7.1.21
अष्टाभ्य औश्
Operational rule vidhi
The जस् and शस् प्रत्ययs following the 'अष्टा' form of the word अष्टन् get the औश् आदेश.
Word by word (padaccheda)
Left context अष्टाभ्यः pañcamī · bahuvacanaSubstitute / term औश् prathamā · ekavacana
- Left context Pañcamī (5th case): "after X", the operation applies to what follows (1.1.67 तस्मादित्युत्तरस्य). Also used for limits and sources.
- Substitute / term Prathamā (1st case): in operational rules, the substitute or the thing introduced; in definitions, the term or its referent.
Dotted words are technical terms. Hover or tap one to see its card.
Full reading
अष्टाभ्यः औश्
Pāṇini leaves out words that carry over from earlier sūtras. Expand to see the rule as a reader actually understands it.
Commentary
After the अङ्ग (stem) अष्टा (the form assumed by अष्टन् -- अष्टन आ विभक्तौ 7.2.84), औश् is substituted for the endings of the Nominative 1st-Case and Accusative -2nd case.
As अष्टौ तिष्ठन्ति, अष्ठौ पश्य ॥ Why have we taken the form अष्टा and not अष्ट ? Observe अष्ट तिष्ठन्ति, अष्ट पश्य ॥ This peculiar construction of the present sutra (अष्टाभ्यः instead of अष्टनः) indicates, that the आ substitution for the न् of अष्टन् is optional. This sutra is, moreover, an exception by anticipation, to the following sutra, by which the plural Nominative and Accusative endings are elided after the numerals called षष् ॥ The elision of case-endings taught by 2.4.7, is not, however, barred by this rule; the elision taught therein will take place, whether this rule applies or not. Thus अष्टपुत्रः, अष्टभार्यः ॥
The present rule applies even when अष्ट is at the end of a compound, as परमाष्टौ, उत्तमाष्टौ ॥ But in प्रियाष्टानः, औ does not come, as अष्टन् has not assumed the form अष्टा here i.e. it has not lost its न् ॥
Śrīśa Chandra Vasu, The Ashtadhyayi of Panini (1897), via ashtadhyayi.com.