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 3.3.5
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.3.5:
उपकारात्स यत्रास्ति धर्मस्तत्रानुगम्यते ।
शक्तीनामपि सा शक्तिर्गुणानामप्यसौ गुणः ॥ ५ ॥upakārātsa yatrāsti dharmastatrānugamyate |
śaktīnāmapi sā śaktirguṇānāmapyasau guṇaḥ || 5 ||5. Where there is service rendered, there an attribute (that is, relation) is understood. It is the power of powers, it is the attribute of attributes.
Commentary
[Where one thing renders service to another, one can infer a relation between the two. Two unrelated things cannot render service to each other. Relation is not the same as power or capacity, because it is the former which regulates the production of a particular effect by power or capacity. Power resides in a particular thing and it is relation which regulates it. That qualities reside in substances is regulated by relation.]
The author now says why relation is being spoken of, considering that others have already spoken about relations such as conjunction and inherence.