Verse 255

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

समस्तदाह्यरूपाणां न नित्यं दहनात्मकः ।
कृशानुरपि निःशेषमन्यथा भस्मसाद्भवेत् ॥ २५५ ॥

samastadāhyarūpāṇāṃ na nityaṃ dahanātmakaḥ |
kṛśānurapi niḥśeṣamanyathā bhasmasādbhavet || 255 ||

Even fire is not always a ‘burner’ of all combustible things; otherwise the whole (world) would be instantly reduced to ashes.—(255)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

The following Text is going to show that the instance of Fire that has been cited (in Text 243) is itself ‘unproven’ (not admitted by all parties):—[see verse 255 above]

The Fire, in the form of the burner of all combustible things, is not always existent; if it were, then all combustiblengs would be reduced to ashes,—because they would always have their burner in contact with them,—like that combustible thing which is in actual contact with the fixe-flame.

‘Even’, ‘api’, is meant to indicate that it is not only Cognition that cannot be of the nature of the apprehension of all things.—(255)

Objection—“If that is so, then Fire is not always of the nature of the Burner (possessed of the power to burn); how then could it burn even the thing that is presented to it?”

The answer is provided in the following Text:—[see verse 256 next]