Pre-Paninian Grammatical Traditions (Pt. 1) (Sri Garib Dass Oriental S.)

Book Details

• Title: A Linguistic Study of the R̥gveda-Padapāṭha of Śākalya

• Author: Vashishtha Narayan Jha

• Publisher: Sri Satguru Publications

• Language: English

• Edition: 1992

• ISBN: 9788170303206

• Pages: 300

• Cover: Hardcover

• Dimensions: 23 cm x 15 cm

• Weight: 440 gm

About the Book

This path-breaking work by Professor V.N. Jha, A Linguistic Study of the R̥gveda-Padapāṭha of Śākalya, is the first full-scale analytical study of the Pada-text (Padapāṭha) of the Ṛgveda as attributed to the ancient grammarian Śākalya—a key figure in the pre-Pāṇinian grammatical tradition.

Śākalya's work, though rarely studied in modern times, plays a crucial role in the preservation and grammatical understanding of the Vedic texts. This book investigates how Śākalya’s analysis of Vedic mantras—particularly his use of pada (word) segmentation—offers deep insights into early grammatical principles that preceded and possibly influenced Pāṇini’s monumental Aṣṭādhyāyī.

Key Features:

• First comprehensive analysis of the entire Padapāṭha of the Ṛgveda.

• Explores Śākalya’s grammatical method in the absence of any extant grammatical treatise from him.

• Reconstructs early Sanskrit grammatical concepts such as pada, sandhi, prāgṛhya, avāsāna-sandhi, and more.

• Maps out the historical development from Śākalya to Pāṇini, proposing two distinct grammatical lineages.

• Discusses the oral tradition and mnemonic techniques (vikṛtis, krama-pāṭha, etc.) used for textual preservation.

• Analyzes suffix separation, compound division, and textual consistency in Padapāṭha using rigorous linguistic methods.

• Based on the author's Ph.D. thesis at the University of Poona (1974), revised and enriched by years of subsequent research.

This book not only enriches the study of Vedic linguistics but also makes a critical contribution to understanding the evolution of Indian grammatical thought. It is an indispensable resource for scholars of:

• Vedic Studies

• Sanskrit Grammar

• Indian Linguistics

• Historical Philology

• Indology

About the Author

Professor Vashishtha Narayan Jha is a distinguished scholar of Sanskrit and currently serves as the Director of the Centre of Advanced Study in Sanskrit, University of Pune. His pioneering contributions in Vedic linguistics and Sanskrit grammar are widely recognized in academic circles.

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