Lesson 22

22.1. The Absolutive (क्त्वा । ल्यप्)

If one wishes to express in Sanskrit that an action of the agent (कर्तृ) precedes another action of the same agent or accompanies it as a circumstantial condition, one uses the absolutive (क्त्वा । ल्यप्). Thus

"having done that, he does the other"; "he does this, then he does that"; "as a consequence of this, he does the other"; "I came, saw, and conquered" etc.

The absolutive is a verbal adverb; that is, it is neither conjugable nor declinable, but it always has — with few exceptions — the same agent (कर्तृ) as the action that precedes or accompanies the action designated by the absolutive. The agent of the absolutive is therefore in the nominative (प्रथमा) or instrumental case (तृतीया).

Alongside compounds, the absolutive is one of the most frequent means of expression in Sanskrit.

When translating into German, one should avoid constantly saying "after". Instead, use the customary expressions in German for temporal sequence.

Schema:

(further specification of the absolutive: adverbial modifier, object etc.) - Absolutive - Absolutive - ... - Absolutive - ... Agent + verbal clause (in active or passive voice)

Examples:

गृहं प्रविश्य बालां दृष्ट्वा नरो वदति = Passive construction: गृहं प्रविश्य बालां दृष्ट्वा नरेणोद्यते
"The man enters the house, sees the little girl and addresses her."

Plural: गृहं प्रविश्य बालां दृष्ट्वा नरा वदन्ति ।

22.2. Formation of the Absolutive

Formation of the Absolutive

• Verbs without prefix: Absolutive in -tvā
• Verbs with prefix: Absolutive in -ya or -tya

22.2.1. Verbs without prefix: Absolutive in -त्वा

Formation:

(usually) root in the guṇa grade, as it appears before the PPP, + -tvā (-त्वा)

Only the negative a- / an- is compatible with the suffix -त्वा : अकृत्वा "without having done"

Examples:

आप्त्वा "after he / she / it / I / you / we / they / the two of us / the two of you / the two of them has / had reached"

आसित्वा "after he (...) had sat / has sat"

इत्वा "after he (...) had gone / has gone"

स्थित्वा "after he (...) had stood / has stood"

जित्वा "after he (...) has won / had won"

उक्त्वा "after he (...) has spoken / had spoken"

22.2.2. Verbs with prefix

22.2.2.1. Roots ending in a long vowel (except -ā) or consonant

(usually) root in the guṇa grade + -ya

Examples:

उपनीय "after he (...) has led / had led"

प्रभूय "after he (...) has protruded / had protruded" "after he (...) had power"

प्राप्य "after he (...) has obtained / had obtained"

22.2.2.2. Roots ending in -ā

root in the strong grade, unchanged + -ya

Example:

उपस्थाय "after he (...) had stepped / has stepped" ; (but without prefix: स्थित्वा)

22.2.2.3. Roots that end in short -i, -u, -ṛ in the guṇa grade

low-grade root + -tya

Examples:

प्रस्तुत्य "after he has / had praised loudly (...)"

विस्मृत्य "after he has / had forgotten (...)"

संस्कृत्य "after he has / had prepared for the sacrifice (...)"

22.2.2.4. Roots ending in -am / -an, which end in -a in the low grade

Optional:

Root ending in -am / -an + -ya

or:

Root ending in -a + -tya

Example:

विगम्य or विगत्य "after he has / had passed away"

22.3. Word List

काम m.: wish, desire; desired gift, sensual pleasure, love, god of love

कामम् Acc. adverbial: according to wish, as one pleases

Fig.: कामदेवः
19th century
(Image source: Details)

शक् 5 P शक्नोति Pass. शक्यते PPP शक्त Inf. शक्तुम् : to be able, can

from this:

शक्ति f.: ability, power, capability; also: divine power, personified as a female companion especially of शिव

शक्र m.: the Powerful (epithet of इन्द्र)

Fig.: दुर्गाशक्तिः
Kolkata = কলকাতা
(Image source: Details)

अर्ह 1 P अर्हति Pass. अर्ह्यते PPP अर्हित Inf. अर्हितुम् : to deserve (to be worthy of something), must, ought to; should (in the 2nd person अर्ह् + infinitive is often used as a mild command: "You should")

अर्हन्त् 3 Part. Pres. P: a worthy one. In Buddhism and Jainism: someone who has attained final liberation

व्रत n.: vow, religious duty, religious observance (one promises something to the deity in order to receive something from them. Example: a mother promises to dedicate her daughter as a temple prostitute (देवदासी) if her daughter recovers. Important व्रत today: fasting; abstinence from foods one loves; sexual abstinence; reading sacred texts; performing specific rituals; feeding Brahmins and the like. Briefly on व्रत: Walker, Hindu World Vol. II, p. 581f. Detailed: P. V. Kane: History of Dharmaśāstra Vol. 5,1 p. 1 - 462. There pp. 253 - 462 List of व्रत and religious festivals ("the following list ... does not claim to be thoroughly exhaustive" !!!)

चर् 1 P charati Pass. charyate PPP charita Inf. charitum (Sanskrit: चर् 1 P चरति Pass. चर्यते PPP चरित Inf. चरितुम्): to graze, to wander about, to stir, to move, to act, to practice something, to perform (e.g. व्रतं चर्: practice a vow, esp. sexual abstinence)

from this:

चर ३: mobile; n.: the movable = animals (in contrast to plants)

चरण n., m.: foot

चरित n.: way of life, deeds

ब्रह्मचर्य n.: performance of the Veda (ब्रह्मन्) = study of the Veda in the first stage of life (that of the ब्रह्मचारिन्), which requires strict sexual abstinence; therefore also: sexual abstinence, celibate way of life

Fig.: धेनवश्चरन्ति
Goa = गोंय
(Image source: Details)

22.4. Exercise

A) Form and translate the absolutive for the following verbs:

1. आप्
2. प्राप्
3. समास्
4. आस्
5. समि
6. संस्कृ
7. कृ
8. गम्
9. उपगम् (2 forms)
10. जि
11. विजि
12. तन्
13. दह्
14. उपदिश्
15. नी
16. पच्
17. उपपद्
18. पा १
19. प्रच्छ्
20. बुध्
21. सम्बुध्
22. भज्
23. भू
24. प्रभू
25. मन्
26. मुच्
27. विमुच्
28. मृ
29. यज्
30. लभ्
31. उपलभ्
32. वच्
33. प्रवच्
34. वद्
35. प्रवद्
36. हन्

B) Translate and resolve the compounds into Sanskrit:

अन्नं पक्त्वा ब्राह्मणदासो ऽत्ति ॥१॥ इष्टदेवतापूजां कृत्वेन्द्रादिदेवान्सद्ब्राह्मणाः स्तुवन्ति ॥२॥ प्रस्थाय रामः सपुत्रः सद्गुरुश्रवणार्थेन ब्राह्मणग्रामं गच्छति ॥३॥ अनिष्ट्वा नरो भगवद्भक्तिमात्रेणापि मोक्षमाप्नोति ॥४॥ गृहगर्भं प्रविश्य ब्राह्मणपुत्रमुपस्थाय क्षत्रियशूरो वक्ति ॥५॥ सम्बुध्य दुःखाद्यार्यसत्यानि प्रोच्य सुगतो मोक्षमार्गेण नरान्नयति ॥६॥ मन्त्रं विस्मृत्य यजन्यज्ञदोषं करोति ॥७॥ धनं प्राप्य बुद्धमार्गभिक्षवो दुष्यन्ति ॥८॥ अनार्यशत्रुभिः संगत्य नरसिंहा विजयन्ते ॥९॥ पुण्यं कृत्वा सत्यमेवोदित्वा नरो नरकं नोपपद्यते ॥१०॥

C) Form passive constructions from the above sentences (except for sentences 8 and 10)

Fig.: अन्नं पक्त्वा
(Image source: Details)