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A Critique
159 The four additional touch are formed by combination of four basic touch as follows :
(i) The negative charge (i.e. rūkşa) is associated with lightness.
(ii) The positive charge (i.e. snigdha) is associated with heaviness.
(iii) Combination of cold sparśa and positive charge results in production of soft sparsa.
(iv) Combination of hot sparsa and negative charge results in production of hard sparsa.?
Thus, there are two classes of material objects (i) those possessing four touch i.e., catuḥsparśī and (ii) those possessing eight touch i.e., aştasparsi Out of the eight varganās? (categories) of pudgala which interact with the psychical existence, the last four are chatuḥsparsi while the first four are aștasparsi.3
The eight touch which can be grouped into four pairs refer to the following four physical properties of modern science :
(1) Hot, cold correspond to temperature. (ii) Dry, gluey correspond to positive and negative electrical
charges. (iii) Light, heavy correspond to mass (density).
(iv) Hard, soft correspond to measure of hardness. (1) Temperature (Hot, Cold)
The first pair hot (uşna) and cold (śīta) refers to the physical property of temperature, which is the measurement of heat level. The range of temperature existing in nature is very wide. (ii) Electric Charge (Dry, Gluey)
The qualities of dryness and glueyness refer to the physical property of electric charge. The qualities play an important part in
1. Bhag. Joda : 18/6/117; Jiva-ajiva, p. 76. 2. See pp. 3. Out of the last four categories, the category of śvāsoccha was is considered
to be aștasparśī by some acaryas. 4. The highest temperature is found in stars, which is estimated to be nearly
40 million degree celcius, by Eddington. The lowest tenperature, on the other hand, cannot be less than minus 270 degree C. which is called absolute zero, according to modern science.
