Universität Wien

140107 UE Panini on compound words. Selected passages from the Siddhantakaumudi and the Kasika (2019W)

5.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 14 - Orientalistik, Afrikanistik, Indologie und Tibetologie
Continuous assessment of course work
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 24 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Thursday 03.10. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 10.10. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 17.10. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 24.10. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 31.10. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 07.11. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 14.11. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 21.11. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 28.11. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 05.12. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 12.12. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 09.01. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 16.01. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 23.01. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34
  • Thursday 30.01. 10:00 - 11:30 Seminarraum 5 ISTB UniCampus Hof 4 2C-O1-34

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

The Sanskrit grammar of Pāṇini (ca. 4th century BCE), the Aṣṭādhyāyī (“The Eight Lessons”), has been studied and commented for more than two millennia, in India and beyond. It is arguably the most influential work throughout the history of Sanskrit language. In Sanskrit literature, regardless of their specific religious or philosophical inclination, authors consistently quoted Pāṇini as the ultimate authority on grammatical matters. The impact of the Pāṇinian approach has been felt in modern linguistics as well, for instance in Ferdinand de Saussure’s concept of “zero suffix” or in the mor-
phology of Leonard Bloomfield, who characterized the Aṣṭādhyāyī as “one of the greatest monuments of human intelligence”.

A crucial feature of Pāṇini’s grammar is his classification and syntactical analysis of compound words (samāstapada or samāsa). Knowledge of Pāṇini's taxonomy of compounds is a necessary asset to master Sanskrit language. This course is thus an introduction to this traditional classification of compounds in the original formulation by Pāṇini, through the explanation and exemplification found in the influential Kāśikāvṛtti of Vāmana and Jayāditya (8th c.) and Siddhāntakaumudī of Bhaṭṭoji Dīkṣita (16th c.).
Pāṇini lists four main types of samāsa:
• avyayībhāvaḥ
• tatpuruṣaḥ (with four main subtypes)
• dvandvaḥ (with two main subtypes)
• bahuvrīhiḥ (with two main subtypes)

We will study the definitions of these main types, learn how to express the syntactical function (vigrahaḥ) of their components, and look at their exemplifications. According to the available time, we will also study some exceptions and observe the practical application of compounds in poetry and philosophical prose.

Some preliminary queries:
• Was the Pāṇinian system of compounds originally intended as descriptive or prescriptive?
• The tradition interpreted it as a normative system. What are the areas where Sanskrit authors deviated from Pāṇini's rules?
• Is it legitimate to interpret tatpuruṣa compounds with the first term in any of endings, rather than exclusively in the sixth ending, the genitive (e.g. "tena puruṣaḥ" rather than "tasya puruṣaḥ")?
• Is the widely found practice of sāpekṣasamāsa -- a compound with the first term in a direct syntactical relation with words outside the compound itself -- a legitimate usage?

Aims:
• Learning the technical jargon of the Pāṇinian description of compounds.
• Recognizing the internal structure of compounds and learning how to express it in analytical Sanskrit phrases (vigraha).
• Developing a strategy to recognize the elements in complex compounds and compounds of compounds.
• Deepening skills in the logical analysis of Sanskrit language.
• Furthering knowledge of the main rules governing Sanskrit syntax.

Assessment and permitted materials

The assessment will be done on the basis of homework and activity during the lessons (50%) and of a final written test (50%)

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

The course will be taught in English and will be adapted to the skill level of the students. We will read several passages from the original Sanskrit, so basic Sanskrit knowledge and Devanāgarī reading skills are required. The course will be adapted to the skill level of the students. We will read selected passages from the Aṣṭādhyāyī, the Kāśikā, the Siddhāntakaumudī, as well as examples from variegated Sanskrit sources. During the course the students will be requested to prepare one or two presentations on a specific passage from secondary literature.

The students can expect improvements in the following areas:
• Grammatical analysis of complex Sanskrit passages
• Familiarity with the technical jargon used to describe compounds
• Deeper knowledge of Sanskrit syntax
• Exegesis of poetical and philosophical Sanskrit passages.
• Further clarity about the function of compound words in modern languages

Examination topics

• Selected aphorisms in Aṣṭādhyāyī 2.1–2, with the respective passages from the Kāśikā and the Siddhāntakaumudī.
• Tubb and Boose 2007 , pp. 85–145 (passim) and other related secondary literature.

Reading list

Abhyankar, Kashinath Vasudev and Jaydev Mohanlal Shukla (1986). A dictionary of Sanskrit grammar. 3 rd ed. (1 st 1961). Baroda: Oriental Institute.
Cardona, George (1976). Pāṇini, A Survey of Research. The Hague, Paris: Mouton.
Prahlad Giri, Svami, ed. (1985). Aṣṭādhyāyīsūtrapāṭha of Pāṇini. Varanasi: Kṛṣṇadāsa Academy.
Sastri, S. Chandrasekhara, ed. (2005). Siddhāntakaumudī of Srīmat Bhaṭṭojīdīkṣita, with "Bālamanoramā" commentary of Srīmat Vāsudevadīkṣita. Delhi: Parimal Publications.
Shobhitamishra, Pandit, ed. (1952). Kāśikā. Varanasi: Chaukhamba Sanskrit Pustakalaya.
Staal, Frits, ed. (1972). A Reader on the Sanskrit Grammarians. Cambridge, MA, and London: MIT Press.
Tubb, Gary and Boose, Emery R. (2007). Scholastic Sanskrit. New York: Columbia University
Vasu, Śriṣa Candra, ed. (1977). The Aṣṭādhyāyī of Pāṇini. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass.

Association in the course directory

MASK2, MATB3b (UE c)

Last modified: Mo 07.09.2020 15:20