Mano Vicharana

Here is a comprehensive summary of the provided Jain text from "Mano Vicharana" by Sukhlal Sanghavi, focusing on the nature and aspects of the mind according to various philosophical traditions, with a particular emphasis on the Jain perspective:

The text "Mano Vicharana" by Sukhlal Sanghavi delves into the diverse philosophical views on the mind, exploring its nature, causes, functions, characteristics, and location. It highlights the significant disagreements among various schools of thought.

Views on the Nature and Origin of the Mind:

• Vaisheshika, Nyaya, and Purva Mimamsa: These traditions consider the mind to be atom-like (paramanu-rupa) and therefore eternal (nitya) and causeless (kāraṇarahita).
• Samkhya, Yoga, and Vedanta: These schools, while not considering the mind to be atom-like, view it as having form (rūpa) and being generated (janya). They attribute its origin to the natural principle of ego (ahamkara) or ignorance (avidya).
• Buddhism and Jainism: Both these traditions reject the idea of the mind being all-pervading (vyāpaka) or atom-like. They both consider the mind to be of medium magnitude (madhyam parimāṇa) and generated (janya).
  • Buddhism: Specifically, the Buddhist tradition views the mind as consciousness-based (vijñānātmakam). It is the immediately preceding consciousness that serves as the intervening cause for subsequent consciousnesses.
  • Jainism: According to Jainism, the material mind (pudgalika man) originates from a special type of extremely subtle material called manovarganā (मनोवर्गणा). This material mind is constantly changing, much like the body, from moment to moment. The mental consciousness (bhāvman), being of the nature of knowledge and knowledge-power, is considered to be generated from the conscious substance (cetana dravya), which is the soul (atma).

Functions and Characteristics of the Mind:

• All philosophical schools agree that the mind is responsible for the generation of qualities like desire (ichchha), aversion (dwesḥa), happiness (sukha), and suffering (duḥkha), as well as the experience of these qualities.
• The difference lies in whether these qualities are considered to be inherent to the soul (ātmagata), as in the Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa, and Jain views, or inherent to the intellect/inner organ (buddhi/antahkaraṇa), as in the Samkhya-Yoga-Vedanta traditions.
• The Buddhist perspective, which does not posit a separate soul (atma), considers the mind (man) to be the ultimate locus. Therefore, qualities like desire, aversion, knowledge, and mental impressions (samskāra) – which are termed soul-attributes or intellect-attributes in other philosophies – are all considered to be functions of the mind.
• The mind also acts as an instrumental cause (nimitta) in the generation of knowledge derived from the external senses, and also in the generation of qualities like knowledge independent of the external senses.
• Except for the Buddhist school, no other philosophy considers desire, aversion, knowledge, and mental impressions (samskāra) to be inherent characteristics of the mind itself.

Location of the Mind:

• Some traditions, including Nyaya, Vaisheshika, and Buddhism, locate the mind in the region of the heart (hṛdaya pradeśa).
• The Samkhya and other traditions argue that the mind cannot be confined to just the heart. According to them, the mind is present in the subtle body (sūkṣma-liṅga śarīra), which is composed of eighteen constituents. Since the subtle body is considered to pervade the entire gross body, the location of the mind, according to these traditions, is the entire gross body (samagra sthūla śarīra).
• The Jain tradition states that the location of the mental consciousness (bhāvman) is the soul (ātmā) itself. Regarding the material mind (dravya man), there are differing views within Jainism.
  • The Digambara sect believes the material mind is located in the region of the heart.
  • There is no explicit mention of such a belief in the Śvetāmbara sect. It is inferred that the Śvetāmbara tradition considers the entire gross body to be the location of the material mind.

In essence, "Mano Vicharana" provides a comparative analysis of the concept of mind across major Indian philosophical systems, highlighting the Jain perspective which distinguishes between a material, ever-changing mind originating from subtle matter and a conscious, knowledge-based mental aspect inherent in the soul.