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 2.426-427
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 2.426-427:
आख्यातपदवाच्येऽर्थे साधनोपनिबन्धने ।
विना सत्तवाभिधानेन नाकाङ्क्षा विनिवर्तते ॥ ४२६ ॥
प्राधान्यात्तु क्रिया पूर्वमर्थस्य प्रविभज्यते ।
साध्यप्रयुक्तान्यङ्गनि फलं तस्याः प्रयोजकम् ॥ ४२७ ॥ākhyātapadavācye'rthe sādhanopanibandhane |
vinā sattavābhidhānena nākāṅkṣā vinivartate || 426 ||
prādhānyāttu kriyā pūrvamarthasya pravibhajyate |
sādhyaprayuktānyaṅgani phalaṃ tasyāḥ prayojakam || 427 ||426. The requirement (that is, rhe incompleteness) which is felt in the meaning expressed by the verb which depends upon an accessory is not removed unless the thing which can be the accessory is also mentioned.
427. It is the action which is first analysed from the meaning (of the sentence) because it is the main thing. The accessories are employed for the sake of the action to be accomplished. As for the action, it is the result aimed at that sets it in motion.
Commentary
[If the action requires the accessories and if the accessories require the action, there is equality in dependence. Why should the dependence of the nouns expressive of the accessories be emphasised? yāvatāyathaiva nāmnāṃ kriyāpadam ākāṅkṣāṃ vicchinatti tathaivākhyātānāmapi vinā sattvābhidhānapadenākāṅkṣā na vicchidyate, asks the Vṛtti and answers as follows—Sādhyastv arthātmā svaphalaprayuktaḥ prādhānyāt sarvasya vākyopasaṅgrahārthasya pūrvaṃ pravibhajyate = The process or action, set in motion by the result to be attained is the most important element and it is, therefore, analysed out of the sentence-meaning first. Once that is obtained by analysis, the accessories on which depends its coming into being, are automatically understood.
Tena tu pravibhakte (na) sādhanapralabhyatvād ātmalābhasya sāmarthyākṣiptāni sādhanāni pratīyante. This is not the case with the accessories which are all already there (siddha) and are set in motion by the process (sādhya prayukteṣu—Na tu sādhaneṣu siddhatvāt sādhyaprayukteṣv etat sambhavati.]
It is now stated that all this conception of process and accessory and their mutual relation is artificial and relative and not real.