Hetvabhasha- Defective Reasons

As per Tarkashastra, Defective Reasons (Hetvabhasa) are five (i) Straying (Savyabhichari hetu) (ii) Adverse (Viruddha) (iii) Antithetical (Satpratipaksha) (iv) Unestablished (Assidha) (v) Stultified (Badhita). Defective reasons prevent inferential knowledge.

(i)     The Straying reason (Savyabhichari hetu): It is one that is known also as the deviating. It is of three kinds due to its division into common, uncommon and non-exclusive.

(a)     Sadharana Savyabhichari Hetu (common): The reason which is present in a place where there is absence of the thing to be proved is the common strayer reason. Eg: the argument, mountain is fiery because it is knowable, here, knowability exists in a lake also where there is absence of fire.

(b)    Asadharana Savyabhichari Hetu (uncommon): The uncommon strayer reason is that which is found only in the subject while not being present in any similar and contrary instances. Eg: Sound is eternal because of soundness. Sound exists only in sound and is absent in all eternal and non-eternal things.

(c )   Anupasamhari Savyabhichari Hetu (non-exclusive): The non-exclusive strayer reason is that which has neither positive instance nor negative instance, as in the argument, everything is non-eternal because it is knowable. Here, since everything is treated as the subject no example is available to support the inference.

(ii)    Viruddha Hetu (Adverse): The self-contradicting reason is that which is pervaded by the negation of the thing to be proved. Eg: the argument, sound is eternal because it is produced. Here, producibility is pervasive of non-eternality which is of the nature of the negation of eternality.

(iii)   Satpratipaksha Hetu (Antithetical): The antithetical reason is that of which there exists another reason capable of proving the negation of the thing to be proved, as in the argument: sound is eternal because it is audible, like soundness; and sound is non-eternal, because it is a product, like a jar.

(iv)   Assidha Hetu (Unestablished): The unestablished reason is of there kinds: (i) unestablished in respect of its substratum (Ashrayasiddha); (ii) unestablished in respect of itself (Svarupassidha); (iii) unestablished in respect of its concomitance (Vyapyatvassidha).

(i)         Ashrayasiddha: The reason with non-existent substratum is found in the argument: sky-lotus is fragrant because it is a lotus like a lotus in a lake. In this argument, sky-lotus is the subject but it never exists.

(ii)        Svarupassidha: The reason that is unestablished in respect of itself is found in the argument: sound is a quality because it is visible, here, visibility does not exists in sound, as in sound only audibility exists.

(iii)       Vyapyatvassidha: The reason associated with an adventitious condition is known as unestablished in respect of its own pervasion. Adventitious condition is that which pervades the thing to be proved but is not pervasive of the reason.

(v)    Badhita Hetu (Stultified): The contradicted reason is one where the negation of thing to be proved is established by another proof. Eg: fire is not hot, because it is a substance, like water. Here, non-hotnesss is the thing to be proved. But hotness, the negation of non-hotness, is cognized through tactile perception. [1]

[1] Virupakshananda Swami (2019), Tarka Samgraha with the Dipika of Annambhatta, Sri Ramakrishna Math, Madras, pg 105-115.