Verse 2216-2217

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

अत्र ब्रूमो यदा तावज्जले सौरेण तेजसा ।
स्फुरता चाक्षुषं तेजः प्रतिस्रोतः प्रवर्त्तितम् ॥ २२१६ ॥
स्वदेशमेव गृह्णाति सवितारमनेकधा ।
भिन्नमूर्त्तिर्यथापात्रं तदाऽस्यानेकता कुतः ॥ २२१७ ॥

atra brūmo yadā tāvajjale saureṇa tejasā |
sphuratā cākṣuṣaṃ tejaḥ pratisrotaḥ pravarttitam || 2216 ||
svadeśameva gṛhṇāti savitāramanekadhā |
bhinnamūrttiryathāpātraṃ tadā'syānekatā kutaḥ || 2217 ||

“Our answer to this is as follows:—what actually happens is that by the light from the sūn scintillating in the water, the light from the eye (striking the water) is turned back in the wake of the reflected solar light, and thus it perceives the sun in its own region,—but there is an illusion of there being several suns of diverse forms, by reason of the diversity of the vessels of water. How then could there be multiplicity of suns?”—[Ślokavārtika—eternality of words—180-182].—(2216-2217)

 

Kamalaśīla’s commentary (tattvasaṃgrahapañjikā):

The solar light in the vessel of Water which flows out makes the light of the Eyes turn back—reflected backwards—and hence, it apprehends the Sun in its own place.

‘Yathāpātram’—as many as the number of vessels that are there.

It is for this reason that the Sun appears to be of diverse forms. How then can there be multiplicity of the Sun?—It cannot be; because what is diverse is the functioning of the Eye.—(2216-2217)