© DrSurabhi Verma

National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Odisha

Course ID: HS 1317

INTRODUCTION TO THE METAPHYSICS OF

SANSKRIT LANGUAGE

Course Co-ordinator: Prof. Surabhi Verma

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• Unit 1: Nature of Language

❖ What is Language?

❖ Difference between Bhāṣā, Vāk and Vāṇī

❖ Spoken and Compositional language

❖ The Knowledge disciplines related with discourse of Language

❖ Effect of orality on the Nature of Language

COURSE ❖ The Language of the Universe: Nāda (Resonance)
OUTLINE • Unit 2: Introduction to the components of Sanskrit Language

❖ Physical aspects

1. Sounds (Dhvani)

2. Syllables (akṣara/varṇa)

3. Śabda (word)

4. Pada (morphological unit)

5. Ukti (utterances)

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❖ Metaphysical aspects

1. Language and Reality (Sattā)

2. Mantrātmaka and prapañcātmaka

3. Language as an ontological category

4. Discourse of language as Cognitive System

5. Intrinsic property of Language

COURSE 6. Verb centred Language: Sanskrit

OUTLINE
7. Special features of Sanskrit language

▪ Metrical (chāndas)

▪ Figurative (alaṃkāra yukta)

▪ Compound (samāsa) and assimilation (sandhiḥ) based

▪ Coded (inflectional- pratyayānta)

▪ Abbreviated (sutra baddha)

▪ Generative (derivational)

▪ Usage based (loka pramāṇa)

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• Unit 3: The Discourse of śabda and artha

❖ Signifier (vācaka), signified (vācya) and the meaning (vācyārtha)
❖ The relationship of śabda and artha and the question of nitya (indestructible)
❖ Vāk and its four levels of manifestation
❖ The three types of meaning (artha)
❖ The two possibilities of getting meaning of utterances

COURSE
❖ The requirements for constructing meaning of utterances
• Unit 4: The Science of Mantra
OUTLINE ❖ Mantra: meaning and dimensions
❖ The Accents in Vaidika mantra
❖ The Purpose of Mantra
❖ Relation between mantra and spanda
❖ Autonomous spontaneous mantra (ajāpajāpa)

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• Study of Language as an Ontological System

1. The Energy and Consciousness in Kashmir Śaiva Darśana

2. Introduction to the Kashmir Śaiva Darśana – Background and Literature

3. The Ontology (Tattva-mīmāṁsā) of Kashmir Śaiva Darśana

4. The Epistemology (Pramāṇa-mīmāṁsā) of Kashmir Śaiva Darśana

5. The Metaphysics (Śṛṣṭi Prakriyā) in Kashmir Śaiva Darśana

COURSE 6. The Manifestation Process - Subjective and Objective Manifestation

OUTLINE 7. The encapsulation and limitation of energy

8. The Cognitive Process

9. The Cognitive Triad

10.The Concept of Time and Space

11.Manifestation of sound energy as potencies in relation to ontological categories

12.The Transposition Effect during Genesis of Vāk

13.The rectification (purification) in reversal

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UNIT -4
© DrSurabhi Verma
 THE EFFECT OF TRANSPOSITION DURING GENESIS OF
© DrSurabhi Verma

VĀK AND ITS RECTIFICATION (PURIFICATION) IN

REVERSAL
• Parā is the orb or biṃba, and everything else is the pratibiṃba, i.e. the reflected or represented form.
• Paśyantī who has the nature of Parāparā śakti (i.e. the nature of supreme cum non-supreme energy) is like a mirror, constituting the
energy of Parāśakti herself, in which Parā shines as a reflection.

Practices for Purification of elements

• In the view of Kashmir Śaivism, there are four upāyās or means of attaining the supreme goal. They are –
1. Śāmbhava
2. Śākta
3. Āṇava-upāya
• Apart from these, anupāya (nomeans) or ānandopāya (blissful means) does not really involve any process.
• Due to Śaktipāta or descent of grace in a very intense degree, everything needed for the realization, beginning from the
liquidation of the atomic impurity upto the recognition of the state of Parama Śiva, may be achieved by the aspirant immediately
and without going through any sādhanā or discipline.
• Here the direct means is Śakti herself, and a word from the guru, the spiritual teacher, regarding the identity of the individual
with the ultimate Pure Consciousness is sufficient to reveal the truth.
• The right means is sattarka, pure intuition, which can be attained through various practices like yāga (sacrifice), homa (oblation
in fire), vrata (solemn vow), japa (repetition of holy word), and yoga (spiritual discipline).

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• Yāga is offering of all entities to the ultimate for the purpose of attaining firm conviction in the form of determinate knowledge.
• Offerings into consecrated (homa) is the dissolution of all entities into the fire of consciousness of ultimate, who takes delight in
consuming all and making them remain as the flame of the fire alone.
• Repetition of mantra (japa) is for the purpose of enlivening reflective cognitions but without being dependent on them existing as
knowable externally or internally and appearing as if they are distinct from highest reality.
• Vrata is the perception with firm conviction that the body, a jar etc. are in essence identical with the ultimate, which is not to be
attained by any other means. As it is said in Nandiśikhā, ―Thehighest vow (vrata) is the harmony of all (sarvaṃ sarvātmakam)
• Abhinavagupta, the most popular scholar of Kāśmīra Śaivism, traces the following steps to bhāvanā. Bhāvanā is the power of spiritual
attention, a total dedication of the mind to one central thought, a spiritual thrust towards the source of one‘s being.
• A sadguru initiates the aspirant into the mysteries of the Āgama, into the irrefutable conviction of the essential self being Śiva
(directed towards Pure Consciousness) and the second step consists in Sattarka. Sat-tarka does not mean logical chopping, but
training the mind in harmonious consonance with the truth of essential self being Śiva.
• The tarka or logic which is ‘sat’ i.e. cannot be falsified at any of the states of time (trikālābādhitaṃ) is called as ‘Sattarka’. This
culminates in bhāvanā. To attain this state of Sattarka, stopping of all the other fluctuations of mind is important and that process has
been termed as Vikalpa-kṣaya. Vikalpas are the mental constructs which are continuously gyrating in our mind.
• When we succeed in stopping the diversified flow of vikalpas, we will be able to achieve a peaceful level and a
focused concentration will be established.
• When delimited consciousness is able to access the knowledge about the tattvas of pure creation starting from śuddha vidyā.
• onwards and directed towards Pure Consciousness, the delimited consciousness becomes free from secondary delimitations, and now
only primary delimitation remains to be rectified, realized and understood.
• At the level of śuddha vidyā, the cognition is directed towards the realization of the pure creation. This is the state when spiritual
intelligence arises and is oriented towards the cognition and realization of one‘s own real form i.e. Pure Universal Consciousness or
Parama Śiva.
• Here comes the starting of achieving the target of the complete journey of delimited consciousness towards realization of self which
is known as Recognition. 11/24/2020 8
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THANK YOU.
© DrSurabhi Verma