Vamdhwajvinirmita Sankettika Taya Sahit Udayanacharya Nibaddha Nyayakusumanjali

This document is a detailed summary of the book "Vamdhwajvinirmita Sankettika taya Sahit Udayanacharya Nibaddha Nyayakusumanjali" authored by Nagin J. Shah and published by L. D. Indology, Ahmedabad. The book is a commentary by Vamadhvaja on Udayanacharya's philosophical work, Nyayakusumanjali.

Key aspects of the book as presented in the provided text:

• Content: The book contains Vamadhvaja's "Sanketa" commentary on Udayanacharya's "Nyayakusumanjali." The Nyayakusumanjali is a significant work in Indian philosophy that aims to logically establish the existence of God, refuting atheistic arguments from various schools like Sankhya, Bauddha, and Mimamsaka, while also discussing and refuting their other philosophical theories.
• Vamadhvaja's Commentary ("Sanketa"): The commentary is described as "lucid" and an exposition "glowing with the light of great signification." It is praised for its ability to "unfold the tough knots of very hard text" and is considered "charming to the reasoning faculty." Vamadhvaja's commentary is noted for its deep study and understanding of the Nyaya system, referencing and quoting from authoritative texts and authors like Dharmakirti, Jnanasri, Sabara, Kumarila, Vacaspati, Udyotakara, and others. It also adeptly discusses grammatical points and issues related to various pramanas (means of valid knowledge).
• Historical Significance: Vamadhvaja's commentary is identified as the oldest known commentary on Nyayakusumanjali. Its estimated composition date is around 1196 AD, making it older than Vardhamana's "Prakasa" commentary (c. 1300 AD), which heavily draws from Vamadhvaja's work. This makes Vamadhvaja an important figure among commentators on Nyayakusumanjali.
• Manuscript: The commentary is based on a palm-leaf manuscript preserved at the Hemacandracarya Jaina Jnana Bhandara in Patan, Gujarat. The manuscript was found to be in poor condition, damaged, and corrupted at several places, which made the editing process challenging.
• Author (Vamadhvaja): Vamadhvaja (also known as Vamesvaradhvaja) was a highly learned scholar well-versed in various Indian philosophical systems. His guru was Virupaksa, and he belonged to Mithila (present-day Bihar/Jharkhand).
• Editor (Nagin J. Shah): Professor Nagin J. Shah, a renowned scholar of Indian Philosophy, is credited with editing and translating the work. The institute expresses gratitude for his efforts despite his advanced age and frail health.
• Publisher: The L. D. Institute of Indology, Ahmedabad, published this work as part of its L. D. Series (No. 155).
• Content Breakdown (as per the Table of Contents): The book is divided into five Stabakas (sections), covering topics such as:
  • First Stabaka: Various opinions on God, disputes regarding God's existence, establishing cause-and-effect, the eternality of the causal chain, refuting the concept of Shakti (power), establishing apūrva (unseen results of actions) as cause, refuting the notion of destruction as an action, refuting the causality of indications, determining the nature of Shakti, establishing the locus of adṛṣṭa (merit/demerit) in the experiencer, refuting Sankhya and materialism, refuting momentariness (kṣaṇabhaṅga), and establishing the causality of the eternal, all-pervading being.
  • Second Stabaka: Inferring God's existence, establishing the validity of proof (pramāṇa) as a quality, establishing the validity of proof as acquired from elsewhere, proving the non-eternality of sound, refuting the doctrine of jāti (universal) as the source of meaning, establishing the concept of pralaya (dissolution), the efficacy of rituals, the basis of conduct in direct perception of scripture, defining mahājana parigraha (acceptance by great people), and explaining creation after pralaya.
  • Third Stabaka: Refuting non-apprehension as proof against God, establishing yogic non-apprehension as determinative of absence, refuting the doctrine of the mind's power (manovaibhavavāda), explaining sleep and deep sleep, establishing the unsuitability of the Supreme Soul as an object of ultimate knowledge, refuting the doctrine of perception as the sole means of knowledge, establishing inference as a valid means of knowledge, explaining the concept of aprayojaka (the irrelevant), defining upādhi (concomitant), discussing the inclusion of aprayojaka in fallacies, the inclusion of siddhasādhana (proving what is already proven) in fallacies, refuting the distinctness of similarity (sādṛśya), refuting the distinctness of Shakti and numbers, establishing the distinctness of analogy (upamāna) as a pramāṇa, defining analogy, and establishing speech (śabda) as a distinct pramāṇa, refuting speech as a prohibitive factor, and refuting arthāpatti (postulation) as a prohibitive factor, and establishing apprehension (upalabdhi) as a distinct pramāṇa.
  • Fourth Stabaka: Definition of proof (pramāṇa), discussion on knownness (jñātatā), and discussion on momentariness (kṣaṇikatva).
  • Fifth Stabaka: Inferring God's existence, establishing atoms and the like as God's body, God's possession of a body, the definition of Vedic texts (veda), establishing the quantity of atoms and the like as dependent on number, discussion on injunctions (vidhi), and establishing dreams as the experience itself.
• Appendices: The book includes two appendices: a list of quarter-verses (kārikā) from Nyayakusumanjali in alphabetical order, and a list of texts and authors mentioned in the Sanketa commentary.

The publication aims to make this significant but previously unpublished commentary available to scholars of Indian Philosophy, contributing to a deeper understanding of Udayanacharya's work and Vamadhvaja's contribution to the tradition.