Today we will look at the form अग्निसदृशम्  nAs from श्रीमद्-वाल्मीकि-रामायणम् 3.51.14.

तच्चाग्निसदृशं दीप्तं रावणस्य शरावरम् । पक्षाभ्यां च महातेजा व्यधुनोत्पतगेश्वरः ।। ३-५१-१४ ।।
काञ्चनोरश्छदान् दिव्यान् पिशाचवदनान् खरान् । तांश्चास्य जवसम्पन्नाञ्जघान समरे बली ।। ३-५१-१५ ।।
अथ त्रिवेणुसम्पन्नं कामगं पावकार्चिषम् । मणिसोपानचित्राङ्गं बभञ्ज च महारथम् ।। ३-५१-१६ ।।
पूर्णचन्द्रप्रतीकाशं छत्रं च व्यजनैः सह । पातयामास वेगेन ग्राहिभी राक्षसैः सह ।। ३-५१-१७ ।।

Translation – The king of birds, who was endowed with great energy, also broke with his wings Rāvaṇa’s coat of mail, blazing like fire (14). The mighty bird further killed in the course of the encounter the celebrated swift-going heavenly mules of Rāvaṇa, endowed with the heads of fiends and protected by breast-plates of gold (15). Jaṭāyu presently smashed the huge chariot as well (of Rāvaṇa) provided with a pole to which the yoke is fixed and flaming like fire, which could go wherever one liked and whose frame looked charming with its steps of gems (16). Jaṭāyu also knocked down with vehemence the canopy (over the seat of Rāvaṇa) shining as the full moon, along with the whisks as also with the ogres holding them (17).

लौकिक-विग्रह: –
(1) अग्निसदृशम् = अग्निना सदृशम् – like fire.
Note: The सूत्रम् 2-3-72 तुल्यार्थैरतुलोपमाभ्यां तृतीयान्यतरस्याम्‌ justifies the use of a third case affix following the प्रातिपदिकम् (nominal stem) ‘अग्नि’ which is co-occurring with ‘सदृश’।

अलौकिक-विग्रह: –
(2) अग्नि टा + सदृश सुँ । By 2-1-31 पूर्वसदृशसमोनार्थकलहनिपुणमिश्रश्लक्ष्णैः – A पदम् ending in a third case affix optionally compounds with (a syntactically related पदम् composed by adding a सुँप् affix to) any one of the following and the resulting compound gets the designation तत्पुरुष: –
i) ‘पूर्व’ (prior)
ii) ‘सदृश’ (like/similar)
iii) ‘सम’ (equal to)
iv) ‘ऊनार्थ’ – ‘ऊन’ (less) or any of its synonyms
v) ‘कलह’ (quarrel)
vi) ‘निपुण’ (skillful)
vii) ‘मिश्र’ (mixed)
viii) ‘श्लक्ष्ण’ (gentle/polished.)

See question 1.

(3) By 1-2-43 प्रथमानिर्दिष्टं समास उपसर्जनम् – the term ‘अग्नि टा’ gets the designation उपसर्जनम् because in the सूत्रम् 2-1-31 (which prescribes the compounding) the term तृतीया (which comes as अनुवृत्ति: from 2-1-30 तृतीया तत्कृतार्थेन गुणवचनेन) ends in the nominative case. Hence ‘अग्नि टा’ is placed in the prior position in the compound as per the सूत्रम् 2-2-30 उपसर्जनं पूर्वम्‌ – In a compound a term which has the designation ‘उपसर्जन’ should be placed in the prior position.

Note: ‘अग्नि टा + सदृश सुँ’ gets the designation प्रातिपदिकम्‌ by 1-2-46 कृत्तद्धितसमासाश्च। This allows 2-4-71 to apply in the next step.

(4) अग्नि + सदृश । By 2-4-71 सुपो धातुप्रातिपदिकयोः – A सुँप् affix takes a लुक् elision when it is a part of a धातुः or a प्रातिपदिकम्।

= अग्निसदृश ।

As per the सूत्रम् 2-4-26 परवल्लिङ्गं द्वन्द्वतत्पुरुषयोः, the compound प्रातिपदिकम् ‘अग्निसदृश’ is neuter here since the latter member ‘सदृश’ of the compound is used here in the neuter. (The entire compound is qualifying शरावरम्।)

The विवक्षा is द्वितीया-एकवचनम्।

(5) अग्निसदृश + अम् । By 4-1-2 स्वौजसमौट्छष्टाभ्याम्भिस्ङेभ्याम्भ्यस्ङसिभ्याम्भ्यस्ङसोसाम्ङ्योस्सुप्‌।

(6) अग्निसदृश + अम् । By 7-1-24 अतोऽम् – The affixes ‘सुँ’ and ‘अम्’ that follow a neuter अङ्गम् ending in the short vowel ‘अ’ take ‘अम्’ as their replacement. Note: 7-1-24 is required here to prevent 7-1-23 स्वमोर्नपुंसकात्‌ from applying.
1-3-4 न विभक्तौ तुस्माः prevents the ending letter ‘म्’ of the affix ‘अम्’ from getting इत्-सञ्ज्ञा।

(7) अग्निसदृशम् । By 6-1-107 अमि पूर्वः – In place of a preceding अक् letter and the following vowel (अच्) belonging to the affix ‘अम्’ there is a single substitute of that preceding अक् letter.

Questions:

1. Commenting on the सूत्रम् 2-1-31 पूर्वसदृशसमोनार्थकलहनिपुणमिश्रश्लक्ष्णैः (used in step 2) the तत्त्वबोधिनी says – इह समसदृशाभ्यां योगे ‘२-३-७२ तुल्यार्थैरतुलोपमाभ्यां तृतीयान्यतरस्याम्‌’ इति तृतीया। अन्यैर्योगे त्वत एव वचनात्, ‘२-३-२३ हेतौ’ इति वा तृतीया। Please explain.

2. In which sense has the third case affix been used in the form पक्षाभ्याम् used in the verses?
i) कर्तरि
ii) करणे
iii) हेतौ
iv) None of the above

3. Where has the सूत्रम् 2-3-36 सप्तम्यधिकरणे च been used in the verses?

4. In the verses can you spot a word in which the कृत् affix ‘ड’ has been used?

5. Which कृत् affix is used to derive the form ग्राहिभि: (प्रातिपदिकम् ‘ग्राहिन्’, पुंलिङ्गे तृतीया-बहुवचनम्) used in the verses?

6. How would you say this in Sanskrit?
“There has not been and will not be a warrior like Arjuna.”

Easy questions:

1. Can you spot the affix ‘श्नु’ in the verses?

2. Why doesn’t the सूत्रम् 2-4-52 अस्तेर्भूः apply in the form पातयामास?