0552 Verse 733-734

Original

तस्य पक्षाबहिर्भावे साध्यशून्यं निदर्शनम् ।
नैवं तद्धेतवः साक्षाद्बाह्यवत्साङ्कुशादयः ॥ ७३३ ॥
नाभिधानविकल्पानां वृत्तिरस्ति खलभणे ।
सर्वं वाग्गोचरातीतमूर्त्तिर्येत स्वलक्षणम् ॥ ७३४ ॥

tasya pakṣābahirbhāve sādhyaśūnyaṃ nidarśanam |
naivaṃ taddhetavaḥ sākṣādbāhyavatsāṅkuśādayaḥ || 733 ||
nābhidhānavikalpānāṃ vṛttirasti khalabhaṇe |
sarvaṃ vāggocarātītamūrttiryeta svalakṣaṇam || 734 ||

If the said ‘body of convention’ is included in the ‘subject’ (of the inference propounded by the opponent), then the corroborative instance cited becomes ‘devoid of the probandum’; as the external things mentioned,—the calf and the goad, etc.—are not the direct causes of the notions; because the name and such other qualifications have no bearing upon the ‘specific peculiarity’ of things; as the ‘specific peculiarity’ of things is something beyond the reach of verbal expression.—(733-734)

Kamalaśīla

If the ‘Conventional Conception’ is included in the ‘Subject’ (of the Opponent’s Reasoning), and then it is sought to be proved that all these notions are due to their connection with an eternal and all-embracing Entity named ‘Universal’, which is apart from all those,—then what has been cited as the Corroborative Instance would be ‘devoid of the Probandum’; because the concomitance of thengs with such a Probandum has nowhere been perceived. As a matter of fact, the Calf, the Goad and suchngs that have been cited as the cause (basis) of the notion of the Cow being ‘with Calf’, or the Elephant being ‘with the Goad’, have not been proved to be so. Specially because when these things—the Calf and the Goad,—revert to the position of their ‘Specific Peculiarity’, they are not found to be the direct cause of any Names and Ideas,—for the simple reason that all ‘Specific Peculiarity’ is, by its very nature, beyond the reach of verbal expression. Thus the Corroborative Instance cited is ‘devoid of the Probandum’.—If they be regarded, as the indirect cause of the notions, then that would lead to an absurdity, because indirectly, everything is of use in the producing of everything.—(733-734)

Question—“How is it then that people regard such external things (as the Calf and the Goad) as the cause of the notions (of the Cow being with the Calf, and the Elephant being with the Goad)?”—[see verse 735 next]