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JNANAVĀDA:
A Study
(THEORY OF KNOWLEDGE) THE RELATION BETWEEN THE SELF AND THE KNOWLEDGE
The self and the knowledge are related to each other, not in any external way, but the relation is inherent. It is samavāyi (inherent relation) and not conjunction, (samyoga) as external elements. Jñāna is not external to self, it is the essential characteristic of the self. Self has Jñāna and self cannot exist without Jñāna, but this relation need not be construed as a relation of a thing and its quality in the sense that the Nyāya-Vaiseșika maintain. Therefore, knowledge is inherently related to the self. From the practical point of view we may distinguish knowledge and self. But from the pure and noumenal point of view, there is no distinction between knowledge and self. Although jñāna is the essential characteristic of the self, it cannot be considered to be externally related. Knowledge and self are very intimately connected as even to say that they are identical.
Knowledge is self-illuminative and it also illumines the object of knowledge (sva-para-prakāśaka). Cognition illumines the object it cognises and also it illumines itself, cognises itself and this fact of self-cognition can be understood by an analogy. Just as the lamp illumines the object around it and it illumines itself, similarly the self has cognition as its essential quality and cognition cognises itself and cognises the object of cognition. It is, therefore, necessary to understand the nature of knowledge.
1 (a) Acārānga 5, 5 166–je āyā se viņņāyā, je viņņāyā se āyā
(b) Samayasāra gāthā 7 (c) Bhagavati 12, 10 ņāņa puna niyamam āyā.
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