Samkhya Karika 7

Karika 7

अतिदूरात् सामीप्यादिन्द्रियाघातान्मनोऽनवस्थानात् ।
सौक्ष्म्याद् व्यवधानादभिभवात् समानाभिहाराच्च ॥ ७ ॥

atidūrāt sāmīpyādindriyāghātānmano’navasthānāt ।
saukṣmyād vyavadhānādabhibhavāt samānābhihārācca ॥ 7 ॥

Atidūrāt=due to excessive distance; sāmīpyāt=being too close; indriya=the senses; ghātāt=due to impairment; mano’navasthānāt=absent-mindedness;
saukṣmyād=due to subtlety; vyavadhānāt=due to obstruction; abhibhavāt=due to suppression (by others); samāna=similar; abhihārāt= intermixture; ca=and;

Knowledge of objects that exist may not be available for the following reasons: Excessive distance, extreme proximity, sense impairment, absentmindedness, minuteness, obstruction, suppression by other objects, and intermixture with similar objects.

One of the main themes in Samkhya is to prove that even though both Purusha and Prakriti are not available for direct perception through the five senses, there existence cannot be denied. In this karika, we are presented with several reasons as to why an object, even though existent, may not be perceptible to the sense organs.

• Excessive distance (Atidūrāt): two friends living in distant countries; a bird flying high in the sky
• Extreme proximity (sāmīpyāt): inability to see your own eyelids
• Sense impairment (indriya ghātāt): blind man can’t see, deaf can’t hear
• Absentmindedness (mano’navasthānāt): when distracted, one can’t understand however well explained
• Minuteness, subtlety (saukṣmyāt): particles of smoke, air, water, frost etc., though present are not seen
• Obstruction (vyavadhānāt): Can’t see objects obstructed by a wall
• Suppression by other objects (abhibhavāt): planets and stars not visible during day, suppressed by the brilliance of the sun
• Intermixture with similar objects (samāna abhihārāt): a bean mixed in a heap of beans, a bird in a group of birds