Abstract:

Mapping the meta-language and the meta-theory of the Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī and understanding the underpinned structure in it have remained cardinal challenges in the inquiry of the Pāṇinian grammar. Pāṇini deploys several devices and techniques, of which asiddha principle is one that helps in bringing about the brevity, the sophistication and the precision in the structure of his grammar. In the context of the rule ordering and application in Pāṇinian grammar, asiddha means that a rule/an operation is considered as 'not effected'. Pāṇini specially devised this principle and assigned the value of asiddha to certain rules in the Aṣṭādhyāyī with the purpose of 'blocking the application of incorrect rules' and 'allowing the application of the correct ones' to derive the desired word-form. The word asiddha is mentioned thrice (once with the suffix -vat) in the rules A.6.1.86, A. 6.4.22 and A. 8.2.1 of the Aṣṭādhyāyī. Due to the effect of asiddha principle mentioned in the rule A. 8.2.1, the Aṣṭādhyāyī gets divided into two main broad sets of rules viz. tripādī (A. 8.2.1-8.4.68) and sapādasaptādhyāyī (A. 1.1.1-8.1.74). But apart from this rule, Pāṇini interestingly used the asiddha principle again in the sapādasaptādhyāyī section, precisely from A. 6.2.22 to A. 6.4.175 which is popularly known as ābhīya section.

This principle of asiddha from the ābhīya section is of a different character as it is restricted to and works within this ābhīya section alone. Also, it does not become applicable to each rule from the ābhīya section and becomes operative only when ābhīya rules share common linguistic environments. The present talk focuses on understanding the distinguishing character of the asiddha principle from the ābhīya section, its modus operandi, the actual instances/rules where this principle becomes applicable and most importantly the necessity of forming such a separate section called the ābhīya section in the sapādasaptādhyāyī. Such a study brings to the fore the intricacies and interplay in rules, their ordering and application, mechanisms and architecture of the grammar devised by Pāṇini.