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 3.14.255
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.14.255:
啶曕啶班た啶ぞ啶ぞ啶� 啶膏ぞ啶оえ啶距ぇ啶距ぐ啶膏ぞ啶ぞ啶ㄠ啶 啶ㄠ啷� 啶掂啶さ啶膏啶ムた啶む 啷�
啶むい啷� 啶掂た啶多た啶粪啶熰啶班ぞ啶оぞ啶班啶班啶啶溹啶い啷� 啶啶班ぞ啶灌啶ぃ啶距う啶苦き啶苦 啷� 啷ㄠカ啷� 啷�kriy膩y膩岣� s膩dhan膩dh膩ras膩m膩nye 苍补帽 vyavasthita岣� |
tato vi艣i峁ａ弓air膩dh膩rairyujyate br膩hma峁嚹乨ibhi岣� || 255 ||255. The negative particle relates to (that is, expresses) the negation of the substratum in general of the action(of existence). Therefore it is connected with particular substrata like 产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺.
Commentary
How, according to the view that the negative particle denotes non-existence in general, there is no need to postulate another existence and it can be connected with 办峁泃惫腻 etc., is now going to be explained.
[Read verse 255 above]
[As the negative particle is here thought of as expressive of non-existence, the action in question here is that of existence. The negation which is the meaning of the particle is the negation of existence. Being intransitive, its accessory is the power of the agent. This power must have a substratum before it can become the agent. So a substratum in general is understood. The negative particle is expressive of that. What is meant is this: In a compound, the negative particle is expressive of the substratum in general, coloured by non-existence, of the action of existence. So the meaning of 苍补帽 amounts to 苍腻蝉迟颈 = 鈥榠t does not exist.鈥� What particular substratum does not exist is made known by the word with which the particle is connected. Thus in a compound like a产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺, the negative particle conveys the non-existence of the substratum in general of the action of nonexistence and the word 产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺 conveys the particular substratum. The meanings of the two constituents of the compound stand in the relation of qualifier and qualified towards each other. The non-existent in general is combined with a particular non- existent. Of the two meanings combined, which is the qualifier and which the qualified is a matter of the speaker鈥檚 intention. When the idea of non-existence is the qualified and that of 产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺 the qualifier, the former element, that is, the negative particle becomes the dominant one and there results 辫奴谤惫补辫补诲腻谤迟丑补辫谤腻诲丑腻苍测补. If the compound means asan 产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺岣�, the meaning of the second constituent is the qualified and that of the former the qualifier and so 耻迟迟补谤补辫补诲腻谤迟丑补辫谤腻诲丑腻苍测补 results. In both of these, the meaning of the compound is confined to those of the constituent words. But if the meanings of the constituent words refer to the meaning of an outside word, that is one in whom the fact of being a 产谤腻丑尘补峁嘺 is non-existent, somebody like a 办峁迟迟谤颈测补, then 补苍测补辫补诲腻谤迟丑补辫谤腻诲丑腻苍测补 results. In this way, the three views are possible in the case of 补辫腻肠补办补 also. As the particle stands for negation of existence in general, we can have forms like a办峁泃惫腻, akartum where the root 鈭�办峁� stands for a particular action in which existence (蝉补迟迟腻) inheres. Thus, by adopting the view that 苍补帽 is expressive (惫腻肠补办补) of nonexistence in general, everything can be explained.]
How the negative particle which is indicative in a sentence becomes expressive in a compound is now explained by means of an analogy.