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Triṃśikā (Vasubandhu) with Sthiramati's bhāṣya · 15
pañcānāṃ mūlavijñāne yathāpratyayam udbhavaḥ | vijñānānāṃ saha na vā taraṅgāṇāṃ yathā jale
Translation. From the root consciousness (mūlavijñāna), that is, the store consciousness (ālayavijñāna), the five sense consciousnesses (vijñāna) arise, each unfailingly when its condition (pratyaya) is present—
simultaneously or successively, as waves arise in water.
Grammar check: 10 words pass / 0 flagged / 1 beyond the checkerPāṇini-verified
Every word's claimed grammar is re-derived with vidyut-prakriya, software implementing Pāṇini's rules. Flags are shown, never hidden; some are the text taking epic or Vedic liberties the classical rules do not generate.
Word by word
| surface | lemma | grammar |
| pañcānām | pañcan | pass |
| mūlavijñāne | mūlavijñāna | pass |
| yathāpratyayam | yathāpratyayam | unsupported |
| udbhavaḥ | udbhava | pass |
| vijñānānām | vijñāna | pass |
| saha | saha | pass |
| na | na | pass |
| vā | vā | pass |
| taraṅgāṇām | taraṃga | pass |
| yathā | yathā | pass |
| jale | jala | pass |
How the commentary settled it
Where the verse alone is ambiguous, the reading follows Sthiramati's commentary; the deciding lines are quoted below each decision.
Construe pañcānāṃ and the postponed vijñānānāṃ together as ‘of the five consciousnesses,’ specifically the five beginning with eye-consciousness.→ Read the two genitives together and identify the five as eye-consciousness and the other sensory consciousnesses.
trbh [1010]pañcānām iti cakṣurādivijñānānāṃ
“Of the five” means “of the consciousnesses beginning with eye-consciousness.”
trbh [1033, 1034]saced dvayos trayāṇāṃ sacet pañcānāṃ vijñānānām utpattipratyayaḥ
pratyupasthito bhavati sakṛd yāvat pañcānāṃ pravṛttir bhavati
If the production-condition for two, three, or all five consciousnesses is present, the operation of as many as all five occurs at once.
Analyze mūlavijñāna as a karmadhāraya, ‘the consciousness that is the root,’ and understand it technically as the store consciousness (ālayavijñāna). Render the verse’s locative with the source/basis force made explicit by the commentary.→ ‘Root consciousness,’ identified with ālayavijñāna; the translation uses ‘from’ because the commentary describes the active consciousnesses as arising ālayavijñānāt.
trbh [1012, 1013]cakṣurādivijñānānāṃ bījāśrayatvāt tadutpatter gatiṣu janmopādānāc
cālayavijñānaṃ mūlavijñānam ity ucyate
Because it is the support of the seeds of the consciousnesses beginning with eye-consciousness, because they arise from it, and because it appropriates birth in the destinies, the store consciousness is called the root consciousness.
trbh [1018, 1019]taraṅgāṇāṃ yathā jala ity ālayavijñānāt
pravṛttivijñānānāṃ yugapad ayugapac cotpattau dṛṣṭāntaḥ
‘Like waves in water’ is an example for the simultaneous or non-simultaneous arising of the active consciousnesses from the store consciousness.
Take yathāpratyayam distributively: each of the five arises unfailingly when its respective condition is present.→ The distributive and condition-specific reading, including the force of niyamena, ‘unfailingly.’
trbh [1014, 1015]yathāpratyayam udbhava iti yasya
yasya yaḥ pratyayaḥ saṃnihitas tasya tasya niyamenodbhava ātmalābhaḥ
As for ‘arising according to the condition’: whichever condition is present for each one, that one necessarily arises—an arising is its acquisition of existence.
Render udbhavaḥ as actual arising or acquisition of existence, not merely an abstract origin or permanent source.→ ‘Arise,’ with eventive force and the commentary’s gloss ātmalābhaḥ in view.
trbh [1014, 1015]yathāpratyayam udbhava iti yasya
yasya yaḥ pratyayaḥ saṃnihitas tasya tasya niyamenodbhava ātmalābhaḥ
For each one whose condition is present, there is necessarily arising; arising is acquisition of existence.
Read saha na vā as ‘simultaneously or successively’: na negates saha, and vā coordinates the two temporal alternatives.→ ‘Simultaneously or successively.’
trbh [1016, 1017]saha na
veti yugapat krameṇa vā
‘Together or not’ means ‘simultaneously or successively.’
trbh [1018, 1019]taraṅgāṇāṃ yathā jala ity ālayavijñānāt
pravṛttivijñānānāṃ yugapad ayugapac cotpattau dṛṣṭāntaḥ
The wave comparison illustrates the simultaneous and non-simultaneous arising of the active consciousnesses from the store consciousness.
Understand taraṅgāṇāṃ yathā jale as an elliptical comparison, ‘as waves arise in water,’ illustrating that one or many active consciousnesses can arise according to the conditions while the underlying store-consciousness stream continues.→ The condition-dependent arising analogy; udbhavaḥ is supplied elliptically with taraṅgāṇām.
trbh [1018, 1019]taraṅgāṇāṃ yathā jala ity ālayavijñānāt
pravṛttivijñānānāṃ yugapad ayugapac cotpattau dṛṣṭāntaḥ
‘Like waves in water’ is an example for the simultaneous or non-simultaneous arising of the active consciousnesses from the store consciousness.
trbh [1021, 1022, 1023, 1024, 1025, 1026]tadyathā viśālamate mahata udakaughasya vahataḥ saced ekasya
taraṅgasyotpattipratyayaḥ pratyupasthito bhavaty ekam eva
taraṅgaṃ pravartate
saced dvayos trayāṇāṃ saṃbahulānāṃ
taraṅgāṇām utpattipratyayaḥ pratyupasthito bhavati yāvat
saṃbahulāni taraṅgāṇi pravartante
For example, when the production-condition for one wave is present in a great flowing mass of water, just one wave proceeds; when the production-condition for two, three, or many waves is present, many waves proceed.