Essay name: Nighantu (critical study)
Author:
Gopalakrishna N. Bhat
Affiliation: Karnatak University / Department of Sanskrit
This is an English study of the Nighantu and its commentary called the Nirukta by Yaska. The Nighantu is an ancient Sanskrit lexicon dealing with the words of the Vedic language. This essay presents a detailed analysis of the extant five chapters of this text and examines it's authorship, tracing meanings of words through Vedic texts by providing a comparative study involving Sayana's interpretations and connections with other texts like Amarakosa.
Preface
1 (of 5)
External source: Shodhganga (Repository of Indian theses)
Download the PDF file of the original publication
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PREFACE
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The oldest extant lexical work in Sanskrit is the
Vedic Nighantu, which has been commented on by Yaska in
his Nirukta. A passage in the Nirukta (1.20) indicates
the process of advancement of Vedic lore in ancient days.
Y膩ska says that seers who had direct vision of reality,
initiated through oral instruction the later persons who
themselves did not possess direct vision in the secrets
of mantras. The later generations declining in the power
of comprehension, compiled this work, (i.e. the Nighantu)
the Vedas and Ved盲ngas for the sake of understanding.
* As with the passage of time, the Vedic language
became more and more difficult to understand, Vedic schools
prepared several lists of select words (Nighantavas)
(Niru.7.13). Many scholars wrote commentaries on these
Nighantus. They are called Niruktas. According to Durga,
(Niru.1.13) there were fourteen Nirukta texts. The Nirukta
which has come down to us is of Yaska.
The extant Nighantu consists of five chapters, the
first three of which are called Naighantuka-kanda, the
fourth chapter is known as Naigama-kanda and the last
chapter is called Daivata-kanda according to Y膩ska.
