Verse 1276

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

निर्विशेषं गृहीतश्चेद्भेदः सामान्यमुच्यते ।
ततो विशेषात्सामान्यविशिष्टत्वं न युज्यते ॥ १२७६ ॥

nirviśeṣaṃ gṛhītaścedbhedaḥ sāmānyamucyate |
tato viśeṣātsāmānyaviśiṣṭatvaṃ na yujyate || 1276 ||

“A thing is called ‘universal’ when it is apprehended without distinction; hence it is not right to regard the universal as something distinguished from the particular.”—(1276)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

The said Sumati himself, anticipating the objection that his own Reason becomes ‘Inconclusive’ by the case of the Universal, has answered it. This answer is shown in the following—[see verse 1276 above]

There is no ‘Universal’ apart from the Particulars, by virtue of which on being apprehended it would be amenable to Conceptual Perception; in fact, it is only when the Particulars are apprehended without distinction that they are called ‘Universal’; that is to say, when they are not cognised, each in its own distinctive form, they are called ‘Universal Consequently, how could the Universal be ‘distinguished’ from the Particulars, by virtue of which its apprehension would become ‘conceptual’,—(1276)

Question:—How then can there be a clear division between the Universal and the Particular?

Answer (provided by Sumati):—[see verse 1277 next]