Vakyapadiya (study of the concept of Sentence)
by Sarath P. Nath | 2018 | 36,088 words
This page relates 鈥楽entence According to Other Schools鈥� of the study on Vakyapadiya by Bhartrhari and his treatment of the Concept of Sentence in Language. Bhartrhari was a great grammarian and philosopher who explored the depth and breadth of Sanskrit grammar. These pages analyse the concepts and discussions on sentence and sentence-meaning presented in the Vakyapadiya, against the different systems of knowledge prevalent in ancient India (such as Mimamsa, Nyaya and Vyakarana).
3.4. Sentence According to Other Schools
The subdivisions of the School of 痴别诲腻苍迟补 viz. Advaita, 痴颈艣颈峁ａ弓腻诲惫补颈迟补 and Dvaita Schools also deny the eternity of 艣补产诲补, advocated by 叠丑补谤迟峁沨补谤颈 and the concept of 蝉辫丑辞峁璦. Though any of these schools do not emphasise the concept of language and language analysis in the technical discussions, some glimpses can be found in several works of these schools. Advatins admit that, letters, the objects of recollection, which results from the latent impressions born out of each letter, is the word or sentence. 艢补峁卥补谤补 states that the letters generate the notion of a word thanks to their definite sequence (Under 1.3.28). This school also admit the necessity of syntactic expectancy etc. of words in a sentence. The 痴颈艣颈峁ａ弓腻诲惫补颈迟颈苍蝉 as well as Dvaitins also accept the same view as of 艢补峁卥补谤补. According to them, letters constitute a word and the words constitute a sentence (Tatacharya, Introduction, 2005, p.xxx)
The 厂腻峁卥丑测补 system, like the 狈补颈测腻测颈办补蝉, views sentence as the group of words and a word as the group of phonemes.
The followers of this school reject the 蝉辫丑辞峁璦 theory of the grammarians:
"prat墨tyaprat墨tibhy膩m na spho峁乼maka岣� 艣补产诲补岣�",
鈥�(厂腻峁卥丑测补s奴tra, 5.57)
And the theory of eternity of letters, advocated by the 惭墨尘腻峁僺补办补蝉:
"na 艣补产诲补nityatvam k膩ryat膩prat墨te岣�",
鈥�(厂腻峁卥丑测补s奴tra, 5.58).
In the Yoga system, the nature of sentence is explained in the aphorism:
"艣补产诲腻谤迟丑补辫谤补迟测补测腻苍腻尘颈迟补谤别迟补谤腻诲丑测腻蝉腻迟 蝉补峁卥补谤补岣� tatpravibh膩gasamyam膩t sarvabh奴tarutaj帽膩nam"
鈥�(Yogas奴tras 3.17).
According to this aphorism, the letters are uttered in a particular order and they become the content of a single cognition and thus constitute a single unit, word. Though the word is manifested by the final letter along with the latent impressions of previous letters, it does not have any reference to the sequence of letters. Thus the Yoga School accepts the nature of sentence similar to that of Grammarians (Tatacharya, Introduction, 2005, p.xxxiii).