Nighantu (critical study)
by Gopalakrishna N. Bhat | 1985 | 71,168 words
This is an English study of the Nighantu and its commentary called the Nirukta by Yaska. The Nighantu is an ancient Sanskrit lexicon dealing with the words of the Vedic language. This essay presents a detailed analysis of the extant five chapters of this text and examines it's authorship, tracing meanings of words through Vedic texts by providing a...
Part 2 - Apatyanamani (Apatya Nama)
The following fifteen words are listed as synonyms of 'off-spring. '1 275 (Synonyms of off-spring follow those of action, because procreation is the most important of all actions" 30 Durga). 1. Tuk: The word is not used independently. It is used with the prefix su in seven places with its other forms. Only 1 in three places it is used in the sense assigned. In rest of 2 F the places it is used as sugama or sobhanabala. 2. Tokam: The word with its forms occurs in sixty three places. 3 Sayana interpretes it in the sense assigned i.e. 'putra ' and derives the word in RV. (IV.1.33). Yaska derives the word from the root tud (to push) (Niru.10.7). 3. Tanayah: The word with its other forms occurs in seventy two places. It is used in the sense assigned. In forty two 1. 1- tu . 2 tokam 3. taneyah 4. tokme 5 2. 3. 1. 8. gayah 9. jah, 10. apatyam || yadduh i 14. puja 15. bijam vijam � takme 6. sesah 7. apaneh 12. sunuh 13. napat r . 1.149.5. sutakah sobhanaputrah | � 7.18.9. sutakan sutokan | " tuk tokam " iyapanyanamasu pathan | tukiganyarthah | sugamah | #.10.42.5, 1 .10.3.7. r. 4. 1.3. tokaya | tujyate pidayate anena mata garbhavasena iti tokam putrah | 1
276 places the word is used in the sense of pautra (grand child), ** especially where the two words toka and tanaya consequtively occur. In some places Sayana explains the first word as 4 5 apatya samanya vacana. He also derives the word. Yaska in his Nirukta (10.7) derives tanayam (son) from the verb tan (to spread). The word is also used in the sense of dhana (wealth) and (yagadinam karmanam) tanitaram respectively. (1.112.22; X.39.14). 4. Tokma: The word occurs only in one place in the sense of off-spring. It is used figuratively.6 5. Takma: The word does not occur in the RV (Takman occurs in the AV and means fever). 6. Sesah: The word occurs with its form Sesasa in eight places. It is used in the sense assigned except in one place where it is used in the sense of body. Sayana interpretes 40 '5. 6. 7. 7 � 1.189.2. tokaya tanayaya | apanyaya putraya | tokasabdo apatyasamanya vacanah | tanayasabdah putra vacanah | r . 9.91.6. tanayani tanvanti kulamiti tanayah pautrah | r . 8. 23.12. tike putre tanaye | tanoti vistaramati putramiti tanayah pautrah | r . 10.62.8. tokamaiva | yatha jalaklinnam bijam pradurbhavati evam karmaphala Ayon: # 47: garfafa: Jeg | r. 10165. sesah sisyamanamasthilaksanam yajaniyam sariram |
sesa quoting the Nirukta ( 32 ) . 8 277 7. Apnah: The word occurs with its forms in twelve places. The word is not used in the sense assigned. It is used in (For details refer supra to Nigh.2.1.2). the sense of action. 8. Gayah: The word occurs in twenty three places. It The word is used in the is not used in the sense assigned. sense of home and wealth each in eleven places. The word is listed in grha and dhana-namani respectively (Nigh. 3.4.1; 2.10.12). Sayana explains the word giving both the meanings. The word is interpreted as the name of a rsi called Gaya in three places (i.e. X.63.17; 64; 16; 17). 9 "" 9. Jah: The word occurs in four places and in' three other places it is compounded with the word pati. The word is not used in the sense assigned, but in I.185.8 jah pati is explained as 'son-in-law (jamataram) as he is the husband of his danghter (jah-putryah) â€� In IX 71.9 sayana explains the word as jatah 8. 9. r. 1.93.4. sesah apatyam | sesah apatyanama sisyateprayatah " hai niru . 3.2.8 iti yaskah | r- 10.3. gayam | gamyate nivasayeti gayam grham | | giyate suyat iti va gayam dhanam | | 2 °ù॰| .91.19. gayasphanah | gayasya grhasya dhanasya va vardhayita | gaya iti grha dhanasya ca namadheyam tesam sphayita vardhayita |
> 278 prajah and he says (prajanamaitat). But there is no such group in the Nighantu. He derives the word in RV I.143.8. - 10 10. Apatyam: This word with its forms occurs in nine places. It is used in the sense assigned except in one place (IX.10.8), where it is explained as (IX.10.8 amsum (Somasya), sayana explains the word as 'kulasya apatayitaran putram,' in the places where it is used in the sense of a son. (I.174.6; 179.6 etc.). nian · The author of the Nighantu should have listed the word at the top of the list, as he calls the synonyms of 'offsprings' as 'apatyanamani In 11. Yahu (Jahuh): The word is used in seven places. six places it is used in the sense assigned (e.g. VIII.60.13. VII.15.11). In RV VIII.4.5, he interpretes yaho which is addressed to Indra, as mahat and says, "mahannamaitat". The form yahvah is listed as mahannama in the Nighantu (3.3.13). � 10. rh 143.8. jah | jayamanah asmabhirdipyamana san | yadva | | | uparyuparijayante iti jah | asmatsambandhinih putrapautradirupah prajah | zou
1 279 12. Sunuh: The word occurs in sixty six places. In all W the places the word is used in the sense assigned. In some places the word is used to mean agni, Indra, Maruts etc. ' i Sayana explains in those contexts as balasya putra - "agnirhi balena mathyamanah jayate" (VI.5.1). But in I.189.8 he explains it as mantrena utpadyamanah agnih. In I.103.4 he explains the word as Satrunam preravita Indrah. He explains the form sunavah as marutah for, they produce the speech in mouth. (1.37.10). 11 13. Napat: The word occurs with its forms in sixty six places. It is used in the sense assigned (off-spring). It is significant to note that the word is not used to mean the used in the rks which belong to the worldly son, but it is e god called Apamnapat. the word apam is used. In many places prior to the word napat, 12 sayana explains them in detail. He ' is also called vaidyutagni (II.35.3), 14. Prajah: The word occurs in fiftynine places. In twenty four places the word is used in the sense of either putra or pautra. In ten places it is used in general as 11. 12. #.1.37.10. FR: HAM: 1 9 TU 374166 ARA: | atuat fe armatcorlag a a eat atayrutaufaa | 7.1.42.1. 7977 | Gofautamentagev ga: 1 napat | jalavimocaka napata iti putranama | "napat praja " nigha . 2.2013. 5. 8
280 prajah or manusya. In VII,33,7 Sayana explains the form tisro prajah as Agni-Vayu-Suryah. Prajam is interpreted as prakarsena jatan Indram in five places (e.g. VIII.6.2), In 1.67.5 it is explained as prakarsena utpannah puspaphaladi laksanah. 15. Vijam: This word does not occur in any of the Vedas. (But bljam occurs in four places. In X.85.37 sayana explains it as retolaksanam and in 101.3 it is interpreted as gramyamaranyam tiladikam). The above discussion may be summarised in a tabular form: Word No. of times used in RV. No. of times used in the sense assigned 3 3. Tuk 7. 2. Tokam 63 63 3. Tanayah 72 72 4. Tokma 1 1 5. Takma iti tanvamasu pathat | meghaputro bhavati | 1 meghasya jaladharitvadudakaputra eva � 8.84.40 he urja napat | namadityapatyanama | annasya putrah | havirbhirvardhamanatvat | yadva napat iti napta | havilaksanasyannasya naptah | agnau prastahutih samyagadityamupanisthate | adityajjayate vrstih * | gadefaum atquiry: aftafecumden DAPAT 1
Word No. of times used in RV. No. of times used in the sense assigned 6. Sesah 8 7 7. Apnah 12 8. Gayah 23 9. Jan 7 1 10. Apatyam 9 8 11. Yahuh 7 6 I 12. Sunuh 66 66 13. Napat 66 66 14. Prajah 59 24 15. Vijam 1 281 To conclude, two words do not occur in the Vedas, and two words which are used do not give the sense assigned according to Sayana's interpretation. Out of fifteen words listed, only five words are used more than twenty five times. E