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 2.338
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.338:
तैस्तु नामसरूपत्वमाख्यातस्योपवर्ण्यते ॥ ३३८ab ॥
अन्वयव्यतिरेकाभ्यां व्यवहारो विभज्यते ॥ ३३८cd ॥taistu nāmasarūpatvamākhyātasyopavarṇyate || 338ab ||
anvayavyatirekābhyāṃ vyavahāro vibhajyate || 338cd ||338(ab). They describe it (the word dvāram) as a verb similar in form to a noun.
338(cd). Usage is regulated by the positive and the negative reasoning (anvaya and vyatireka).
Commentary
Now the Grammarian says:—
[Read verse 338ab above]
If that is so, how to account for the second case-ending in the word?
[Read verse 338cd above]
[The word dvāram is really a verb similar in form to a noun. Like other verbs, therefore, it also denotes action primarily. If one sees the second case-ending in it, it is only by analogy. In sentences like bhāṇḍaṃ pidhehi, dvāraṃ pidhehi where both noun and verb are present, one sees that the verb denotes action primarily and the noun denotes substance and takes a case-ending. Where only the noun is used but both action and substance are understood, the word takes a case-ending because it denotes substance also.
Here the Mīmāṃsaka asks a question: If the word dvāram denotes more than one thing, is not its expressive power thereby lost as there might be a doubt as to which meaning to take? The grammarian answers—
[Read next verse]