Matharavritti 2.10

2.10

What, then, is that threefold suffering? He states it: internal, material, supernatural. There, the first is twofold: bodily and mental. There, bodily [suffering] is that which occurs with reference to the self, [namely] the body, such as fever and diarrhea, caused by an imbalance of the bodily humors: wind, bile, and phlegm. Mental [suffering] is twofold: caused by separation from what is dear and contact with what is not dear. This is described as internal suffering. Material [suffering], on the other hand, is that which occurs with reference to living beings, caused by humans, beasts, birds, reptiles, and immovable things. Supernatural [suffering], however, is that which occurs with reference to heaven, such as cold, heat, wind, and rain. Thus, in the Brahmin of Āsuri's lineage struck down by these three sufferings, a desire to know arose. Regarding what object? Concerning the cause of their removal: concerning that which is the cause that removes, that destroys, those three sufferings. He states that desire to know: 'Do these sufferings belong to the body, or is there some other spirit distinct from it to whom these three sufferings arise? Or is there even a means of countering them, or not? If there is, then we shall adopt precisely that. If not, then, like a bull [in] the first rainstorm of the monsoon, we must endure them with closed eyes. It is only one who is bitten by a scorpion or the like who seeks a snake-doctor to counter the venom, or not [if] able to endure the pain caused by the poison.' In this way, in Āsuri, overcome by unbearable suffering, a desire to know arose concerning the cause of its removal. And he, desiring to know the non-existence of the arisen suffering, approached for refuge the venerable master Kapila, who is skilled in countering it, [thinking:] 'He will tell me the means of countering suffering that I desire.'
Now, if the desire to know has arisen from sufferings alone, how can it serve as the cause for their non-existence? For a son born from a mother does not bring about her destruction. True. Here in the world, what is born from something is also seen to be the cause of its destruction. For instance, a crab or a mule, born from its mother, kills that very [mother]. Or, for instance, a certain venomous snake standing in an area full of dry grass, seeing a rival snake and becoming angry, the fire issuing from the breath of its mouth burned the grass and even that snake. By this reasoning, the desire to know, produced from sufferings alone, will bring about the non-existence of sufferings; thus the connection of the sense is coherent.
To this it is said: [“If it be said that] this is pointless because of visible [means]” — the particle “if” (cet) expresses a doubt. In this world there is indeed a remedy for all arisen sufferings; what is the point of approaching Kapila for that sake? This is the meaning. He shows that very visible cause: for internal bodily ailments, all diseases such as fever and diarrhea, there are indeed physicians, doctors knowing the eightfold Āyurveda, skilled in the treatment of the body, major surgery, minor surgery, poisons, madness, infertility, aging, and pediatric diseases. The remedy for internal mental torment is from union with pleasant things and avoiding from afar what is unpleasant. For material [suffering], its removal is accomplished by constructing villages, cities, and the like. For supernatural [suffering], by wind-shelters, coverings, veils, and the like. Therefore, because causes for their removal exist, what is the point of approaching Kapila? This is the meaning. And so there is a popular saying: