Chapter III.f - Prabhācandra’s view regarding matter

Prabhācandra points out that material substance can combine together to form larger and larger wholes and can also break up into smaller and smaller parts. The smallest parts of matter are called aṇu or atoms. When two or more such atoms combine together they form compounds or skandha. Prabhācandra also holds that atoms are the real parts or avayavas which come into real combination and form a real whole or avayavī known as skandha. He rejects the Vaiśeṣikas view about avayava and avayavī. According to the Nyāya-Vaiśeṣikas system of thought, there are two forms of matter, viz., avayava (constituent part, i.e., paramāṇu) and avayavī (composite whole). They are related by inherence. However, according to them, these are the two distinct entities possessing different attributes and functions. That means, avayavī or whole is quite distinct from its parts or avayava. For example, tantu, i.e., thread is quite distinct from paṭa which is the avayavī or whole. But, Prabhācandra refutes this view in his Prameyakamalamārtaṇḍa. Firstly, he says that the whole is not quite distinct from its parts, because the same substance continues to exist in both the avayava and the avayavī. Secondly, he says that the parts and the whole are not totally identical, i.e., the whole have some characteristics which are different from its parts, such as, touch, colour, taste and smell are manifested in the skandhas, but in the atoms these qualities remain unmanifested. So, the parts and the whole are not totally distinct, nor totally identical with one another.

The Nyāya-Vaiśeṣikas systems of thought recognize nine substances. They are—earth, water, fire, air, ākāśa, time, space, soul and mind. Among them, earth, water, fire and air are the elements of matter. These four substances have two forms, viz., (a) eternal as atoms and (b) non-eternal as effects. Prabhācandra also says that earth, water, air and fire are included in the Jaina category of matter or pudgala, because matter is defined as a substance possessing touch, smell, colour and taste as its qualities. These qualities are also found in earth, water, fire and air. But, according to the Nyāya-Vaiśeṣikas systems of thought, all these qualities are not found in all these elements. Earth, water etc. are totally different. Air possesses only touch. It does not possess colour, taste and smell. Fire is endowed with the quality of touch and colour, but it is devoid of taste and smell. Water possesses touch, colour and taste. Earth possesses the natural quality of smell together with colour, taste and touch. But, Prabhācandra does not agree with them. He argues that earth, water etc. are not totally different from one another. All of these are the various combinations and forms of matter. These various combinations should not be regarded as separate substances. As a matter of fact, water is produced from moonstone, pearl form of earth is produced from water; fire is produced from sun-stone form of pṛthivī. So, there is no necessary of accepting distinct and separate entities for earth, water etc. Also, all the four qualities i.e. colour, taste, touch and smell are always found in all of these four substances.

Matter or pudgala is different from the self, the conscious principle and similar to the principle of ākāśa, dharma, adharma and kāla. On the other hand, matter is also similar to the jīva or self, because both are active principles. Matter plays an important role in the progress of the self. All the Jaina teachers including Prabhācandra say that karmans are the subtle particles of matter. Through the karmic-matter, the self gets bondage and liberation. The bondage of the self is caused by its contact with the karmic-matter, and the self attains liberation for its dissociation from the karmic-matter. So, among the all ajīva substances matter or pudgala is one of the most important substance.