साध्य सम (balancing the reciprocity)

Nyaya Sutra 5:1:4साध्यदृष्टान्तयोर्धर्म्यविकल्पादुभयसाध्यत्वाच्चोत्कर्षापकर्षवर्ण्यावर्णविकल्पसाध्यसमा:

साध्य सम

If one opposes an argument by alleging a reciprocity of the subject and the example, the opposition will be called ‘balancing the reciprocity’

An illustration

(1) AV observation is a decisive observation in placing upper and lower bounds on the year of Mahabharata war.

(2) Because it is an objectively testable observation

(3) Like ‘many other observations:

(a) ‘Saturn and Jupiter settling near nakshatra Vishakha for a year’

(b) ‘Venus making a Parikrama near nakshatra Purva Bhadrapada’

(c) ‘Mars going vakra near nakshatra Magha & near Jyeshtha/Anuradha + Jupiter going vakra near nakshatra Shravana’

(d) ‘Saturn afflicting nakshtra Rohini’

(e) ‘Saturn attacking nakshtra Bhaga (U. Phalguni)’

(f) ‘Sun & moon afflicting nakshatra Rohini, on the first day of the Mahabharata war’

(g) Mars afflicting nakshatra Swati or becoming steady while moving in abnormal direction between nakshatras Chitra/Swati or aligning itself along nakshatra Brahmarashi (Abhijit) on the first day of Mahabharata war’,

and so on.

A futile objection could be,

(1) Any of the obervatoins (a through 6) are equally decisive

(2) Because the elements of the list are ‘objectively testable

(3) Like ‘AV observation’

The opponent alleges that the observations (a through g) and ‘AV observation’ being both objectively testable, one requires proof for its decisive usefulness as much as the other does.  AV observation is to be proved decisively useful by the example of other observations (a through g) and the other observations are to be proved (decisively) useful by the example of AV observation.

This leads to a reciprocity of the observations ‘a through g’ (example) and AV observation (subject) resulting in no definite conclusion as to the non-usefulness, usefulness or decisive usefulness of AV observation.

This sort of futile opposition is called ‘balancing the reciprocity’ which brings an argument to a stand-still by alleging the reciprocity of the subject and the example.