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MABS 68 I Reading in Buddhist Sanskrit Texts I: Grammatical Foundation

The document provides an overview of Sanskrit grammatical cases like the accusative and ablative cases, and how they indicate grammatical objects, destinations, and reasons. It also discusses Sanskrit verb conjugations and verbal prefixes. Examples are provided to illustrate uses of cases with different verbs, nouns, and grammatical structures.

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张晓亮
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254 views27 pages

MABS 68 I Reading in Buddhist Sanskrit Texts I: Grammatical Foundation

The document provides an overview of Sanskrit grammatical cases like the accusative and ablative cases, and how they indicate grammatical objects, destinations, and reasons. It also discusses Sanskrit verb conjugations and verbal prefixes. Examples are provided to illustrate uses of cases with different verbs, nouns, and grammatical structures.

Uploaded by

张晓亮
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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MABS 68 I Reading in Buddhist

Sanskrit Texts I: Grammatical


Foundation
Lesson 02
25/09/2021
The Accusative Case (acc)
• The acc indicates the grammatical object, goal/destination of motion and
object of reference (‘with reference to’, ‘about’).
Ø buddhaḥ dharmam deśayati |
nom (subj) acc (obj) 3rd, sg ‘teach’
The Buddha teaches the doctrine (object).

Ø aham buddham gacchāmi |


(subj) ‘I’ acc (obj/destination) 1st, sg, ‘go’

I go to the Buddha (destination).


The Accusative Case (acc) (continued)
• Double accusatives: an action may involve more than one object.

Ø aham buddham śaraṇam gacchāmi |


sg,m,acc sg,n,acc
I go to the Buddha as the refuge (or: I go to the Buddha, the
refuge).

Ø buddhaḥ śrāvakān dharmam diśati (/deśayati) |


pl,m,acc sg,m,acc 3,sg < √diś, ‘teach’
The Buddha teaches the disciples the dharma.
6. aham ... tathāgatam ... samyak-saṃbuddham śaraṇam gacchāmi |
(nom,sg) (acc,m,sg) ( acc,m,sg ) (acc,n,sg) (1,sg,√gam)
dharmam ca bhikṣu-saṅgham ca |
(acc,m,sg) (indec) ( acc,m,sg ) (indec)
= I go to the Tathāgata, the Perfectly Fully Enlightened One as the refuge (/for refuge),
and to the Dharma and the Bhikṣu-saṅgha (/assembly of monks).

aham (1,sg,nom; personal pronoun) I


tathāgataḥ (m) 如來 ‘Thus Gone/Come One.’ An epithet for the Buddha
samyak-saṃbuddhaḥ (m) 正等覺 正等正覺 正徧知 Perfectly Fully Enlightened One
śaraṇam (n) 依 refuge, protection, shelter
gacchati (√gam I ‘go’) goes
dharmaḥ (m) 法 (numerous meanings) doctrine, factors of existence, truth, virtue, etc
ca (indec) and
bhikṣu-saṅghaḥ (m) 比丘眾, 比丘僧, 苾蒭眾 gathering of monks, community of monks
The accusative case (continued)
• Accusative used as adverb
An adjective, in its sg,n,acc form, can be used as an adverb.

Ø ekam samayam | ‘once’ or ‘at one time’.

Ø sukham viharati | (sukha, adj: ‘happy/comfortable’) He dwells happily/comfortably.

Ø dīrgham tiṣṭhanti | (dīrgha, adj: ‘long’) They remain/stay for a long time.
8. dīrgha-rātram sattvāḥ ahaṃkāre mamakāre caranti |
( indec ) (nom,m,pl) (loc,m,sg) ( loc,m,sg ) (3,pl,√car)

= For a long time sentient beings course in ‘I-making’, ‘mine-


making’.

dīrgha-rātram (indec) for a long night, for a long time (in saṃsāra)
sattvaḥ (m) 有情, 眾生 sentient being
ahaṃ-kāraḥ (m) 我心, 著我, 我執, 我持, 我計執 ‘I-making’, clinging to “I”
mamakāraḥ (m) 我所心, 我所執, 著我所, 於我執 ‘mine-making’, clinging to “mine”
carati (√car I ‘move’) moves, courses, moves about, walks, practises, does or acts in general
The Ablative Case (abl)
• The ablative case indicates the sense ‘from’. It has the following major uses:

Ø aham agārāt (‘from house’) gacchāmi |


sg,m,abl 1,sg, √gam ‘go’
I go from the house.

Ø buddhaḥ āsanāt (‘from seat’) uttiṣṭhati |


sg,n,abl 3,sg, √sthā ‘stand’
The Buddha rises from the seat.

Ø śrāvakaḥ grāmāt (‘from village’) āgacchati |


sg,m,abl
The disciple comes from the village.
3. bodhisattvaḥ āsanāt ut-tiṣṭhati | tathāgatam ca evam vadati |
(nom,m,sg) (abl,n,sg) (3,sg,√sthā) (acc,m,sg) (indec) (indec) (3,sg,√vad)

= The Bodhisattva rises from the seat, and says/speaks thus to the
Tathāgata.

bodhisattvaḥ (m) 菩提薩埵, 菩薩 a being on his way to enlightenment. In Mahāyāna: one who aspires for
the Enlightenment of both oneself and all other beings.
āsanam (n) seat
ut-tiṣṭhati (√sthā I; orig. III ‘stand’) stands up, gets up, rises (from)
tathāgataḥ (m) 如來 ‘Thus Gone/Come One.’ An epithet for the Buddha
ca (indec) and
evam (indec) thus, in this way, in the same way
vadati (√vad I ‘speak’) says, speaks, asserts (a theory / doctrine)
4. atha khalu tathāgataḥ piṇḍa-pātāt prati-krāmati |
( indec ) (nom,m,sg) (able,m,sg) (3,sg,√kram ‘step’)

= Then indeed, the Tathāgata returns from the alms round.

atha (indec; introductory / connecting particle) then, now, next


khalu (indec; confirmatory/emphatic particle) indeed, etc.
tathāgataḥ (m) 如來 ‘Thus Gone/Come One.’ An epithet for the Buddha
piṇḍa-pātaḥ (m) 乞食 alms collecting, alms offering, food dropped into a monk’s alms-bowl, the alms
round
prati-krāmati (< √kram I ‘step’) goes back, returns
The ablative case (continued)
• It often expresses a cause (“abl of reason”): ‘from the fact that ...’ = ‘because of X (X
in abl)’.
Ø svalakṣaṇa-dhāraṇāt dharmaḥ | 能持自性故，名為法 .
(svalakṣaṇa: ‘intrinsic characteristic’; dhāraṇa: ‘holding/maintaining/sustaining’)

Because of (/from) the sustaining of the intrinsic characteristic, it is a dharma.


(Because it sustains its intrinsic characteristic, it is a dharma.)

(= A dharma is that which sustains its self-characteristic.


= It is a dharma, because of the sustaining of its intrinsic characteristic.)
The ablative case (continued)
• It is sometimes used adverbially:
Ø dūrāt (dūra: ‘far’): from afar.

Ø antikāt : in the vicinity (of).


Ø tathāgatam dūrāt paśyāmāḥ |
We see the Tathāgata from afar.

Ø buddhasya antikāt | (antikam: vicinity, proximity)


In (/from) the vicinity of the Buddha.
The ablative case (continued)

• The abl suffix -tas expresses an adverbial sense:


X-tas: ‘from the point of view of X’, ‘in terms of X’ or ‘as X’.

Ø bodhisattvaḥ rūpāṇi śūnyataḥ paśyati | (śūnya: ‘empty’; śūnya-tas: ‘as empty’)


The bodhisattva sees forms as being empty.
Accusative and ablative cases of m nouns ending in -a: buddha

Case sg du pl

nom buddhaḥ buddhau buddhāḥ

acc buddham buddhau buddhān

abl buddhāt buddhābhyām buddhebhyaḥ

gen buddhasya buddhayoḥ buddhānām

loc buddhe buddhayoḥ buddheṣu


Partial declension (nom, acc, abl, gen, loc) of
neutral nouns ending in -a: phala ‘fruit’
Case sg du pl

nom phalam phale phalāni


acc phalam phale phalāni
abl phalāt phalābhyām phalebhyaḥ
gen phalasya phalayoḥ phalānām
loc phale phalayoḥ phaleṣu
Sanskrit Verbs
• Sanskrit verbs are derived from a root (called the dhātu), plus a verb ending
differentiable in respect of the person (3rd, 2nd, 1st) and number (sg, du, pl), etc.
Often, one or more prefixes are added to the root, which may further articulate
or in some way modify the meaning of the action.

• For example, from √gam ‘go’, prefixes ava-, ā-, prati-, etc. are added,
resulting in various meanings:

Øava-gacchati ‘understands’
Øā-gacchati ‘comes’
Øprati-gacchati ‘goes back’/‘returns’
Sanskrit Verbs (continued)
• Sanskrit verbs have three numbers: singular (sg), dual (du) and plural (pl).

• Three persons: third person (3rd), second person (2nd) and first person (1st).

• Three voices: active (act), middle (mid) and passive (pas).

• Three modes: indicative (ind), optative (opt) and imperative (ipv).

• Seven tenses: present (pre), imperfect (ipf), perfect (pf), aorist (aor),
periphrastic future (peri fut), simple future (fut) and conditional (cond).
Sanskrit verbs (continued)
• They are grouped into ten conjugational classes (gaṇa). This classification refers to
the present tense system. Each verb class has certain specific conjugational features.

• Classes I, IV, VI and X all have a connecting or thematic -a before the verb ending.

Ø bodhati (√budh I) — he knows.


Ø naśyati (√naś IV) — he perishes. (class IV verbs have additional ‘y’ added to the root
before the thematic –a).

Ø likhati (√likh VI) — he writes.


Ø kathayati (√kath X) — he tells. (class X verbs have additional ‘ay’ before thematic –a).
Verbal Prefixes (upasarga)
• Prefixes are commonly added to Sanskrit verbs, enriching their
connotations. But, sometimes, the added prefix(es) does not
substantially modify the basic meaning of the verb.

• Moreover, in some cases, when a prefix is added, the verb


acquires a particular meaning that is not easily recognizable as
the expected outcome of the prefix–root combination.
Verbal Prefixes (continued)
• ā — near, up to, fully/greatly; reversing an action (e.g., ā-gacchati ‘comes’).
• abhi — directly, facing, excellent.
• adhi — above (/higher), from above, upon, concerning.
• antar — between.
• anu — after, following, according.
• apa — away, off.
• api — on.
• ati — exceedingly, over.
• ava — off, down.
Verbal Prefixes (continued)
• ni — down, into.
• nis — out, decisively.
• parā — away.
• pra — forth, very much.
• prati — towards, against, individually.
• sam — together, completely, perfectly.
• ud — up, upward.
• vi — separately, differently, distinctly, apart.
The conjugations of class I verbs
• bodhati (Class I, < √budh ‘know’): Present Indicative, Active Voice:
person Singular Dual Plural
3rd (saḥ) bodhati (tau) bodhataḥ (te) bodhanti
(he knows) (the two know) (they know)

2nd (tvam) bodhasi (yuvām) bodhathaḥ (yūyam) bodhatha


(you know) (you two know) (you know)

1st (aham) bodhāmi (āvām) bodhāvaḥ (vayam) bodhāmaḥ


(I know) (we two know) (we know)

Pronouns in nom,sg: saḥ ‘he’, ‘that one’; tvam ‘you’; aham ‘I’
Examples of Class I verbs in the Present Tense
• śrāvakāḥ (nom,pl) śīlāni (acc,pl) rakṣanti (3,pl < √rakṣ ‘protect’) |
The disciples protect the precepts.
• sacet (indec: if) [bodhisattvaḥ] rūpe tiṣṭhati …, sacet vijñāne tiṣṭhati, …
na carati [dharme] |
If a bodhisattva abides (clings to) in matter, … if he abides in
consciousness, … he does not course in the doctrine.
• dharmāḥ pratyayebhyaḥ (abl,m,pl) bhavanti (3,pl < √bhū ‘become’, ‘arise’) |
Dharma-s arise from conditions.
The indeclinable particle iti
• iti has several uses:

(a) To mark a quotation:

Ø iti vadāmi | I say “.....”


Ø tathāgataḥ vadati sarve dharmāḥ śūnyāḥ iti |
(sarve: pronoun, nom,m,pl, ‘all’)

The Tathāgata says: “all dharma-s are empty.”


The indeclinable particle iti (continued)
(b) To indicate a thought or an idea:
Øna me (‘to me’) bhavati arhan (‘Worthy One’) asmi (‘I am’) aham iti |
sg,1st,dat. sg,m,nom 1st,sg nom,sg “…”

It does not occur to me: “I am an arhat (‘Worthy One’).”


The indeclinable particle iti (continued)
(c) To give a definition or an elaboration (of a term, etc.):

Ø cinoti (‘accumulates’) iti cittam | (cittam: ‘thought’, is the definiendum)


3,sg < √ci ‘gather’ nom,n,sg

Thought is what accumulates (/It is “thought” because it accumulates


集起故名心).
The emphatic particle eva

• It is translatable as ‘indeed’, ‘only’, ‘just’, ‘that very’, ‘itself’, etc.

Ø evam eva | In just the same way.

Ø kṣaṇikāḥ eva dharmāḥ | Momentary indeed are factors of existence.

Ø prajñapte eva āsane | (prajñapta: ‘prepared’, ‘arranged’)

On that very seat which has been prepared.


Indeclinable Particle sma
• In Sanskrit, one simple way to convert a present tense sentence into past tense, is to use present
tense verb and then add the indeclinable particle sma.

a. buddhaḥ anāthapiṇḍadasya ārāme viharati | (present tense)


The Buddha dwells in the monastery of Anāthapiṇḍada.

buddhaḥ anāthapiṇḍadasya ārāme viharati sma | (past tense)


The Buddha dwelt in the monastery of Anāthapiṇḍada.

b. upāsakaḥ buddham śaraṇam gacchati | (present tense)


The male lay devotee goes to the Buddha as the refuge.

upāsakaḥ buddham śaraṇam gacchati sma | (past tense)


The male lay devotee went to the Buddha as the refuge.

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