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 3.8.13
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.8.13:
व्यवहारस्य सिद्धत्वान्न चेयं गुणकल्पना ।
उपचारो हि मुख्यस्य सम्भवादवतिष्ठते ॥ १३ ॥vyavahārasya siddhatvānna ceyaṃ guṇakalpanā |
upacāro hi mukhyasya sambhavādavatiṣṭhate || 13 ||13. As this is the only established usage in regard to action, this is not secondary usage. Where there is a distinct primary usage, there it is that another can be secondary (in relation to it).
Commentary
If the whole, with inner sequence and superimposed on the part, is action, the latter would become something secondary. This objection is answered as follows:
[Read verse 13 above]
[The word ‘cow’ primarily denotes a particular kind of animal. When it is applied to a human being having the qualities of a cow, it is said to be used secondarily. As far as action is concerned, the question is whether there is a primary conception of it as distinct from a secondary conception. No such distinction is possible because there is no conception of action in which the parts are contemporaneous and have no sequence. Everywhere, action is the result of the superimposition of sequence of non-contemporaneous parts. There is no other conception of action. That is why a single moment or part, with this sequence superimposed on it, becomes action.]
This sequence can be explained in another way.