing to the higher state only on the occurrence of the absorption of the lower Brahman. In its final condition the soul possesses, according to Jaimini, all the qualities of the Brahman enumerated in the Chandogya Upanişad (VIII, 7), together with omnipotence and omniscience, and further possesses a body and senses, having the power of assuming many diverse forms. Though this is not the view of Samkara (IV, 4, 5, 11) it can hardly be imagined that Jaimnini really regarded this condition as pertaining to the soul merely preparatory to final absorption in the Brahman; we may rather suppose that on this topic his views were akin to those of Rämānuja, and perhaps of Bādarāyana himself.
If we were to hold that the Jaimini of the KarmaMīmāmsā and the Jaimini of the Vedānta must be regarded as enunciating one body of doctrine, we would be forced to the admission that the later school of Mimāmsă departed from the principles of the founder of the doctrine by ignoring the fact that the Mimāmsi Sutra represented only one side of his thought. But to accept this would probably be to lay far too much stress on the traditional allocation of doctrines; it is
f r e 191%)', assume that the views expressed in the .'" idu, present one aspect of the thought of an individual sage, but are the expression of the doctrine of a school, which appealed to Jaimini and Bādarāyana only so far as it thought fit to adopt or discuss views of theirs. It would otherwise be altogether too remarkable that of two authorities, who covered much the same ground, we should have preserved the Sūtra of one on the doctrine of action, and the Sūtra of the other on the nature of t... 1.;-vl:'+, 1916 both cases the form of the Sūtra 15 .., . 'i'; :111!... to the view that it is the production of one definite author. The shadowy personalities of Jaimini and Badarāyana can hardly claim much more effective reality than those of Gautama or Kanäda, or even than Kapıla himself.
If, on the one hand, there was a tendency to adapt the Mimāmsā to theistic or pantheistic views, there was on the other a steady process of degradation of the deities to whom