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'Laksaņā
537 If, observes Viśvanātha, 'mukhyárthabādha' is not held as the pre-condition of laksaņā, then there will be overlapping-ativyāpti-of laksaņā in instances of meanings collected through vyañjanā or suggestivity of words as in case of e.g. ‘rājati umā-vallabhah'. Then he explains the utility of the second condition viz. 'tadyoga'. It is not proper if the secondary sense is having no connection at all with the primary sense. In the absence of 'tad-yoga', for example, we will have the apprehension of 'yamunātata' in place of 'gangātata', from the word, say, "gangāyām”. This is absurd. This way also there will be over-lapping - ativyāpti - of laksaņā. It is precisely to do away with this contingency that Viśvanātha has placed the term 'tad-yuktah' in the definition of laksanā. By this, the defect in Mammața's definition is removed and the definition sounds more scientific.
The third prerequisite of laksanā is that it is based either on 'rūdhi' i.e. usage, or 'prayojana' i.e. motive. Even in the presence of 'mukhyárthabādha', and
dyoga', laksana will be able to indicate a secondary sense other than the primary one only if it based either on usage or motive. It may be asked that the apprehension of motive is done through vyañjanā or suggestivity of words when the power of indication -i.e. laksaņā is exhausted. In that case how can this 'prayojana' which is realized only after the power of indication or laksanā is over, be the 'cause of laksanā ? To reply to this prima facie view, the commentator on the Sāhityadarpana, Tarkavāgīša observes in his 'Vivști' commentary that, “avācaka-sabda-prayogaḥ sa-prayojanakaḥ, iti sāmānyataḥ prayojana-jñānās vā” - i.e. A sound which is a-vācaka i.e. having no dictionary meaning (say, for example blowing the horn of a vehical) is produced only with a motive (in one's mind).” The horn is blown with a motive to suggest the people on road that a vehicle is arriving. The motive appears first in mind as a cause and the signal follows. Same is the case with laksaņā which is practiced first with a motive already present in the mind, eventhough the motive itself is realized later through vyañjanā based on laksanā in case of 'sāhitya'. Thus knowledge of 'prayojana' precedes the actual result. So, in laksanā the fact of there being a 'prayojana' precedes the actual process of laksaņā. Many commentators tend to explain the use of fifth conjugation (= pancamī vibhakti) in the word 'prayojanāt' as, “prayojanam uddiśya" i.e. "taking into consideration the motive". But Udyotakāra (pp. 37, ibid) explains it as "prayojakā’bhisamdhi-pūrvakam”, i.e. “being connected with a motive”, i.e. "with reference to the motive". From this point of view, a 'prayojana' or motive is the 'prayojaka' - sponsoring agency of the definition. Thus all the three i.e. "mukhyárthabādha, tadyoga, and rūdhi or prayojana” - are unavoidable preconditions for
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