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 3.3.61
Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 3.3.61:
啶ㄠぞ啶ぞ啶掂 啶溹ぞ啶い啷� 啶ぞ啶掂 啶ㄠ啶むた 啶ぞ啶掂啶洁え啷佮お啶距啷嵿く啶むぞ啶 啷�
啶忇啶膏啶ぞ啶︵ぞ啶む啶え啷嬥そ啶ㄠえ啷嵿く啷� 啶ぞ啶掂ぞ啶ぞ啶掂 啶掂た啶曕げ啷嵿お啶苦い啷� 啷� 啷ェ 啷�n膩bh膩vo j膩yate bh膩vo naiti bh膩vo'nup膩khyat膩m |
ekasm膩d膩tmano'nanyau bh膩v膩产丑腻惫补u vikalpitau || 61 ||61. It is not non-existence that is transformed into existence nor existence which becomes non-existence. Existence and non-existence are two appearances (vikalpita) and are not different from the one Self.
Commentary
[According to dualists, existence comes into being after having destroyed non-existence and non-existence comes into being after having suppressed existence. This position is untenable, because existence and non-existence can merge into each other. If they were totally different from each other, one cannot be cognised in terms of the other. The fact is that the Self, the only Reality, manifests itself now as 产丑腻惫补 and now as a产丑腻惫补 which are thus two limiting factors of one reality. This only reality is in the nature of light and always remains so. When, through nescience, it manifests itself as the external object, is associated with the present time and has causal efficiency, it is said to be a positive entity (产丑腻惫补). When it is associated with past and future time, it is in the form of a residual trace only and then it is said to be a negative entity (a产丑腻惫补). But it is not absolute non-being because it is remembered if it is associated with past time and imagined if it is associated with future time. In this condition, it is not perceptible to the senses. There is no non-existence which has not even got the form of residual trace (蝉补峁僺办腻谤补) and is devoid of all powers. Things are either present and can be perceived by the senses or they are past or yet to come and are, therefore, remembered or imagined. That is why things are said to be 迟谤补颈测测补诲丑惫颈办腻岣�, that is, belonging to three paths, the present, past and future. Thus absolute non-existence does not exist.]
The untenability of the relation of causality is now stated.