What is Vaisesika Categories of ‘Guna’, ‘Karma’ and Samanya?
The Template:Wiki system is next to Samkhya in origin and is of greater antiquity than the Nyaya.
It may be prior to and is certainly not later than Buddhism and Jainism.
The word is derived from Vishesa which means particularity or distinguishing feature or Template:Wiki.
The vaishesika philosophy, therefore, is pluralistic Template:Wiki which emphasizes that diversity is the soul of the universe.
The category of vishesa or particularity is dealt with at length in this system, and is regarded as the essence of things.
===Guna or Quality===
According to Template:Wiki philosophy, quality is that category which subsists in substance but in which no other quality or action can in here.
Qualities cannot exist without substance and hence they are said to be other-dependent.
As has been stated that only substance can be the material or constitutive cause of action.
It is of secondary help in the action.
In view of the fact all qualities are dependent upon substance; there cannot be any quality of quality.
Quality also lacks action or Template:Wiki.
It resides inactively in its substratum, the substance.
In this way, it differs from both substance as well as action.
Distinction of Quality:
There are twenty-four qualities, such as:
1) rupa or Template:Wiki,
(2) rasa or Template:Wiki,
(3) gandha or Template:Wiki.
(4) sparsa or Template:Wiki,
(5) sabda or sound,
(6) samkhya or number,
(7) parimana or magnitude,
(8) prthakatva or distinctness,
(9) samyog or Template:Wiki,
(10) vibhaga ordisjunctoin,
(11) paratva or remoteness,
(12) aparatva or nearness,
(13) bodhi or cognition,
(14) sukha or reversion,
(15) dukha or pain,
(16) iccha or desire,
(17) dvesaor reversion,
(18) prayatna or effect,
(19) gurutva or Template:Wiki,
(20) dravyatva or Template:Wiki,
(21) sneha or Template:Wiki,
(22) samskara or tendency,
(23) dharma or merit and
(24) adharma or Template:Wiki.
These qualities have been further subdivided, as various Template:Wiki such as sweet, sour, saline, bitter, etc., or the Template:Wiki such as the articulate and the inarticulate.
Magnitude is further divided into very small, Template:Wiki and very big.
Numbers start from one and proceed upwards.
===Conjunction and Disconjunction===:
Conjunction is the Template:Wiki predicated of the relation of meeting of two Template:Wiki capable of existing apart such as the relation of the hand and the pen.
The causal relation is not a conjunctive relation because the separate existence of the cause of the effect is not-possible.
Disconjunction is the name of the ending of Template:Wiki or separation, such as happens when the pen falls from the hand.
In vaisesika philosophy, three kinds of conjunctions are accepted, such as:
(1) Anyatarkarmaj - Where one substance comes and meets or conjoins another.
(2) Ubhaya Karmaj - Where the Template:Wiki takes place as the result of activity on the part of both the Template:Wiki such as when two wrestlers meet.
(3) Samyogaj - Where one Template:Wiki takes place through the Template:Wiki of another Template:Wiki, such as, the hand and paper are in Template:Wiki when the hand touches the pen and the pen the paper.
This is called samyogaj samyog.
Template:Wiki has been subdivided into three, on-the same basis as Template:Wiki. Such as -
(1) Anyatar Karmaj - Where the action of one of the Template:Wiki leads to Template:Wiki as when the leaf falls from the tree.
(2) Ubhaya Karmaj - Where the Template:Wiki of the two takes place through activity in both the Template:Wiki as when two wrestlers break apart.
(3) Vibhagaj - Where one Template:Wiki leads to another as when the Template:Wiki between the hand and the paper is ended when the pen which is the link between the two, is put down.
Remoteness and Nearness also have two Template:Wiki - spatial and Template:Wiki.
Temporal remoteness implies oldness while nearness indicates madernity. In the same way, spatial remoteness is indicative of great distance while spatial nearness denotes proximity.
===Fluidity and Viscosity===:
The cause of liquid Template:Wiki flowing is their Template:Wiki, such as is possessed by water. Similarly, Template:Wiki like butter have the tendency to conjoin and form lumps, the tendency being named Template:Wiki or sneha.
Samskara or tendency also has three Template:Wiki:
(1) Vega or Velocity - by virtue of which an object possesses Template:Wiki,
(2) Bhavana or feeling - due to which there is memory of recognition of some subject,
(3) Sthit Sthapakatva or Oscilleation by means of which some substance returns from a long distance to its original position such as a rubber ball.
Merit is a virtue which leads to proper activities and results in pleasure.
Demerit is sin which leads to improper activities and causes pain.
If all these Template:Wiki of the various qualities were to be counted, their total number would be well nigh-stupendous, but in these twenty four qualities only the basic qualities have been counted.
The other qualities are only the Template:Wiki of these and are included therein.
In this way these twenty four qualities are fundamental and it is by their Template:Wiki that the other compound qualities are formed.
===Karma or Action===:
Action or Karma is the commonly used name of the fundamental dynamic qualities of substance.
The Template:Wiki manifestation of substance is quality and its active manifestation is action or mobility.
Template:Wiki combine and separate because of action.
Action has no quality. Quality is dependent upon substance.
Action cannot subsist in all pervading Template:Wiki because in them there is no change of position.
Hence, the basis of action can only be material Template:Wiki like the earth, air, /ire and mind.
==Distinctions of Karma===:
There are five distinctions of karma:
(1) Utksepana or throwing upwards. In this way, due to action the Template:Wiki takes place with the higher plane.
(2) avakespana or throwing downwards in which action leads to Template:Wiki with the lower plane.
(3) akunchana or contraction, which activity is designed to create Template:Wiki in an ever nearer sphere such as twisting the hand.
(4) Prasarana or expansion.
(5) Gamana or locomotion.
Actions other than the first four are comprehended by locomotion.
The activity of Template:Wiki such as earth, water, fire, etc. is perceptible but the activity °f an imperceptible entity like the mind cannot be known by perception.
===Samanya or Generality===:
Generality is that category by virtue of which various different Template:Wiki beings are enumerated in one class and called by a common name.
Just as all beings are called by a word or term indicating class S the examples of which are man, horse, Template:Wiki etc.
These have some general or common quality which is to be found in the entire class and is its characteristic.
Objects or Template:Wiki possess similarity because of the general quality.
In the consideration of the general quality, Indian philosophers have subscribed to one of the following three opinions:
Three Different Opinions Concerning Generality:
(1) ===Nominalism===:
According to this school of thought generality is no essential quality but merely a name which gives similarity to the beings belonging to its class and distinguishes it from other classes only by virtue of this name.
The general has no Template:Wiki or separate existence.
Among the Indian philosophies it is the Buddhist philosophy which has accepted this view.
(2) ===Conceptualism===:
The second view concerning generality is conceptualism.
According to this view, the general quality has no existence apart from the Template:Wiki and neither does it come from outside and enter into the Template:Wiki.
The Template:Wiki and the general cannot be separated from each other.
It is the essential quality or the eternal form of general Template:Wiki which is apprehended by our mind or Template:Wiki.
This point is to be found in the Jaina and Advaita Vedanta system of Indian philosophy.
(3) ===Realism===:
The third view of generality is Template:Wiki According to it the general is neither a mental thought or Template:Wiki nor merely a name but has its own Template:Wiki existence.
The generals are eternal categories which, although separate from the Template:Wiki, still pervade them.
In this way, the general is included or mixed in Template:Wiki.
It is only because of the general that there is any similarity between different Template:Wiki.
It subsists m substance, quality and action.
It is because of general that they are called by the same name or are ^aid to belong to the same class.
This view is propounded by the Nyaya-vaisesika among the systems of Indian philosophy.
===Distinctions of Generality===:
From the point of view of pervasion generality is of three kinds - para, apara and parapara.
'Para' is the most comprehensive, such as existence.
'Apara' is the name given to the least comprehensive such as potness.
The third Template:Wiki, 'parapara' is between para and apara, an example of it being Template:Wiki.
With relation to existence it is apara, and with relation to potness it is para.