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THE JAINA THEORY ABOUT WORDS AND SOUND
The above are roughly the various positions with regard to Sound, held by the different schools of Indian philosophy. Some maintain that a Word does not express the real Object; others maintain that it does signify it. Some maintain that a Word expresses its Object because its meaning was attached to it by the Creator himself; others hold that meanings of Words are mere conventions; still others contend that the meaning of a Word is really rooted in its essential nature which permeates both itself and its Object.
The Jaina theory of Sound may best be described in this connection. This will show how the Jainas looked upon the problem, considered it seriously and offered their own theory about it, which is unique in some respects.
In agreement with the other schools of Indian thought, the Jainas criticise the ultra-Buddhistic position and maintain that a Word does really express its Object. The Jainas do not believe in the existence of a Creator God; it is accordingly impossible for them to agree with the Naiyayikas that the Creator fixed the meanings of Words. At the same time they are not prepared to hold that the meanings of Words were matters of arbitrary conventions. And lastly, the Jainas would not contribute to the Mimāmsā contention that a Word expresses its Object because the two are identical in nature. How then does the Jaina philosophy explain the admitted fact that a Word expresses an Object? The answer will show the uniqueness of the Jaina position, which in its difference from the other theories of the rival schools, is nevertheless similar to each of them in some respects.
Reals in the Jaina Metaphysics
The Jaina's maintain :
स्वाभाविक सामर्थ्य समयाभ्यामर्थ निबन्धनः शब्दः ।
प्र० न० त० ४-११
A Word expresses its Object by means of its natural capacity and conventional use.
The Jaina philosophers hold that a Word has a capacity to express its Object; but this capacity is not given to it by God; it is 'natural'. This natural capacity is a mysterious
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