________________
'INTRODUCTION
existence is not merely the state of static and permanent existence. An existing reality in order to maintain its permanent and continued existence must necessarily undergo change in the form of appearance and disappearance. This may appear to be apparently a paradox. But when we appreciate the significance of this description of reality, it may be found that it is the most accurate description of reality of the actual state of things. Everywhere we find growth and development and this is manifest in the organic world. Whether we look to the world of plants or of animals, the field of botany or biology, this description of reality is clearly borne out. Let us confine ourselves to the life history of a plant. It begins itself in the form of a seed. The seed which is planted in the soil must necessarily break the shell and sprout out. That is the first step in its attempt to grow, If the seed remains as a seed without this change there will be no growth and no plant; the seed will be condemned as a lifeless one. Hence it is necessary that it should change its own form and assume a new form which is the necessary stepping stone for the growth of the plant. This sprouting seed must further undergo change and some portion of it must come out seeking the sunlight and another portion of it must go down into the earth in order to obtain nourishment from the soil. That portion of the sprouting which goes down into the soil will undergo enormous changes into the root system, all engaged in acquiring nourishment for the mother plant. Similarly the portion that shoots up into the air and sunlight will undergo enormous change, of sprouting out in tendrils and leaves finally resulting in branches and stem of the plant all engaged in the task of procuring nourishment with the help of sunlight, from among the chemicals available in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide. At every stage thus we find change, the old leaves being shed off and the new sprouts coming in. This seems to be the general law of Nature by which life maintains its identity and permanence because without this change life will cease to be life and organism will die. What is true of a plant is equally true with the life history of an animal. The life history of a mammal or a man may be of the same principle with similar process of growth starting with a single cell organism with fecundated ovam in passing through the multiplicity of cells constituting a mass undergoing elaborate anatomical change within the uterus of the mother till the time of the birth when it comes out as fully constituted body waiting to grow further in the outer environment. Here also the same principle is maintained, i.e., identity in the midst of change appearance and disappearance the old disappearing and the new appearing in the organism. Every part of the physiological system of the body of the child will thus undergo change till the child grows into an adult and full-grown individual. It is this Law of nature that is observed to be prevalent in the world of reality. That is implied in the definition of reality given above. The apparent paradox thus reveals the intrinsic nature of reality and we find it illustrated everywhere in the world of nature. It is this very same principle that is associated with the great
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