Samkhya Karika 38

तन्मात्राण्यविशेषाः तेभ्यो भूतानि पञ्च पञ्चभ्यः ।
एते स्मृता विशेषाः शान्ता घोराश्च मूढाश्च ॥ ३८ ॥

tanmātrāṇyaviśeṣāḥ tebhyo bhūtāni pañca pañcabhyaḥ ।
ete smṛtā viśeṣāḥ śāntā ghorāśca mūḍhāśca ॥ 38 ॥

Tanmātrāṇi=subtle elements; aviśeṣāḥ=indiscernible; tebhyaḥ=from these; bhūtāni=gross elements; pañca=five; pañcabhyaḥ=from the five; ete=these; smṛtā=known as; viśeṣāḥ=discernible; śāntāḥ=tranquil; ghorāḥ=turbulent; ca=and; mūḍhāḥ=deluded; ca=and

The five tanmatras (subtle elements) are known as avishesha (non-specific); from these five proceed the five gross elements – these are known as vishesha (specific) and can be experienced as calm (peaceful), turbulent and deluded.

In karika #34 it was stated that the five organs of sense perception have both specific (viśeṣa) and non-specific (aviśeṣa) as their objects of perception. The present karika describes what these are.

The five subtle elements which are created from the ahamkara (ego) are the subtle elements of sound, touch, form, taste, and smell. These have been labeled as non-specific (aviśeṣa). They are non-specific as they cannot be perceived or experienced through our normal organs of sense perception – eyes, ears etc. They are also labeled as “subtle” (sūkṣma). According to Gaudapada, these non-specific elements can be perceived by gods only. He adds that these have the characteristic of pleasure but are devoid of pain and delusion. According to Mishra, these are devoid of all three attributes of calmness, turbulence and delusion.

From these five subtle elements, the five gross elements – earth, water, fire, air and ether – are produced. There is a direct one-to-one relationship between each of the subtle elements and the gross element it produces:

• Smell – earth
• Taste – water
• Sight – fire
• Touch – air
• Sound – ether

These gross elements have been labeled as specific (viśeṣa). These are specific as they can be perceived and experienced through the five sense organs. They are also known as gross (sthūla).

As we know, every entity in Prakriti is a combination of the three gunas – sattva, rajas, and tamas. The characteristics of these specific elements corresponding to these gunas are mentioned in this karika – calm or peaceful (śānta) when sattva is dominant, turbulent (ghora) when rajas is dominant, and delusional (mūḍha) when tamas is dominant.

The natural question that may be asked is, “since tanmātras are also a combination of these three gunas, how come the attributes of calmness etc. cannot be experienced for the tanmātras?” The answer lies in the fact that these are so subtle that normal human sense organs cannot perceive them. However, they may be experienced by ascetics or yogis in their deep states of meditation.

As a quick reference, you may relate to the five subtle sense elements (tanmātra) mentioned in the earlier karikas as follows:

Karika 22: “from the five (tanmātra), the five great elements are created.”

Karika 24: “from ahamkara (ego) proceeds a two-fold evolution – the set of eleven and the five-fold “tanmatras” (sense perceptions).

Karika 25: “from the Bhutadi form of ahamkara proceed the five subtle elements (tanmatras) characterized by the tamas guna.”