Verse 9.35

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

बीजस्य चैव योन्याश्च बीजमुत्कृष्टमुच्यते ।
सर्वभूतप्रसूतिर्हि बीजलक्षणलक्षिता ॥ ३५ ॥

bījasya caiva yonyāśca bījamutkṛṣṭamucyate |
sarvabhūtaprasūtirhi bījalakṣaṇalakṣitā || 35 ||

[Prima-facie argument]—“As between the seed and the womb, the seed is declared to be superior; because the production of all things is marked by the characteristics of the seed.”—(35)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

The doubt having been set forth, the author puts forward the ‘preponderance of the seed’ as the prima facie argument And if the seed is the superior factor, then the child must belong to him whose the seed is. That the seed is the more important is indicated by the fact that in the case of the corn and such other things, though the soil and several other causes operate in their production, yet they take up the characteristics of the seed. So that even though in the case of the child, the transmission of the characteristics of the seed is not. so clearly manifest, yet it has to be accepted as a fact, on the basis of the fact of such transmission being found in the case of corn and other things. Further, it is only when this view that is accepted that the uniformity of all products becomes established. Thus it is that superiority belongs to the seed.

This is what is shown by the text—‘the production of all things’ is found to be ‘marked by the characteristics of the seed’;—these ‘characteristics of the seed’ consisting in shape, colour, figure and so forth; and by this is the production ‘marked’ distinguished; i.e., it follows them.—(35)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vyavahāra-Bālambhaṭṭī (p. 675).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 9.31-44)

See Comparative notes for Verse 9.31.