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16
The Tattvarthasutra now speaks of the extraordinary nature of pudgala:
"Pudgalas possess touch, taste, smell, and color."
They are also characterized by sound, bondage, subtlety, grossness, location, distinction, darkness, shadow, efficiency, and manifestation.
In Buddhist texts, pudgala is treated as equivalent to jiva (soul), while in the Vaisheshika and similar philosophies, earth and other material substances are not recognized as having the four qualities of touch, taste, etc., in the same manner. Instead, earth is considered to possess all four qualities, water is said to possess three qualities devoid of smell, fire is attributed two qualities without smell or taste, and air is acknowledged as possessing only the quality of touch. Thus, they do not view the qualities of touch and others as jointly existing in the mind. Hence, this sutra aims to illustrate the disagreement with Buddhist thought. It indicates that in Jain philosophy, the concepts of jiva and pudgala are distinct. Therefore, the term pudgala does not refer to jiva-tattva (the essence of living beings). Consequently, earth, water, fire, and air are all the same in the form of pudgala; that is, they all possess the four primary qualities. Similarly, in Jain philosophy, the mind also has the qualities of touch, etc., due to its nature as pudgala. Touch is considered to have eight varieties, such as