Udayanācārya

Research record

Udayanacharya is the principal philosopher of the Nyaya-Vaisheshika tradition, whose work systematizes and refines many of the arguments of the older Nyaya-Vaisheshika. His importance lies not only in the cause of God-realisation but also in his intervention in many areas of spiritual thought and juridical metaphysics, including the soul and matter, causality, the universal, Buddhist transcendentalism, and non-spiritualism. Udayana is a key link in understanding the pre-Neolithic intellectual world of Ganges. Udayana is generally placed around the tenth to the eleventh century CE. Many traditional biographical accounts exist, but in philosophical studies, the internal evidence of texts and citation-related commentarial traditions and reliable scholarly editing provide a more secure basis. Parallel Philosophy avoids speculative biographical detail when discussing his regional glory. Notable among Udayana 's major works are Nyayakusumanjali, Atmatattvaviveka, Kiranavali, and Nyayavarttikataparishuddhi. Nyayakusumanjali is a famous exposition of the juristic argument about the existence of God. it is a critical extension of the earlier jurisprudential commentarial tradition, countering the Buddhist ontology of Atmātattvaviveka and defending the reality of the soul. it is a dialogue with the metaphysics of the Kiranavali Vaisheshika tradition. To understand the philosophical value of Udayana, it is not enough to simply count his conclusions. His method takes seriously the powerful arguments of the opposition. Without the Buddhist philosophy of Mīmāṃsā and other opposing views, juridical philosophy would not have been so sophisticated without serious intellectual challenges. Parallel philosophy learns from this history that rival ideas are not enemies of tradition, but often the principal causes of that tradition 's self-improvement. Buddhist animism challenges the necessity of accepting a permanent soul. This variety of Buddhist logic was at the forefront of the Nyaya tradition, as can be understood from the flow of experience, memory, moral continuity, and the transient state of the individual. Udayana develops a counterpoint to the permanent soul in Atmātattvaviveka. Juridical reasoning emphasizes the need to regard memory as a reservoir of desires, pleasures and pains, knowledge and accomplishments. Today we recall what we saw yesterday: the same experience and continuity of memory is presented as the cause in favor of permanent knowledge. The Buddhist pratipada tries to understand this continuum through a series of reasons. The soul is the real centre of the controversy / Nor is the slogan the best explanation for individual continuity. Buddhist transience understands objects and mental states as fleeting events. Udyana-yoga is considered by juristic realists as the abode of permanent substance and virtue and essential to causal continuity. The question is whether a permanent basis is needed to recognize such a change. Or the continuum itself can be formed from the relations of ordinal moments. Parallel philosophy would not have directly transformed this debate into the modern eternal soul versus mind debate. The historical concepts are different, but the problems of person-learning, memory and continuity remain. In Nyayakusumanjali, Udayana develops several logical hypotheses in favour of the existence of God. Attempts at God-realization are found from various grounds, such as the causality of the universe, the combination of atoms and elements, the linguistic system, and the authenticity of the Vedas. The form, number, and interpretation of these arguments are arranged differently by commentator; therefore, a list of eight simple proofs is not to be considered final without text-reference. In particular, the causal argument says that the knower of the created is the doer; the world is the doer; therefore, the knower of the world is the reason for assuming the cause. The opposition of the Buddhists and the Mīmāṃsās raises the question whether the Karta conjecture on the universe as a whole is a valid extension. If the world is the only example: how does comparison The strength of Udayana 's philosophy lies in its attempt to answer these objections.

Structured debate

Pūrvapakṣa

Udayana 's God-realization is irrelevant today

Uttarapakṣa

The present importance of a historical argument does not depend solely on whether its conclusions are accepted today. Udayana systematizes the questions of causality, interpretation, and the limits of inference, as well as classical evidence and the weight of counterarguments. Modern philosophers who disagree with this argument can learn from its structure.

Parallel conclusion

Udayanacharya 's philosophy is a high point of the Nyaya-Vaisheshika tradition, where the soul is the cause, God the sovereign, and the antithesis is the criterion. Their importance lies not only in theological conclusions but also in the openness of reason to reason, to hear and answer objections, and to accept philosophical criteria. Parallel philosophy regards this intellectual daring as an important precursor to its Mithila-centered method.

Section index

1. 20.1 Historical places
2. 20.2 The major texts
3. 20.3 The Severity of the Opposition
4. 20.4 The Spirit of Wisdom: The Question of the Spirit
5. 20.5 The challenge of transientism
6. 20.6 Ishvara-siddhi: Nyayakusumanjali
7. 20.7 Natural theology and logic
8. 20.8 Dispute with the Arbitrator
9. 20.9 Causes and Effects
10. 20.10 The Sovereign and the Classification
11. 20.11 From Udayan to Gangesh
12. 20.12 Udayana 's Teachings for a Parallel Philosophy
13. 20.13 The Logic of the Doctrine of the Faith
14. 20.14 The Logic of the Soul and Memory
15. 20.15 A strong presentation of the atheist opposition
16. 20.16 Preface: The Medieval God-Talk is Irrelevant

Cite this record

Gajendra Thakur. “Udayanācārya.” Videha Digital Research Archive: Mithila–Vajji–Anga. Videha — https://www.videha.co.in/ · ISSN 2229-547X · GitHub mirror: https://videha-ejournal.github.io/videha/ · Digital Research Archives on GitHub: https://github.com/videha-ejournal. https://videha-ejournal.github.io/mithila-vajji-anga/records/idea/philosophy-20/