Page:A History of Indian Philosophy Vol 1.djvu/213

 VI] Dhanna 197 (as maintained by the Naiyayikas) but represents only the ac- cession of similar qualities by a similar development of qualities of atoms forming an aggregate. So long as this similarity of qualities continues we perceive the thing to be the same and to continue for some length of time. Vhen we think of a thing to be permanent, we do so by referring to this sameness in the developing tendencies of an aggregate of atoms resulting in the relative permanence of similar qualities in them. According to the J ains things are not momentary and in spite of the loss of some old qualities and the accession of other ones, the thing as a whole may remain more or less the same for some time. This sameness of qualities in time is technically called iirdhvasiimiinya 1. If the atoms are looked at from the point of view of the change and accession of new qualities, they may be regarded as liable to destruction, but if they are looked at from the point of view of substance (dravya) they are eternal. - Dharma, Adharma, Akasa. The conception of dharma and adharma in J ainism is absolutely different from what they mean in other systems of I ndian philosophy. Dharma is devoid of taste, touch, smell, sound and colour; it is conterminous with the mundane universe (lokiikiisa) and pervades every part of it. The term astikiiya is therefore applied to it. It is the principle of motion, the ac- com panying circumstance or cause which makes motion possible, like water to a moving fish. The water is a passive condition or circumstance of the movement of a fish, i.e. it 'is indifferent or passive (udiisina) and not an active or solicitous (preraka) cause. The water cannot compel a fish at rest to move; but if the fish wants to move, water is then the necessary help to its motion. Dharma cannot make the soul or matter move; but if they are to move, they cannot do so without the presence of dharma. Hence at the extremity of the mundane world (loka) in the region of the liberated souls, there being no dharma, the liberated souls attain perfect rest. They cannot move there because there is not the necessary motion-element, dharma 2. Adharma is also regarded as a similar pervasive entity which 1 See Prameyakamalamiirtaf.ZtJa, pp. [36-143; Jainatarkav,irttika, p. 106. 2 Dravyasa,!lgrahavr/ti, 17- 20.