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## Chapter 12
**49.** When Shatamati was silenced by the use of faulty examples and invalid arguments, which were meant to prove the non-existence of the soul, the wise Svayambuddha stepped forward to speak.
**50.** O proponent of the materialist view, you are wrong in saying that there is no soul. For, besides the four elements (earth, water, fire, and air), there is also the perception of consciousness, which is the nature of knowledge and perception.
**51.** Consciousness is not the body, and the body is not consciousness. This is because their natures are mutually contradictory. Consciousness is the essence of the soul, which is knowledge and perception, while the body is non-soul, which is inert.
**52.** The body and consciousness cannot be one because they possess mutually contradictory qualities. The manifestation of consciousness is like the blade of a sword, which is internal, while the manifestation of the body is like the scabbard, which is external. Just as the scabbard does not become one with the sword, so also the body does not become one with the soul. The difference in their manifestations proves that they are distinct entities.
**53.** Consciousness is neither a product nor a quality of the four elements. This is because their natures are different. One is consciousness, and the other is inert. The relationship of cause and effect, and the relationship of quality and qualified, exist only between entities of the same nature, not between entities of different natures. Furthermore, the body, which is made up of the four elements, is perceived by the senses, which are its parts. But consciousness, which is the nature of knowledge, is beyond the senses and is known only through knowledge itself. If consciousness were a product or a quality of the four elements, then it would be perceived by the senses along with the body made up of the four elements. But this does not happen. This clearly proves that the body and consciousness are distinct entities.
**54.** Consciousness cannot be a modification of the body because it is different from the modifications of the body, such as ashes. If consciousness were a modification of the body, then it would have to be in the form of ashes and other modifications. But this is not the case. This proves that consciousness is not a modification of the body. Furthermore, the modifications of the body are material, but consciousness is immaterial, devoid of form, taste, smell, and touch, and cannot be perceived by the senses.
**55.** The relationship between the body and the soul is like the relationship between a house and a lamp.