In Indian metaphysics, particularly in the Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika school, Abhāva means non-existence, absence, or negation. It is the absence of an object, quality, action, or relation in a particular locus. The Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika philosophers regard Abhāva as a distinct category (padārtha) because absence can be directly experienced and can function as an object of valid knowledge. For example, when one perceives that there is no pot on the floor, the absence of the pot is not merely a subjective idea; it is understood as a real fact existing in relation to the floor. Thus, Abhāva has an important place in Indian theories of reality and knowledge. Abhāva is generally divided into four kinds: Prāgabhāva, Dhvaṃsābhāva, Atyantābhāva, and Anyonyābhāva. Prāgabhāva means prior non-existence. It is the absence of an object before that object comes