Text 147

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of Text 147:

तथा यन्त्रम् उक्तेषु गमन्विधिः । कथं यो बलवान् कृतव्यायामो वामेन करेण धनुर्विष्टभ्य दक्षिणेन शरं सन्धाय सशरां ज्यां मुष्टिना गृहीत्वा आकर्षणेच्छां करोति सज्येष्वाकर्षयाम्येतद् धनुरिति । तदनन्तरं प्रयत्नस्तम् अपेक्षमाणाद् आत्महस्तसम्योगाद् आकर्षणकर्म हस्ते यदैवोत्पद्यते तदैव तम् एव प्रयत्नम् अपेक्षमाणाद् धस्तज्याशरसम्योगाद् ज्यायां शरे च कर्म प्रयत्नविशिष्टहस्तज्याशरसम्योगम् अपेक्षमाणाभ्यां ज्याकोटिसम्योगाभ्यां कर्मणी भवतो धनुष्कोट्योरित्येतत् सर्वं युगपत् । एवम् आकर्णाद् आकृष्टे धनुषि नातः परम् अनेन गन्तव्यम् इति यज्ज्ञानं ततस्तद् आकर्शणार्थस्य प्रयत्नस्य विनाशस्ततः पुनर्मोक्षणेच्छा संजायते तदनन्तरं प्रयत्नस्तम् अपेक्षमाणाद् आत्माङ्गुलिसम्योगाद् अङ्गुलिकर्म तस्माज्ज्याङ्गुलिविभागः ततो विभागात् सम्योगविनाशः तस्मिन् विनष्टे प्रतिबन्धकाभावाद् यदा धणुषि वर्तमानः स्थितिस्थापकः संस्कारो मण्डलीभूतं धनुर्यथावस्थितं स्थापयति तदा तम् एव संस्कारम् अपेक्षमाणाद् धनुर्ज्यासम्योगाज्ज्यायां शरे च कर्मोत्पद्यते तत्स्वकारणापेक्षं ज्यायां संस्कारं करोति तम् अपेक्षमाण इषुज्यासम्योगो नोदनं तस्माद् इषावाद्यं कर्म नोदनापेक्षम् इषौ संस्कारम् आरभते । तस्मात् संस्कारान् नोदनसहायात् तावत् कर्माणि भवन्ति यावद् इषुज्याविभागो विभागान् निवृत्ते नोदने कर्माण्युत्तरोत्तरानीषुसंस्काराद् एवापतनाद् इति । बहूनि कर्माणि क्रमशः कस्मात् सम्योगबहुत्वात् एकस्तु संस्कारोऽन्तराले कर्मणोऽपेक्षाकारणाभावाद् इति ॥ १४७ ॥

tathā yantram ukteṣu gamanvidhiḥ | kathaṃ yo balavān kṛtavyāyāmo vāmena kareṇa dhanurviṣṭabhya dakṣiṇena śaraṃ sandhāya saśarāṃ jyāṃ muṣṭinā gṛhītvā ākarṣaṇecchāṃ karoti sajyeṣvākarṣayāmyetad dhanuriti | tadanantaraṃ prayatnastam apekṣamāṇād ātmahastasamyogād ākarṣaṇakarma haste yadaivotpadyate tadaiva tam eva prayatnam apekṣamāṇād dhastajyāśarasamyogād jyāyāṃ śare ca karma prayatnaviśiṣṭahastajyāśarasamyogam apekṣamāṇābhyāṃ jyākoṭisamyogābhyāṃ karmaṇī bhavato dhanuṣkoṭyorityetat sarvaṃ yugapat | evam ākarṇād ākṛṣṭe dhanuṣi nātaḥ param anena gantavyam iti yajjñānaṃ tatastad ākarśaṇārthasya prayatnasya vināśastataḥ punarmokṣaṇecchā saṃjāyate tadanantaraṃ prayatnastam apekṣamāṇād ātmāṅgulisamyogād aṅgulikarma tasmājjyāṅgulivibhāgaḥ tato vibhāgāt samyogavināśaḥ tasmin vinaṣṭe pratibandhakābhāvād yadā dhaṇuṣi vartamānaḥ sthitisthāpakaḥ saṃskāro maṇḍalībhūtaṃ dhanuryathāvasthitaṃ sthāpayati tadā tam eva saṃskāram apekṣamāṇād dhanurjyāsamyogājjyāyāṃ śare ca karmotpadyate tatsvakāraṇāpekṣaṃ jyāyāṃ saṃskāraṃ karoti tam apekṣamāṇa iṣujyāsamyogo nodanaṃ tasmād iṣāvādyaṃ karma nodanāpekṣam iṣau saṃskāram ārabhate | tasmāt saṃskārān nodanasahāyāt tāvat karmāṇi bhavanti yāvad iṣujyāvibhāgo vibhāgān nivṛtte nodane karmāṇyuttarottarānīṣusaṃskārād evāpatanād iti | bahūni karmāṇi kramaśaḥ kasmāt samyogabahutvāt ekastu saṃskāro'ntarāle karmaṇo'pekṣākāraṇābhāvād iti || 147 ||

Text (147): We proceed to explain the process of Motion in the case of objects shot from, certain instruments.

The man who is strong and has taken physical exercise, totes up the bow with his left hand; then taking with his right hand the arrow and applying it to the string of the bow, catches hold with his fingers the arrow along with the string,—and then there arises in his mind a desire to draw the bow along with the string and the arrow; this is followed by an effort on his part; and by the instrmentality of this effort, the hand-soul contact brings about in the. hand the action of ‘drawing; and at the same time, by the instrumentality of the same effort, the hand-arrow-string contact brings about an action in the string and also in the arrow; and simultaneously with this again, by the instrumentality of the hand-arrow-string contact as qualified by the said effort, the contact of the strings with the two ends of the bow, produces two actions in the two ends of the bow. Thus the bow being drawn as for as the ear, there appears in the mind of the person the idea that it cannot be drawn further; and this idea destroys the effort that had been put forth for the purpose of drawing the bow. Then there follows a desire for releasing the bow; this is followed by another effort on the part of the person; and by the instrumentality of this effort, the soul-finger contact produces an action in the finger, which brings about a disjunction of the string from the fingers; from this disjunction follows the destruction of their contact; this contact having been destroyed, as there is no longer any obstruction to the operation of the elasticity of the bow, which now makes the circular bow revert to its original condition; and by the instrumentality of this force of elasticity, the bow-string contact produces an action in the string and in the arrow. This action, by the instrumentality of its own cause, produces a faculty in the string; and by the instrumentality of this faculty, the arrow-string contact brings about an ‘impulsion; and thence the first action in the arrow, by the instrumentality of this impulsion, produces a faculty or force in the arrow. From this faculty as helped by the impulsion, follows a series of motions which continue to appear until the arrow becomes disjoined from the arrow. This disjunction having put a stop to the impulsion, the further series of actions (motions) of the arrow is due to the faculty or force (momentum) imparted to it, and these motions continue until the arrow falls on the ground.

Question: “How is it that so many motions appear, one after the other?”

Answer: It is due to the fact of there being many conjunctions. In the interim (between the impulsion and the falling on the ground) there is a single faculty (momentum) produced; as the action (productive of the faculty) is not accompained by its auxilliaries.—(V-i-1, 2, 17, 18, 18)

Commentary: The Nyāyakandalī of Śrīdhara.

(English rendering of Śrīdhara’s commentary called Nyāyakandalī or Nyāyakaṇḍalī from the 10th century)

A man who has performed regular exercise with the bow takes up the bow in his firm grasp; and having applied the arrow to it &c............ and then a desire appears in him in the form:—‘May I draw this bow along with the string and the arrow.’........................ All these actions, in the arrow &c, are simultaneous, because of the simultaneity of the operation of their causes. When the bow has been drawn as far as the ear, the man has the idea that his hand cannot go any further; and this idea puts an end to the effort that he had put forth for the drawing of the bow............ The disjunction of the fingers is from the arrow and the string:—this disjunction puts an end to the contact of the fingers with the arrow and the string;............ The action produced in the arrow and the string, by the instrumentality of its own cause—i.e., through the contact of the bow and the string—produces in the string the faculty or force of speed or momentum, Through this facility the contact of the arrow with the string brings about the impulsion which becomes the cause of the combined motion of the string and the arrow. Through this impulsion the first action in the arrow produces a faculty; which faculty, aided by the said impulsion, brings about a series of actions continuing until the arrow falls down, by reason of the exhaustion of the force that counteracts the action of gravity.

An objection is raised:—“Beginning from the moment that the arrow becomes disjoined from the string (till the arrow falls) there appear many actions, one after the other; but from whence do you derive this assumption? Why do not you assume the whole thing to be due to a single action?”

Reply. It is a well known fact that an action continues till the next contact (resulting from it) is brought about; and when the arrow has been shot, we find that in the interval (between the leaving of the arrow and its falling on the ground) many contacts have appeared; and hence we assume that there are many actions (which are the direct cause of the contacts).

The faculty produced daring the interval is one only; as it is only when an action is aided either by impulsion or by striking, that it produces a faculty, and never by itself alone; as in mere action there is no speed; and as a matter of fact we find that during the interval in question, there is neither impulsion nor striking; and hence the only one faculty produced is that which proceeds from the action of the arrow as influenced by the contact of the arrow with the string; and it is this peculiarly forcible faculty that continues till the falling of the arrow; and as the active efficiency of this faculty goes on diminishing, the consequent actions become weaker and weaker; and it is thus that we have many actions, just in the same manner as the fruits of the young tree go on improving, while those of the old one go on deteriorating.