Process and Language: A Study of the Mahabhasya ad A1.3.1 bhuvadayo dhatavah.

• Author: Deshpande, Madhav M.
• Position: Book review

Process and Language: A Study of the Mahabhasya ad A1.3.1 bhuvadayo dhatavah. By HIDEYO OGAWA. Delhi: MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS, 2005. Pp. xx + 375. Rs. 695.

The work under review is a model for an in-depth study of the theories of the meaning of a verbal root as propounded by the noted Sanskrit grammarians Panini, Katyayana, and Patahjali. Patanjali's Mahabhasya on Panini's rule 1.3.1 (bhuvadayo dhatavah) discusses definitional, practical, and philosophical issues raised by the notion of a verbal root (dhatu). Already before Patanjali, Katyayana's Varttikas indicate that this rule and the notion of a verbal root had become a subject of debates and disputes, and one sees reflections of some of these debates also in Yaska's Nirukta. Ogawa's book presents a detailed account of these early debates and disputes, mostly as seen in Patanjali's Mahabhasya, but also as seen in Bhartrhari's work. Among the important topics covered in this book, one may note the various alternative definitions proposed for the notion of a verbal root, namely a list-based definition as seen in P. 1.3.1, a kriya-based definition, and a bhava-based definition. The discussion of the last two definitions leads Ogawa to consider the notions of kriya 'action' and bhdva 'state of being' in some detail. If a root is defined as a signifier of kriya, then how does one deal with roots like bhu and as, that seem to denote a state? If a root is defined as a signifier of bhava, then how does one deal with roots like kr that denote a kriya? These questions are discussed in some detail. Ogawa then treats the specific interpretations of Panini that are developed in the Mahubhasya to deal with some of these issues. Patanjali argues that even the root as 'to be' denotes a kriya. Secondly, while historically Panini's rule 1.3.1 (bhuvadayo dhatavah) provides a definition of a verbal root by simply referring to the list of roots (dhatupatha), Patanjali interprets this to be a semantic definition by using bhu and va as examples of roots signifying different kinds of kriya. Ogawa discusses all these arguments in detail, referring to traditional commentators, as well as to the interpretations of...