[INDOLOGY] unsandhied juncture

[Jonathan Silk]

a question from someone entirely ignorant of the grammatical tradition, and
therefore no doubt a silly question, but: I was under the impression that
according to Panini all external sandhi was optional, precisely because it
is possible. to. speak. very. slowly. separating. every. word.
Given that the grammar is productive, does not it allow such utterances, in
which one slowly enunciates everything without any phonetic liaison at all
(again, externally, not word-internal)?
Sorry for the ignorance-based question,
Jonathan

On Wed, Jul 15, 2026 at 6:49 PM Sudalaimuthu Palaniappan via INDOLOGY <
indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

> I can think of one instance I worked on recently.
>
>
>
> In the Kūram plates published in the South Indian Inscriptions, volume 1,
> the name Anantaśiva ācārya occurs. Please see the Sanskrit version lines
> 56-57 on attached p. 150 and the Tamil version on line 84 on p. 151. On
> pages 154 and 155, the name is rendered as Ānantaśiva-āchārya in the
> Sanskrit and Tamil sections. But on p. 147, the name is interpreted as
> Anantaśivāchārya. As I argue in my monograph (https://tinyurl.com/33a9tt4s)
> pp. 13-17, the lack of sandhi is due to deliberate action by the inscriber
> who wanted to distinguish between a brahman Śivācārya and a non-brahman
> architect (ācārya).
>
>
>
> Hope this helps.
>
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Palaniappan
>
>
>
> *From: *INDOLOGY <indology-bounces at list.indology.info> on behalf of
> Indology List <indology at list.indology.info>
> *Reply-To: *"Jan E.M. Houben" <jemhouben at gmail.com>
> *Date: *Sunday, July 12, 2026 at 8:59 AM
> *To: *Indology List <indology at list.indology.info>
> *Subject: *[INDOLOGY] unsandhied juncture
>
>
>
> Dear List members,
>
>
>
> As sandhi at the juncture of two words is expected in correct sanskrit,
> its absence could point to carelessness of the author or scribe, but also
> (rather) to the intention to make a quoted form stand out more clearly, as
> in pacyase iti, or to indicate a "weak" clause boundary, for which a
> da.n.da was felt to be too "strong".  I'm sure this problem has been dealt
> with in various transcriptions and editions of inscriptions and
> manuscripts. Is there any best practice regarding such places where
> sandhi is not observed, intentionally or erroneously? Especially in the
> former case the editor has to avoid "hypercorrection". Any widely accepted
> symbol (which could by itself lead to confusion by suggesting that the
> symbol represents something in the source)? Or adding a (clumsy) remark in
> the text, "sandhi not applied", or in the apparatus each time? (In
> Epigraphia indica volumes it appears commonly in notes "sandhi is not
> observed here", e.g. EI 37 p. 83, 84, 304.) A plus-sign, pacyase+iti, would
> probably at first sight suggest that an existing sandhi in the witness
> (manuscript / inscription) is undone by the editor.
>
>
>
> Best regards,
>
>
>
> Jan Houben
>
>
>
> --
>
> *Jan E.M. Houben*
>
> Directeur d'Études, Professor of South Asian History and Philology
>
> *Sources et histoire de la tradition sanskrite*
>
> École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE, Paris Sciences et Lettres)
>
> *Sciences historiques et philologiques *
>
> Groupe de recherches en études indiennes (EA 2120)
>
> *johannes.houben [at] ephe.psl.eu <johannes.houben at ephe.psl.eu>*
>
> *https://ephe-sorbonne.academia.edu/JanEMHouben
> <https://ephe-sorbonne.academia.edu/JanEMHouben>*
>
> *https://www.classicalindia.info* <https://www.classicalindia.info>
>
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-- 
Prof. dr. J.A. Silk
Professor in the study of Buddhism
Leiden University Institute for Area Studies, LIAS
Herta Mohr building 2.142
Witte Singel 27A
2311 BG Leiden
The Netherlands

Guest Professor, PI of ERC-Project BEST
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Department für Asienstudien, Institut für Indologie und Tibetologie
Geschwister-Scholl-Platz 1
80539 München
Deutschland

website: www.OpenPhilology.eu
copies of my publications may be found at
https://leidenuniv.academia.edu/JASilk
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