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Bhartrhari

Bhartṛhari was an Indian grammarian and philosopher of language of around the fifth century CE. In the Vākyapadīya he argued that the sentence and…

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भर्तृहरि

Also known as Bhartṛhari

c. 5th century CE · India (exact location uncertain)

Traditions: Indian

Bhartṛhari was an Indian grammarian and philosopher of language of around the fifth century CE. In the Vākyapadīya he argued that the sentence and its unitary meaning are primary, while words are abstractions made for grammatical analysis. He developed the doctrine of sphoṭa, the meaning-bearing linguistic unit distinct from its sounds, within a metaphysics in which reality is grounded in the Word (śabda-brahman). Whether he is the same person as the poet of the Śatakatraya is disputed.

Key ideas

  • The sentence, not the word, is the primary unit of meaning.
  • Words and their parts are abstracted from sentences for analysis.
  • Meaning is conveyed by sphoṭa, a unit distinct from the audible sounds.
  • All cognition is interpenetrated by language.

Major works

  • Vākyapadīya
  • Mahābhāṣyadīpikā (commentary on Patañjali's Mahābhāṣya)

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