Abhidha

Author(s): Tapasvi Nandi, Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 51

[42]
Mahimă further argues that this illustration of an arrow is also not congruent with the situation : "kiñca ayam visamaḥ śara-drstāntopanyāsaḥ (pp. 140, ibid). The line of his argument proceeds as below : This 'saradrstānta' is a mis-fit, because as the arrow on its own does the activities of cutting, piercing, etc. through a single power, the word does not. The word executes its function with the help of 'sanketa' or convention. The word has its function only at places where convention is fixed. So, the function of the word is limited upto the expressed sense only, not upto any ‘arthāntara' i. e. sense beyond the expressed one, as no 'sanketa' or convention is fixed with reference to the other extra sense. In case we accept the capacity of a word to give 'arthāntara' also, i. e. added sense also, then people will be able to apprehend any sense with the help of any word. So, for a meaning which stands in need of convention, to that only the function of a word is limited, and it does not extend further upto any added sense, in absence of any convention. For the added sense, the function not of word, but of the expressed sense only should be accepted : tataśca abhidheyārtha-visaya eva asya vyāpāro yuktah, na arthantara-visayah, tatra sanketābhāvāt. tad abhāve'pi tatra tat parikalpane sarvaḥ kutaścid abhidheyārthavad arthāntaram api pratīyāt, tasmad yatra sanketāpeksā, tatra eva asya vyāpāra iti avagantum yuktam, na arthāntare; tatra vaksyamāna-nayena arthasya eva tad-upapattisamarthanād iti.” (pp. 140, 141, ibid)
We may observe with Dr. Rewaprasad that Mahimā here pushes two arguments in favour of his thinking. First, he holds that a word cannot convey another sense directly, as it does with reference to its conventional sense, and secondly, a word can convey only that sense with reference to which a convention is fixed. Mahimā is of the opinion that the formation of a pot is the result of coming together of the two halves, and not the potter, as the joining of halves immediately preceeds the formation of a pot. Similarly in case of added sense, i. e. farthantara' the immediate predecessor is the expressed sense, and not the word itself. So, being an immediate cause the primary sense is the cause of any additional sense, and not the word.