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Grammatical Riddles from Jain works
275
Regarding phonetics, questions connected with the status and transformation of the visarga form a specific group :
*... kūdrśaḥ syād visargaḥ ? (vyantarādivyastah; JP 27)
How would the visarga be? - It throws down the s (s-tah, sam sakāraṁ tasyatīti s-tah, kvip, ct. mss. Al, A2, Ed.).
*... kam upaiti sarva-vidhibhir-jāto visargah kutah ? (P 11)
Where does the visarga go, produced from where through (the application) of all rules ? - (it goes) to r (coming) from r (ram rah).
*... kīdrg nāmi-parā visarga-vihatir-vidvan ? (P 11)
O learned man, how is the destruction of the visarga when it follows a vowel causing cerebralization ? - It gives (i.e. produces)r (ra-rā); cf. nāmi-paro ram, Kātantra 1.5.12, and the other rules of this section which all concern the treatment of the visarjaniya.
3. Questions where the point is to find a synonymical root are rather frequent in riddle-verses. The knowledge of dhātupāthas, a field which belongs both to grammar and to lexicography, is required for this purpose 14. Since there are generally several synonyms, the choice could be difficult. The selection of the adequate root and the elimination of the others are to be operated in view of all the questions making the riddle, because only one is able to fit in.
*... dāṇammi ko vã dhāū ? (rāmāyaṇe; Jayasimhasūri, Dharmopadeśamālā-vivarana p. 90)
...Or what is the root for 'to give'? - rā -: cf. rā dāne, Pān. Dhātup. 2.48; Palsule 1955, 180 s.v. dāne.
*... viratau ko dhātuh ? (malayamarutah; JP 31)15
... What is the root for 'to cease'? - yam - cf. Palsule 1955, 193 s.v. viratau, the only source mentioned being Vopadeva.
* bhuktyarthateha vihitā katamasya dhātoh? (visadapañcamah; JP 53)
For which root has the meaning 'to eat' been prescribed ? - camah, “for the root cam-": cf. Palsule 1955, 166 s.v. adane.
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