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 2.86
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.86:
अस्य वाक्यान्तरे दृष्टाल्लिङ्गाद्भेदोऽनुमीयते ।
अयं शब्दादपोद्धृत्य पदार्थः प्रविभज्यते ॥ ८६ ॥asya vākyāntare dṛṣṭālliṅgādbhedo'numīyate |
ayaṃ śabdādapoddhṛtya padārthaḥ pravibhajyate || 86 ||86. That the distinction here is understood from indications found in another sentence while the meaning of the word there is obtained by analysis.
Commentary
[When one reads of aktāḥ śarkarāḥ=‘sugar mixed with fat’ in the Veda, one wants to know mixed with what fat. From the sentence: tejo vai ghṛtam=ghee is indeed splendour, one understands that the sugar is to be mixed with clarified butter (ghṛta). This is an instance of a distinction being understood from an indication found in another sentence. When one says: rājapuruṣaḥ, to ask ‘of which king’ and to get the answer ‘of king Śūdraka’ is an instance of analysing the meaning of a sentence.]