Book Title: Mahavira Jayanti Smarika 1976
Author(s): Bhanvarlal Polyaka
Publisher: Rajasthan Jain Sabha Jaipur

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Page 385
________________ natural capacity to express the object in the same way as that eyes have the natural capacity to manifest the object without having any relation of identity or causality. Yogyata is pratipadya-pratipadaka capacity like jayapaka sam bandha 23 Yogyata means, "This signifies that." Besides Yogyata there is also another condition for picturing the object and that is samketa or usage. Yogyata alone is not the sole sufficing condition to explain the relation between words and meaning, because the same words have different meanings in different contexts. It is because of samketa or usage that the words grant a particular meaning in a particular context. Samketa is the indication that "this denotes that" or there is the relation denotative and denotand between a particular word and the object 24 Henae Manikyanandi observes that there are two conditions owing to which words can signify the objects, viz., (1) natural capacity to denote the object (sahaja yogyata and (1) indication or covention (sahketa or samaya),25 According to Prabhachandra olso it is owing to natural capacity and sentential quality that words can signify the object.26 While accepting that words have the natural capacity to signify thobject, the Jainas point out that a word inspite of general capacity depends upon certain outside factors for the purpose of signifying a particular object or meaning. For example, fire has the general capacity to burn, but what particular things, at what particular time and place, are to be burnt, depend upon various other circumstances besides the general capacity of burning. Similarly, words have the general capacity to denote the object or meaning, but what should be the meaning in a paticular context depends upon samaya (context) or saketa (usage). Modern analysts also seem to accept 'use' and 'usage' both as the determinant of meaning. Use' is the function a word performs in a particular language-game and 'usage' is its conventional meaning which deter. mines the meaning of a word in a particular context. As Brand Blanshard observes, "Use is a way or technique of doing something! a usage is the 'more 23. Yogyata he śobdarthayyh pratipadya partipadaka saktib, Jnana jñaya yorjnapya jñāpaka saktivat. (Nyaya Kumuda Chandra, p. 538) 24. Samketa hi idamasya väcyath idamh vacakam ityevah vidho väcyavacakayor. viniyogah (Nyaya Kumuda Chandra, p. 539) 25. Sahaja yogyata samketayasoddhi sabdadayovastu-pratipatti hetavah. (Pariksamukha) 26. Sobdah sahaja yogyata samh ketavalädevartha-pratipadakoayupaga gantavyah. (Prameya Kamala Martanda) According to Pramana-Nyaya-Tattvaloka lamkara also Sväbhāvika samarthya samayabhyamartham nibandhanah (4/11). 4-261 Jain Education International Mahavira Jayanti Smarika, 76 For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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