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Kaccāyana

Introduction

Pali Grammatical Literature

Section titled “Pali Grammatical Literature”

Pali is the language of the texts which preserves the teachings of Buddhism. It has it’s own grammar. The grammar of a language is the art of speaking or writing it with propriety, by acquiring the knowledge of the different parts of speech and the structure of sentences1. The grammatical literature of the Pali language started from the times of Kaccāyana or Mahākaccāyana who is considered as the first Pali grammarian2. The Pali term ‘Vyākaraṇa’ is phonetically same as the Sanskrit ‘Vyākaraṇa’. This word is derived as : ’vi + ā + √kara + ‘yu’ suffix= ‘vyākaraṇa’3. The term ‘Vyākaraṇa’ is used in three meanings. They are i) grammar, ii) prediction and iii) answer.4 In the sense of ‘grammar’, it is found as a ‘vedaṅga’ belonging to the Vedic lore of learning i. e. Sikkhā, kappa, Vyākaraṇa, Nirutti, Chanda and Jotisattha.

‘Vyākaraṇa’ is very important among them.5 The term ‘veyyākaraṇa’ means exposition or explanation, the function of which is to make thing explicit or clear.6 For the study of entire Pali literature (mainly Tipiṭaka (texts), Atthakathā (commentary), ṭīkā (sub-commentary) etc.,) a scholar should posseses knowledge of the following texts : i) Saddasattha or Vyākaraṇa ii) Abhidhānasattha or Nigaṇḍu, the science of developing vocabulary or glossory of words, iii) Chandasattha or the Vuttodaya, a standard Pali work on prosody and iv) Alaṅkārasattha or keṭubha, the figures of speech or the art of poetry.7

Among these four texts, Saddasattha or Vyākaraṇa is the most important because it is the basis of them all. It is said that ‘The grammar of Pali language must be critically studied by one who wants to understand its literature generally, and by one who wants to penetrate into the abstruse doctrines of Buddhism, which exhibit the pure wisdom of its founder’.8 Even in the Dhammapada, the importance of the grammar is emphasized:-

“Vītataṇho anādāno, niruttipadakovido
akkharānaṃ sannipātaṃ, jaññā pubbaparāni ca
sa ve antimasārīro, mahāpañño mahāpurisoti vuccati.”9

“He is a great man or a learned person who has learnt the rules of construction of sentences, combination of letters or syllables in words and determination of sequence or syntax.”10

The word ‘Nirutti’ means ‘verbal analysis’, ‘glossory’, ‘use’, ‘expression of a language’, ‘grammatical and logical explanation of the words’ or ‘texts of the Buddhist scriptures.’11 In the verse, mentioned above, Nirutti is used to mean treatise on grammar.12 The grammar of Pali language has been composed in many countries like India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand. There are many texts available. But concerning the texts which possess sutta-s (rules, aphorisms), vutti (supplementary explanation), and udāharaṇa (illustration), in accordance with the Burmese tradition there are four schools : i) Kaccāyana, ii) Moggallāna, iii) Saddanīti and iv) Saddasaṅgaha.13

The Saddasaṅgaha’s author is ‘Yomaṅchi Ūbholai’ of Mandale who composed it in the year 2413 B. E. (Buddhist Era).14 However, the grammatical works of only three schools are well known : i) those which belong to the school of Kaccāyana i.e. Bālāvatāra, Rūpasiddhi etc.; ii) the grammar of Moggallāna with the ancillary works belonging to it like Payogasiddhi, Padasādhana etc. and iii) Saddanīti.15

First of all, let us have an outline of ‘Saddanīti’ one of the three schools of Pali grammar. Its grammar is based on the Tipiṭaka. The treatise was composed by a grammarian called ‘Aggavaṃsa’, belonging to Pagan during the reign of the king Anorata in the year 1154 A. D.16 The Saddanīti consists of twenty-five Pariccheda-s or sections17 [according to W. Geiger,18 27 chapters; according to K. R. Norman,19 28 chapters.]. The first eighteen are called ‘Mahāsaddanīti’ and the remaining nine are called ‘Cullasaddanīti’. That text has three parts : Padamālā : the Garland of words, Dhātumālā: the Garland of roots and Suttamālā : the Garland of rules. On the whole it follows Kaccāyana, but Aggavaṃsa also makes use of Pāṇini.20 According to Piṭakatthamain, there is a ṭīkā on it called ‘Saddanītiṭīkā’ which is composed by Paññāsāmi Thera of Mandale and the Saddanītinissaya by Ū Pug.21 The Saddanīti was the first return gift of Burma to Ceylon which had been brought by the ‘Uttarājīvathera’. It was received with enthusiastic admiration and declared superior to any other work of the kind written by Sri Lankan scholars.22 This treatise is still regarded as a classic in Myanmar.23

Another grammatical work called Moggallāna or Moggallāyana Vyākaraṇa, is considered as the up-to-date treatise on Pali grammar. It is also called ‘Saddalakkhaṇa’. It is based on the Sanskrit grammar viz. the Kātantra, the work of Chandragomin.24 It is also based on the older works on Pali grammar. The thera named ‘Moggallāna’ of Ceylon is the author of the treatise of the same name, which was composed in the reign of the king Parakkamabāhu I25 (1153-1186 A. D.). He was the pupil of Mahākassapa of Udumbaragiri Vihāra. Moggallāna deals with the linguistic material exhaustively; and with greater understanding of the essence and character of Pali, which with the influence of both Sanskrit and Sinhalese had changed in comparision to the language of the earlier works on Pali grammar.26 It consists of six chapters i. e. Akkharavidhi and Sandhi : Terminology and Combination, Nāma : Nouns or Declensions, Samāsa : Compounds, Taddhita : Nominal derivatives, Ākhyāta : Verbs and Kitaka: Verbal Derivatives. Each of these divisions possesses sutta-s, vutti and udāharaṇa similar to Kaccāyana.

Among the commentaries on it, mention may be made of ‘Padasādhana’ of Piyadassī, the pupil of Moggallāna; which was composed at the end of twelfth century27 and the ‘Payogasiddhi’ which bears the same relation to Moggallāna Vyākaraṇa as the Rūpasiddhi does to the Kaccāyana.28 Payogasiddhi was composed by Vanaratana Medhaṅkara, who lived in approximately 1300 A. D., in the reign of Bhūvānekabāhu III.29 Other important works are Moggallāna-pañcikāpadīpa (a commentary on the Pañcikā of Moggallāna30 written by Sri Rāhulathera in the year 1456 A. D.),31 Padasādhana-ṭīkā, susaddasiddhi, sambandhacintā, Niruttidīpani etc.

Kaccāyana tradition

Section titled “Kaccāyana tradition”

The principal and oldest work of Pali grammatical treatises is ‘Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa’. It is also known as ‘Kaccāyanagandha’.32 It is so called, because it owes its origin to the teacher Kaccāyana or Mahākaccāyana. According to the tradition, he belonged to Jambudīpa, i.e. India.33 According to modern scholars, the author of the Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa was probably a South Indian belonging to the fifth or sixth century A. D. They further add that this Kaccāyana belonged to the Avantī school founded by Mahāsāvaka Mahākaccāyana.34 Mahāsāvaka Mahākaccāyana was contemporary of the Buddha, and had attained the fourfold knowledge.35

The author of Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa must be later than the teacher Buddhaghosa who was well known from fifth or sixth century onwards. Nothing is known about him except his name, and he seems to be unconnected with any other Kaccāyana known to us from Sanskrit or Pali. The Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa is composed on the lines of Kātantrakalāpa of Sarvavarman and Pāṇini.36 However the Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa is the most ancient Pali grammar that was composed by a first rate scholar and it is a very useful and valuable work for acquiring the knowledge of Pali language.37 Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa consists of eight divisions i.e. Sandhi : the combination, Nāma : Nouns, Declension, Kāraka : Syntax, Samāsa: Compound, Taddhita : Nominal derivation or the secondary derivation, Ākhyāta : Verbs, Kitaka : Verbal derivatives, and Uṇādi : particle, minor part of speech. Each division contains sutta-s or rules with great brevity, vutti or supplementary comments to explain the deficiencies in the sutta-s and Udāharaṇa : the illustration, examples.

This treatise has explained the grammar with rules briefly. Therefore, it is difficult for one who is new to it. Thus, there are several commentaries which are connected with this grammar :-

1. Nyāsa or Mukhamattadīpanī : The grammatical work based on Kaccāyana tradition was composed by the Thera ‘Vimalabuddhi’ in the eleventh century A. D.38 The author, according to Sāsanavaṃsa was a thera of Pagan, but according to some other authorities, he belonged to Sri Lanka.39 The author of Saddanīti calls ‘Vimalabuddhi’ as ‘Vajirabuddhi’.40 The work posseses sutta, vutti and udāharaṇa similar to Kaccāyana. There is also a ṭīkā on it called Thanbyin.41

2. Bālāvatāra : The Pali grammatical work is a summary of the Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa. It has seven chapters. This treatise was composed by a Sri Lankan thera ‘Dhammakitti’ in the fourteenth century. But the Gandhavaṃsa assigns its authorship to Vācissara.42 The arrangement of Bālāvatāra is similar to ‘Laghusiddhāntakaumudī’ of the Pāṇinian tradition.

3. Suttaniddesa : It is also called ‘Kaccāyanasuttaniddesa’. It is a grammatical treatise which explains the suttas (aphorisms) of Kaccāyana. It was composed by a teacher of Pagan named ‘Saddhammajotipāla’ or ‘Chapaṭa’ in the year 1181 A. D.43 The Gandhavaṃsa adds that Chapaṭa composed ‘Suttaniddesa’ at the request of his pupil ‘Dhammacārī’.44 In this treatise, we have the following passage which states that the rule ‘Attho akkharasaññāto’ was declared by the Lord Buddha himself; and that the author of Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa is Mahākaccāyana Mahāsāvaka.

“Eko vuḍḍha-pabbajito bhagavato santike kammaṭṭhānaṃ gahetvā anotattatīre sālarukkhamūle nisinno udayabbayakammaṭṭhānaṃ karoti, so udake carantaṃ bakaṃ disvā udakabakanti kammaṭṭhānaṃ karoti, Bhagavā taṃ vitathabhāvaṃ disvā vuḍḍhapabbajitaṃ pakkosāpetvā attho akkharasaññātoti vākyamāha. Kaccāyanattherenāpi bhagavato adhippāyaṃ jānitvā attho akkharasaññātoti vākyaṃ pubbe ṭhapetvā idaṃ pakaraṇaṃ katanti kaccāyanena katasuttantipi vadanti.”

’A certain aged monk having taken kammaṭṭhāna in the vicinity of Bhagavā, goes away, and sitting at the root of a Sāla tree on the bank of the lake Anotatta, meditates on the kammaṭṭhāna, repeating the word ‘udayabbaya’. He observing a crane (baka) moving on the water (udaka), meditates on kammaṭṭāna, uttering the word ‘udakabaka’. Bhagavā, perceiving his inaccuracy, sent for the old monk and uttered the phrase ‘Attho akkharasaññāto’, which signifies : ‘The sense is understood by means of letters’. They say that the elder Kaccāyana having percieved Bhagavā’s meaning, placed the phrase ‘Attho akkharasaññāto’ as the first of his aphorisms and composed his Grammar. They also say that the above phrase is an aphorism produced by Kaccāyana himself.’45

Moreover, there are many grammatical works in the line of Kaccāyana i. e. Kaccāyanabheda, Kaccāyanavaṇṇanā, Kaccāyanasāra, Kārikā, Saddabindu, Vaccavācaka, Vācakopadesa and so on. According to a Thai scholar, the manuscripts of Pali grammatical texts are more than 134.46 Many grammatical treatises still lie buried in manuscripts. Some are reported to have been lost.47

Place of Rūpasiddhi

Section titled “Place of Rūpasiddhi”

Rūpasiddhi is one of the grammatical works in the line of Kaccāyana. It is a standard book on Pali grammar. According to De Zoysa, Rūpasiddhi is similar to Payogasiddhi which is on the line of Moggallāna-vyākaraṇa.48 The span of this treatise is very wide; and the treatise is mature. Rūpasiddhi is called variously as : Rūpasiddhipakaraṇaṃ, Padarūpasiddhi, Mahārūpasiddhi, and Rūpasiddhi-aṭṭhakathā. Let us consider the propriety of these titles :-

1) Rūpasiddhipakaraṇaṃ : ‘Rūpasiddhi’s composition’ or ‘the text on Rūpasiddhi’. This occurs as the title of the work and also at the end of the treatise. The word ‘pakaraṇa’ if used in the title means literary work, composition or book.49 In Pali it is often used to indicate a text, such as : Abhidhammapakaraṇaṃ, Kathāvatthu-pakaraṇaṃ, Nettipakaraṇaṃ etc.50

2) Padarūpasiddhi : The author uses this word in the last line of the opening stanza.51 Padarūpasiddhi-ṭīkā has given the meaning of this word as ‘Etymology of the part of speech.’52 It explains the word as follows :-

‘Padaṃ catubbidhaṃ vuttaṃ nāmākhyātopasaggañca
nipātañcāti viññūhi asso khalvābhidhāvati’53

“It is said by the learned persons that the word (pada) is fourfold; Nāma, Akhyāta, Upasagga and Nipāta, i. e. ’asso (noun), khalu (nipāta), abhi (upasagga), dhāvati (verb).”

3) Mahārūpasiddhi54 : The meaning is : ‘Rūpasiddhi the great’. The preceding word ‘mahā’ is used to show the importance of the work.

4) Rūpasiddhi-Aṭṭhakathā55 : It is so called because it is a commentary on the Kaccāyana-Vyākaraṇa.

5) Rūpasiddhi : This name is normally used by the author in the title of the chapters and at the end of the chapters; f. e. ‘Rūpasiddhiyaṃ sandhikaṇḍo’, ‘iti rūpasiddhiyaṃ sandhikaṇḍo paṭhamo’, ‘rūpasiddhiyaṃ nāmakaṇḍo’, ‘iti rūpasiddhiyaṃ nāmakaṇḍo dutiyo’ etc.

Rūpasiddhi is written by a thera called ‘Buddhappiya’ or ‘Dīpaṅkara’. The author is referred to as ‘Bhadanta Buddhappiyācāriya’ in the Padarūpasiddhi-ṭīkā.56 The author mentions himself in the colophon :

“Vikkhātānandatheravhayavaragurūnaṃ tampapaṇṇiddhajānaṃ
sisso dīpaṅkarākhyaddamiḷavasumatī dīpaladdhappakāso,
Bālādiccādhivāsanvitayamadhivasaṃ sāsanaṃ jotayī yo
soyaṃ buddhappiyavho yati imamujukaṃ rūpasiddhiṃ akāsi.”57

“This perfect Rūpasiddhi was composed by that monk who received the title of Buddhappiya and was named Dīpaṅkara, a disciple of Ānanda, the eminent preceptor who was like unto a standard in Tambapaṇṇi, he (Dīpaṅkara) was renowned like a lamp in the Damiḷa country, and being the resident superior there of two monasteries including Bālādicca, caused the Religion to shine forth”.58

The other monastery was called ‘Cūḷamaṇikamma’59 or ‘Cūḍāmāṇikya.’

Buddhappiya’s period has not been fixed yet. It depends on the time of the thera ‘Ānanda’ whom Buddhappiya ascribes as his teacher himself. Most of the scholars viz. W. Geiger, M. Winternitz, Malalasekera etc. have pointed out that Buddhappiya lived in the second half of thirteenth century.60 He was a contemporary of the thera ‘Vedeha’. The Elder ‘Vedeha’ was also a pupil of the Elder ‘Ānanda Vanaratana’. Buddhappiya is probably the same person as the author of Pajjamadhu. It is a poem composed in the praise of the Buddha. At the conclusion of Pajjamadhu, he gives his name and pupilage :-

“Ānanda-raññā-ratanādi-mahā-yatinda
niccappabuddha-padumappiya-sevinaṅgī
buddhappiya-ghana-buddha-guṇappiyena
therālina racita pajjamadhuṃ pibantu”.

“May they drink deeply of these nectar-like verses (pajjamadhu) made by the bee Buddhappiya, delighted with the Buddha’s virtues - who constantly attends upon that lotus, the Venerable Elder Ānanda Vanaratana, heavy-laden with the perfume of his virtues and always in bloom”.61

Malalasekera has written about the bio-data of Buddhappiya in detail from which we can conclude that Ānanda thera was a disciple of Udumbaragiri Medhaṅkara, the pupil of Sāriputta who is the author of ‘Sārattha-dīpanī-ṭīkā’.62 Ānanda Thera lived probably in the time of Vijayabahu III. He was the teacher of several disciples, who became scholars of note and authors of important compilations. Two of his disciples who are better known as distinguished writers are Coḷiya Dīpaṅkara and Vedeha Thera. Coḷiya Dīpaṅkara or Buddhappiya was a native of Coḷa country in South India but studied in Sri Lanka under Ānanda Vanaratana.63

Walpola Rahula however has different view about the date of Ānanda Thera, the author of Mūlaṭīkā. According to him, Ānanda Thera lived in Polonaruva in the tenth or eleventh century A. D. and had known the Rūpasiddhi of Buddhappiya.64 Further the author of Moggallāna-Vyākaraṇa knew Rūpasiddhi of Buddhappiya. This means that Moggallāna was composed after Rūpasiddhi or it was contemporary with Rūpasiddhi. We know that the Moggallāna Vyākaraṇa is a new grammatical school belonging to the twelfth century A. D. (1158-1186). Moggallāna disagrees with Kaccāyana about the number of the Pali alphabets. In Kaccāyana, the Pali alphabets are fourty-one according to the rule : ‘Akkharāpādayo ekacattālīsaṃ.’65 The alphabets are divided into 8 vowels (sarā) viz. a, ā. i, ī, u, ū, e, o; 32 consonants (byañjanāni) and ‘aṃ’ which is a Niggahita. The 32 consonants are :- ka, kha, ga, gha, ṅa (ka-vagga), ca, cha, ja, jha, ña (ca-vagga), ṭa, ṭha, ḍa, ḍha, ṇa (ṭa-vagga), ta, tha, da, dha, na (ta-vagga), pa, pha, ba, bha, ma (pa-vagga) and ya, ra, la, va, sa, ha, ḷa. According to Moggallāna, the Pali alphabets are fourty-three ‘a ādayo titālisavaṇṇā’.66 Thus two more vowels et and ôt are included.67

Rūpasiddhi, which is the re-arrangement of Kaccāyana and which was composed in the 13th century is in dispute with Moggallāna :-

“Adikakkharāvantāni ekatālīsato ito
na buddhavacanānīti dīpetācariyāsabho.”68

“The teacher had shown that the alphabets (akkhara-s) other than 41 are not the Buddha’s words (buddhavacana).”

Thus it is clear that Rūpasiddhi was composed after Moggallāna.

Besides Rūpasiddhi, Buddhappiya also composed a beautiful poem in Sanskritized Pali which contains 104 stanzas69 in praise of the Buddha. Rūpasiddhi-ṭīkā too was written by Buddhappiya himself.70 In the GV, it is said : ‘dīpaṅkaro nāmācariyo rūpasiddhipakaraṇaṃ rūpasiddhiṭīkaṃ sammapañcasuttañceti tividhapakaraṇaṃ akāsi’.71 In place of the word ’sammapañcasuttaṃ, one finds the word ‘Pajjamadhuganthaṃ’, according to GV in Burmese script.72 According to GV, there is also the book called ‘sāratthasaṅgaha’ composed by Buddhappiya.73 Buddhappiya had a pupil named ‘Siddhattha’. Siddhattha was the author of Sārasaṅgaha, a work on Buddhism in prose mixed with verse.74 He probably lived in between 13th and 14th century. Malalasekera, however, called ‘Sārasaṅgaha’ as ‘sāratthasaṅgaha’75 instead. In the conclusion of the work, Sārasaṅgaha’s author himself says that he was a pupil of Buddhappiya.

Buddhappiya’s intention to compose the Rūpasiddhi, as he has described in the first stanza, is :-

“Bālappabodhatthamujuṃ karissaṃ
byattaṃ sukaṇḍaṃ padarūpasiddhiṃ”76

“I (Buddhappiya) shall compose the padarūpasiddhi exhaustively (ujuṃ), transparently (byattaṃ), (having) proper chapters (sukaṇḍaṃ), for the benefit of persons who are ignorant (about grammar)”.

The words ‘ujuṃ, byattaṃ, sukaṇḍaṃ’ indicate the methodology in the composition of the treatise. Moreover, the reason for adopting this methodology is given in the Sandhikappa (chapter on Combination) : ‘Akkharakosallaṃ bahūpakāraṃ buddhavacanesu,’77 ‘Having knowledge about the letter (akkhara) is of great use in the Buddha’s discourse (Buddhavacana)’. Padarūpasiddhi-ṭīkā comments : ‘the penetration into the pariyattidhamma (the true doctrine of study) i. e. the tipiṭaka together with aṭṭhakathā, will be attained when there is knowledge of letters, and there the paṭipattidhamma (the true doctrine of practice) and the paṭivedhadhamma (realizable aspects of the true doctrine) will be penetrated into respectively’.78 Therefore, the purpose of the methodology followed in the composition of Rūpasiddhi is divided mainly into two as follows :-

1. to support the way of learning Pali grammar easily. As the Mahāsiddhāntakaumudī is much helpful to understand Pāṇini’s grammar, similarly, Rūpasiddhi also ia helpful for the study of Kaccāyana grammar.79

2. to penetrate into the discourse of the Buddha in pariyattidhamma, paṭipattidhamma and paṭivedhadhamma.

Besides that the author has also touched the five points of writing as :-

“Saññā nimittaṃ kattā ca parimāṇaṃ payojanaṃ
sabbāgamassa pubbeva vattabbaṃ vattumicchatā”.

“Before writing the treatise, one should deal with (five points) v.z. saññā, nimitta, kattā, parimāṇa and payojana”.

The author of Rūpasiddhi, for ‘saññā’ or nomenclature, [which means declaring the name of text], uses the word ‘padarūpasiddhi’. The nimitta is twofold :- i) ajjhattikaṃ nimittaṃ : the internal reason, ii) bāhiraṃ nimittaṃ : the external reason. These two reasons are clear by the word ‘bālappabodhatthaṃ’. The word ‘bāla’ indicates the external reason which means a student who had difficulties about learning and who caused Buddhappiya to compose the treatise. That shows his compassion towards the students. Thus, compassion is the internal reason. With regard to the ‘kattā’ or authorship, Buddhappiya uses the word ‘karissaṃ’ which is the ‘amhayogakiriyā’ (the verb of first person). But the name of the author does not occur in this context. However, the name occurs in the colophon of the text. Then comes the parimāṇa or measurements of the contents of the work. Its measurement is indicated by the word ‘sukaṇḍaṃ’. This means that this treatise has been made neither very brief nor very extensive. The gain or payojana of the grammatical work is twofold according to the author. It is as follows :- i) Mukhapayojana : Primary gain, ii) Anusaṅgikapayojana : Secondary gain. Among them, understanding of Pali grammar, is the primary gain. The secondary gain is that one can attain the highest position in the Buddhist Dispensation. The Rūpasiddhi’s author has shown these two gains by the use of the word ‘pabodha’ (in ‘bālappabodhatthaṃ’).80

Contents of Rūpasiddhi

Section titled “Contents of Rūpasiddhi”

Rūpasiddhi is divided into seven chapters :-

1) Sandhikaṇḍo : the chapter on combination. It contains five sections : Saññā or saññābhidhāna, sara, pakati, vyañjana and niggahita. There are fifty-nine aphorisms.

2) Nāmakaṇḍo : the chapter on Nouns. The chapter contains also the declension of pronominals, numerals, personal pronouns; the use of indeclinables and inseparable particles (Opasaggikaṃ padaṃ, nepātikaṃ padaṃ). The aphorisms herein are two hundred and twenty-three in number.

3) Kārakakaṇḍa :- the chapter on syntax. It deals with the forms of nouns which are related to verbs. There are six case-relations i. e. kattukāraka, kammakāraka, karaṇakāraka, sampaḍānakāraka, apadānakāraka, and ādhārakāraka. There are thirty-three aphorisms in this chapter.

4) Samāsakaṇḍa :- the chapter on Compounds. The compounding of words is dealt upon in sixfold manner i. e. Abyayībhāva, kammadhāraya, digu, tappurisa, bahubbīhi and dvandva. There are thirty-one aphorisms in this chapter.

6) Ākhyātakaṇḍa : the chapter on verbs. It is in three parts as follows : i) vibhattividhāna : the construction of the verbal forms in which pada, purisa, vacana, vibhatti and kāla are to be taken into account. ii) Vikaraṇavidhāna : it deals with the dhātu : (roots) paccaya : (suffix) and vācaka (tense). iii) Dhātupaccayantanaya : It explains the procedure of the formation of the words ending in the ‘dhātu-paccaya-s’. This chapter has one hundred and twenty-one aphorisms.

7) Kibbidhānakaṇḍa :- the chapter on verbal derivation. In this chapter, along with the kibbidhāna suffixes, the ‘uṇādi’ suffixes also are explained. There are one hundred and forty aphorisms in this chapter.

Thus, the number of the aphorisms of Rūpasiddhi is six hundred and sixty eight. The number of the aphorisms of Rūpasiddhi according to the Thai, Sri Lankan and Myanmarian versions is different. In the Thai and Sri Lankan Rūpasiddhi, there are 668 aphorisms. But the aphorisms in Myanmarian one are 684. This, however, does not indicate less or more aphorisms; the number varies just because of inclusion or exclusion of the aphorisms repeated in different contexts. Further, the way of the classification of aphorisms under different sections varies from one another in the Kaccāyana, Nyāsa and Rūpasiddhi. Kaccāyana and Nyāsa divided the contents into eight divisions. Each division is called ‘kappa’ such as Sandhikappa, Nāmakappa etc. Section of a kappa is called ‘kaṇḍa’ f. e. ‘Sandhikappe paṭhamo kaṇḍo’, ‘Nāmakappe dutiyo kaṇḍo’ etc. The topics of the first six divisions of the three texts are similar. The topic of the seventh and eight divisions of Kaccāyana and Nyāsa is the same as that of the seventh chapter of Rūpasiddhi.

However, the number of the aphorisms in the three texts varies. Kaccāyana contains 673 aphorisms. Nyāsa has 714 aphorisms i. e. 41 aphorisms more than Kaccāyana. There are 36 additions of aphorisms in Kārakakappa, 3 in Nāmakappa and 2 in Samāsakappa. But in Rūpasiddhi, there are only 668 aphorisms. Rūpasiddhi excludes 7 aphorisms from Kaccāyana and accepts two aphorisms from Nyāsa.

Importance of the three chapters

Section titled “Importance of the three chapters”

It has been mentioned before that Rūpasiddhi consists of seven chapters. Here, however, as the title indicates, the three chapters i. e. Nāmakaṇḍa (the chapter on Nouns), Samāsakaṇḍa (the chapter on compounds) and Ākhyātakaṇḍa (the chapter on verbs) are the aspects which are selected for study. Let us deal with the significance of these three aspects.

Nāmakaṇḍa (the chapter on Nouns)

Section titled “Nāmakaṇḍa (the chapter on Nouns)”

Buddhappiya, the author of Rūpasiddhi, re-arranges the rules of Kaccāyana and gives explanation to make them easy to understand. The author follows Kaccāyana and also adds some rules from other treatise for better understanding. Rūpasiddhi, in the second chapter introduces the word ‘nāma’. The meaning is ‘the designation of matter’. ‘Nāma’ tends towards the meaning and brings the meaning in itself. This chapter starts with the rule ‘Jinavacanayuttaṃ hi’ (60) as in Kaccāyana (52). Under this rule, we find the following verse :-

Sā māgadhī mūlabhāsā narā yāyādikappikā
brahmāno cassutālāpā sambuddhā cāpi bhāsare.81

This verse refers to Pali as the language of Magadha, which was used by the Buddha-s. Then follow the rules about declension of nouns. In Pali, a noun has three genders :- masculine (pulliṅga), feminine (itthiliṅga), neuter (napuṃsakaliṅga). There are two numbers :- singular (ekavacana) and plural (bahuvacana). There are eight cases (vibhatti-s). The word ‘purisa’ belonging to the masculine gender, ending in ‘a’ (a-Kāranta), is the first example given in this kaṇḍa.

Let us note how the form ‘puriso’ is accomplished.

  • ‘Si’ is applied by the rule ‘Liṅgatthe paṭhamā’ (65).
  • The case-ending ‘si’ is changed into ‘o’ by the rule ‘So’ (66) = Purisa + 0.
  • The vowel following consonant is dropped by the rule ‘saralopo amādesapaccayādimhi saralope tu pakati’ (67).
  • ‘O’ is applied after ‘S’ by the rule ‘Naye paraṃ yutte’ (14).

Thus, the form ‘puriso’ is accomplished.

Similar process is followed in plural number and the other words ending in ‘a’. In the Nāmakaṇḍa of Rūpasiddhi, the first part deals with the masculine noun stems ending in a, ā, i, ī, u, ū and o. The author concludes this part as follows :-

“Puriso guṇavā rājā sā-aggi daṇḍī ca bhikkhu ca
satthā-abhibhū sabbaññū goti pulliṅgasaṅgaho”.82

The second part of Nāmakaṇa deals with the declension of feminine noun stems ending in ā, i, ī, u, ū, and o. The author concludes this part with the following verse :-

“kaññā ratti nadī itthī mātulānī ca bhikkhunī
daṇḍinī yāgu mātā ca jambū gotitthīsaṅgaho”.83

The declension of neuter noun stems ending in a, ā, i, ī, u, ū and o are included in the third part. The chapter concludes as follows:-

“cittaṃ kammañca assaddha- mathaṭṭhi sukhakāri ca
āyu gotrabhū dhammaññū cittagoti napuṃsake”.84

The fourth part, consists of pronominals and numerals. There are twenty-seven words of this type, f. e. sabba, ya, ta, ima, dvi, ti, etc. There are also the words having no gender (aliṅga), like the personal pronouns ‘tumha, amha’. These words have similar forms in all three genders, f. e. tvaṃ, ahaṃ etc. (tvaṃ pumā, tvaṃ itthī, tvaṃ napuṃsakaṃ).85

Rūpasiddhi also deals with the nouns which end in the case-suffixes like ‘to’ in the sense of ‘pañcamī’ (ablative), and tra, ttha etc. in the sense of sattamī (locative). Thus, we have the forms like sabbato, rājato, corato, sabbatra, sabbattha etc. The last part of the chapter on Nouns deals with the Upasaggas and Nipātas which also belong to the group of nouns having no genders (aliṅga). They are also called ‘indeclinables.’ In the conclusion of chapter, the author summarizes by this verse :-

“Pulliṅgaṃ itthiliṅgañca napuṃsakamathāparaṃ
tiliṅgañca aliṅgañca nāmikaṃ pañcadhā ṭhitaṃ”.86

“The nominal words are fivefold :- i) pulliṅga : masculine, ii) itthīliṅga : feminine, iii) napuṃsakaliṅga- neuter, iv) tiliṅga - having three genders and v) aliṅga- having no gender.”

Samāsakaṇḍa : the chapter on compounds

Section titled “Samāsakaṇḍa : the chapter on compounds”

The chapter on compounds starts by mentioning the types of compounds; namely :- i) Abyayībhāva : Adverbial, ii) Kammadhāraya : Appositional, iii) Digu : Numerical, iv) Tappurisa : Determinative, v) Bahubbīhi : Relative and vi) Dvandva : Copulative. These are dealt with as follows :-

‘Abhyayībhāva’ is a compound having upasagga or nipāta as the first member. The whole of the compound is treated like a noun in neuter gender with a Nominative Case and Singular Number. They are divided into two types i) Upasaggapubbaka : being preceded by upasagga and ii) Nipātapubbaka : being preceded by nipāta. The author of Rūpasiddhi has also dealt with the irregular Abhayībhāva compounds. These compounds are not in Neuter gender with Nominative case and singular number. The author refers to the words like ‘upanagarassa’, ‘upanagarasmiṃ’, ‘anto-avīcimhi’, ‘bahisāṇiyaṃ’ etc.

‘Kammadhāraya’ is a compound having both members in the same case relation. The first member is thus either a noun or an adjective qualifying the other member. They are of nine types :- i) Visesanapubbapada: adjective is the first member of the compound, f. e. ‘mahāpuriso’. ii) Visesanuttarapada : adjective is the second member of the compound f. e. ‘naraseṭṭho’, etc. iii) Visesanobhayapada : both the members are adjectives f. e. ‘katañca akatañca katākataṃ’, etc. iv) Upamānuttarapada : the second member indicates comparison f. e. ‘munisīho’ etc. v) Sambhāvanapubbapada: ‘dhammabuddhi’, etc. vi) Avadhāraṇapubbapada : ‘guṇadhanaṃ’, etc. vii) Nipātapubbapada : f. e. ‘amanusso’, viii) Kupubbapada : The nipāta ‘ku’ is the first member f. e. ‘kuputto’, ‘kudiṭṭhi’ etc.

‘Digu’ is so called because the first member of a kammadhāraya compound is a numeral. Digu is twofold : i) Samāhāradigu, ii) Asamāhāradigu. The ‘tappurisa compound’ is sixfold. It is in the six case-endings beginning with the accusative. There are also the tappurisa compounds having different forms other than the six. They are i) amādiparatappurisa and ii) alopatappurisa.

‘Bahubbīhi’ is a compound having the aññapada [?] They are ninefold : i) dvipada tulyādhikaraṇa, ii) dvipada bhinnādhikaraṇa, iii) tipada, iv) nanipātapubbapada, v) sahapubbapada, vi) upamānapubbapada, vii) saṅkhyobhayapada, viii) disantarāḷattha and ix) byatihāralakkhaṇa. The bahubbīhi compounds have two members in the same case relation and are used in six cases.

Two or more nouns joined by the co-ordinating conjunction ‘ca’ (and) being in the same case are called ‘dvandva’. It is of two types : i) itarītarayoga, ii) Samāhāra. The itarītara dvandva compound is always plural and takes the gender of the last member. The ‘samāhāra dvandva compound’ always has singular number and neuter gender. This compound is especially used in the sense of limbs of living beings.

The samāhāra dvandva is formed in different senses. In the dvandva compounds of the words denoting rukkha, tiṇa, pasu, dhana, dhañña, janapada etc., singularity and neuter gender are only optionally applicable. When there is the absence of singular, plural is applicable and gender of the latter word is applicable. This is also called ‘vikappasamāhāradvandva.’87

In the conclusion of the chapter on compounds, the author summarizes by this stanza :-

“pubbuttarubhayaññatthap- padhānattā catubbidho
samāsoyaṃ digukamma- dhārayehi ca chabbidho
duvidho abyayībhāvo navadhā kammadhārayo
digu dvidhā tappuriso aṭṭhadhā navadhā bhave
bahubbīhi dvidhā dvandvo samāso caturaṭṭhadhāti.”88

“This samāsa is fourfold according to the major members being pubbapada, uttarapada, ubhayapada and aññapada. It is sixfold with the inclusion of digu and kammadhāraya. The abyayībhāva is twofold. The Kammadhāraya is ninefold. The digu is twofold. The tappurisa is eight-fold. The bahubbīhi is ninefold. The dvandva is twofold. Thus, it is thirty-two-fold.”

Ākhyātakaṇḍa : The chapter on Verbs

Section titled “Ākhyātakaṇḍa : The chapter on Verbs”

‘Ākhyāta’ is the pada indicating action (kiriyāpada). The ’ākhyāta’s components are eight types namely : Kāla, kāraka, Purisa, vacana, pada, vibhatti, dhātu and paccaya. Kāla or time is divided into three. Kāraka: case-relation or voice, there are three voices : i) Kattukāraka : Active voice, ii) Kammakāraka : passive and iii) Bhāvakāraka : impersonal constructions. Purisa : Person. There are three persons. Vacana : Number. There are two numbers :- ekavacana : singular and bahuvacana : Plural. Pada : There are two padas : i) the parassapada and ii) attanopada. Vibhatti or case-terminations are eightfold as follows :- i) Vattamānā vibhatti : It indicates the present tense (Paccupannakāla). ii) Pañcamī vibhatti : Imperative. iii) Sattamī vibhatti : Potential. iv) Parokkhā vibhatti : These terminations are used to express a past event not experienced by (present) senses. v) Hiyyattanī vibhatti : Past tense. vi) Ajjattanīvibhatti : Aorist. The forms of Aorist terminations are very rare in literature. vii) Bhavissanti vibhatti : Future tense. viii) Kālātipatti vibhatti : Conditional. This topic is concluded by this stanza :-

“pancamī sattamī vatta- mānā sampatināgate
bhavissanti parokkhādi catassotītakālikā.”89

“The terminations called Pañcami, Sattami, and vattamānā are applicable to present (sampati). The bhavissanti is applicable to the future. The four terminations beginning with ‘Parokkha’ are applicable to the past.”

The second part of the chapter on verbs consists of vikaraṇavidhāna: the procedure of the conjugation. It deals with the roots divided into seven types i. e. i) Bhūvādi. ii) Rudhādi. iii) Divādi. iv) Svādi. v) Kiyādi. vi) Tanādi. vii) Curādi. The author concludes by this verse :-

“Bhūvādi ca rudhādi ca divādi svādayo gaṇā
kiyādi tanādī ca curādi cidhādi sattadhā.”90

Suffixes are also classified in five divisions :- i) Kattupaccaya, ii) Kammapaccaya, iii) Bhāvapaccaya, iv) Hetukattupaccaya. v) Hetukammapaccaya.

In the final section of the chapter on Verbs, the words ending in ’dhātu-paccayas beginning with ‘kha’ and ending with ‘kārita’ are dealt with. When these suffixes are applied to root, the root’s meaning is changed. There are also suffixes which change a noun into verb. Also the Kārita suffixes i. e. ṇe, ṇaya, ṇāpe, ṇāpaya are dealt with. They bring the sense of ‘cause’ (Hetu).

This outline of the three chapters would reveal the importance of the grammatical topics covered therein. Accordingly, the present attempt deals with those important topics by way of critical presentation of the text in Devanāgarī script, English translation and critical notes wherever necessary. It may be pointed out that herein Rūpasiddhi is appearing for the first time in Devanāgarī which is often convenient for Indian readers. Similarly, the translation of Rūpasiddhi also is appearing first time in English.

Outline of the present attempt

Section titled “Outline of the present attempt”

In the field of Pali literature, Rūpasiddhi has become a constant subject of study in the monasteries. The present attempt is to study and interpret some aspects of Rūpasiddhi. The author desires to explore the method of Rūpasiddhi in the light of concerned literature. The thesis has four parts as follows :-

1) Text : Rūpasiddhi has seven chapters. An attempt is being made here, to study the three chapters as follows :-

1.1) Nāmakaṇḍa : The chapter on Nouns.
1.2) Samāsakaṇḍa : The chapter on compounds.
1.3) Ākhyātakaṇḍa : The chapter on verbs.

As the text of this thesis, these chapters are presented in the ‘DEVA-NĀGARI-SCRIPT’ first time. The variant readings are recorded as foot-notes.

2) Translation : Hereby, Rūpasiddhi, though partially, appears in English translation, first of its kind.

3) Notes : Some necessary notes also are presented to explain some rules or examples. Reference may be made to the word ‘ekasesa’ appearing under the rule 68.

4) Bibliography : The thesis uses not only English sources, but also the editions available in Thai, Sinhalese and Burmese Scripts. The Bibliography covers detailed descriptions of the sources.

Thus, the objective of this thesis is to study Buddhappiya’s treatment of nouns, compounds and verbs. It is hoped that this would be the pioneer leading to the further study of remaining aspects of Rūpasiddhi.

In the translation part, the Pali sutta is preceded by teo numbers; the first number indicates the rule number in the Kaccāyana Vyākaraṇa, whereas the second one indicates the rule number according to Rūpasiddhi.

Footnotes

Section titled “Footnotes”

  1. Nām p. 7 ↩

  2. IC p. 194 ↩

  3. KacN (Intro,) p. 15, BP. p. 2 “[saddā] byākariyante etenāti byākaraṇaṃ (vidhānaṃ) = vi + ā + √kara + ‘yu’ suffix.” ‘Yu’ is changed into ‘aṇa.’ ↩

  4. Ibid. ↩

  5. Kcp (Intro,) p. (k) ↩

  6. HPL p. 630 ↩

  7. PVL p. 424 ↩

  8. Nām p. 7 ↩

  9. Dhp v. 352 ↩

  10. HPL p. 631 ↩

  11. Ibid. ↩

  12. Ibid. ↩

  13. KcP p. (Kha) ↩

  14. Ibid. ↩

  15. PLL p. 49 ↩

  16. PLB p. 16 ↩

  17. Ibid. ↩

  18. PLL p. 55 ↩

  19. PL p. 164 ↩

  20. Ibid ↩

  21. Piṭ-Sm p. 139 ↩

  22. PLB p. 17 ↩

  23. HPL p. 636 ↩

  24. PLL p. 53 ↩

  25. Ibid. ↩

  26. PL p. 165 ↩

  27. PLL p. 54 ↩

  28. PLC p. 231 ↩

  29. PLL p. 54 ↩

  30. Ibid. ↩

  31. Ibid. p. 51 ↩

  32. PLL p. 37 ↩

  33. IC p. 196 ↩

  34. KacN p. 39 ↩

  35. Nām p. 12 ↩

  36. PLL p. 37 ↩

  37. Nām p. 13 ↩

  38. PLL p. 38 ↩

  39. PLB p. 21 ↩

  40. Tathā hi mukhamattadīpanīyaṃsaddasatthavidhunā vajirabuddhācariyena niruttinaye kosallavasena gosaddato yonamīkārādeso vutto” Sadd T. p. 344 ↩

  41. PLB p. 21 ↩

  42. PLC p. 244 and GV p. 62 ↩

  43. PLL p. 50 ↩

  44. PLB p. 18 and GV pp. 64, 74 “Kaccāyanassa suttaniddeso ↩

  45. Nām pp. 12, 13 ↩

  46. PVT p. 23 ↩

  47. IC p. 195 ↩

  48. PLL p. 54 (De Zoysa, quoted in catal, p. 25 f). ↩

  49. PED p. 379 ↩

  50. STR p. 6 ↩

  51. Rūp T. p. 1 “byattaṃ sukaṇḍaṃ padarūpasiddhiṃ” ↩

  52. PLC p. 221 ↩

  53. PDṬ p. 24 ↩

  54. CPD Vol. 1 p. 55, HPL p. 634 ↩

  55. PLB p. 105 ↩

  56. S p. 463 ↩

  57. Rūp T. p. 393 ↩

  58. PLC p. 220 ↩

  59. Sadd be. [Nidānakathā] p. [k.] “bālādiccassa cūlamaṇikammassa cāti dvinnaṃ pariveṇānaṃ padhānanāyakabhūto. “ ↩

  60. HPL p. 203, PLL p. 51 ↩

  61. PLC p. 220 f, JPTS, 1887, p. 16 ↩

  62. GV v. 48 ‘Sāriputto nāmācariyo…….sāratthadīpanī nāma ṭīkaṃ…….akāsi.’ ↩

  63. PLC pp. 210, 211, 220, DPPN pp. 271, 309, 923 ↩

  64. HBC pp. xxv ii, xxxv ↩

  65. Bl p. 1 (rule 2) ↩

  66. Mogg p. 1 (rule 1) ↩

  67. CPD p. 11 ↩

  68. Rūp T. p. 3 (rule 2) ↩

  69. PLC p. 222 ↩

  70. Ibid. 220 f ↩

  71. PTS (1886), p. 338 ↩

  72. GV pp. 331, 338 ↩

  73. Ibid. pp. 332, 339 ↩

  74. PLL p. 45 ↩

  75. PLC p. 229 ↩

  76. Rūp T. p. 1 ↩

  77. Rūp T. p. 1 ↩

  78. PDṬ p. 4 ‘Akkharakosalle sati tipiṭakasaṅkhātassa…… pariyatti dhammassādhigamo hoti………. paṭipattidhammasādhigamo hoti…… paṭivedhadhhammassādhigamo hoti.’ ↩

  79. “yathā ca pāṇinībyākaraṇassa mahāsiddhāntakomudī bahūpakārā tathevesa rūpasiddhipi kaccāyanabyākaraṇassa hoti’.’ Sadd be (Nidānakathā) p. [ḍa]. ↩

  80. PDP. p. 5 ↩

  81. For translation see p. 121 ↩

  82. For translation see p. 167 ↩

  83. For translation see p. 179 ↩

  84. For translation see p. 184 ↩

  85. Rūp. T. p. 105 ↩

  86. Ibid. p. 128 ↩

  87. Rūp T. p. 200 ↩

  88. Ibid. p. 202 ↩

  89. For translation see p. 310 ↩

  90. For translation see p. 350 ↩