Sunday, October 10, 2021

The essence of Pravachansar....07

 

                                                    Dravya Vishesha Pragyapan Adhikar 

                            ( Knowledge of the substances specifically)     ( Gathas 127-144)

To begin with the Dravya is divided into two types namely Jiva and Ajiva in Gatha 127th. Jiva is of the nature of consciousness and Upayoga (attention) while Ajiva is of the nature of non-consciousness in the form of pudgala etc.

While all belong to the Dravya Samanya (general) category, the dravyas can be divided into Jiva and Ajiva on the basis of their characteristics of having sentience and insentience. The Ajiva is further divided into five types namely Akash, Kaal, Dharma, Adharma and Pudgala dravyas.

Out of the Ajiva dravyas, firstly the form of Akash is described in Gatha 128th. The part of Akash which comprises of Jivas, pudgalas, dharmastikaya, Adharmastikaya and Kaal is described as Loka. Remaining  part is Alokakash.

The two parts of Akash  are differentiated by means of their characteristics. The characteristics of Loka is region where all six dravyas reside while that of Aloka is where only Akash is present.

Now dravyas are further divided into two categories in Gatha 129th. Jiva and pudgala are active dravyas while remaining four dravyas are inactive dravyas.

The inactive dravyas manifest only in the form of bhava wherein they undergo generation- destruction- permanence by means of their manifestations alone. The JIva and pudgalas, in addition to manifesting in the form of bhavas, are active which is characterised by vibration in their spatial elements. Due to this vibration the pudgala particles tend to join together thus forming skandh( bulk form) or separate into particles back. Jiva also has this characteristics of vibration due to which jiva joins with karma-nokarma pudgala matter and later separates from them. In this manner jiva and pudgala manifest in generation-destruction-permanence form in active state.

In Gathas 127-129 the dravyas were divided into categories of jiva-Ajiva, Loka-Aloka and active-inactive. Now in Gathas 130-131 they are divided into categories of corporeal-non corporeal. The characteristics by which dravyas can be identified into jiva and Ajiva forms, are of the nature of corporeal-non corporeal qualities. Those which can be senses by the senses are corporeal qualities which are pudgala dravya form and are of several types. The non corporeal dravyas have non corporeal qualities.

The characteristics by which dravyas can be identified uniquely without taking recourse to other dravyas are known as qualities. These qualities also define the dravyas into jiva or ajiva forms. Further pudgala dravya alone is corporeal which has corporeal qualities which can be detected by senses while all remaining dravyas are non corporeal which have non corporeal qualities which cannot be detected  by senses.

To a doubt that pudgala paramanu is not detectable by senses, it is told that minute paramanu have also been described as detectable by senses since they have the explicit capability of being detectable by senses.

Next three Gathas elucidate the qualities of all dravyas by which they are identified. Firstly in 132nd Gatha the qualities of corporeal pudgala dravya are described. Colour, taste, smell and touch are qualities of all pudgalas from minutest to the size of the earth. The different kinds of sound is the paryaya of pudgala dravya.

Touch, taste, smell, colour are the subjects of senses and can be detected by them. Although depending upon the capability of senses, they may or may not be detectable, even so from the minutest pudgala paramanu to earth form pudgala skandh, they are corporeal and possess corporeal qualities.

It has been clarified that sound is not a quality even though it is detected by ears senses since it is of the nature of paryaya of several dravyas. The reason is that qualities and the qualified share the same spatial elements. Hence the senses by which a quality is detected, by the same senses the qualified also should be detected. Now sound is subject of ears senses then akash also should be known by the ears but it is not seen so. Therefore sound is not quality of akash etc. non corporeal dravyas.

Another reason is that sound is transitory and not permanent while all qualities are permanent. On the other hand being paryaya, it explains its transitory nature. Hence it establishes that sound is not a quality of dravya. This negates the philosophy of Naiyayiks who believe sound to be a quality of Akash.

The  qualities of non corporeal dravyas are  described in Gathas 133-134. The quality of Akash is providing space, Dharma dravya is mobility, adharma dravya is providing immobility. The quality of Kaal dravya is manifestation and Soul dravya is Upayoga (consciousness).

Akash provides space for all dravyas to reside within itself hence that is its special quality. For the jiva and pudgala having manifestations in the form of movement, the mobility is provided by dharma dravya being its special quality. Just as water is the medium which enables fishes to swim, in the same way dharma dravya functions as a medium in which jiva ajiva dravyas could be mobile.  For the same jiva and pudgalas, the means for remaining immobile is provided by Adharma dravya being its special quality. Just as shadow of a tree provides rest for the traveller, in the same way the Adharma dravya provides rest for the moving jiva ajiva dravyas.  The manifestation of each dravya occurs at every samaya on account of special quality of manifestation of kaal dravya. Just as the axle is means for rotation of potter’s wheel, in the same way kaal dravya is the means by which all dravyas undergo manifestation. The consciousness is special quality of Jiva by which it can be distinguished from other dravyas.

Now the special feature of dravyas in the form of having Pradesh or not having Pradesh ( spatial element) is described in Gatha 135th. Jiva, pudgalakaya (embodied pudgala), dharma, adhrma, akash occupy innumerable Pradesh (spatial element) while kaal does not occupy Pradesh.

In spite of contraction or expansion  in different Gatis, Jiva does not forgo its nature of occupying innumerable spatial elements of Lokakash. Though pudgala paramanu occupies single Pradesh hence it is called Apradesh, even so it has capability of forming skandhs of numerable, innumerable, infinite paramanus hence it is treated as occupying several Pradesh. The Dharma and Adharma dravyas occupy entire lokakash hence they are said to be occupying innumerable Pradesh. Akash by itself occupies infinite spatial elements since it consists of Lokakash as well as Alokakash. Lastly Kaal dravya comprises of singular Kaalanus which are spread all over Lokakash at each of its spatial elements. These Kaalanus do not join together and form skandh like pudgala hence Kaal dravya is said to be Apradesh (not occupying spatial elements).

The above explains the reason why five dravyas are called Astikaya (having several spatial elements) while Kaal dravya is not included in them.

The location of dravyas occupying Pradesh and Apradesh is described in Gatha 136th. Firstly Akash comprises of both Loka and Aloka which are together, not separated.  Dharma and Adharma dravyas occupy the entire Lokakash wherein the Jiva and Pudgalas have mobility and immobility. In other words the Jiva and Pudgala do not go outside lokakash nor are they confined to specific area of lokakash. Kaal is also existent in entire lokakash ( by means of innumerable Kaalanus spread over the entire lokakash)  functioning as nimitta for  manifestations of jiva and pudgala over entire lokakash.

The nature of having Pradesh or Apradesh for dravyas is explained in Gatha 137th. Just as spatial elements of Akash are measured with the scale of the form of paramanu, in the same way the spatial elements of all dravyas are measured. Paramanu by itself is Apradesh (occupying single Pradesh).

Now Akash occupies infinite Pradesh measured by means of single Paramanu Pradesh. By the same way of measurement, dharma, adharma and a single jiva occupies innumerable Pradesh. The spatial elements of Dharma and Adharma are fixed innumerable occupying a fixed volume. On the other hand Jiva keeps varying its size like a wet or dry leather but the number of spatial elements remain fixed  innumerable. It is clarified that  Jiva is seen to change its size in young to old or thin to fat thus the size keeps changing but the occupied number of spatial elements of the Jiva remain the same innumerable.

Although pudgala paramanu  by its nature occupies single Pradesh hence called Apradesh, still due to its property of dryness and wetness, it joins with other pudgalas and forms skandh which may occupy  numerable, innumerable or infinite Pradesh.

On the other hand Kaalanu (each paramanu of Kaal dravya) occupies single Pradesh hence called Apradesh in Gatha 138th. When a pudgala paramanu transits over single Pradesh of Akaash at slow speed, this kaalanu manifests in the nimitta form. Further it says that even in paryaya form the kaal dravya occupies single Pradesh only since for transiting one Pradesh first Kaalanu is nimitta, for transiting next Pradesh the next Kaalanu is nimitta and so on. In this manner the entire Lokakash is occupied by Kaalanus which function as nimitta for manifestation. These Kaalanus do not merge hence each is called Apradesh.

The dravya and paryaya forms of Kaal substance are defined in Gatha 139th. When pudgala paramanu transits over single Pradesh of Akash at slow speed, the time consumed for the same is ‘samaya’ which is the paryaya of kaal dravya. The substance which has enabled this manifestation at that Pradesh is Kaal dravya which remains unchanged at that location while paryaya of kaal dravya is generated and destroyed. This ‘samaya’ is indivisible just as Pradesh of Akash is not divisible. This particular aspect is explained in detail as follows:

A pudgala paramanu can traverse across the entire lokakash i.e. 14 Rajju length at high speed within one samaya. Although the paramanu has traversed across innumerable kaalanus, still the ‘samaya’ does not have innumerable divisions. It remains the same. This represents some special property of paramanu of travelling due to which the least time  it consumes for travelling remains one samaya only. This peculiar aspect is compared with the special property of Paramanus of sharing space. Infinite pudgala paramanus can coexist in single Pradesh of Akash without being divided into infinite sections of Pradesh or the Paramanus. The smallest element of space remains Pradesh and single Paramanu cannot occupy space less than it. These define the unique properties of samaya and Pradesh of indivisibility.

After defining samaya, the definition of Pradesh is provided in Gatha 140th. The space occupied by one paramanu has been called as Pradesh of akash. This Pradesh can provide space to accommodate the spatial elements of remaining five dravyas. Further the same Pradesh can accommodate infinite pudgala paramanu in skandh form in the same space. As such Akash is indivisible dravya but it caters for concepts of divisions with the smallest indivisible segment being called Pradesh.  This Pradesh can accommodate infinite paramanus and other dravyas. In this manner Akash dravya, though is indivisible has infinite Pradesh segments and in spite of having infinite segments it remains indivisible.

Two new terms are introduced in Gatha 141st as the spatial dimension and time dimension. Dravyas have one, two, many, innumerable and infinite Pradesh while Kaal dravya have samayas. Acharya Amritchandra elaborates this in following way:

The collection of Pradesh is Spatial dimension while collection of paryayas of samaya is time dimension. Akash dravya has infinite fixed Pradesh, Dharma and Adharma have fixed innumerable Pradesh. Jivas have different sizes but innumerable Pradesh. All these have the property of spatial dimension.

Although pudgala dravya has single Pradesh from aspect of dravya, but from aspect of paryayas it occupies numerable, innumerable, infinite Pradesh hence it too has spatial dimension. However kaal dravya does not have spatial dimension since it occupies and uses only single Pradesh.

On the other hand the time dimension is present in all dravyas necessarily since the manifestations of all of them transit across past, present and future categories. However the collection of samayas alone is the time dimension of kaal dravya since its manifestations are limited to time only. The manifestations of all other dravyas across time is time dimension. 

The time dimension of kaal dravya is without continuity- this is negated in Gatha 142-143 and shown that kaal dravya is also permanent substance. If kaal dravya undergoes generation and destruction within one samaya then that kaal is also permanent by nature. In this manner Kaal dravya undergoes manifestation in the form of generation-destruction-permanence at every samaya. This establishes the kaalanu as dravya.

Samaya is the smallest duration of manifestation. In this period something must be undergoing generation-destruction. This samaya is duration of manifestation caused by the movement of paramanu over a single Pradesh of akash. Therefore movement of paramanu is cause and manifestation in the form of samaya is result. Hence some substance must undergo generation-destruction.

Someone may enquire that there is no need for generation-destruction of any substance, the manifestation itself can be accepted as generation-destruction? (It implies that the paryaya itself can be having generation-destruction.)

If we accept it then question arises that (1) these generation-destruction are together, or (2) sequential ? (1) is not possible since generation and destruction cannot occur in the same paryaya together just like light and darkness cannot be together. (2) If they are called sequential then it called for division of paryaya of time, which is not possible. Therefore there should be a dravya which could support  continuity of paryaya. Now it is possible to have generation with respect to present paryaya and destruction with respect to previous paryaya and continuity with respect to kaal dravya. In this manner the manifestation of kaal dravya occurs at every samaya like all other dravyas.

Now in 144th gatha it is told that kaal dravya is not Apradesh (without occupying space) but one Pradesh only since its existence cannot be any other way. The substance which does not occupy even one Pradesh should be known as zero since it does not exist.

The logic for the above is that the manifestation in the form of generation-destruction-permanence are not possible without having a manifester in the form of physical kaalanu. It has to occupy Pradesh since without Pradesh it cannot have continuity as well as differences i.e. it cannot support generation-destruction-permanence.

Question has been asked that Kaal dravya can be accepted as having innumerable spatial elements of lokakash like dharma dravya etc.? The answer is that Paryaya samaya is equal to time taken to transit over one spatial element, If Kaal dravya is innumerable then paryaya samaya cannot be established.

‘ If kaal dravya be equal to lokakash and still transit of one spatial element by paramanu over single Pradesh be accepted as samaya ‘ – this has two flaws:

(1)  The manifestation of just one part of dravya becomes manifestation of entire dravya which is incorrect.

(2)  The spatial dimension becomes time dimension. For example movement of paramanu across the Pradesh one after another would also become movement across time dimension which is incorrect. Hence Kaal dravya should be accepted to be occupying single Pradesh only.

Thus dravya vishesh pragyapan of gyeya tatva pragyapan is completed.

Continued…..

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