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The corporeal blue object is the cause of the incorporeal cognition illuminating or presenting it, so corporeal karman of the form of merit-sin can be the cause of incorporeal pleasure-pain; our experience tells us that corporeal food, garland, sandal-wood, woman, and serpent, poison, thorn, etc. are the causes of pleasure and pain, so is karman their cause. It may be argued that if this is what Lord Mahā vīra's view amounts to, then let these food etc. which are directly perceived be the cause of pleasure-pain; it is not necessary to posit the existence of karman which is not seen. But it is not so. Even in the case of persons with the same resources in respect of food, etc. there is seen to be a great difference in the resulting pleasure and pain. The same food confers health on one while it brings illhealth to another. This difference in results must have some special cause; if there were no cause it would be eternally existent like ether; or eternally non-existent like ass's horn. Karinan is this cause and it can be seen that it is highly necessary to posit its existence, even though it may not be seen (1925–6).
Karman is regarded as corporeal though it is not seen, because difference in results in the case of persons with the same resources is caused by it and because it imparts strength to the corporeal body, etc. as a jar does. The jar as an instrumental cause imparts strength to body, etc. and is corporeal.* Or karman is corporeal because its store is strengthened by corporeal things like garland, sandal-wood, etc., just as the jar is strengthened, made firm by corporeal things like oil, etc.. Or karman is corporeal, because its effects, body, etc. are corporeal, as atoms are corporeal since their effects-jar, etc.-are corporeal. It can be urged here that if the effect should determine for us the nature of the cause, then karman as the cause of the corporeal body, etc. should be corporeal and as the cause of the incorporeal pleasure-pain should be incorporeal.
*This seems to mean that the body by itself cannot fetch water, but if it is helped by a jar, which serves as an instrumental cause, it attains the strength or capability of bringing water,
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