Which of the following is true regarding Upamāna as a means of knowledge according to Nyāya school?

(A) It is knowledge derived from comparison.

(B) It roughly corresponds to analogy.

(C) It is defined as knowledge of the relation between a word and its denotation.

(D) It is a kind of anumāna (inference).

Choose the correct answer from the options given below :

Key Points

•  Upamāna as a means of knowledge according to Nyāya school
  • According to Nyāya, upamāna is a way of knowing the denotation of words and solving the problem of identification
  • It is knowledge derived from similarity.
  • It has been defined as the knowledge of the relation between a word and its denotation According to the Nyāya Philosophy, comparison (upamāna) is the third source of valid knowledge.
  • The expression ‘upamāna’, is derived from two words, ‘upa’ and ‘māna’.
  • The word ‘upa’ means similarity or ‘sādrusya’ and the word ‘māna’ means ‘cognition
  •  It is defined as knowledge of the relation between a word and its denotation.
  • Example of Upamāna:
  • A person does not know what a ‘squirrel’ is? S(he) is told by a forester that it is a small animal like rat, but it has a long fury tail and strips on its body. After some period of time, when s(he) sees such an animal in the forest, s(he) knows that it is a squirrel.

Hence , the correct answer is A, B and C Only