On Term Antahsamjna

Author(s): A Wezler
Publisher: A Wezler

Page 15

WEZLER : On the term Antaḥsanjña
125
is hence every likelihood that the central idea expressed here was not conceived for the first time by the author of this passage himself, but dates back to an earlier, perhaps even much earlier period.
The arguments of Mbh. XII 177 consist largely in inferences, explicit or implicit, their common charasteristic being that observations of certain properties of plants, like e. g. the movements of climbers, serve as empirical starting point to prove e. g. the existence of a sense of sight. Nevertheless this Epic text is not in contradiction with what has been stated to be the true motive for giving plants the name antaḥsamjña. For this term does not imply, as becomes clear now only, that plants absolutely lack every activity revealing their consciousness; to account for the formation of this concept it is sufficient to assume that it is based on the observation that the plants' signs of consciousness, of the faculty of perception are distinctly different from those of other living beings, and are in addition relatively poor 60 and perhaps also difficult to detect.
There would not seem to be anything hence to preclude the assumption that the term antaḥsamjña and Mbh. XII 177 are closely related to each other, at least in the sense that they belong to the same sphere of ideas about vegetal life and its peculiarities. Nevertheless it has to be noted that the term as such does not, of course, necessarily presuppose that plants are taken to have five senses; theoretically at least it could be compatible with a concept like that of the plants' ekendriyatva propounded by the Jainas.1 As regards this particular theory, however, Tattvārthasutra 2. 25 ( sam jñinah semanaskāḥ ) in connection with 2. 1242 — to give just one example -- seems to speak against the assumption that the term antaḥsam jña is of Jaina origin, because together with other living beings and the elements plants too are included in the group of asamjsins.65
60. It is, of course, at its highest in map as is already stated in AiA 2. 3. 2. 5 : puruse tv evävistaram at md, sa hi prejñanena sampannatamo vijnatam vadati...
61. Cf. J. O Sidkar's article "The Fabric of Lifo ao Conceived in Jaina Biology” in : Sambodhi 3 (1974), pp. 1-10.
62. Cf. also the Bhagya and later commentaries on both. In passing it may be noted that asam jrlinah is explained by Simhasüri (Dvādagaranayacakram...Pt. I, ed. by Muni Jambūvijayaji, Bhavnagar 1966, p. 182, 1. 20 ) to comprise accordingly : prthivy-abagni-vāyu-vandspati-dvitricturindriya-amanaskapancendriyah.
63. This term does not, however, mean that the beings denoted by it lack consci. cusness. Padmanath S. Jaini (The Jaina Path of Purification, Berkeley/Los Augeles/London 1979, pp. 110 and 337) renders it by “totally instinctive ” and “unable to reason about spiritual matters". The second of these trapelations does not do justice to the fact that the category of samnins includes certain species of higber animals, too; and the first one is likewise not satisfactory because the Indians did not know the concept of " instinct” and
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