Verse 2186

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

अथापीन्द्रियसंस्कारः सोऽप्यधिष्ठानदेशतः ।
शब्दं न श्रोष्यति श्रोत्रं तेनासंस्कृतशष्कुलि ॥ २१८६ ॥

athāpīndriyasaṃskāraḥ so'pyadhiṣṭhānadeśataḥ |
śabdaṃ na śroṣyati śrotraṃ tenāsaṃskṛtaśaṣkuli || 2186 ||

“Even if the embellishment affects the organ itself,—as it could affect the organ only through its substratum, that organ of which the ear-drum has not been embellished would not catch the sound.”—[Śokavārtika—eternality of words, 69-70].—(2186)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

The following Text explains that the said objections do not apply even if the embellishment is regarded as affecting the Auditory Organ itself:—[see verse 2186 above]

‘Substratum’—the Ear-drum; it is through this Ear-drum that there is embellishment of the Auditory Organ,—not by itself. It is for this reason that in the case of persons at a distance, or with mind preoccupied, or asleep or in a swoon,—Sound is not heard, because the substratum of the orgaṇ has not been embellished.

The compound ‘asaṃshṛta, etc. etc.’ is to be explained as ‘that organ of which the Ear-drum has not been embellished’,

In the word ‘adhiṣṭhānadeśataḥ’, the ‘tasi’-affix at the end has the sense of the Locative.—(2186)