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Parikṣāmukham
159
Acceptance of Pratyakṣa knowledge without
clearness is
fallacy of Pratyakṣa. This happens in the case of the followers of the Buddhist Nyaya philosophy who hold that from a sudden vision of smoke, a knowledge of fire arises by Pratyakṣa and not by inference (Anumana). Clearness has already been defined in Samuddeśa II. Aphorism 4 as illumination without any other intermediate knowledge or illumination in details. In Anumana or inference we have an intermediate knowledge of smoke before we have a knowledge of fire and from the smoke we infer that there is fire. In Pratyakṣa we see the fire with our own eyes or learn of its existence by words of a reliable person. The view of the Buddhist Nyaya philosophy that we have a Pratyakṣa knowledge of fire from the sudden vision of smoke is held to be faulty in this aphorism. It is said that such a knowledge wants clearness which is the characteristic of Pratyakṣa is Pratyakṣābhāsa. Details of Pratyakṣa knowledge have already been mentioned in Samuddeśa II. a reference to to which may be made. In a sudden vision of smoke, there is no definite ascertainment (Nischaya) whether it is smoke or steam. So the knowledge of concomitance of fire and smoke cannot arise. For this uncertainty the knowledge of fire as derived from a sudden vision of smoke is Pratyakṣābhāsa. The Nirvikalpa Pratyakṣa as accepted by the Buddhists is for this reason Pratyakṣābhāsa (fallacy of Pratyakṣa )'.
वैशद्येऽपि परोक्षं तदाभासं मीमांसकस्य करणस्य ज्ञानवत् ॥ ७ ॥ 7. Vaiśadyehpi paroksam tadabhāsam mimāmsakasya karaṇasya jñānavat.
7. In Parokṣa (accepted) in clearness, (we have) its fallacy (Paroksabhāsa) e. g. knowledge derived from the senses as accepted by the Mimasakas.
1. “ यथा धुमवाष्पादिविवेकनिश्चयाभावाद् व्याप्तिग्रहणाभावाद् अकस्माद् घुमदर्शनाज्जातं यद्वह्निविज्ञानं तत्तदाभासं भवति कस्मादनिश्चयाद् । तथा वौद्धपरिकल्पितं यन्निर्विकल्पक प्रत्यक्षं तत् प्रत्यक्षाभासं भवति कस्मादनिश्चयात् । ” Note on Prameyakamalamārtanda.
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