Selected Writings by George Cardona

The essays in this volume represent research by George Cardona that centers on Indian thinking in the domain of grammar (vyākaraṇa). Pride of place is given to Pāṇini’s śabdānuśāsana and its core, the Aṣṭādhyāyī. These essays treat both Pāṇini’s theory and methodology and how these are related to the works of other Indian scholars in fields such as etymology (Yāska’s Nirukta), early padapāṭhas for Vedic saṁhitās (e.g. Śākalya), prātiśākhyas (e.g. Śaunaka’s R̥gvedapratiśākhya), śikṣā, ritual exegesis (mīmāṁsā), and logic (nyāya). Questions of relative chronology are also considered, as well as early Indian treatments of data that reflect historical linguistic developments. Emphasis is placed on philology: close attention to and appreciation of texts and their traditions before going on to a broader theoretical and historical context.