Answer

In Jain Dharma, a parmanu is the smallest indivisible matter particle. Jain texts do not usually describe parmanu as “positive” and “negative” the way modern physics does. Instead, they are commonly explained through the qualities of snigdha and ruksha — meaning unctuous/smooth and dry. These are the main oppositional qualities involved in combination.

Explanation

A Jain parmanu has these basic features:

• It is indivisible
• It has one taste, one smell, one color, and one touch
• It can be described by its degree of:

- Snigdha = smooth, attractive, cohesive - Ruksha = dry, non-cohesive, separating

When parmanus join together, they form a skandha.

The joining is not given in Jainism as a simple arithmetic formula like in modern science. Rather, the rule is broadly understood as:

• Snigdha parmanus tend to combine
• Ruksha parmanus also participate in combination
• Combination happens when the conditions of mutual bonding are present

So if by “positive and negative” you mean:

• positive = snigdha
• negative = ruksha

then that is only a rough modern comparison, not the original Jain terminology.

Spiritual Understanding

In Jain philosophy, this teaching shows that matter is not random. Even the smallest particle follows order, nature, and causal law.

This helps us understand:

• how subtle matter becomes gross matter
• how bondage and combination happen in the material world
• how the soul remains distinct from matter

The deeper Jain insight is that while parmanus combine and change, the jiva is separate and pure in its own nature.

Takeaway

In Jainism, parmanu are better understood through snigdha and ruksha, not “positive” and “negative” in the modern sense. Their joining is explained through natural bonding conditions, not a single fixed formula.

If you want, I can also explain:

• the Jain classification of parmanu in simple chart form, or
• how skandha is formed from parmanus step by step.