Vakyapadiya of Bhartrihari
by K. A. Subramania Iyer | 1965 | 391,768 words
The English translation of the Vakyapadiya by Bhartrihari including commentary extracts and notes. The Vakyapadiya is an ancient Sanskrit text dealing with the philosophy of language. Bhartrhari authored this book in three parts and propounds his theory of Sphotavada (sphota-vada) which understands language as consisting of bursts of sounds conveyi...
This book contains Sanskrit text which you should never take for granted as transcription mistakes are always possible. Always confer with the final source and/or manuscript.
Verse 2.33
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.33:
तस्यैवास्तित्वनास्तित्वसामर्थ्ये समवस्थिते ।
अक्रमे क्रमनिर्भासे व्यवहारनिबन्धने ॥ ३३ ॥tasyaivāstitvanāstitvasāmarthye samavasthite |
akrame kramanirbhāse vyavahāranibandhane || 33 ||33. It is that (the Word-Principle) which has the two powers of existence and non-existence which have no sequence but appear to have it and are the basis of all worldly usage.
Commentary
What other power the Word-Principle has is now stated.
[Read verse 33 above]
[The inner Word-Principle has the two powers of existence and non-existence. These two powers cannot have any sequence because of the eternality of their substratum, but they appear to have it. The indivisible sentence appears to have the sequence of the phonemes and individual words. Their existence and non-existence seem to have sequence. All manifestation involving multiplicity and sequence is due to the powers of the Word-Principle and not merely its manifestation as the Illuminator and the Illuminated].
The view that the individual word has a reality is again criticised.