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CHAPTER IL
49
अरसमरूवमगंधं अव्वत्तं चेदणागुणमसइं।
जाण अलिंगग्गहणं जीवमणिद्दिट्टसंठाणं ॥४६॥ arasamarūvamagandham avvattam cedaņāgunamasaddam jāņa alimgaggahaņam jīvamanidditthasamthāņaṁ (49)
अरसमरूपमगन्धमव्यक्तं चेतनागुणमशब्दम् ।
जानीहि अलिङ्गग्रहणं जीवमनिर्दिष्टसंस्थानम् ॥४९॥ 49. Know ye that the pure Self is without taste, colour, without smell, imperceptible to touch, without sound, not an object of anumāna or inferential knowledge, without any definite bodily shape and is characterised by cetană (consciousness).
COMMENTARY Taste is a distinct quality of matter or pudgala. This attribute is not found anywhere else. Since the nature of the Pure Self or śuddha jīva is entirely distinct from that of matter, it is described tasteless, in order to distinguish Self from matter. Similarly colour is an intrinsic attribute of matter. It is not found as an attribute of anything else. So the Pure Self which is distinct from acetana matter, is described as colourless. Again smell is an attribute of physical objects and it cannot be associated with anything else. The Self being distinct from matter is therefore said to be smell-less. Similarly being perceptible to touch is a characteristic of material objects and cannot be attributed to anything else. Since the nature of the Self is transcending sense-perception it cannot be an object of contact sensation. Hence it is described as beyond touch. In the same way, sound, since it is the effect of concussion between material particles, is associated with inatter alone and with nothing else. That which sounds must be a material object as a non-material entity cannot produce sound. Hence the Self also is soundless because it is non-material in nature. Thus the Self is entirely beyond the scope of sense-perception. Can it be approached by in ference or anumāna? No, because anumāna or inference entirely depends upon what must necessarily be obtained by sense-perception. Perception of smoke may lead to the inference that there is fire. But smoke must be obtained by senseperception and then only it is possible to infer that there is fire. An entity which is quite beyond the scope of sense-perception
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