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VIVEKACUDĀMAŅI
मानास्तदीया विषया भवन्ति शब्दादयः पञ्च सुखाय भोक्तुः ॥७६ ॥ maträstadiyā visayā bhavanti śabdādayaḥ pañca sukhāya
bhoktuḥ
These five essences of sound etc., become objects of sense-perception for the pleasure of the enjoyer.
mātrāh: so-called because of the root-form miyante, i.e., they are made objects of sense or because they are enjoyed. They refer to five objects of sense-perception, sound, touch, vision, taste and smell. sabda, sparsa, rūpa, rasa, and gandha.
vişayāḥ: from the root șinj; şinj with vi meaning to bind. They are so called as they bind strongly.
bhoktuh: to the samsārin, to the jiva.
sukhāya: really means sukhābhāsāya: for the semblance of pleasure.
In the śāstra sound etc. are referred to as the five tanmātrās. The use of the expression mātrāstadiyah is pursuant to the śāstra.
77 Now their binding character is explained.
य एषु मुढा विषयेषु बद्धा रागोरुपाशेन सुदुर्दमेन ।
आयान्ति निर्यान्त्यध ऊर्ध्वमुच्चैः स्वकर्मदूतेन जवेन नीताः ॥ ७७॥ ya eşu müdha vişayesu baddhā
rāgorūpasena sudurdamena 1 āyānti niryāntyadha ürdhavamuccaiḥ
svakarmadūtena javena nitāḥ 11
Those who are bound to the sense-objects by the chord of attachment which is difficult so snap, come, depart, go up and down led quickly by their own actions which act as emissaries.
müdhah: persons devoid of discrimination.
These fools are bound to the sense-objects of sound etc., by the chord of attachment difficult to sunder like animals tied to a pillar with a rope. It means: men over-powered by extreme desires. As animals tied to a pillar cannot get away from the pillar, so too these persons, once tied to the sense-objects cannot get rid of them and are expelled from the path of salvation.