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 3.3.35
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.3.35:
शब्देनार्थस्थ संस्कारो दृष्टादृष्टप्रयोजनः ।
क्रियते सोऽभिसंबन्धमन्तरेण कथं भवेत् ॥ ३५ ॥śabdenārthastha saṃskāro dṛṣṭādṛṣṭaprayojanaḥ |
kriyate so'bhisaṃbandhamantareṇa kathaṃ bhavet || 35 ||35. (Even meaningless) words have an influence over objects leading to visible or invisible results. How is that possible unless there was a (natural) relation (between these words and the results)?
Commentary
It is now stated that, according to some, even meaningless words produce results.
[Read verse 35 above]
[Some people maintain that another proof that there is a natural relation between word and meaning is that words uttered by Śabaras, even though meaningless, cure cases of poisoning. Similarly, magical syllables (bījākṣara) known in the different sects (though meaningless) produce invisible results. All this shows that between words and things, there is a natural relation.]
But this is not right.