A History of Hindu Chemistry from the Earliest Times to the Middle of the Sixteenth Century A.D. v2.c34.337

v2.c34.337

स्पर्शजनकोटपि पाकवशात् कठिनस्पर्शनाशे मृदुस्पर्शानुभवात् । अतएव पार्थिवपरमाणूनामेकजातीयत्वेऽपि पाकमहिम्ना विजातीयद्रव्यानुभवः । यथा गोमुक्तादीनां आपरमाखन्तं भङ्गे त्र्यणुकपरमाणुषु विजातीयतेजःसंयोगवशात् पूर्व्वरूपादिचतुष्टयनाशे तदनन्तरं दुग्धे यादृशं रूपादिकं वर्त्तते तादृशरूपगन्धस्पर्शजनकास्तेजःसंयोगा जायन्ते । तदुत्तरं तादृशरूपादय उत्पद्यन्ते । तादृशरूपादिविशिष्टपरमाणुभिर्दुग्धद्रव्यमारभ्यते । अतः त्र्यणुकादिक्रमेण महादुग्धारम्भ इति । Nyáyabodhiní on Annam Bhatta’s Tarka-sangraha ). Heat and light rays are supposed to consist of indefinitely small particles which dart forth or radiate in all directions rectilinearly with a sort of conical dispersion and with inconceivable velocity. They may either (1) penetrate through inter-atomic (or inter-molecular) spaces as in cases of conduction of heat which when applied under the pot boils the water, or fries the paddy where there is no chemical action in the pot, no decomposition and recomposition of its atoms, no change in the molecular collocation; or, as with light rays in cases of translucency or transparency (स्वच्छता) penetrate through the inter-atomic spaces with Parispanda of the nature of deflection or refraction (तिर्य्यग्गमन, Udyotakara), in the same way as when fluids penetrate through porous bodies (तत्र परिस्पन्दः तिर्य्यग्गमनं परिस्त्रवः पात इति—Udyotakara, commenting on Vātsyāyana’s परिस्पन्द-परिस्पन्दौ, Sūtra 47, Āhnika 1, Chap. III.) or (2) impinge on the atoms, and rebound back—which explains reflection (मूर्च्छन, किरणविघट्टन—Varāhamihira, रश्मिपरावर्त्तन—Vātsyāyana) or otherwise be obstructed by the atoms in their path, which would explain degrees of opacity, the casting of shadows, *etc.*, all these operations being also physical, and unattended with decomposition and recomposition or alteration of molecular grouping, or (3) lastly, strike the atoms in a peculiar way, so as to break up their grouping, transform the physico-chemical characters of the atoms, and again recombine them, all by means of continual impact with inconceivable velocity, an operation which explains all cases of chemical combination. (अचिन्त्यो हि तेजसो लाघवातिशयेन वेगातिशयः यत् प्राचीनाचलचूडावलम्बिन एव भगवति मयूखमालिनि भवनोदरेषु चालोकप्रत्यभिमानो लौकिकानाम् । (Udayana, Kiranāvalī, तेजो निरूपणम्—taken from Vāchaspati, Tátparyyatīkā, प्रत्यक्षलक्षणस्त्वम् ।) Cf. also (चाक्षुषं तेजः वेगवत्सावित्रेण तेजसा न प्रतिहन्यते । Vāchaspati—वर्त्तदेशे पिण्डतममपि तेजः प्रसर्पत् प्रासादोदयं व्याप्नोति । तत् कस्य हेतोः पृथुप्रयत्नात् । स्वभावतः प्रसरदपि न स्वपरिमाणानुविधायिनं प्रत्ययमाधत्ते किं तु विषयभेदानुविधायिनम् । *ibid.* Cf. स्फटिकाद्यन्तरितोपलब्धिरपि प्रसादस्वभावतया