BSEB Inter Prakrit flashcards

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Prakrit putta- from Sanskrit putra-

Sanskrit cluster -tr- with preceding short vowel assimilates to geminate -tt-, giving Prakrit putta- ('son'). This is the regular MIA cluster simplification rule, not an irregular exception.

Intervocalic voicing in Prakrit

Sanskrit single voiceless stops between vowels become voiced in Prakrit: -k- > -g-, -t- > -d-, -p- > -v-. Example: Skt. loka- > Pkt. loa-/loya-, Skt. nata- > nada-.

Prakrit sibilant merger

Sanskrit has three sibilants (sh, sh, s); Prakrit merges all to s. Thus Skt. shastra- > Pkt. sattha-, Skt. sarva- > Pkt. savva-. Recognition of this merger is essential for reading Prakrit.

Ardhamagadhi nominative singular -e

Ardhamagadhi a-stem masculines often take -e in the nominative singular (e.g., dhamme 'the doctrine'), whereas Maharashtri prefers -o. This is a key dialect marker in translation.

Prakrit genitive singular -assa

The a-stem masculine genitive singular ending is -assa in Prakrit (Skt. -asya). Example: narassa 'of the man'. The corresponding plural genitive is -anam.

Prakrit instrumental plural -ehi

A-stem instrumental plural is -ehi (also -ehi(m)) in Prakrit, corresponding to Sanskrit -aih. Example: narehi 'by/with the men'. Feminine a-stems use -ahi.

Prakrit present 3rd singular -i

Thematic present 3rd person singular ends in -i in Prakrit (Skt. -ati): bhavai 'he is', karai 'he does'. The 3rd plural ends in -nti: bhavanti 'they are'.

Prakrit optative -ejja-

The optative (vidhilin) inserts -ejja-/-ijja- before the ending: bhavejja 'may he be', karejja 'may he do'. It expresses wish, polite request, or hypothetical condition.

Prakrit future -ssa-

The future tense adds -ssa- to the root before personal endings: bhavissai 'he will be', karissai 'he will do'. The 1st singular is bhavissami.

Prakrit passive -ijja-

Passive stems take -ijja- (or -ia-): karijjai 'is done', dijjai 'is given'. The agent appears in the instrumental case, and the construction is often impersonal in Jain narrative.

tam jaha formula

The fixed prose collocation tam jaha means 'namely, as follows' and introduces an enumeration or definition. It is extremely common in Jain canonical and commentarial prose.

Jain homage formula

Canonical and narrative texts open with homage such as namo arahanthanam or namo siddhanam. Recognizing this frame helps identify genre and sect before translating the body of the passage.

Vasudevahindi

A Prakrit prose romance attributed to Sanghadasa (c. 6th c. CE), retelling the Vasudeva-Krishna cycle in Jain form. It is a standard prescribed prose text for comprehension and translation.

Arya metre

Arya is a matra-based metre of four padas with 12, 18, 12 and 15 matras. It dominates Prakrit poetry; Gathasaptashati verses are all aryas, hence the term gatha.

Upama and rupaka

Upama is simile, marked by particles such as va or jaha ('like'). Rupaka is metaphor, where the vehicle is identified with the tenor without a particle. Both are core Prakrit alamkaras.

Gathasaptashati

An anthology of about 700 Maharashtri love lyrics attributed to Hala (c. 1st-2nd c. CE). Verses use rural and monsoon imagery and are composed in arya metre.

Anuprasa and yamaka

Anuprasa is alliteration, the repetition of consonants; yamaka is the repetition of identical syllable groups within a verse. Both are frequently identified in Prakrit poetic analysis.

Maharashtri Prakrit

The prestige literary Prakrit used for court poetry and kavya, including Gathasaptashati and Setubandha. It is characterized by nominative singular -o and extensive intervocalic weakening.

Shauraseni Prakrit

The Prakrit used for prose dialogue by women and middle-ranking characters in Sanskrit drama. It is also the dialect of much Jain narrative prose and of the Digambara commentarial tradition.

Magadhi Prakrit

The dialect of Magadha, used for low-status characters in Sanskrit drama and reflected in Asoka's eastern edicts. It shows characteristic nominative -e and sibilant features.

Paisaci Prakrit

A literary Prakrit known mainly from grammarians and Gunadhya's lost Brihatkatha. It is characterized by -r- where other Prakrits have -d- or -l-, and survives only in retellings.

Hemacandra

The 12th-century Jain polymath whose Siddhahema-shabdanushasana is the most complete grammar of Prakrit and Sanskrit, and whose Kavyanushasana codifies poetics. He was a Shvetambara monk.

Brihatkatha

Gunadhya's lost Paishaci Prakrit epic, surviving through Kshemendra's Brihatkatham anjari and Somadeva's Kathasaritsagara. It underlies many later Indian narrative cycles.

Paumacariya

Vimalasuri's Jain Ramayana in Prakrit (c. 3rd-4th c. CE), presenting Ravana sympathetically and reframing the epic in Jain terms. It is a major Jain kavya.

Samaraiccakaha

Haribhadra's 8th-century Jain Prakrit prose romance, illustrating karmic doctrine through the intertwined lives of its characters. It is a standard prescribed narrative text.

Ardhamagadhi canon

The Shvetambara Jain Agamas, comprising 12 Angas, 12 Upangas, 10 Prakirnakas, 6 Chedasutras and 4 Mulasutras, are composed in Ardhamagadhi, a mixed Magadhi-Shauraseni dialect.

Acharanga

The first and oldest Jaina Anga, prescribing ascetic conduct and ahimsa, including the famous passage on care for living beings. It is composed in Ardhamagadhi prose with verse sections.

Kalpasutra

Bhadrabahu's Shvetambara text containing the biographies of the Jinas and rules for the rainy-season retreat. It is read aloud during Paryushana and is a key liturgical work.

Tattvarthasutra

Umasvati's Sanskrit sutra text (c. 2nd-5th c. CE) summarizing Jain doctrine in ten chapters, covering jiva, ajiva, karma, bandha and moksha. It is central to both Jain sects.

Asokan edicts

Inscriptions of Asoka (c. 268-232 BCE) in regional Middle Indo-Aryan dialects, in Brahmi and Kharoshthi scripts. They are the earliest substantial Prakrit epigraphic corpus.

Girnar rock inscription

The Junagadh/Girnar rock carries Asoka's Major Rock Edicts and later the Rudradaman inscription. It is a key site for Prakrit epigraphy and for the transition to Sanskrit panegyric.

Hathigumpha inscription

Kharavela's Prakrit inscription at Udayagiri, Odisha (c. 1st c. BCE), recording his reign, public works and Jain patronage. It is a major post-Asokan Prakrit epigraph.

Brahmi and Kharoshthi

The two scripts of early Prakrit inscriptions: Brahmi, used across most of India and ancestral to later Indic scripts, and Kharoshthi, used in the northwest and written right to left.