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The Sacred Books of the Jainas
butes. When we speak of the colour of gold, we make no mention of its weight, touch, taste, smell and other attributes but our statement does not mean that gold is devoid of all the other attributes besides colour. When speaking from a limited point of view, Jain scholars prefix the word Syat to every such predication to signify that the object is of a particular type from a particular stand point but it is not so from other points of view. 'Syat' suggests the existence of other attributes but does not give primary importance to them. This is the differentiating point which helps in accuracy of expression by a scholar of the Jain school of thought. One school of philosophy might say that all that exists is momentary and another school might say that reality is permanent. Jainism reconciles both these seemingly contradictory statements by pointing out that the first view is true from the stand point of modifications only which are subject to change every moment and the second view is also correct from the standpoint of elements of which the thing is composed. One sided systems of philosophy deny the existence of attributes other than what they adopt, whereas the Jain point of view admits their existence though these are not described being not of primary importance. This Nayavāda or Syadvāda system is the distinctive feature of Jain philosophy and logic1.
The Nayas have broadly been classified as Dravyarthika i.e. statements which refer only to the general attributes of a substance and not to the modifications which the substance is constantly undergoing and (2) Paryāyārthika i. e. statements which refer to the constantly changing conditions of a substance.
The Nayas are further classified into (1) Artha-naya and (2) Śabda-naya. The former deals with the objects and the latter
1. A detailed description of Nayas and Saptabhangi (seven modes of predication) has been given in Pages LII-LXXXV of the Introduction to Pañchastikāya-samayasara Vol. III of The Sacred Books of the Jainas,
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