147. Paṅkaprakṣālana-nyāya
Paṅka means marshy waters, prakṣālana means to cleanse. Why would one put their hands in the marsh and then cleanse it? It is better to not touch it at all. There is a verse in Pañcatantra:-
धर्मार्थं यस्य वित्तेहा वरं तस्य निरीहता ।
प्रक्षालनाद्धि पङ्कस्य दूरादस्पर्शनं वरम् ॥“If someone desires money to do good, it is better to not desire money at all. Better not to touch the marshy waters rather than coming in contact with it and cleansing with water.”
It resembles the English proverb, “Prevention is better than cure.”
148. Paṅgvandha-nyāya
Paṅgu means lame; andha means blind. A lame and a blind man have to travel. The lame man sat on the shoulders of the blind and guided him through the journey warning him of the impediments on the road. The blind man followed his instructions and walked carefully. Both reached their destination without hassles. As per this story either the lame of the blind couldn’t have accomplished this journey on their own. Both had flaws. But together they overcame those flaws and achieved the impossible. This nyāya helps us understand that with mutual help many things can be accomplished which is not possible individually.
149. Pañjaracālana-nyāya
Rattling the cage. If there is one bird it might not accomplish much. But if there are many such birds trapped they might collectively be able to rattle the cage. This nyāya makes it evident that even if individuals don’t possess anything special, collectively they might find some special power to accomplish a task. There is strength in unity. There is indeed a story in Pañcatantra, a hunter had spread his net and many pigeons got trapped. An old pigeon named Citragrīva advised everyone to take off along with the net and fly away so that they can escape later. Likewise the rope which is made of strands of grass can finally be used to tame a rogue elephant.
150. Pāṭaccaraluṇṭhite veśmani yāmikajāgaraṇamiti nyāya
After the house was looted by thieves the guards woke up and became vigilant. The guard woke up after the house was looted! Becoming wise after getting beaten up! Closing the dam after all the water has flowed! The usage of this nyāya is evident. It resembles the English proverb, “Shutting the stable door after the horse is gone.”
151. Pāṭanamantareṇa viṣavraṇānāṃ nopaśāntiḥ
For infected boils, the only remedy is they should be opened up. They should be operated upon, opened and the puss should be drained, this is the only solution. Likewise the wicked should be dealt with punishment, this is what this particular nyāya opines. If we suffer through the sorrows we get rid of the pāpa. Non-violence cannot be an answer to violence. Fraud or deceit should be answered in the same currency.
152. Pānakarasa-nyāya
The pānaka or the juice made using sugar, lime, cardamom, kesar etc has its unique taste. When mixing things results in another unique thing, this nyāya is used to illustrate that. In aesthetics the experts describe how rasa is generated:- the combination of vibhāva, anubhāva, and vyabhicāribhāva leads to the sthāyibhāva which when expressed leads to rasa. Thus rasa is like the pānaka; the vibhāvas are the ingredients like sugar, without sugar there is no pānaka, but sugar itself is not the pānaka.
Many words make up a sentence. All of them combine to give meaning to the sentence. Just like the pānakarasa, the meaning of the individual words and the meaning of the sentence is different, this is the opinion of the śāstrakāras.
153. Piṇyākayācana-nyāya
Piṇyāka is the leftover mass after oil has been extracted, used to feed the livestock. Someone who went to ask for piṇyāka instead ended up giving oil from his (non existent) stock! If we fall for others words and agree to accomplish something which is impossible to us, this nyāya is used to illustrate such a situation.
154. Pitāputra-nyāya
The nyāya that involves the father and son. The same person is a father to his son, but a son to his father. A husband to his wife, an attendant to his master, a disciple of his teacher, and a teacher to his disciples. There is no contradiction in this. These are all relative. The change happens as it is dependent on the reference we choose. Similarly the terms like big-small, good-bad, soft-hard, excess-paucity are all relative.
155. Pitranusṛtastanandhaya-nyāya
Stanandhaya is a baby boy who is still breastfed. To keep him happy and entertained, it is natural that his father follows his cues and tags along. Even though the games played by the boy are ridiculous, the father knowingly indulges in them. He doesn’t get angry when the son scolds him, beats him, or pulls his beard. Instead he feels happy. The scholars likewise don’t feel angry seeing the behavior of the laymen. They tried to make them understand instead by their flawless conduct. Sometimes they too behave like laymen so as to make the others understand. This is what they have to do to bring those laymen to the right path. This nyāya has been used in Vidyāraṇya’s Pañcadaśi to illustrate this.
156. Pipīlikāgati-nyāya
Pipīlikā means the ant. A small insect, nevertheless. Tiny feet. Even then it starts on the ground, slowly but steadily climbs up the tree and reaches the fruit. Or reaches the sugar box placed on the top row.
Even though our pace is slow, if it is directed forward, we will reach our goal finally. Even if the means is small, if we march on confidently without hesitation even the highest puruṣārtha i.e. mokṣa is achievable. We can gain erudition and money in the same way. We should recall the famous maxim, “क्षणशः कणशश्चैव विद्यामर्थं च साधयेत्” however incapable one is, if he is strong-willed he can reach his goal. This is the opinion of this nyāya. It is applicable to the least capable.
See plavaṅgamagati and vihaṅgamagati nyāyas.
This is the eighteenth part of the multi-part translation of the Kannada book "Sandarbha Sukti" by Mahamahopadhyaya Vidwan Dr. N Ranganatha Sharma. Thanks to Dr. Sharada Chaitra for granting us permission to translate this wonderful work. Thanks to Śatāvadhānī Dr. R Ganesh for his inputs. The original in Kannada can be read here
