shabdapramaan
aapt purush dvaara kiye gaye upadesh ko "shabd" pramaan maanate hain. (aaptopadesh: shabd:; nyaayasootr 1.1.7). aapt vah purush hai jisne dharm ke aur sab padaarthon ke yathaarth svaroop ko bhali bhaanti jaan liya hai, jo sab jeevon par daya karta hai aur sachchi baat kehne ki ichha rakhata hai.
nyaayamat mein ved ishvar dvaara praneet granth hai aur ishvar sarvajnya, hitopadeshta tatha jagat ka kalyaan karanevaala hai. vah satya ka param aashray hone se kabhi mithya bhaashan naheen kar sakta aur isliye ishvar sarvashreshth aapt purush hai. aise ishvar dvaara maanavamaatr ke mangal ke nimit nirmit, param satya ka pratipaadak ved aaptapramaan ya shabdapramaan ki sarvottam koti hai. Gautam sootr (2.1.57) mein ved ke praamaanya ko teen doshon se yukt hone ke kaaran bhraant hone ka poorvapaksh prastut kiya gaya hai. ved mein nitaant mithyaapoorn baatein pai jaati hain, kai paraspar viruddh baatein drushtigochar hoti hain aur kai sthalon par anek baatein vyarth hi duharaai gayi hain. Gautam ne is poorvapaksh ka khandan bade vistaar ke saath anek sootron mein kiya hai (1.1.58-61). ved ke poorvokt sthalon ke sachche arth par dhyaan dene se vedavachanon ka praamaanya svat: unmeelit hota hai. putreshti yagya ki nishfalata ishti ke yathaarth vidhaan ki nyoonata tatha yaagakarta ki ayogyata ke hi kaaran hai. "udite juhoti" tatha "anudite juhoti" vaakyon mein bhi kathamapi virodh naheen hai. inka yahi taatparya hai ki yadi koi ishtikrta sooryodaya se pehle havan karta hai, to use is niyam ka paalan jeevanabhar karte rahana chaahiye. samay ka niyman hi in vaakyon ka taatparya hai.
buddh tatha jain aagam ko naiyaayik log ved ke samaan pramaanakoti mein naheen maanate. vaachaspati mishr ka kathan hai ki rishabhadev tatha buddhadev kaarunik sadupadeshta bhale hi hon, parantu vishv ke rachayita ishvar ke samaan na to unka gyaan hi vistrut hai aur unki shakti hi aparimit hai. jayant bhatt ka mat isse bhinn hai. ve inko bhi ishvar ka avataar maanate hain. ataev inke vachan tatha upadesh bhi aagamakoti mein aate hain. antar itna hi hai ki ved ka upadesh samast maanavon ke kalyaanaarth hai, parantu bauddh aur jain aagam kam manushyon ke laabhaarth hain. is prakaar aaptapramaan ke vishay mein ekavaakyata prastut ki ja sakti hai.