chAndogya upaniSad 1.1.8 and 8.3.5

[JR Gardner]

Re. Palaniappan's question:

> "Does the use of these Prakritized or Dravidianized forms to
> etymologize Sanskrit words imply that the authors' own mother tongue was
> Prakritic or that the Prakritic forms were very current or acceptable in
> UpaniSadic times? "

It brings to mind the question of "subaltern" (I use the term--if
possible--generically rather than politically) voices in the shruti.  I
can hardly resist offering Aitareya AAraNyaka 2.1.5:

tatsatyaM saditi prANastItyannaM

(note mss. variances here-- tItyannayam [from a mss. of the Aaa complete,
c. late 18th c, bundled with gRhya and shrauta suutras], and tItyannaryama
[from two mss. of c. 1700 and mid- 18th. c; in grantha characters with no
additioanl bundled texts])

yamityasAvAdityastadetattrivRttrivRdiva vai chkSuH shuklaM kRSNaM
kanIniketi | sa yadi ha vA api mRSA vadati satyaM haivAsyoditaM bhavati ya
evametatsatyasya satyatvaM veda

regarding the creations of days, and presence of deities within and
outside the body, the translation by Keith reads:

That is sattya.  For sat is breath, ti is food, yam is yonder sun.  That
is threefold.  Threefold as it were is the eye, white, dark, and the the
pupil.  Even though he speaks falsely, yet speaks he truth who thus knows
why truth is sattya.

Keith notes : This doctrine undoubtedly shows the moral disadvantages of
the doctrine of salvation by knowledge, and it is the precursor of the
later immunity from moral censure of teh jIvanmukta. (p. 207, n6.)

In addition to Chup, see also TU 2.6 (sat/manifest and tyat/not manifest;
and BAU 5.5.a which differs in the KaNva.  cf. KauS.U 1.6.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
John Robert Gardner      Obermann Center
School of Religion         for Advanced Studies
University of Iowa       University of Iowa
319-335-2164             319-335-4034
http://vedavid.org       http://www.uiowa.edu/~obermann/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It is ludicrous to consider language as anything other
than that of which it is the transformation.