Agni Purana

गूढ़ार्थता विपर्य्यस्तार्थता संशयितार्थता । अविस्पष्टार्थता भेदास्तत्र गूढ़ार्थतेति सा ।। ३४७.

Hidden meaning, reversed meaning, doubtful meaning, and unclear meaning—these are the divisions, with hidden meaning being the first.

यत्रार्थो दुःखसंवेद्यो विपर्य्यस्तार्थ्ता पुनः । विवक्षितान्यशब्दार्थप्रतिपत्तिर्मलीमसा ।। ३४७.

Where the meaning is painfully experienced, that is hidden meaning; reversed meaning is when the intended meaning is wrongly understood by the words, and thus is impure.

अन्यार्थत्वासमर्थत्वे एतामेवोपसर्पतः । सन्दिह्यमानवाच्यत्वमाहुः संशयितार्थतां ।। ३४७.

When the meaning is other than intended or not possible, and this is approached, it is called doubtful meaning, or ambiguity.

दोषत्वमनुबध्नाति सज्जनोद्वेजनादृते । असुखोच्चार्य्यमाणत्वं कष्टत्वं समयाच्युतिः ।। ३४७.

A fault is established except when it causes distress to good people. When something is hard to pronounce or deviates from convention, it is called difficulty.

असामयितता नेयामेताञ्च मुनयो जगुः । ग्राम्यता तु जघन्यार्थप्रतिपत्तिः शलीकृता ।। ३४७.

This is to be understood as non-conventionality, as the sages have said. Vulgarity is the understanding of a low or base meaning, which is to be avoided.

वक्तव्यग्राम्यवाच्यस्य वचनात्स्मरणादपि । तद्वाचकपदेनाभिसाम्याद्भवति सा त्रिधा ।। ३४७.

By uttering, recalling, or using words for what should not be spoken in public, the fault arises in three ways: by speech, by recollection, and by similarity with the word expressing it.

दोषः साधारणः प्रातिस्विकोऽर्थस्य स तु द्विधा । अनेकभागुपालम्भः साधारण इति स्मृतः ।। ३४७.

A fault is said to be common or particular to the meaning; the common one is known as the reproach that applies to many parts.

क्रियाकारकयोर्भ्रंशो विसन्धिः पुनरुक्तता । व्यस्तसम्बन्धता चेति पञ्च साधारणा मताः ।। ३४७.

The five common faults are considered to be: omission of action or agent, faulty connection, repetition, and disjointed relation.

अक्रियत्वं त्रियाभ्रंशो भ्रष्टकारकता पुनः । सर्त्त्र्यादिकारकाभावो विसन्धिः सन्धिदूषणम् ।। ३४७.

Absence of action, omission of the triad, loss of the agent, absence of the agent such as the doer, faulty connection, and corruption of connection are described.

विगतो वा विरुद्धो वा सन्धिः स भवति द्विधा । सन्धेर्व्विरुद्धता कष्टपादादर्थान्तरागमात् ।। ३४७.

Connection, when lost or opposed, is of two kinds; opposition in connection arises from harsh reading or the intrusion of a different meaning.

पुनरुक्तत्वमाभीक्ष्ण्यादभिधानं द्विधैव तत् । अर्थावृत्तिः पदावृत्तिरर्थावृत्तिरपि द्विधा ।। ३४७.

Repetition is twofold, arising from frequent expression: it is either repetition of meaning or of word, and repetition of meaning is also twofold.

प्रयुक्त वरशब्देन तथा शब्दान्तरेण च । नावर्त्तते पदावृत्तौ वाच्यमावर्त्तते पदम् ।। ३४७.

When a word is used again with the same term or with another word, in the case of word-repetition, the word is repeated, but the meaning is not.

व्यस्तसम्बन्धता सुष्ठुसम्बन्धो व्यवधानतः । सम्बन्धान्तरनिर्भाषात् सम्बन्धान्तरजन्मनः ।। ३४७.

Disjointed relation is when a proper connection is interrupted, either by the introduction of another relation or by the generation of a different relation.

अभावेपि तयोरन्तर्व्यवधानात्त्त्रिधैव सा । अन्तरा पदवाक्याभ्यां पुनर्द्विधा ।। ३४७.

Even in the absence of those two, when there is interruption in between, it is threefold; and the interruption is again twofold, by word or by sentence.

वाच्यमर्थार्थ्यमानत्वात्तद्‌द्विधा पदवाक्ययोः । व्युत्पादितपूर्व्ववाच्यं व्युत्पाद्यञ्चेति भिद्यते ।। ३४७.

Because what is to be expressed is not properly conveyed, that is twofold, in word and in sentence: it is distinguished as what is previously explained and what is to be explained.

इष्टव्याघातकारित्वं हेतोः स्यादसमर्थता । असिद्धत्वं विरुद्धत्वमनैकान्तिकता तथा ।। ३४७.

The cause may be ineffective due to bringing about the opposite of what is intended; and also due to being unproven, contradictory, or inconclusive.

एवं सत्प्रतिपक्षत्वं कालातीतत्वसङ्करः । पक्षे सपक्षे नास्तित्वं विपक्षेऽस्तित्वमेव तत् ।। ३४७.

Likewise, the presence of a valid counter-example, confusion of past and present, non-existence in the subject and similar cases, and existence in the opposite case are described.

काव्येषु परिषद्यानां न भवेदप्यरुन्तुदम् । एकादशनिरर्थत्वं दुष्करादौ न दुष्यति ।। ३४७.

In poetry, for the assemblies of the learned, even a flaw may not be an obstacle; the absence of meaning in elevenfold ways is not faulty in difficult compositions.

दुःखीकरोति दोषज्ञान् गूढार्थत्वं न दुष्करे । न ग्राम्यतोद्वेगकारी प्रसिद्धेर्ल्लोकशास्त्रयोः ।। ३४७.

A fault that causes distress is recognized, but obscurity of meaning is not a fault in difficult works; nor is rusticity that causes agitation, if it is established in common usage or in the treatises.

क्रियाभ्रंशेन लक्ष्मास्ति क्रियाध्याहारयोगतः । भ्रष्टकारकताक्षेपबलाध्याहृतकारके ।। ३४७.

The mark of omission of action is present when the action is supplied by implication; and when the agent is supplied by the force of suggestion after its omission.

प्रगृह्यो गृह्यते नैव क्षतं विगतसन्धिना । कष्टपाठाद्विसन्धित्वं दुर्व्वचादौ न दुर्भगम् ।। ३४७.

What is to be taken is not taken when the connection is broken; harsh reading causes faulty connection, but in difficult passages, it is not considered a great fault.

अनुप्रासे पदावृत्तिर्व्यस्तसम्बन्धता शुभा । नार्थसंग्रहणे दोषो व्युत्क्रमाद्यैर्न्न लिप्यते ।। ३४७.

In alliteration, repetition of words and disjointed relation are considered good; there is no fault in failing to convey the meaning, nor is one tainted by irregular order and the like.

विभक्तिसंज्ञालिङ्गानां यत्रोद्वेगो न धीमतां । संख्यायास्तत्र भिन्नत्वमुप्मानोपमेययोः ।। ३४७.

Where the wise feel no disturbance from the use of case, gender, or number, difference between the compared and the comparator is not a fault.

अनेकस्य तथैकेन बहूनां बहुभिः शुभा । कवीनां समुदाचारः समयो नाम गीयते ।। ३४७.

The practice of poets is called convention: sometimes one for many, sometimes many for one, and sometimes many for many, all auspicious.

सामान्यश्च विशिष्टश्च धर्म्मवद्भवति द्विधा । सिद्धसैद्धान्तिकानाञ्च कवीनाञ्चाविवादतः ।। ३४७.

Convention is twofold, being either general or particular, and it pertains to those who uphold dharma, as well as to established theorists and poets, without dispute.

यः प्रसिध्यति सामान्य इत्यसौ समयो मतः । सर्व्वे सिद्धान्तिका येन सञ्चरन्ति निरत्ययं ।। ३४७.

That which is widely accepted is called general convention; by it, all established theorists proceed without error.

कियन्त एव वा येन सामान्यस्तेन स द्विधा । छेदसिद्धान्ततोऽन्यः स्यात् केषाञ्चिद्‌ भ्रान्तितो यथा ।। ३४७.

And whatever is accepted by only a few, that is the particular convention; it differs from the established doctrine, and for some, it arises from error.

तर्कज्ञानां मुनेः कस्य कस्यचित् क्षणभङ्गिका । भूतचैतन्यता कस्य ज्ञानस्य सुप्रकाशता ।। ३४७.

Among those skilled in reasoning, some sages hold the doctrine of momentariness; for others, consciousness belongs to elements, and for others, knowledge is self-luminous.

प्रज्ञातस्थूलताशबप्दानेकान्तत्वं तथार्हतः । शैववैष्णवशाक्तेयसौरसिद्धान्तिनां मतिः ।। ३४७.

The Arhats maintain the doctrine of the manifoldness of terms for grossness; the Śaivas, Vaiṣṇavas, Śāktas, and Sauras each have their own established views.