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Vol. XVII, No. 3
doctrine of Non-causation (Ahetu-vāda). The doctrine attributed to him in the Sūtrakrtānga is as follows:
कुग्वं च कारयं चेव, सव्वं न विज्जइ ।
एवं अकारउ अप्पा ।-सूत्रकृताङ्ग २.२. "The non-action on the part of the soul even if an action is done or caused to be done".
But this view is the same of Naciketas and Bharadvaja of Upanişadic fame.
In the Brahma-jāla Sutta, the Buddha is reported to have said :
Pūraņa Kassapa advocates "Adhicca samuppāda" while he advocates “Paticca Samuppāda”.
As Barua in PRE-BUDDHISTIC INDIAN PHILOSOPHY puts it :
(Pūraņa Kassap's doctrine) "Something comes out of nothing. Nothing comes out of Nothing” We can interpret it to mean that “the caused may come out of the uncaused' (pp. 279-80).
As Pūraņa Kassapa was an important teacher of pre-Buddhist period and we have no record from his works or that of his followers, we have to depend on the Buddhist sources :
Bhikkhu Ānanda is reported to have asked the Buddha :
"Pūraņa Kassapa advocates six classes (Abhijātis) of people each possessing a particular colour viz. Black, blue, red, yellow, white and brilliantly white. Butchers, hunters etc, belong to the black category; mendicants and other advocates of Karman (Karma-vādins and Kriyā-vādins are in blue category, Nirgranthas wearing one piece of cloth are in the red category, White-clothed ones and lay followers of Acelakas (Advocates and practitioners of nudity) in the yellow category, Ājivika Sadhus and sādhvis (Monks and nuns) in the white category, while Nanda Vaccha, Kisa Sankicca and Mankhali Gosāla are in the "Brilliantly white class.” By the way the above shows that Buddhists had high regard for Mankhali Gośala though Jains derogated them as the rival of Mahāvīra.
The concept of Abhijātis finds its counterpart in Brāhmaṇism as shown above. This concept of Abhijātis is useful to understand the concept of Leśyās as advocted by Mahāvīra.
The Buddha believed in and advocated six categories but they are based on two basic colours : Black and white. The categories are as follows:
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