________________
Four aspects of Existence
Having stated this in the aphorism of Tattvärth sūtra 5/31 Umās vāti procceeds to apply this to the nature of existence in his auto-commentary. He finds that both Being and Becoming can be bifurcated into two. Being has two dimensions: one unspecified existence and the other the existence of different substances. Similarly Becoming has two aspects - production and destruction. As a propounder of thoroughly realistic system Umāsvāti accepts the reality of all the four afore said categories. Being as one undifferentiated existence is called as dravyāstika; whereas when being is categorised as medium of motion, medium of rest, space, matter and soul it is known as mātṛkāpadāstika. Because these categories give birth to the universe. Becoming when implying production is called utpannāstika and when implying destruction is called paryāyāstika.
This description makes it clear that Jainism is thoroughly a realistic system which accepts the reality of all the four; (1) undifferentiated being (2) different category of being (3) production and (4) destruction.
Agamic Concept of existence
Lord Mahāvīra is said to have pronounced three attributes of existence; production, destruction and continuity. On being asked by Indrabhūti, his foremost disciple What is the nature of reality? (kim tattam) Mahāvīra is reported to have first answered: "origination" (Uppaṇṇei vā) and then when same question was successively repeated, "destruction"(vigamei vā) and "persistence" (dhuvei vā) Acārya Umās vāti has faithfully represented this in his aphorism (Utpad-vyaya-dhrauvya-yuktam sat 5/29) In his autocommentary however he has given four types of existence as we have already stated.
Objection to the Jain view of existence
If we look at four types of existence we would find that by implication Acārya Umāsvāti has tried to incorporate different views regarding existence. This has also covered the question of
व्रात्य दर्शन • २३५
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
