Book Title: Sramana 2015 07
Author(s): Sundarshanlal Jain, Ashokkumar Singh
Publisher: Parshvanath Vidhyashram Varanasi

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Page 101
________________ 92 Śramana, Vol 66, No. 3, July-September 2015 10 139 bereft of attachment and distress. In the Pravacanasāra it is stated that Jīva is affected by good or bad results. Yājñavalkya says 'Punyo vai punyena karmaṇā bhavati pāpaḥ pāpena iti.'" This is quite identical thought in the Upanisad and Pravacanasāra. Pravacanasara speaks of atma as 'Sayambhū.''2 Śankarācārya says 'tatraivam sati brahmajñānamapi vastutantrameva; bhūtavastu viṣayatvāt. According to Pravacanasara there is no physical pain or pleasure to a kevalajñānin since he is beyond all sense organs 'sokkham vā puṇa dukkham kevalaṇāṇissa ṇatthi dehagadam'.'" The Upanisad salso speak of jñānin in the same manner. Pravacanasara states that jñāna is the soul and there is no jñāna (knowledge) without soul- 'ṇāṇam appā tti madaṁ vaṭṭadi ṇāṇaṁ viņā ṇa appāṇaṁ. 'Satyam jñānam anantam'17 this sentence of the Upanisad states that 'the infinite (ananta) soul is of the very nature of Truth (satya), and knowledge (Jñāna). 916 15 Such examples can be multiplied to show comparative philosophical thought in the Pravacanasāra and Upanisads or Vedānta. There are other aspects like nature of matter etc. but to cover them all in a short article is not possible. It will need an independent study by itself. As stated earlier there are comparative thoughts on soul etc. In the Vedanta and Pravacanasara, this does not mean that Jaina view is not different, it is obvious that Kundakunda will follow Jaina philosophical thoughts, on such matters." 18 In Vedanta Brahman who is one without second is alone omniscient (Chandogya Upanisad 6/2/1) while in Jainism many spirits might function as omnipotent mutually inter depending without conflict, in all this, the realistic tone of Jainism is quite apparent. It is true that the Vedanta is idealistic in its philosophical approach. It is generally believed that Kundakunda lived in the beginning of Christian era, as such, in that case, he could not be expected to know the full fledged developed Vedanta thought as found in the works of Sankarācārya and Rāmānujācārya and other stalwarts in the field of Vedanta thought, who belonged to posterior period to

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