1.2.1
Vaiśeṣika Sūtra / Adhyāya 1 / 1.2.1
कारणाभावात् कार्याभावः
kāraṇābhāvāt kāryābhāvaḥ
The line
From the absence of the cause follows the absence of the effect.
नेपालीमा
कारणको अभावबाट कार्यको अभाव आउँछ।
Where it sits
The second āhnika (आह्निक) begins here. 1.2.2 stops the rule from running backwards.
Split: kāraṇa-abhāvāt (कारण-अभावात्) + kārya-abhāvaḥ (कार्य-अभावः)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| kāraṇa-abhāvāt (कारण-अभावात्) | ablative singular, masculine | from the absence of the cause. |
| kārya-abhāvaḥ (कार्य-अभावः) | nominative singular, masculine | the absence of the effect. |
The phrases
If the cause is absent, the effect is absent. The line is the rule you use when you infer. No threads, no cloth.
abhāva (अभाव), absence, is not one of the six categories in 1.1.4. The line uses absence as a fact about causes and effects. It does not add a seventh category.
Sanskrit in this line
Two abstracts in -bhāva (-भाव), absence. The ablative is 'from,' and here it is also 'because.' The nominative is the thing that follows.
Say it back
Which absence comes first?