Part 1 - Derivation of the word Sphoṭa

All the Vaiyākaraṇas have accepted that there is an entity called sphoṭa and it is the origin of all śabdas, and therefore, they are called Sphoṭavādins. For the Vaiyākaraṇas, a word or sentence when taken as an indivisible meaning-unit is the sphoṭa. The technical term sphoṭa is difficult to be translated into English, sometimes the word “symbol” is used for sphoṭa in the sense of its function as a linguistic sign.

According to Gaurināth Śāstri the original Greek conception of logos best conveys the meaning of sphoṭa:

“The fact that logos stands for an idea as well as a word wonderfully approximates to the concept of sphoṭa.”^[1]

The term sphoṭa is etymologically derived from the Sanskrit root sphuṭ, which means ‘to burst forth’ and it is defined in two ways. In its linguistic sense, it is normally defined as that from which the meaning bursts forth, i.e. shines forth; in other words, it is the word as expressing a meaning (vācaka). Secondly, it is defined as an entity which is manifested by the letters. As a matter of fact, sphoṭa is an inner and real word entity which is burst forth or brought to light by the sounds after utterance.^[2]

V. S. Apte, in his Sanskrit-English Dictionary, defines sphoṭa as:

(i) breaking forth, bursting or disclosure; and
(ii) the idea which bursts out or flashes on the mind when a sound is uttered.^[3]

Nāgeśa Bhaṭṭa in his sphoṭavāda, describes sphoṭa, as that from which the meaning bursts or shines forth. In other words, the word that expresses a meaning or the process of expressing a meaning through a word is called sphoṭa.^[4] Sphoṭa, according to Mādhava, is that which is manifested or revealed by the phonemes.^[5]

The sphoṭa is an indivisible unity. It may thus be thought of as a kind of two-sided coin. On the one hand, it is manifested by the word-sound which is perceived by our sense-organs and on the other side, it simultaneously reveals the word-meaning which inherently resides in all beings. When a person wants to communicate an idea or word-meaning, he begins with the sphoṭa which has been inherently existing in his mind as a unity. When he utters it and produces different sounds in sequence by the moments of his articulatory organs, it appears to have differentiation. But the listener, as he hears the sound sequence, ultimately perceives it as a unity (sphoṭa), and only then is the word-meaning, which is also inherently present in the listener’s mind, identified or revealed. In a more philosophic sense, sphoṭa may be described as an excellent ground in which the spoken syllables and conveyed meaning find themselves united as word (śabda).

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

The Philosophy of Word and Meaning , pp. 102-103

[2]:

prayatnabhedato bhinnā dhvanayo’sya prakāśakāḥ / Sphoṭasiddhi , Kārikā 18

[3]:

The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary , p. 1013

[4]:

sphuṭati prakāśate’rtho’smād iti sphoṭaḥ / Sphoṭavāda , p.5

[5]:

sphuṭyate vyājyate varṇairiti sphoṭaḥ / Sarvadarśana-saṃgraha , p. 300