Niścaya-Vyavahāra Nayas and Anekāntavāda: A Re-investigation with Reference to Kundakunda and Amṛtacandra

Abstract In this paper, I reinvestigate the issue of the purported incompatibility between the Jaina theory of anekāntavāda (non-one-sidedness) and the niścaya-vyavahāra naya s (N-V) (absolute- and conventional-perspectives). Based on the texts and interpretations thereof that have not been presented before, I argue that the scheme of N-V, instead of contradicting anekāntavāda , is compatible with and sensitive to the spirit of non-one-sidedness. This spirit is strongly evidenced in Amṛtacandra’s works, and the sources of it could be traced back to Kundakunda himself. The paper brings to light new perspectives—philosophical, historical, philological, and hermeneutical—on the Jaina theory of anekāntavāda , especially in the context of soteriology, spirituality and ethics.