Theories Of Parinama

Author(s): Indukala H Jhaveri
Publisher: Gujarat University

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Parinama in the Samkhya-karika and its Commentaries
This, however, must be understood as follows. In the Samkhya theory, Prakṛti evolves by itself. No sentient agent is thought necessary. Nevertheless, a philosopher cannot rest content without discovering the purpose of Prakṛti. This he does in t'e 'bhoga' and 'mokṣa' of Purusas. Here we must bear in mind that neither the Purusas can, by definition, have any purpose, nor the Prakrti, being non-sentient, can have one. So we cannot say that the evolution of Prakṛti is teleological in the ordinary sense of the word. We should, therefore, regard it as achieving a purpose without meaning it and look upon the teleological expressions as only a way of explaining the relation between Prakṛti and Puruşa.
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Development of the Theory of Pariņāma in the Commentaries of the Samkhya-Kārikā
I, here, deliberately leave out the Samkhya-sutras with the Pravacana-bhāṣya of Vijñānabhiksu and the Yoga-sutras of Fa añjali with their commentaries since these works present certain differences of interpretation on some of the important topics of the Samkhya philosophy. They will be treated in detail hereafter.
The commentaries on the Ska. will be examined in their chronological order.
We first take up the commentaries on the Skā. 9. It may be here pointed out, at the outest, that Mathara, Gauḍapada and Paramartha's Chinese version, while commenting on the Skā. 9, simply paraphrase what is stated in that Kärikä itself, adding illustrations for the sake of clarity. Thus they do not contribute much to the understanding of Parināma.
In the Yuktidipika, we find the problem of Pariņāma in relation to the Satkaryavāda receiving further elucidation. While refuting the Asatkāryavāda of the Nyaya-Vaiseṣika school, the author of the Yuktidīpikā defines and explains Pariņāma.
'Pariņāma is the manifestation or appearance of another aspect and the disappearance of the previous one, in a substrate, which