A small question

[Jaldhar H. Vyas]

On Thu, 9 Mar 2000, elmec wrote:

> Hari Om,
>
> I found out that there is a particular rule which governs the words in
> which ha-kaara is followed by na,Na and ma.
>
> The sutra is   " hakaaraannaNama paraannaasikyam "
>
> which is stated in the yajurveda shiksha valli where the rules of
> pronunciation of sanskrit words are given.
>
> The rule states that whenever 'ha' kaara is followed by 'na', 'Na' or
> 'ma', the anunaasika has to be pronounced first followed by the
> pronunciation of 'ha' kaara.
> like in the word 'brahma' it has to be pronounced as 'bramha' and not as
> 'brahma', in the word ' maadhyaahnika ' it is pronounced as '
> maadhyaanhika ', ' subrahmanya ' should be pronounced as ' subramhanya '
> etc.
>

Aha that explains everything.  The language of the Vedas is not strictly
speaking Sanskrit.  Panini took the language of the various Vedic shakhas
along with the refined usage of the day and combined it along with his own
linguistic observations under the guidance of Shiva Bhagawan (from whose
damaru the samjna sutras which are foundation of vyakarana are said to
have flowed.)  This "polished" (sanskrit) language is thus in a sense
artificial and doesn't precisely match any of the "natural" (prakrit)
languages.   There are other vyakarana shastras but they all were eclipsed
by the monumental work of Panini and his successors.

Specifically Vedic usages are described in the vedanga called shiksha.
Iconographically Shiksha is portrayed as a goddess who carries a large
club to beat people who mispronounce the mantras. :-)  There are different
Shikshas for different shakhas written by different sages.  Panini himself
wrote the shiksha for the Rgveda.  The Yajnavalkya shiksha which we use in
the Shuklayajuraveda doesn't have that rule you mention.


> The Sanskrit language has everything specific about it, no vagueness at
> all anywhere.
>

Panini is said to have come from what is now the Pakistani part of
Punjab.  However he carefuly notes the usages of the learned in other
parts of the country as well as the vedic texts.  His scientific grasp of
linguistics was a stunning achievement unmatched until the 20th century.

>
> Re : Jivanmukti
>
> I have come across a book by name " Jiivan mukti in advaita " authored
> by Sri Prof. S.K. Ramachandra Rao. The contents are very interesting,
> the style very erudite and there are lot of interesting points in it.
> This morning I spoke to that person on phone and he was too kind to
> allow me to putforth certain passages from his book in our discussions
> here. That book is actually a series of lectures that he gave on the
> occasion of Shankara Jayanthi in Madras in 1979, I think. Please give me
> some time. I shall produce some of the excerpts here very soon.
>

This sounds very interesting please proceed at your leisure.  Also if the
Professor has access to email, kindly extend an invitation to join our
list.  I'm sure we would all benefit tremendously.

--
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>

--
bhava shankara deshikame sharaNam

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