Manava Dharmashastra 2.8

2.8

sarvaṃ jñeyaṃ kṛtakākṛtakam | śāstragocaraṃ pratyakṣādigocaramapratyakṣādigocaram | samavekṣyaitajjñānacakṣuṣā tarkavyākaraṇaniruktamīmāṃsādividyāsthānaśravaṇacintanātmakrena | cakṣuriva cakṣuḥ śāstrābhyāso, jñānasya kāraṇatvasāmānyāt | yathā cakṣuṣā rūpaṃ jñāyate evaṃ śāstreṇa dharma iti sāmānyam | samavekṣya samyagvicārapūrvakaṃ nirūpya | śrutiprāmāṇyato vedaprāmāṇyena dharme niviśeta | dharmamanutiṣṭhet | sarveṣu hi śāstreṣu samyagjñāteṣu vedapramāṇyamevāvatiṣṭhate | nājñāteṣu | tathāhi tāni śāstrāṇi nipuṇatvena cintayan na teṣāṃ prāmāṇye samyagyuktirasti, vede tvastoti niścinoti | sarvagrahaṇaṃ jñeyaviśeṣaṇam | nikhila śabdaśca samavekṣyeti kriyāviśeṣaṇam | nikhilaṃ samavekṣya niḥśeṣeṇapūrvapakṣeṇa śāstrāntarāṇāṃ prāmāṇye, vedasya vā'prāmāṇye yāvantyaḥ kāścana yuktayaḥ pratibhāsante tāḥ sarvāḥ pradarśya, siddhāntasiddhairhetubhiryathālakṣaṇalakṣitairnirākṛtya svapakṣasādhane copanmaste vedaprāmāṇyamavatiṣṭhata iti nikhilaśabdena pradarśyate | tena tau nikhilasarvaśabdau paryāyapi bhinnaviṣayatvānna punaruktau | svagrahaṇamanuvādaḥ | yo hyanyasya dharmaḥ so'nyasyādharma eva |

Having fully perceived all this with the eye of knowledge, the learned man should enter upon his own duties, resting upon the authority of the Revealed Word.—(8)

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):
‘All this’—all tilings that can be known, those that are created as well as those that are uncreated (eternal); all that is dealt with in the scriptures, what is amenable to perception and other ordinary means of knowledge, and also what is not so amenable.

‘Having perceived with the of knowledge’—in the shape of the learning of and pondering over the various sciences of Reasoning, Grammar, Philology, Mīmāmsā and the rest. The study of the scriptures is called the ‘eye’ in the sense that it is like the eye, in being the instrument of knowledge; the similitude being that ‘Dharma is known by means of scriptures in the same way as Colour is known by means of the Eye.’

‘Honing perceived’—i.e., after having ascertained by means of due consideration.

‘Resting upon the authority of the Revealed Word.’—i.e., in accordance with the authority of the Veda.

‘Should enter upon his duties’—i.e., perform his dharma.

After all the sciences have been studied, the trustworthy character becomes fully established, which is not done until the sciences have been duly studied. When a man carefully ponders over the sciences, he comes to the conclusion that there are no grounds for believing in the authority of these sciences, while there are reasons for trusting the authority of the Veda.

‘Sarvam,’ ‘all,’ qualifies all that is to be known; and ‘nikhilam,’ ‘fully,’ is an adverb modifying the participle ‘samavekṣya,’ ‘having perceived,’—‘Having fully perceived,’—i.e., (1) having stated, in the form of the primâ facie Argument, all possible semi-arguments in support of the view that the other sciences are authoritative,—or that the Veda is not authoritative,—(2) having refuted those arguments by means of perfectly valid reasonings based upon the established theory,—when one states his own finally considered view, the final conclusion arrived at is that the Veda is authoritative;—all this is what is implied by the term ‘fully.’ Thus though the term ‘sarva’ and ‘nikhila’ are synonyms, yet since they serve two distinct purposes, they are not regarded as being a needless repetition.

The term ‘sva,’ ‘own’ is purely explanatory; what is the ‘duty’ of one man is not the ‘duty’ of another.—(8)