The Comprehension of ‘Bhāva’ in P. 5.1.119 in Relation to the Taddhita (Secondary suffix) ‘-tva,-tā’ in Sanskrit Word Formation: The Function as Pravṛtti-nimitta

초록

This paper examines how a careful analysis of Sanskrit grammar rules can shift our perspective on translations that have been taken for granted. Specifically, this paper focuses on the well-known Sanskrit secondary suffixes (taddhita) ‘-tva,-tā,’ which are used in examples such as ‘śūnya-tā/-tvam,’ ‘brahma-tvam/-tā,’ ‘buddha-tvam/-tā,’ ‘dharma-tvam/-tā,’ and ‘deva-tvam/-tā.’ These suffixes are conventionally translated as ‘-ness,’ ‘-hood,’ or ‘-nature.’ Of course, these translations are not entirely wrong. However, it is doubtful whether the original (or correct) understanding is possible if we aim to understand the derivatives of these affixes with our own linguistic sense of ‘-ness,’ ‘-hood,’ and ‘-nature.’ Cross-linguistic translation and comprehension are challenging, especially for ancient languages such as Sanskrit and Chinese, which have grammatical systems vastly different from ours. Pāṇini defined the use of these suffixes in his grammatical rule (P. 5.1.119) in the Aṣṭādhyāyī as ‘tasya bhāvas tva-talau’ (‘-tva or-tā are used to indicate the bhāva of a word’). Therefore, I consider the meaning of bhāva, which is the application condition for these suffixes, in this paper. Through this, it is clarified that this word (bhava), which is generally understood to mean ‘completed action,’ functions as a basis for using words (pravṛtti-nimitta) in the context considered in this paper. Furthermore, according to the Indian tradition of grammar, the grounds for using words for a substance (dravya) are classified into three (jāti, guṇa, kriyā) or four (jāti, guṇa, kriyā, yadṛcchā). Thus, in relation to the use of ‘-tva,-tā’—that is, in the application of the base (語基, prakṛti)— these various grounds for using words should be considered. Finally, it is argued that discussions regarding the rationale for using certain words should focus on the question of why the word was used (nimitta), not on establishing its meaning (artha). © 2022, Korean Association of Buddhist Studies. All rights reserved.

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