Brahma-Sūtra 2.2.13

English of translation of Brahmasutra 2.2.13 by Roma Bose:

“(The Vaiśeṣika doctrine is untenable) also on account of the admission of the relation of inherence, on account of an infinite regress (arising therefrom) because of sameness.”

Nimbārka’s commentary (Vedānta-pārijāta-saurabha):

“On account also of the admission of the relation of inherence,” the doctrine of atoms is not possible, since just as a binary compound is connected with its own cause by the relation of inherence, being absolutely different therefrom, so the relation of inherence itself, too, is to be connected with the two related objects by another relation of inherence, its absolute difference (from the two related objects) being the same; that, too, by another relation, and so on—thus there will be an infinite regress.

Śrīnivāsa’s commentary (Vedānta-kaustubha)

The phrase: ‘on account of the absence of that’ is to be supplied.

For this reason also, the origin and the rest of the world in the successive order of the creation of binary compounds and the rest, due to the conjunction of the atoms is not possible. Why? “On account of the admission of the relation of inherence.” Among separable objects, there is a relation of conjunction,^[1] as between a rope and a pot. Among inseparable objects, on the other hand, there is a relation of inherence,^[2] just as a piece of cloth exists in the threads by the relation of inherence, a pot in the two pot-sherds, cowness in a cow and whiteness and the rest in a piece of cloth. The relation between objects which are causes and effects is just this relation of inherence; and this relation is proclaimed to be one, eternal, and all-pervading like the ether;—on account of the admission of such a relation of inherence—this is the sense.

If it be asked: What objection is there if such a relation of inherence be admitted?—(the author) replies: “On account of an infinite regress because of sameness”. That is, just as a binary compound, absolutely different from its inherent cause (viz. the two simple atoms), necessarily awaits a relation of inherence (for being connected with them), so the relation of inherence itself, being absolutely different from the two related objects, is to be connected with them by means of another relation of inherence,—“because of the sameness” of absolute difference (i.e. because there is absolute difference equally in both the cases, also because what is itself unrelated is never observed to be a relation)—that, too, by another relation of inherence, and that, too, and so on; thus “on account of infinite regress”, the atomic theory defeats itself.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Saṃyoga.

[2]:

Samavāya.