Indian Philosophy v2.c24.s7.2

v2.c24.s7.2

In tarka, or indirect proof, we start with a wrong assumption and show how it leads to absurdities. If the soul were not eternal, it would not be able to experience the fruits of its actions, undergo rebirth or attain release. It is therefore eternal. The admission of a false minor necessitates the admission of a false major.⁴ Tarka is a type of inference distinct from other types, since it is not based on any perception. It leads indirectly to right knowledge.⁵ Vātsyāyana thinks that it does not give us determinate knowledge, though it tells us that the opposite of a suggested premise is impossible.⁶ Uddyotakara argues that the reasoning about the soul does not enable us to say that the soul is beginningless, but only that it should be so.⁷ Tarka is not by itself a source of valid knowledge, though it is valuable as suggesting hypotheses.