1.1.18
Nyāya Sūtra / Adhyāya 1 / 1.1.18
प्रवर्त्तनालक्षणार् दोषाः
pravarttanālakṣaṇār doṣāḥ
The line
The faults are those whose mark is the inciting of activity.
नेपालीमा
दोष ती हुन् जसको चिह्न प्रवृत्ति जगाउनु हो।
Where it sits
doṣa (दोष) from 1.1.9 is the word being defined. pravṛtti (प्रवृत्ति) from 1.1.17 is in force as the activity they produce.
Split: pravarttanā-lakṣaṇāḥ (प्रवर्त्तना-लक्षणाः) + doṣāḥ (दोषाः)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| pravarttanā-lakṣaṇāḥ (प्रवर्त्तना-लक्षणाः) | nominative plural, masculine | those whose mark is inciting |
| doṣāḥ (दोषाः) | nominative plural, masculine | the faults |
The phrases
A doṣa (दोष) is known by what it does. pravarttanā (प्रवर्त्तना) is the causing of pravṛtti (प्रवृत्ति), the setting of a person into speech, thought, or bodily action.
The line does not name the faults one by one. Desire, aversion, and confusion are the usual three, and desire and aversion already appeared as marks of the self. Here the definition is only the mark: whatever incites activity is a fault.
Sanskrit in this line
pravarttanā (प्रवर्त्तना) is the noun of the causative, 'the making to proceed'. The bahuvrīhi (बहुव्रीहि) is plural to agree with doṣāḥ (दोषाः). Before doṣāḥ (दोषाः) the ending āḥ (आः) is recited ār (आर्).
Say it back
Say that a doṣa (दोष) is marked by pravarttanā (प्रवर्त्तना), and that the line does not list the faults.