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 3.7.109
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.7.109:
भावष्वेव पदन्यासः प्रज्ञाया वाच एव वा ।
नास्तीत्यप्यपदे नास्ति न चासद्भिद्यते ततः ॥ १०९ ॥bhāvaṣveva padanyāsaḥ prajñāyā vāca eva vā |
nāstītyapyapade nāsti na cāsadbhidyate tataḥ || 109 ||109. Both cognition and the word are based on forms existing (in the mind). One does not say: ‘it does not exist’ without a basis and the non-existent does not really differ from the existent.
Commentary
The author now reaffirms his view that what is called the object (the meaning) is what the word conveys.
[Read verse 109 above]
[In this stanza, the view that the object (artha) is what the word conveys is emphasised. Both cognition and the word are based on whatever form is understood. In the expression ‘nāsti’ both the cognition and the word are based on some form or other. Thus they are not different from cognition and the word is based on what exists. In both cases, there is some form or other. There is, really speaking, no difference between bhāva and abhāva. Whether the thing in question exists outside or not is irrelevant. Thus whether the sprout has an external existence or not, the expression aṅkura jāyate is alright because there is some form which figures in the mind.]