Dr. Samani Mangal Pragya
Jain philosophy accepts both vyavahāra and niścaya naya. Neither of them can be rejected. Because without vyavahāra, protection of sangha is not possible and without niścaya, the protection of basic principles is not possible.[1]
jai jiṇamayaṃ pavajjaha tā mā vavahāra ṇicchaya muyaha
ekkeṇa viṇā chijjai titthaṃ titthaṃ aṇṇeṇa uṇa taccaṃ
From this statement, it becomes clear that while setting a system of metaphysics, niścaya naya is predominant. Acharya Kundakunda has described the vyavahāra naya as unrealistic. According to him, 'niścaya naya' alone is realistic. The one, who takes shelter of this naya is a right world viewed person.'
vavahāro abhūdattho bhūdatthao desido du suddhaṇao
bhūdatthamassido khalu sammādiṭṭhī havadī jīvo[2]
One, who acknowledges the pure state of soul through his scriptural knowledge (śruta jñāna) is actually a śruta kevalī.[3] 'Śruta jñāna knows everything' -this statement is based on vyavāhara naya.[4]
All the states of soul that are generated due to contact of matter, are subject of vyavahāranaya. Indeed, those are not the original nature of the soul. On the basis of this conception, Samayasāra postulates presents the soul to be devoid of attachment, hatred, delusion, cause of influx of karmas[5], karma, nokarma (quasi karma)[6], class[7], vargaṇā (cluster)[8], spardhaka[9], spiritual point[10], anubhāga point[11], yogasthāna, bandhasthāna, udayasthāna, margaṇāsthāna, sthithibandhasthāna, sankleśasthāna[12], viśuddhisthāna[13], saṃyama-labdhisthāna[14], jīvasthāna and guṇasthāna[15]. Samayasāra has considered the occurrence of all the above mentioned situations as the modes of soul occurring due to the association or dissociation of matter.[16] These are the matter-influence states of a soul. A pure soul cannot have the existence of all such conditions. The pure soul is of conscious nature. There cannot be any kind of variation or radical difference among such souls.
Acharya Amritcandra, the author of Ātmakhyāti, in the commentary of Samayasāra has mentioned pudgala-dravya pariṇāma (transformations due to matter) with each of the above said states.[17] All these states are not produced in the pure state of the soul because these are the effects produced by matter.
yaḥ śrutajñanaṃ sarvaṃ jānānti
saḥśrutakevaliti tu vyavahāraḥ
Guṇasthāna - This word is found in Samayasāra. Scholars regard that this word was used later. Samayasāra use this word but Tattvartha Sūtra does not, where as according to Digambara tradition Umasvati is a antecedent of Kundakunda. Hence not finding the term Guṇasthāna in Tattvārtha seems quite strange. On the contrary śvetambara tradition consider Kundakunda as the antecedant of Umasvati. Hence this matter is a subject of scrutiny for scholars.
