yabh ity aadi

[witzel at husc3.harvard.edu]

Carlos Lopez is right: comme l'habitude, we miss on this list much work 
that has already been done earlier in this century, not to speak 
--horribile dictu-- of the last one... Remember the India/Greece discussion?
Cf. also on fenced graama-s  (following message).

In the present context, as mentioned:  K. Hoffmann's verb study, which
contains such grammatically interesting forms as the contaminated
(desiderative/future):  nom. sg. fem. ptc. pass. desid. (yiiyapsyamaanaa),
-- and this in the Sruti! --  <To further a little bit the oral transmission
of anecdotes about our predecessors, so greatly lacking on this continent:
As he told me at the time: "Now, finally, I have an occasion to discuss this
interesting verb form...">

In the same vein, to provide another textual example: I once read out, in
1988, I believe, during the Harvard Holi celebration ("no obscenities
please!"), and then let everyone recite the refrain (for which I got good
marks) of Rgveda Khila 5.16 (Scheftelowitz = AV 20.133) --- with no one
understanding the riddle provided as handout - just as the little girl in the
mantras: na vai kumaari tat tathaa, yathaa kumaari manyase... 
More in te following hymns...

Then, there is, of course, Ivo Fiser's "Indian Erotics of the oldest
period"  (Acta Universitatis Carolinae, Philologica Monographia XIV),
Praha 1966.  pp.139.  This mostly deals with the Vedic period, but has a
representative if not complete collection of Skt. verbs and nouns of this
sphere, discusses a few interesting passages, etc.  Also, you can learn
the Slovak equivalents of yabh: (p. 96: jebem ti mater, and Czech :
jebati, -- the Russian equivalent of which is perhaps better known and
commonly listed in dictionaries as the most common expletive, expression
of surprise). 

For more on Vedic sex (though overdone):  
Sadashiv A. Dange, Sexual Symbolism from the Vedic ritual, Delhi 
(Ajanta) 1979.

Further, is there really any need to remind of the several works written 
by Richard Schmidt (see below)? For Hoffmann, Schmidt, and Wezler one 
needs to know German, of course, and occasionally also Latin...

PS. Just now, while reading Albrecht Wezler's  "erotische Vexierbilder" 
(on types of ambiguity  in Kaavya), I notice a lot of further data:

see: Sauhrdyamangala. Studies in honour of Siegfried Lienhard, ed. 
M.Juntunen et al., Assoc. of Oriental  Studies, Stockholm 1995, pp. 361-379.
(including a detailed descr. of the Bhattoji joke on hrasvam laghu; 
samyoge guru, diirgham ca, cases from the Satasaai, and Caurapancaazikaa 
of BilhaNa.)

M. Witzel 
witzel at husc3.harvard.edu

--------

I quote from our library catalogue (without diactrics):
R. Schmidt:
 *  beitrage zur indischen erotik/ 1902
 
 *  beitrage zur indischen erotik. das liebensleben des sanskritvolkes/ 
1922  

 *  liebe und ehe im alten und modernen indien 1904 

cf. also:

 *  nachtrage zum sanskrit worterbuch in kurzerer fassung von otto 
boehtlingk/ 1928  


--- ity alam---