Mimamsa Darshana
Mīmāmsā (मीमांसा), a Sanskrit word meaning “investigation”, is the name of the astika (“orthodox”) school of Hindu philosophy whose primary inquiry into the nature of dharma is based on a close hermeneutic of the Vedas. Its basic principles are ritualism (orthopraxis), antiasceticism and antimysticism. The central aim of the school is the clarification of the essence of dharma, understood as a set of ritual duties and privileges to be performed properly. The nature of dharma is not amenable to reason or observation and must be derived from the authority of the revelation contained in the Vedas, which are held to be eternal, authorless (apaurusheyatva) and infallible.
Mimamsa was heavily concerned with textual exegesis and therefore gave rise to the study of philology and philosophy of language. His conception of shabda “speech” as an indivisible unity of sound and meaning (signifier and signified) is due to Bhartrhari (7th century).
Mimamsa: A system of Vedic Interpretation
Mimamsa is a system of Vedic interpretation. His philosophical discussions amount to a kind of critical commentary on the Brahmanical or ritualistic part of the Veda (वेदः). He interprets the Vedas in a literal sense. The central theme of Purva Mimamsa is ritual.
Shri Hiriyanna differs from the above conclusions. He argues that the Mimamsa is more than a critical commentary on the Brahmanas. The Mimamsa doctrine shows an important change, viz. subordinating the idea of sacrifice itself to the idea of attaining Moksha (मोक्षः). This important change may have been brought about by the later Mimasaks, in order to bring this philosophy into harmony with other systems of thought and not to let it remain a mere liturgical discussion focused only on ceremonies.
Shri Hiriyanna writes: The spirit of the Brahmins was to replace the simple natural worship of the Samhitas, the spirit of the fully developed Mimamsa was to replace the ritual as taught in the Brahmins and later systematized in the Shrouta Sutras (श्रौतसूत). But the replacement is not complete at any stage, and so Mimamsa is now known as a mixture of the rational and the dogmatic, the natural and the supernatural, and the heterodox and the orthodox.
Jaimini systematized the rules of Mimamsa and established their validity in his work. The rules of Mimamsa are very important for the interpretation of Nyaya (न्यायः). The Mimamsa Sutras of Jaimini give a detailed description of the various sacrifices and their purposes, the doctrine of Apurva and also some philosophical propositions. There are twelve chapters in total.
Sabara (शबरस्वामिन्) is the author of the chief commentary or Bhashya (भाष्यम्) on the work of Jaimini. Kumarila Bhattu (कुमारिलभट्टु), the Guru of Bhavabhuti (भवभूति), commented on the Sutra (सूत्रः) and the Bhashya. He proved the eternal character of the Vedas and the efficiency of Vedic ceremonials. Prabhakara (प्रभाकरः) was a pupil of Kumarila who wrote a commentary on the Bhashya of Sabara.
Jaimini accepts the three Pramanas of Pratyaksha (प्रत्यक्षः, perception), Anumana (अनुमानः, inference) and Sabda (शब्दः) or Veda (वेदः) (authoritative testimony). Jaimini holds that there is a perpetual connection between a word and its sense and that sound is eternal.
Importance in Semantics
One of the primary aims of Mimamsa as a branch of learning is to resolve the relationship between speech and thought. Mimamsa in this respect serves as an indispensable supplement to Vyakarana (व्याकरनम्) or grammar. Mimamsa includes a large number of discussions related to social or folk psychology. This psychological research contains much of value to the modern science of semantics (the branch of knowledge dealing with meaning in relation to linguistic forms).
Importance in interpretation of Dharmasatras
The laws of interpretation formulated by Jaimini and his successors are quite general and can be applied to works outside the Vedas as well as to that ancient text. They are widely used to achieve the correct interpretation of all ancient texts, especially the Dharmasastras (धर्मशास्त्राः, legal treatises), although they were formulated to help interpret the religious acts mentioned in the Vedas.
Many examples in Jaimini’s text are based on the karmakanda (कर्मकाण्दः, religious rituals) that existed in his time. Later generations therefore had difficulty understanding the original text. The Sabara Bhashya, which is considered an authoritative commentary, helps overcome this obstacle.
In the ancient legal system Nyaya Vjavastha (न्यायवुज्ञा, legal system) knowledge of Mimamsa was prescribed as a must for a judge. Further, a place for Mimamsa scholars was recognized in the ten-member legislative council designed by Manu Smrti (मनुसम्रितिः). Jaimini’s method of interpretation is based on three debts that every person has.
- Devaruna (देवऋुणम्). This literally translates to debt due to god and is satisfied by performing sacrifice. The word sacrifice must not be misinterpreted. At every stage of life, a human must perform certain sacrifice to move forth adhyatmikly (e.g. a Bramhachari (ब्रम्हचारिः) must sacrifice worldly pleasures).
- Rshiruna (ऋषिऋुणम्). The debt due to Rshis (hindi) is paid by acquiring knowledge. Every person must acquire knowledge pertaining to his/her work.
- Pitruruna (पितृऋुणम्). The debt due to forefathers is to be satisfied by maintaining a family and cherishing the family name.
Jaimini believed that all provisions in the Vedas and Dharmasastras must be interpreted in such a way as to satisfy the three debts. The suggested procedure was to consider the interpretation, explain the supporting and opposing arguments, and then accept or reject the interpretation based on compliance with the three debts.
Jaimini’s Mimamsa Sutra and its Bhasyas
The main source of authority on Mimamsa is Jaimini’s Mimamsa-Sutra. It may be mentioned that though Jaimini’s work is considered to be the oldest compiled work, the Mimamsa system is much older. References to the Mimamsa system can be found in the Dharma-sutras as well as in Patanjali’s Mahabhasya.
The number of sutras is well over 2500 and they are divided into twelve chapters with a total of sixty sub-chapters. About a thousand topics are discussed, making this work of Jaimini by far the largest of the philosophical sutras. The Sutras are quite dense and therefore can only be understood with the help of the Bhasyas. The first Bhasya was written by Sabarasvamin who probably wrote it in 400 AD. There was an earlier commentary by the Upavarsa, but this has now been lost, and only an extract of this commentary is in the Bhasya of Sabara. The Bhasya Sabara was in turn expounded by Prabhakara (650 CE) and Kumarila Bhatta (700 CE). These two interpretations differ from each other in some aspects. In later years Kumaril Bhatta’s work replaced that of Prabhakar. Kumarila Bhatta’s work is called Sloka Vartika. There are two others: Tantra Vartika and Tup-Tika. Mandana Misra, a disciple of Kumarila, also wrote other commentaries called Vidhi-Viveka and Bhavna-Viveka. There are several other works of this school.
Main Doctrines of Mimamsa
According to Jaimini, doing the activities that are enjoined in the Vedas is sadhana or the means to attain heaven. The cause of slavery is the performance of Nishiddha karma or forbidden activities. I am Jada-Chetana, a combination of callousness and intelligence. Souls are countless. The soul is the doer and the enjoyer. It is all-pervading. Jaimini does not believe in the creation of the world. They believe in degrees of happiness in heaven and in Sadachar or right conduct, viz. Satyam Vada (Speak the truth), Dharmam Chara (Do duty).
The Eternal Self-Existent Veda
The Mimamsa system begins by postulating the Svatah-Pramanya or intrinsic validity of knowledge, both with regard to its origin (utpattu) and its ascertainment (Jnaptau). The validity of knowledge is known when the knowledge itself is known. All knowledge is assumed to be valid and explanation is required only where any particular knowledge fails. The cause of invalidity is some defect in the means or source of knowledge (Karana-Dosa). Thus, a person may see an object and conclude that it is silver, whereas it may only be a shell. This erroneous conclusion arises because his eyesight was defective. Bad cognition is identified because of its incompatibility with subsequent experience (badhaka-Pratyaya).
An important aspect of this point is to decide the authority of the Vedas. In the case of the Vedas neither the circumstance which makes the knowledge nor that which leads to its discovery is invalid. There can be no fault with the source (Karana Dosa); the source in the case of verbal testimony is the speaker or the writer, and the Veda, according to the Mimasakas, has no author at all (Apaureseya). There can be no question of the teachings of the Vedas coming into conflict with perception or other forms of ordinary experience, because what they teach only relates to matters beyond this life and is therefore empirically unverifiable. Thus the Vedas are considered Self-Existent – Svatah-Pramanja.
The Mimamsaka asserts that the Vedas were preserved intact during the beginningless period by being handed down from teacher to disciple with painstaking care. This belief is based on the circumstance that tradition has been silent throughout about the authorship of the Vedas, whereas in the case of every other ancient work there is some mention of one or the other.
Jaimini was an opponent of rationalism and theism. Purva Mimamsa has a number of deities. Offers can be made to them. The practice of Vedic Dharma does not need any Supreme Being or God. Science was practically the only God for him. The Eternal Science needs no other foundation on which to rest. Science itself is authoritative. It is the only source of our knowledge of the Dharma. There is no divine revealer.
The eternal self-existent Veda serves all the purposes of Jaimini and Purva Mimamsakas. Jaimini does not so much deny God as ignore it.
Pramanas in Mimamsa
The Mimasakas of the (Kumarila) Bhatta School recognize six Pramanas, while of the other accept only five of them. These are:
- Perception (Pratyaksa)
- Inference (Anumana)
- Verbal Testimony (Sabda Pramana)
- Comparison (Upaman)
- Presumption (Arthapatti): An example for this is as follows. A person who is not eating during day continues to healthy and strong. This leads to a conclusion that he should be eating during night hours. Nyaya classifies this under Anumana.
- Non-apprehension (Anuplabdhi)
Dravyas in Mimamsa
The Bhatt School of Mimamsa accepts all the nine dravyas known to Nyaya-Vaisesika and adds two more to them. Tamas or darkness and Sabda or sound. The Prabhakara school of Mimamsa considers Tamas as absence light (which is also the view of the Nyaya-Vaisesika).
Insistence on observing Practices
The Mimamsa philosophy believes that Dharma is ordained by the Vedas, known as Sruti. Its practice leads to happiness. If the Smriti does not agree with the Sruti, the former is to be ignored. The practice of virtuous men or custom comes next to Smriti.
Mimamsa philosophy recommends that a Hindu should lead his life in accordance with the rules of the Vedas. A Hindu must perform Nitya Karmas like Sandhya etc. and Naimittika Karmas during proper occasions to get salvation. These are unconditional obligations. If one does not do this, one suffers papa (पापम्) omission (Pratyavaya dosha). One performs Kamya Karma to achieve particular goals. If one avoids forbidden actions (Nishiddha Karrnas), one avoids hell. If one performs unconditional duties, one attains salvation. If works or sacrifices are performed in a mechanical way, without feeling, Sraddha (Faith) and devotion; they cannot help man attain salvation.
Jaimini does not believe in Moksha. They believe in the existence of Svarga (heaven) attainable by karma or sacrifice. Veda promises rewards to the sacrificer to be enjoyed in another world.
Some later Mitmansakas maintain that all work should be performed as an offering to God or the Supreme Being.
The Doctrine of Apurva
Apurva is the connection or necessary connection between the work and its fruit or result. Apurva is Adrishta. It is the positive, invisible force created by the act that leads to the attainment of the fruit of the action.
This aspect has been strongly criticized. The rebuttal is that an ignorant or unintelligent Apurva could not bestow bounties. The Mimamsa system failed to satisfy thinking men. Therefore, the later Milnamsakas slowly introduced God. They declared that if sacrifices were performed in honor of the Supreme Being, it would lead to the attainment of the Supreme. Apurva cannot act unless moved by God or the Supreme Being. The one who ensures the functioning of Apurva is God.
The Self and Its Characteristic
The self is distinct from the body, senses and intellect. The self is the one who experiences or enjoys. The body is the seat of experience. The senses are an instrument of experience. The self perceives when it is connected with the mind. He experiences inner pleasure and pain; and externally objects such as rivers, plants, etc.
The self is not the senses because it persists even when the senses are injured or destroyed. The body is made of matter. The perceiver is distinct from the body. The self rules the body. There is some being that synthesizes various sense data. That being or entity is the self. The Self is all-pervading and imperishable. I am innumerable.
The true self survives the destruction of the body.
View on Tri Varga
In one important aspect the aim of the Mimamsa school differs from other schools. Human life should not follow Moksa but Dharma, either as a means to an end or as an end in itself. At least that was the view of the early Mimasks. In this early period only Dharma, Artha and Kama (Tri-Varga) were accepted as human values and moksha was not included. It was this idea that gave prominence to many rites in the Mimamsa philosophy. When the doctrine of Moksa entered Mimamsa, many rites and rituals were practically abandoned.
The Later Mimasakas
Jaimini showed the way to attain happiness in Svarga or heaven, but he said nothing about the problem of final emancipation. However, later writers like Prabhakara and Kumarila could not avoid it as it attracted the attention of thinkers of other schools.
Prabhakara says that the absolute cessation of the body caused by the complete disappearance of Dharma and Adharma is the ultimate liberation or liberation. One abandons forbidden acts and deeds that lead to happiness in heaven. Performs necessary expiations to exhaust previously accumulated karma. He practices self-control and discipline. One of the main ideas of this school is that moksha cannot be attained by knowledge alone. Only the exhaustion of karma can bring liberation. Knowledge prevents further accumulation of virtues and vices. Moksha is the cessation of pleasure and pain. It is not a state of bliss because a soul without attributes cannot even have bliss. It is simply the natural form of the soul.
The view of Kumarila is very close to that of Advaita Vedantins. Kumarila claims that the Veda is composed by God and is Brahman in the form of sounds. Moksha is a positive state for him. It is the realization of Atman. He is of the opinion that knowledge is not enough for salvation. They believe that final emancipation can be achieved through karma combined with jnana (knowledge).
Criticism of Jaimini’s Philosophy
Swami Sivananda says: “The Purva Mimamsa system of philosophy is said to be unsatisfactory and incomplete, in as much as it does not deal with the problems of the Ultimate Reality and its relation to soul and matter. There is no philosophical view of the world. The central feature is the performance of the sacrifices. This is the most essential or fundamental thing. “Perform sacrifices and enjoy in heaven” – this is the sum and substance of Jaimini’s teaching. This is his Moksha or the final goal. This cannot give satisfaction to the thinkers who know that the enjoyment in heaven is transitory, imperfect, sensual and worldly”.
