Essay name: Tarkabhasa of Kesava Misra (study)
Author:
Nimisha Sarma
Affiliation: Gauhati University / Department of Sanskrit
This is an English study of the Tarkabhasa of Kesava Misra: a significant work of the syncretic Nyaya-Vaisesika school of Indian philosophy widely used as a beginner's textbook in southern India and has many commentaries. This study includes an extensive overview of the Nyaya and Vaisesika philosophy, epistemology and sources of valid knowledge. It further deals with the contents and commentaries of the Tarkabhasa.
Chapter 5 - Uttarabhaga of Tarkabhasa: Contents
52 (of 64)
External source: Shodhganga (Repository of Indian theses)
Download the PDF file of the original publication
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)
212
one sense and if the hearer were to find fault with it by construing it in a
different sense, this practice is called chala. For instance when one says
'navakambalo 'ya峁�' meaning thereby that 'this man has a new blanket', the
hearer scoffs at the speaker; "he is too poor to have nine blankets. He has not
even two. What to speak of nine!" One who argues thus is called a quibbler.
J膩ti or Futility: It consists in offering objections founded on mere
similarity or dissimilarity. According to Kesava Misra an incorrect
136 rejoinder constitutes j膩ti. It is of many kinds such as utkar峁sama,
apakar峁sama, etc.
Nigrahasth膩na: It means a vulnerable point or clincher. It arises
Kesava Misra says
when one misunderstands, or does not understand at all.
137 nigrahasth膩na is that by which the opponent is defeated. It is of many kinds
such as nyuna (deficiency), adhika (superfluity), apasiddhanta (deviation from
established conclusions), arth膩ntara (irrelevancy), apratibha (inability to find
the correct answer), matanuj帽膩 (accepting the opponents view), virodha
(contradiction).
3. CREATION AND DISSOLUTION
One of the important topics of philosophy is to know the origin and
development of this universe. The thinkers of India have presented their views
136. Ibid. 1.2.18.
137. Ibid. 1.2.19.
