Spiritual Awakening and other Essays

Author(s): Kamalchand Sogani
Publisher: Prakrit Bharti Academy

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3. Theory of Metaphysico-axiological Anekānta along with the Doctrine of Naya (view-point)
Metaphysical Anekānta : It is incontrovertible that metaphysics deals with the problem of reality or substance. For Jaina thinkers, reality is constituted of apparent contradictions. So its one dimensional exposition is not possible. It is an inalienable complex of permanence and change, existence and non-existence, oneness and manyness, universality and particularity etc.
Because of this complexity, reality or substance is styled 'Anekāntic'. It is thus multi-dimensional possessing antagonistic dimensions of permanence and change, one and may etc. These antagonistic dimensions are infinite in number, of which we know only a few of them. Thus the Jaina philosopher differs from all absolutists in their approach to the unfoldment of the inner nature of reality. The jaina advocates change to be as much ontologically real as permanence. Being implies becoming and vice versa. It may be said "if the Upanișadic thinkers found the immutable reality behind the world of phenomena and plurality, and the Buddha denounced everything as fleeting, Mahavīra found no contradiction between permanence and change, and was free from all absolutism." While discussing the nature of substance we have already said that permanence signifies persistence of substance along with attributes, and refers to fluctuating modes along with the emergence of the new modes and the disappearance of the old ones at one and the same time.
(i) Metaphysical Anekānta and the Classification of Substance: (Plurality, Duality and Unity)
Jainism resolves the whole of the universe of being into
Spiritual Awakening (Samyagdarśana) and Other Essays
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