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 2.142
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.142:
असमाख्येयतत्त्वानामर्थानां लौकिकैर्यथा ।
व्यवहारे समाख्यानं तत्प्राज्ञो न विकल्पयेत् ॥ १४२ ॥asamākhyeyatattvānāmarthānāṃ laukikairyathā |
vyavahāre samākhyānaṃ tatprājño na vikalpayet || 142 ||142. In regard to objects which are difficult to define, the wise man should not deviate from the definitions of them adopted by men of the world in their usage.
Commentary
[According to Puṇyarāja, what is emphasised here is that the indefinability of worldly objects being understood, it is better to follow in practical life the worldly conception of them. To try to have another worldly conception of them would be useless repetition (piṣṭapeṣaṇa) of work already done.]
The author now continues his statement on pratibhā.