Verse 2163

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

तस्यानवयवत्वाच्च न धर्माधर्मसंस्कृतः ।
नभोदेशो भवेच्छ्रोत्रं व्यवस्थाद्वयसिद्धये ॥ २१६३ ॥

tasyānavayavatvācca na dharmādharmasaṃskṛtaḥ |
nabhodeśo bhavecchrotraṃ vyavasthādvayasiddhaye || 2163 ||

As ākāśa, is without parts, the auditory organ could hot consist of akāśa as conditioned by merit and demerit,—which is essential for the two limitations referred to above.—(2163)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

The following might be urged—The Auditory Organ consists of Ākāśa as conditioned by the tympanum embellished by Merit and Demerit; hence as the Sound heard would be subsisting in the Ākāśa as contained in the tympanum,—there would be no room for the two undesirable contingencies just pointed out—viz.: (a) that being all-pervading, the Organ would be in equal contact with all Sounds, and (b) that there would be one and the same Organ for all living beings.

The answer to this is as follows:—[see verse 2163 above]

For that which is impartite, there can be no parts, by, virtue of which a certain part of Ākāśa could constitute the Auditory Organ.

‘The two limitations’—the limitation that the contact of the Organ with all-Sounds cannot be the same, and that there are several Auditory Organs.—Or the ‘two limitations’ may be those relating to the apprehension and non-apprehension of Sound.—(2163)