Upamāna

Upamāna is knowledge arising from comparison — when someone who has never seen a gavial (gavaya) is told it resembles a cow, and upon seeing the animal in the forest, recognizes it. It is distinct from pratyakṣa (direct perception) because it depends on a prior description. In Vedānta, upamāna has a limited role, but appears in the pedagogical analogies (dṛṣṭānta) used by the teacher to point to truths that transcend the analogy.