ing that that king had equal reverence for all his
preceptors, began to amaze that century of preceptors (by an exposition
of his doctrine fraught), with abundant reasons. Observing the talent of
Kapileya, Janaka became exceedingly attached to him, and abandoning his
hundred preceptors, began to follow him in particular. Then Kapileya
began to discourse unto Janaka, who had according to the ordinance bent
his head unto him (as a disciple should) and who was fully competent to
apprehend the sage's instructions, upon that high religion of
Emancipation which is explained in Sankhya treatises. Setting forth in
the first place the sorrows of birth, he spoke next of the sorrows of
(religious) acts. Having finished that topic he explained the sorrows of
all states of life ending even with that in the high region of the
Creator.[800] He also discoursed upon that Delusion for whose sake is the
practice of religion, and acts, and their fruits, and which is highly
untrustworthy, destructible, unsteady, and uncertain.[801] 'Sceptics say
that when death (of the body) is seen and is a matter of direct evidence
witnessed by all, they who maintain, in consequence of their faith in the
scriptures, that something distinct from the body, called the Soul,
exists are necessarily vanquished in argument. They also urge that one's
death means the extinction of one's Soul, and that sorrow, decrepitude,
and disease imply (partial) death of the Soul. He that maintains, owing
to error, that the Soul is distinct from the body and exists after the
loss of body, cherishes an opinion that is unreasonable.[802] If that be
regarded as existent which does not really exist in the world, then it
may be mentioned that the king, being regarded so, is really never liable
to decrepitude or death. But is he, on that account, to be really
believed to be above decrepitude and death?[803] When the question is
whether an object exists or does not exist, and when that whose existence
is asserted presents all the indications of non-existence, what is that
upon which ordinary people rely in settling the affairs of life? Direct
evidence is the root of both inference and the scriptures. The scriptures
are capable of being contradicted by direct evidence. As to inference,
its evidentiary effect is not much. Whatever be the topic, cease to
reason on inference alone. There is nothing else called jiva than this
body. In a banian seed is contained the capacity to produce leaves