Lesson 37

37.1. The Adverb (क्रियाविशेषणम्)

In Sanskrit, adverbs are formed

1. by case forms of nouns and pronouns
2. with the help of special suffixes and endings

In the first case, the boundary between living cases and adverbs is fluid. This includes as a special case those adverbs that are fossilized, old case forms, while in declension other forms are used or the corresponding nouns are no longer used as nouns.

37.2. Adverbial Use of Case Forms

37.2.1. Accusative (द्वितीया)

The accusative (द्वितीया) can be used adverbially in response to the questions:

• in what manner?
• for how long?
• whither?
• etc.

The accusative can be used adverbially:

• from substantives
  Examples:
  कामम् "as desired, according to wish"
  अर्थम् "because of"

• from adjectives in the neuter
  Examples:
  सुखम् "easily, happily"
  नित्यम् "always"
  साधु "correctly, well"

• from pronouns in the neuter
  Examples:
  तद् "then, therefore"
  यद् "when, that"
  एतद् "thus, here, now"

37.2.2. Instrumental (तृतीया)

The instrumental (तृतीया) can be used adverbially in response to the questions:

• by what means?
• with what?
• etc.

The instrumental can be used adverbially:

• from substantives
  Examples:
  अर्थेन "because of"
  क्षणेन "at the moment, immediately" (from क्षण m. "moment")

• from adjectives, often also in the plural form
  Examples:
  दूरेण "far, from afar" (to दूर 3 "far, distant from")
  उच्चैस् "high, loud" (to उच्च 3 "high, elevated, loud, shrill (of voice)")

37.2.3. Dative (चतुर्थी)

Rarely is the dative (चतुर्थी) used adverbially in response to the questions:

• for what purpose?
• and similar.

Example:

अर्थाय "for the purpose of, for the sake of ..."

37.2.4. Ablative (पञ्चमी)

The ablative (पञ्चमी) can be used adverbially in response to the questions:

• why?
• on account of whom/what?
• from where?
• and similar.

The ablative can be used adverbially:

• from substantives
  e.g. बलात् "violently, by force"

• from adjectives
  e.g. दूरात् "from afar"

• from pronouns
  Examples:
  कस्मात् "why"
  अकस्मात् "unexpectedly"

37.2.5. Genitive (षष्ठी)

Rarely is the genitive (षष्ठी) used adverbially in response to the question "after how long a time?"

e.g. चिरस्य "after a long time" (to चिर 3 "long (time)")

37.2.6. Locative (सप्तमी)

The locative (सप्तमी) can be used adverbially in response to the questions:

• where?
• under what circumstances?
• and similar.

Examples:

-अर्थे "because of"
-कृते "for the sake of"
दूरे "far away"

37.3. Adverbial Use of No Longer Common Case Forms

Examples:

जातु "at all" (originally "by birth, by nature", acc. sg. n. to जातु <no longer commonly used as a noun>)

तूष्णीम् "silently" (acc. sg. to a no longer common तूष्णी f. "silence")

एवम् "thus" (to an otherwise lost pronominal stem एव "one, single")

37.4. Formation of Adverbs with Adverbial Suffixes

From the pronominal stems तद्, इदम् or respectively अ-, यद्, किम् or respectively कु, one can derive with the adverbial suffixes

• -तस् (Ablative)
• -त्र (Locative)
• -था (Manner)
• -थम् (Manner)
• -दा (Time)

corresponding pronominal adverbs.

Suffix	Pronominal Stem
	तद्	इदम् अ-	यद्	किम् कु-
-तस् (Ablative)	ततस् from there, on that account, therefore	इतस् अतस् from here, on this account	यतस् from where, from what	कुतस् from where?, why?
-त्र (Locative)	तत्र there, in that place	अत्र here	यत्र where	कुत्र where?
-था (Manner)	तथा thus, so		यथा how
-थम् (Manner)				कथम् how?
-दा (Time)	तदा :bat that time, then		यदा when (at the time when)	कदा when?

Another interrogative adverb is: क्व "where?"

Fig.: क्व
(Image source: Details)

Further Adverbial Suffixes

Suffix
-वत्	can be attached to any noun to express "in the manner of, like" e.g. पुत्रवत् "like a son"
-तस्	to nouns and pronouns. Mostly ablative meaning "from where?", but also "where?", "to where?" e.g. आदितस् "from the beginning"
-धा	1. With numeral adverbs in the meaning "-fold", "-times" e.g. द्विधा "twofold" 2. in the meaning "in such and such a manner" e.g. समधा "in the same manner" (to सम 3 "equal")

37.5. Adverbial Compounds

37.5.1. Compounds with an Adverb or a Case Used Adverbially as the Final Member

Example: सुचिरम् "for a very long time"

37.5.2. Adverbially Used बहुव्रीहि

Example: रक्षार्थम् "in the manner of someone whose purpose is protection, for the sake of protection". It can also be considered belonging to 5.1.: -अर्थम् as an adverbial final member.

37.5.3. अव्ययीभाव Compounds

अव्ययीभाव = "become unchangeable/indeclinable"

An अव्ययीभाव is an adverbial compound whose initial member is indeclinable (postposition, particle, etc.) and whose final member is a noun taking the ending of the Accusative Singular Neuter.

When resolving the compound, the initial member would govern the final member:

Examples:

प्रत्यग्नि = अग्निं प्रति = "against the fire"

यथाशक्ति = शक्तिमनतिक्रम्य = "to the best of one's ability"

अभिमुखम् = मुखम् अभि = "forward, towards"

Particularly important are अव्ययीभाव with यथा "like" as the initial member:

e.g. यथाकामम् = कामो यथास्ति = "as desired, according to wish, arbitrarily"

Fig.: यथाशक्ति
(Image source: Details)

37.6. Syntax

With the verbs

• अस् 2P "to be"
• भू 1P
• कृ 8U

an adverbial predicate can stand instead of an adjectival predicate:

e.g. तूष्णीं बभूव "he became silent, he fell silent"

Fig.: तूष्णीं बभूवुः
(Image source: Details)

37.7. Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns are formed by appending

• -चिद्
• -चन
• अपि

to the cases of the interrogative pronoun किम्.

e.g.

कश्चिद् = कश्चन = को ऽपि = "someone, anybody"
कस्यचिद् = someone's

37.8. The Interrogative Sentence

"Who?, how?, what?, why? for what reason?
He who does not ask remains ignorant."

कः कथं किं केन कस्मात्कस्मै । यो न पृच्छेन् मूर्खस्तिष्ठेत् ॥

Motto of Sesame Street, which serves as a good guideline for life and the study of Sanskrit

See also Lesson 4.

One must distinguish between

• Word questions (substitution questions)
• Sentence questions

In word questions, one asks about an agent (कर्तृ), an object, an action, a circumstance, etc., e.g.

• who is coming?
• what is Rāma doing?
• whom does he hear?
• how does she speak Sanskrit?
• where is the mother?

In sentence questions, the entire content of the sentence is queried, e.g.

• is Rāma going to Ofterdingen today?
• is it true that ... ?

37.8.1. Word Questions (Substitution Questions)

Schema:

Interrogative pronoun/interrogative adverb - sentence

Examples:

को ग्रामं गच्छति =  केन ग्रामो गम्यते = "Who is going to the village?"

किं बाला अधीयीरन् = "What should children learn?"

क्व रामो वसति = Where does Rāma live?

Fig.: किं बाला अधीयीरन्
(Image source: Details)

37.8.2. Yes/No Questions

Sometimes it is only clear from the context whether a sentence is a question.

Schema I:

Verb - rest of the sentence

Example:

गमिष्यति ब्राह्मणबालो गुरुम् । "Will the Brāhmaṇa boy go to a master?"

Schema II:

Question particle (usually at the beginning of the sentence) - sentence

The most important question particles are:

• अपि

• किम् (often suggests a negative answer is expected)

• कच्चिद्

These particles correspond to the question mark.

Example:

अपि सत्यम् । "Is it also true?"

किं शक्नोति । "Can he, then?"

कच्चित्क्षत्रियेण शत्रवो जिताः । "Has the Kṣatriya perhaps defeated the enemies?"

Note: किम् can mean not only "what?" but also as a question particle "why?, for what purpose?". Especially with the instrumental case (तृतीया):

किं क्रोधेन । "For what purpose the anger? What is the use of the anger? What should be the purpose of the anger?"

37.9. Vocabulary List

मूर्ख 3: stupid, foolish, dumb m. fool

मुनि m.: wise man, (silent) ascetic

शाक्यमुनि m.: ascetic from the lineage of the शाक्य (Kṣatriyas from कपिलवस्तु) = Buddha Gautama

Fig.: शाक्यमुनिः
(Image source: Details)

दिन n.: day

वृक्ष m.: tree

Fig.: वृक्षः
(Image source: Details)

मुख n.: mouth, face, front part, beginning

37.10. Exercise

A) Answer the following questions in Sanskrit using the words provided in parentheses. Translate the question sentences.

Example: क आगच्छति (राम) । » राम आगच्छति । कस्मै ब्राह्मण्यन्नं ददौ ॥१॥ (भिक्षु, बाला, दास, भगवन्त्)

क आर्यसत्यान्यजानात् ॥२॥ (बुद्ध, शाक्यमुनि)

कुत्राग्निश्चीयते ॥३॥ (यज्ञस्थान, मही)

कदा ब्राह्माणा घृतमग्नौ जुह्वति ॥४॥ (यज्ञकाल, देवान् स्तु <Absolutive>)

कस्मान्मतिमतयः पुण्यं चक्रुः ॥५॥ (स्वर्गलोभ, नरकभय, भीतनरकता)

किमेव शस्त्रं छिनत्ति ॥६॥ (शरीर, अजीव)

किंकामः शत्रुरार्यैः सह युयुधे ॥७॥ (धनं जि)

कया भिक्षुरादितः ॥८॥ (गुणवती शूद्रा)

कुतः सुपुनर्भवं गम्यते ॥९॥ (कृतपुण्यत्व, सुनीति)

केन शूद्रा न काम्येत ॥१०॥ (द्विजाति, ब्राह्मण, साधु)

किमर्थं सुगतो ऽगारादनगार्यं प्रवव्राज ॥११॥ (दुःखमोक्ष, मोक्षनयन्ती प्रज्ञा)

कस्याः पुत्र्रः कृष्ण आसीत् ॥१२॥ (देवकी)

Fig.: कृष्णः बलरामश्च
(Image source: Details)

क्व मर्तुं सज्जना इच्छन्ति ॥१३॥ (काशी = वाराणसी)

Fig.: क्व मर्तुं सज्जना इच्छन्ति
(Image source: Details)

केषां धर्मो वेदाध्ययनम् ॥१४॥ (द्विज, द्विजाति, आर्य)

कैर्वेदः प्रोक्तः ॥१५॥ (ऋषि)

कस्मिञ्जात आर्यः सुखमाप्नोति ॥१६॥ (पुत्र)

का नरा लुभ्यन्ति ॥१७॥ (सुरूपशरीरा, देवीरूपा)

के नराः सुरूपा लुभ्यन्ति ॥१८॥ (समोह, बुद्धिमन्त्)

कस्या इन्द्रः पुत्र्रं दास्यति ॥१९॥ (कृतव्रता पुण्यवती सुमतिब्राह्मणी)

B) Translate:

किं स्थितप्रज्ञः प्रव्रजेत्किमगारे पुत्र्रेषु वसेत् ॥१॥ अपि गुरुः सत्यं जानाति ॥२॥ कच्चिच्छुद्रा द्विजदासाः ॥३॥ कच्छिच्छुद्रो भारमाबिभः ॥४॥

C) Translate the following अव्ययीभाव :

1. अति Postposition with Acc.: "beyond ..."

1. अतिमात्रम्
2. अतिवसन्तम्

2. अधि "in"

1. अधिहरि
2. अधिकेरलम्

Fig.: अधिकेरलं वर्तन्ते
(Image source: Details)

3. अनु "according to, along, after"

1. अनुरूपम्
2. अनुदिनम्
3. अनुगङ्गम्
4. अनुविष्णुम्

4. अप "without"

1. अपविष्णुम्

5. अभि "towards"

1. अभिमुखम्
2. अभ्यग्नि

6. आ "since, until, including"

1. आबालवृद्धम्
2. आमरणम्

Fig.: आबालवृद्धं लंदननगरे ववृतिरे
(Image source: Details)

7. उप "near"

1. उपवृक्षम्

Fig.: उपवृक्षं सीदन्ति
(Image source: Details)

8. यथा

1. यथास्थानम्

37.11. Review Exercise

Translate into Sanskrit using exclusively perfect tense verb forms:

Once, when an old man was going to another village, he became tired on the way. So he went to rest at the foot of a mango tree standing by the side. On this tree there were ripe fruits. The old man desired these. But he could not climb the tree and reach for the fruits. Fortunately, there were some monkeys on this tree that ate fruits. When he saw them, the old man rejoiced. What did he do? He took some stones, aimed at the monkeys and threw them. The enraged monkeys picked up some fruits and threw them on the old man. The old man joyfully took these and went to his desired place. Behold, the fate of the old man!