Mahavidya Vidambanam

Author(s): Vadindra Bhatt, Anandpurna, Bhuvansundarsuri, Mangesh R Telang
Publisher: Central Library

Page 15

syllogisms against the Buddhists, just as Játis (futile rejoinders) are employed when one fails to duly detect faults (in the arguments of his opponent). But at the end of the third chapter Vádîndra raises a question "What is the object of refuting the Mahávidya syllogisms which can be used to prove anything desired by oneself ?". He answers this question as follows:-"The object of refuting the Mahávidyá syllogisms is to demonstrate that they are fallacious like .Jalis i. e. futile rejoinders. Otherwise the pupils who may be employing the Mahavidya syllogisnis (in a controversy) will be defeated on account of the faults previously pointed out by the opponent."
It may be observed here that both Venkatanátha Vedantáchárya and Pratyagrûpa-bhagaván style the Mahavidya syllogisms as "Vakránumánas") (वक्रानुमान) i. e. crooked syllogisms.
Why Mahávidya syllogisms became obsolete, The Mahavidyá syllogisms seem to have aroused a keen interest among the Pandits of the 11th to 15th centuries and therefore they have been referred to in several works composed during that period as shown above. Many books were written in support as well as in refutation of Mahavidya. But none of them seem to have lived after Vádîndra wrote his Mahavidya-vidambana and completely exploded the theory of Mahavidya syllogisms by proving them to be fallacious. Hence none of the authors after the fifteenth century refer to these syllogisms, The modern Bengal school of Nyáya has not at all recognized them.
Vádindra and his Mahavidya-vidambana-So far we have tried to explain what is meant by Mahávidya and given an account of its author
Pandita and his work Daśaśloki-Mahávidya Sûtra. Now we shall turn to Vádîndra and his work Mahavidya-vidambana.
Like many other Sanskrit authors very little is known of the life, time and place of Vádîndra. Whatever information we can gather from his own work and from the works of other authors who have noted his name or works will form the materials for the outline of his life-sketch.
1 इति गूढमहाविद्याव्याख्याकौतूहलच्छलात् ।
दृरे निरस्तमस्माभिरज्ञानं प्रतिवादिनः ॥ ४ ॥
यद्वा सम्यक्साधनापरिस्फूर्ती सौगतादीन्प्रति महाविद्याः प्रयोक्तव्याः, सम्यग्दृषणापरिस्फूर्ती जात्यादिवदिति तद्व्याख्यानं नानुपयोगि।
महाविद्यावि० पृ. ७४ 2 अथ किमर्थं स्वाभिमतसकलप्रमेयसाधकमहाविद्यानिराकरणम् ।। महाविद्यावि० पृ. १४९
3 जातीनामिव तासामाभासत्वख्यापनार्थम् । अन्यथा महाविद्याप्रयोक्तृणां शिष्याणां प्रतिवायुदीरितप्राचीनदृषणैः पराजयादिति।
महाविद्यावि० पृ. १४९ 4 वक्रानुमानं सर्वमपि स्वसाध्यसिद्धरनङ्गत्वादप्रयोजकमेव । ...... अतो वक्रानुमानं केवलान्वयिरूपमपि साधनजातिरेव स्वव्याघातात् ।
तत्त्वमुक्ताकलाप पृ. ४८५, ४८६ (पंडित मु. पु.) येतु वक्ररीति रोचयन्ते तान्प्रति महाविद्याभिरपि साध्यप्रसिद्धिं सुलभयति ।
तत्त्वप्रदीपिकाटीका पृ. १३ (नि. सा.)