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Tattvarthsutra
[2. 15-20 Uddesh (sensory experience) is of two types: those that are associated with the physical (light) and those that are associated with the air (airbody). 13-14.
The number of senses, their distinctions, and nomenclature
There are five senses. 15. They are of two kinds. 16. The sensory organs pertaining to matter (dravya) relate to action and utility. 17. The sensory organs pertaining to feelings (bhava) relate to acquisition and use. 18. The mode of use pertains to touch and other subjects. 19.
Touch, taste, smell, sight, and hearing are the names of the senses. 20. The purpose of indicating the number of senses here is to ascertain the categories into which worldly beings can be divided. There are five senses. Not all worldly beings possess all five senses. Some have one, some have two, and so forth, leading up to some having five senses. The categorization of beings is as follows: those with one sense are called 'Ekendriya', those with two senses are 'Dvitriya', and similarly ‘Tridriya’, ‘Chaturindriya’, and ‘Panchendriya’ represent the variations among worldly beings.
Question: What does ‘sense’ mean?
Answer: That through which knowledge is acquired is called a sense.
Question: Are there not more than five senses?
Answer: No, there are only five senses of knowledge. Although texts like Sankhya also refer to speech, hands, feet, anus, and genitals as senses, they are actually karmendriyas (organs of action). The senses of knowledge do not exceed five, and only they are mentioned here.
Question: What is the difference between knowledge-senses and action-senses?