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Matter
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NATURE OF VIJNĀNA SKANDHA
This theory of the Buddhists raises the further question. In what respect are the two succeeding experiences and for the matter of that, all experiences similar? Here the Buddhists reiterate their doctrine of the Vijñāna Skandha and point out that all experiences are fundamentally but Vijñāna Skandha. Vijñāna Skandha means a group or series of Vijñāna's. It is described as
_ 'विज्ञानस्कन्धोऽहमित्याकारो रूपादि विषय इन्द्रियादिजन्यः'।
VIJNĀNA INVOLVES A SELF-CONSCIOUSNESS
Vijñāna group has the form of self-consciousness, has Rūpa etc. for its object and is generated by senses etc. A Vijñāna Skandha is a group or series of Vijñāna's. Vijñāna's are the individual and the momentary units which form the Vijñāna Skandha. We are not concerned here with the generating causes of the Vijñāna's nor their objects; for obviously, these do not make the Vijñāna's similar. What makes the Vijñāna's similar is their subjective aspect or form. This subjective aspect of a Vijñāna consists in a consciousness of self as the knower (Aham). One Vijñāna is different from another so far as their generating causes and their objects are concerned; but all Vijñāna's or experiences are similar in this respect that in all of them is involved a consciousness of the knowing self. The Vijñāna's of a life, though strictly disparate and transitory, thus succeed one another as a flow of units of self-consciousness and appear as a series or a connected whole.
A Vijñāna is otherwise called Çitta by the Buddhists which is another name for Manas.
'FF alfaatti fagfafa qafa: 1 anapat: ÇITTA OR MANAS IS THE ĀTMĀ ACCORDING TO THE BUDDHISTS
A Çitta or Manas is thus a momentary experience, different from the succeeding Çitta or Manas. It is being generated every moment by senses etc. and annihilated as soon
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