World of Philosophy

Author(s): Christopher Key Chapple, Intaj Malek, Dilip Charan, Sunanda Shastri, Prashant Dave
Publisher: Shanti Prakashan

Page 854

separate, then is it true or untrue ? It cannot be true, otherwise the whole world will become true. It cannot be untrue, because, it proves nothing. If it is part of the world then, it is unreal like the rest of the world and cannot accomplish task of proving unreality of the world. 57 If it is said that an argument has a practical validity and serves well as a working theory, then we have to accept that an argument is real, and it will destroy the fundamental position of the Advaitins that nothing besides Braman is real.58
Even Scriptural texts such as 'Sarvam khalu idam Brahma'etc. instead of proving unreality of the world prove reality of the world and Brahman i.e. all existing things of the world and Brahman.
Even Advaitic one soul theory is not tenable because this view is again contradicted by perceptual experience of plurality of individual selves. Like Sānkhyas. Jainas argue that, if Ātman is only one then birth and death, bondage and liberation, pain and pleasure etc. should be one for the whole universe, if one person is blind or deaf, all should be blind or deaf, if one acts, all should act in the same way, if one suffers or enjoys, all should similarly suffer or enjoy. If selves were one, bondage of one should have meant of bondage of all and liberation of one should have meant liberation of all. But what we find in the world is of a nature which is quite the opposite.61 If Atman is one then births of different kinds of beings such as hellish, human, Divine, etc., are not possible. If Ātman is one and all pervading, then why is not consciousness seen in innert things such as pot, stone etc.? Again, there will be no difference between liberated and bound Soul, preceptor and pupil, child and wise and so on.62 Jiva is different in each body (pratiksetram Bhinnah)63 and thus, individuals are born and die at different times, their actions and experience are diverse in nature and so on.
There cannot be absolute indentity between Jiva and Brahman because, in that case mundane world of different individual selves will be impossible to conceive on account of inseparability of Jiva from ever liberated supreme Brahman. It also cannot be said that Ātman seems to be different on account of bodily adjuncts but essentially one, because, in that case, just as after destruction of pot its space is also freed, similarly, when body is destroyed every one will be liberated and no need of means of liberation, consequently no one will try to achieve this goal and whole science of liberation will become purposeless64 and theory of karma, rebirth etc. collapse to the ground.
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