  The term ‘cognition’ is used by the Naiyāyikas to refer to any intentional (sa-viṣayaka; object-directed) mental state, including states of perceiving, inferring, doubting, guessing, remembering, etc., but excluding desiring, hoping, suffering, etc. (cf. Matilal 1968: 7–8). Because we say that the subject has such states, they are thought to be ‘qualities’ (in the technical Vaiśeṣika sense) of the soul. The Manual of Reason states that a cognition is the “ground for all linguistic practice” (TS 34), reflecting the Nyāya conception of language as primarily an instrument for transmitting true thoughts from speaker to hearer.