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Jaina Conception of Space and Time
movements could not be explained if Time were not posited as an independent real substance.15 (9) It is untenable to maintain that Space (akasa) can very well perform the function assigned to Time. In other words, to reject Time as an independent substance we cannot legitinately maintain that Space serves as an auxiliary cause of the minute changes (vartana) in the five substances, Space merely contains or gives room to the substancs. For instace, a pot can at the most support or contain the rice but it cannot cook the rice; for that we need fire. 16 (10) Some might even argue that 'Existence' (Satta) itself can perform the function of time; and hence there is no need of positing an independent substance called Time. But this view is not sound. Minute imperceptible changes themselves constitute the nature of 'Existence'. So, how could it be viewed as an auxiliary cause of
minute changes.17 (11) A theory is propounded by some that time is noth. ing but activity (kriya). Akalanka explains it as follows. Movement of an atom from one spacepoint to the next space-point is called an instant'. There is nothing like a minute time over and above this movement to measure the span of this instant. The collection of these instantaneous activities is called avalika, the collection of these avalikus is called ucchvūsa and so on. There is no entity called Time. In our overy day usage we say the sits as long as the cows are milked'. Here the usage of 'time' is based on activities. When one activity is circumscribed or limited by another activity, to the latter is applied the term time.' Thus time is nothing but activity 13
15 स्यादेतत् - आदित्यगतिनिमित्ता द्रव्याणां वर्तनेति, तन्न, किं कारणम् १ तद्गतावपि तत्स
द्भावात् । सवितुरपि व्रज्यायां भूतादिव्यवहारविषयभूतायां क्रियेत्येवंरूढायां वर्तनादर्शनात् तद्धेतुनाऽन्येन कालेन भवितव्यम् । राजवार्तिक (सं. ५, महेन्द्र कुमार),
पृ. ४७७ 16 यथा भाजनं तण्डुलानामधिकरणं न तु तदेव पचति, तेजसो हि स व्यापारः तथाकाश.
मप्यादित्यगत्यादिवर्तनायामधिकरणं न तु तदेव निर्वतयति । कालस्य हि स व्यापारः ।
राजवार्तिक, पृ० ४७७ 17 कालानुगृहीतवर्तना हि सत्तेति ततोऽप्यन्येन कालेन भवितव्यम् । राजवार्तिक पृ. ४७७ 18 स्यान्मतम् - क्रियामात्रमेव कालः । .... सर्वोऽयं कालव्यवहारः क्रियाकृतः । क्रिया हि
क्रियान्तरपरिच्छिन्ना अन्यक्रियापरिच्छेदे वर्तमाना कालाख्या भवति । योऽपि समयो नाम भवद्भिरुच्यते स परमाणुपरिवर्तन क्रियासमय एव कालसामानाधिकरण्यात् । न समयपरिमाणपरिच्छेदकोऽन्यः ततः सूक्ष्मतरः कश्चिदस्ति कालः। तत्समयक्रियाकलाप आवलिका, तत्प्रचय उच्छ्वास इत्यादि समयक्रियाकलापपरिच्छिन्ना आवलिका उच्छ्वासपरिच्छेदे वर्तमाना कालाख्या । एवमुत्तरत्रापि योज्यम् । लोकेऽपि तथैव गोदोहेन्धनपाकादिरन्योऽन्यपरिच्छेदे वर्तमान कालाख्य इति क्रियैव काल इति । राजबार्तिक, पृ० ४८२
