Viśayah primarily means – 'the sphere of influence or activity', and also refers to – 'dominion', 'kingdom', 'territory', 'country', 'abode', 'lands' etc., but in Hindu philosophy, it has been used to indicate 'the subject matter', 'the sense-objects', 'the subject of interpretation', 'the area or range of words' or 'the field of experience'. According to the Mimamsakas a complete (अधिकरणम्) i.e. main, relation or connection, consists of (विषयः) - the subject or the matter to be explained, (विशय) or (संशय) - the doubt or the question arising upon that matter, (पूर्वपक्ष) – the prima facie argument concerning it, (उत्तर्पक्ष) or siddhanta (सिद्धान्त) – the answer or the demonstrated conclusion, and sangati (संगति) – pertinency or relevancy or the final conclusion. According to Srimad Bhagavatam (XI.ix.29), or the objects of sense enjoyment are to be found everywhere, as ('food'), ('sleep'), ('fear - overcoming of') and ('mating' meaning sensuous pleasures).
Meaning
(Sanskrit:विषयः) means – material contamination, possessing as objectives, on the subject matter, objects for sense enjoyments, subject matter, sense objects, the objects of sense gratification, objects of sense enjoyment. In the Bhagavad Gita, this word is used twice in its plural form विषया () while referring to - on the subject matter in Sloka II.45 – त्रैगुण्यविषया वेदा and to the objects for sense enjoyment in Sloka II.59 – विषया विनिवर्तन्ते. Viśayah primarily means – the sphere of influence or activity, and also refers to – dominion, kingdom, territory, country, abode, lands etc. The word is derived from meaning to act.
Application
Anandavardhana defines as 'habitat', area, sphere or genre; Abhinavagupta defines it as a particular aggregate (). In Sanskrit Literature, it refers to the area or range of operation, or objects operated upon, and therefore means the area in which the words can serve any purpose as informing us of anything and includes their expressed, indicated, and suggested meanings (objects) and also the facts that can be inferred from using words.
In his , Shankara has used to mean - 'the field of experience' – शोत्रस्य विषयः शब्द ग्रहणम् (of the ear/ the field of experience/ is receiving sound). And, in Sloka 79 of his Vivekachudamani , he has used this word to denote virulent 'sense-objects' – दोषेण तीव्रो विषयः कृष्णसर्पविशादपि that a sense-object is more virulent than the poison of a king cobra.
In the Abhidharma Buddhist texts, the term , which are five kinds of sensory objects or (sense-fields), refers to the object that is directly and intentionally known but Dignāga, in connection with (objects of cognition), has shown that can also refer to non-intentional objects.
also refers to the area or range of words, including their meanings. The gives as one of the many meanings of the Sanskrit word – (अर्थ); as is defined as that which floats in apprehension () or that which is manifested in apprehension. 'The object', 'the meaning of the word' and 'purpose' are the three philosophical relevants. In Sanskrit compositions there has always been an unmarked arrangement or word order; in the traditional word order the subject is followed by object with gerund and infinitives in between and the finite verb in the final position.
An illusion is wrong perception owing to avidya (ignorance), in which case conditions of veridical experience do not obtain; the locus () does not figure as any objectivity or content (), it looks as if it is superimposed. The sky is not a perceivable content and therefore, it is never presented as a and is not capable of being the viśayah of any perceptual judgment. Shankara speaks of adhyasa ('illicit superimposition') of the viśayah ('not-self') and its properties on the or the pure self. In the notion – "I know this" – the cognitive activity of the knower relates to ('object'), and to the Self; the Self reveal itself in the result and in the as the through the instrumentality of the experiencing of .
Significance
In the phrase – , means - experienced, apprehended or perceived, and means – any object in relation to a human experience i.e. in relation to perceptive knowledge or intuitive knowledge, and is that towards which the mind is directed.