Svabhāvavāda or Yadṛcchāvāda

Svabhāvavāda or Yadṛcchāvāda is upheld by the Cārvāka system This view is very old and is found mentioned in the Upaniṣads. It is also found in the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad that svabhāva or nature is the cause of the world.^[1] Svabhāvavāda is also discussed in the Sarvadarśanasaṃgraha, where it is said that the phenomenon of the world is produced spontaneously from the inherent nature of things. It is said there that the heat of fire, coolness of water, refreshing coolness of wind etc. are all come into existence because of their own nature.^[2] There is no creator of these phenomena. Cārvāka states that some entities are eternal, some are non-eternal and some are mixed (vicitra). These particularities of the entities depend upon their natures inherent in them.^[3] Gautama also refers to the Cārvāka view of causality when he discusses about the causality of īśvara. He refers to the objectors, i.e., the Cārvākas who argue that thorns are by nature sharp, hills beautiful and stones smooth. There is none who has created them as such. It is their nature only. Similarly this world is not produced by any God or some divine entity, they come into existence by nature.^[4]

Aśvaghoṣa states about the Svabhāvavāda in his Buddhacarita. He discusses that good and bad things are originated according to their own nature. Life and death of human beings are also the same. The Svabhāvavādins describe that the thorn is sharp, different birds and animals are different in colour, form, behaviour etc. because of their nature.^[5]

Explaining the view of the Svabhāvavādins Guṇaratna says that these philosophers maintain that all things of this world are produced by nature. It is the nature of earth that from it pot is produced. Similarly cloth is produced from threads naturally. Again it is the nature of the weaver that he makes cloth and not pot. Hence everything is produced by its own nature.^[6]