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 3.3.34
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.3.34:
啶呧え啶苦い啷嵿く啷囙し啶掂お啶� 啶ㄠた啶む啶い啷嵿さ啶き啶苦ぇ啷囙く啶距い啷嵿ぎ啶ㄠぞ 啶膏啶ムた啶むぎ啷� 啷� 啷┼オab 啷�
啶呧え啶苦い啷嵿く啶む啶掂 啶膏啶掂ざ啶曕啶むた啶班啶掂ぞ 啶膏ぞ 啶� 啶ㄠた啶む啶ぞ啶ㄠ啶� 啶た啶︵啶い啷� 啷� 啷┼オcd 啷�anitye峁api nityatvamabhidhey膩tman膩 sthitam || 34 ab ||
anityatva峁� sva艣aktirv膩 s膩 ca nity膩nna bhidyate || 34cd ||34(ab). Even in impermanent things, there is eternality in the form of being the expressed meaning of words.
34(cd). What is called impermanence is nothing more than the power which is not different from the eternal reality.
Commentary
It is now stated that the meaning of a word has eternality in the sense of continuity.
[Read verse 34(ab) above]
[From words, one understands always a meaning in which the form of something or other figures. That thing may or may not exist outside the mind but as the meaning expressed by a word, it is eternal. This eternality is continuity.]
It is now stated that it has eternality in the sense of unchangeability also (办奴峁璦蝉迟丑补苍颈迟测补迟腻).
[Read verse 34(cd) above]
[It is the power of Brahman, the ultimate reality, which causes things to appear as non-existent in the past or in the future. This power is not different from the Ultimate Reality. What is called impermanence or non-existence is only an appearance. Every word denotes this ultimate Reality through some limiting factor (耻辫腻诲丑颈) or other, as explained in the section on Substance. As every word ultimately denotes Brahman who is unchangeable (办奴峁璦蝉迟丑补苍颈迟测补), therefore, the relation between word and meaning is also unchangeable.]
It is now stated that, according to some, even meaningless words produce results.鈥擺Read next verse]