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"THE REVEALED WORD."
1071
according to the Grammarian, is what, in the case of every Word, is really the entity representing the whole Word, which expresses the meaning); and as the arrangement or order of the Letters is always dependent upon the whim of man (the Speaker), it cannot be eternal; and in this way the Letters also must be regarded as non-eternal; because the arrangement is not anything different from the Letters.
How so?
* Because what is regarded as expressive, etc. etc. It is the Word, con. sisting of the Letters, that is regarded to be expressive; becanse the idea of
Word ' is due to the particular arrangement of the Letters, not to any such other entity as the Sphofa'; and the arrangement is due to human agency. -(2279)
The same idea is further explained
TEXTS (2280-2281).
"[THE OPPONENT CONTINUES)— As, ACCORDING TO YOU, THE LETTERS ARE ALL-PERVADING, ANY PARTICULAR ARRANGEMENT CANNOT BE INHERENT IN THEMSELVES; BECAUSE THE ARRANGEMENT IS THE PRODUCT OF ARTICULATION WHICH IS NOT-ETERNAL-IT MUST, ON THAT ACCOUNT, BE NON-ETERNAL-FURTHER, THE SAID ARRANGEMENT MUST BE DEPENDENT UPON THE WHIM OF THE SPEAKER, AS IT OWES ITS APPEARANCE TO HIS DESIRE TO SPEAK. THUS THE ETERNALITY OF THE LETTERS WOULD BE USELESS FOR YOU." - [Shlokavārtika-ETERNALITY OF WORDS, 279-280].
-(2280-2281)
COMMENTARY
According to you-Mimämsakas—Letters are all-pervading; hence there can be no order or arrangement among them, in relation to space; nor can it be in relation to time, because they are eternal; hence it could be there only as due to the articulation that manifests them and as this articulation is not eternal, what is due to it must also be non-eternal.
The argument may be formulated as follows 'What is due to something non-eternal must be non-eternal,-e.g. the Jar:-the order of the Lotters is due to something non-eternal; hence this is a reason based upon the nature of things.'