ducts. The objects
of the five great elements are endued with the nature of seed, and yield
products. These have Chitta for their property. Among them, space has one
quality; wind is said to have two. Light, it is said, is endued with
three qualities; and water as possessed of four qualities. Earth, teeming
with mobiles and immobiles, should be known as possessed of five
qualities. She is a goddess that is the source of all entities and
abounds with examples of the agreeable and the disagreeable. Sound,
likewise touch, colour, taste, and smell numbering the fifth,--these are
the five qualities of earth, ye foremost of regenerate persons. Smell
always belongs to earth, and smell is said to be of various kinds. I
shall state at length the numerous qualities of smell. Smell is agreeable
or disagreeable, sweet, sour, pungent, diffusive and compact, oily and
dry, and clear. Thus smell, which belongs to the earth, should be known
as of ten kinds.[154] Sound, touch, likewise colour, and taste have been
said to be the qualities of water. I shall now speak of the qualities of
taste. Taste has been said to be of various kinds. Sweet, sour, pungent,
bitter, astringent, and saline likewise. Taste, which has been said to
appertain to water, is thus of six varieties. Sound, touch, and likewise
colour,--these are the three qualities which light is said to be
possessed of. Colour is the quality of light, and colour is said to be of
various kinds. White, dark, likewise red, blue, yellow, and grey also,
and short, long, minute, gross, square and circular, of these twelve
varieties in colour which belongs to light. These should be understood by
Brahmanas venerable for years, conversant with duties, and truthful in
speech. Sound and touch should be known as the two qualities of wind.
Touch has been said to be of various kinds. Rough, cold and likewise
hot, tender and clear, hard, oily, smooth, slippery, painful and soft, of
twelve kinds is touch, which is the quality of wind, as said by Brahmanas
crowned with success, conversant with duties, and possessed of a sight of
truth. Now space has only one quality, and that is said to be sound. I
shall speak at length of the numerous qualities of sound. Shadaja,
Rishabha, together with Gandhara, Madhyama, and likewise Panchama; after
this should be known Nishada, and then Dhaivata.[155] Besides these,
there are agreeable sounds and disagreeable sounds, compact, and of many
ingredients. Sound which i