Text 7.15

रूढि-प्रयोजनान्यतर-शून्यं लाक्षणिकं नेयार्थम्। तवाब्जे दृक् पदाघातं दत्ते तन् मलिनं ततः। अत्र पदाघातेन निर्जितत्वं लक्ष्यम्। न चात्र लक्षणा सम्भवति, “लक्षणा सा न कर्तव्या कष्टेनार्थागमो यतः, न यत्र शक्य-सम्बन्धो न रुढिर् न प्रयोजनम्” इत्य्-उक्तेः।

rūḍhi-prayojanānyatara-śūnyaṃ lākṣaṇikaṃ neyārtham. tavābje dṛk padāghātaṃ datte tan malinaṃ tataḥ. atra padāghātena nirjitatvaṃ lakṣyam. na cātra lakṣaṇā sambhavati, “lakṣaṇā sā na kartavyā kaṣṭenārthāgamo yataḥ, na yatra śakya-sambandho na ruḍhir na prayojanam” ity-ukteḥ.

(13) The fault called neyārtha (the meaning can only be guessed) is a figurative meaning devoid of either a conventional sense or a purpose (an implied sense). For instance: “Your eye gives a dirty kick to a lotus because of that.” In this example, being defeated by a kick is the indirect meaning, yet Indication is not possible here because of this text:

lakṣaṇā sā na kartavyā kaṣṭenārthāgamo yataḥ |
na yatra śakya-sambandho na rūḍhir na prayojanam ||

“Figurative usage should not be used when its meaning is understood with difficulty, when there is no connection with the literal meaning, when there is no conventional meaning, or when there is no purpose” (Alaṅkāra-kaustubha 10.23).

Commentary:

The fault called neyārtha is a variation of asamartha (unable to be meaningful) (7.51 vṛtti).

This is Viśvanātha Kavirāja’s example:

kamale caraṇāghātaṃ mukhaṃ sumukhi te’karot. atra caraṇāghātena nirjitatvaṃ lakṣyam,

““Beautiful girl, your face kicks a lotus.” In this example, being defeated by a kick is the indirect meaning” (Sāhitya-darpaṇa 7.4).

Mammaṭa expounds neyārtha as follows:

neyārthaṃ “nirūḍhā lakṣaṇāḥ kāścit sāmarthyādabhidhāna-vat, kriyante sāmprataṃ kāścit kāścin naiva tv aśaktitaḥ” iti yan niṣiddhaṃ lākṣaṇikam. yathā śarat-kāla-samullāsi-pūrṇimā-śarvarī-priyam, karoti te mukhaṃ tanvi capeṭāpātanātithim. atra capeṭāpātanena nirjitatvaṃ lakṣyate.

“Neyārtha is a forbidden indirect meaning, in light of this text: “Sometimes Indication is conventional: It resembles Denotation because of the suitability (the well-known usage^[1]). Sometimes Indication is done on a specific occasion (this is purposeful figurative usage). But sometimes it is inadmissible because it has no power (neyārtha is categorized by this third kind)” (Tantra-vārttika). For example: “Slender girl, your face makes the full moon of autumn the recipient of a slap.” Here, being defeated is indirectly meant by being given a slap” (Kāvya-prakāśa, verse 157 vṛtti).

The only problem with these examples of neyārtha is the lack of poetic expression. The figurative usage is purposeful: The purpose is to imply the vyatireka ornament (contrast). In the other examples of neyārtha (7.35) (7.51), only farfetchedness, not figurative usage, is the issue. An instance of neyārtha in one word is: jyotiś caraṇābhidhānāt, “The word jyotiḥ [in Chāndogya Upaniṣad 3.13.7 denotes Brahman and not material light,] because of the mention of feet [in Chāndogya Upaniṣad 3.12.6]” (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.24). Here Vyāsa uses the word caraṇa (feet) as a synonym of pāda, although in this context the word pāda only means “one quarter”.^[2]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Nāgeśa Bhaṭṭa explains sāmarthya (suitability) as prasiddhi (renown) (Uddyota).

[2]:

pādā raśmy-aṅghri-turyāṃśāḥ, “Pāda means a ray, a foot, and a quarter” (Amara-koṣa 3.3.89).