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 3.6.16
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.6.16:
यतः प्रकल्पते भेदो भेदस्तत्रापि दृश्यते ।
अदृष्टोपरतिं भेदमतो युक्ततरं विदुः ॥ १६ ॥yataḥ prakalpate bhedo bhedastatrāpi dṛśyate |
adṛṣṭoparatiṃ bhedamato yuktataraṃ viduḥ || 16 ||16. That by which a division is made is also susceptible of division. And a division which has no end has been said to be improper.
Commentary
Remark. The last pāda of this verse, printed ‘ato yuktataraṃ viduḥ’ should really read as ‘ato'yuktataraṃ viduḥ’. There is elision of the initial ‘a’ of ‘ayuktataram’.
[No division artificially made through an external factor is part of the nature of a thing. An artificially made part can also be artificially divided into further parts, until one reaches the atom. Even there, one can imagine parts on the basis of Dik. Unless Dik itself has parts, it cannot cause parts in other things. Divisions in Dik are based on association with the Sun. Association with the Sun is based on differences in the regions of Mount Meru and that also on something else. There would be no end to this process. Division which does not come to an end is unacceptable. Thus things are indivisible in themselves and they are divided on the basis of limiting external factors. All divisions have, therefore, only a relative reality.]