6.3.6
आत्मनश्च पूरणे
Operational rule vidhi
The Instrumental -3rd case endings after आत्मान् are not elided when an Ordinal Numeral follows.
Word by word (padaccheda)
Left context आत्मनः pañcamī · ekavacanaIndeclinable च avyayaRight context पूरणे saptamī · ekavacana
- Left context Pañcamī (5th case): "after X", the operation applies to what follows (1.1.67 तस्मादित्युत्तरस्य). Also used for limits and sources.
- Indeclinable An avyaya such as च "and", वा "optionally", न "not".
- Right context Saptamī (7th case): "when X follows", the operation applies to what precedes (1.1.66 तस्मिन्निति निर्दिष्टे पूर्वस्य). Also a condition or domain ("in the sense of").
Full reading
आत्मनः च पूरणे
Pāṇini leaves out words that carry over from earlier sūtras. Expand to see the rule as a reader actually understands it.
Commentary
The Instrumental -3rd case endings after आत्मान् are not elided when an Ordinal Numeral follows.
Thus आत्मनापंचमः, आत्मनाषष्ठः ॥ The Instrumental case here takes place under the Vartika तृतीयाविधाने प्रकृत्यादीनामुपसंख्यानं (II.3.18 Vartika). And compounding takes place by 2.1.30, by separating तृतीया of that aphorism and making it a separate sutra or in this way :-आत्मना कृतः पंचमः = आत्मनापंचमः ॥ How do you explain the form आत्मचतुर्थ in जनार्दनस्त्वात्मचतुर्थ एव? It is a Bahuvrihi compound = आत्मा चतुर्थोऽस्य ॥ The word पूरणे is a later addition of the Vartikakara.
Śrīśa Chandra Vasu, The Ashtadhyayi of Panini (1897), via ashtadhyayi.com.