A quote from the Mahābhārata on sphoṭa?

Within a discussion on the sphoṭa in the Seśvaramīmāṃsā, Veṅkaṭanātha adds a quote he ascribes to the Mahābhārata. The quote is found in a different form in other printed works by Veṅkaṭanātha and in the various manuscripts of the Seśvaramīmāṃsā. However, I could not identify anything similar in the Mahābhārata itself.

The SM 1902 edition reads:

sphoṭas tvaṃ varṇasaṃghasthaḥ iti mahābhāratavacanam

The Mahābhārata statement “You are the sphoṭa, which is present in the conjunction of phonemes”.

Other manuscripts read varṇasthaḥ or varṇasamudāyaḥ instead of varṇasaṃghasthaḥ (both unmetrical). The Śatadūṣaṇī 30 reads sphoṭas tvaṃ varṇasaṃśraya iti mahābhārate ‘py ucyata iti cen na. The same quote is reused also in the Tattvamuktākalāpa with a different reading: sphoṭas tvaṃ varṇajuṣṭas tv iti yadabhihitaṃ bhārate sāpi śaktiḥ (v. 89, section 314).

Do readers know anything similar in the Mahābhārata? And who could be uttering it? Addressed to whom?

Comments and discussions are welcome. Be sure you are making a point and contributing to the discussion.

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4 thoughts on “A quote from the Mahābhārata on sphoṭa?

  1. The Śabdakalpadruma quotes ”akṣarāṇāṃ akārastvaṃ sphoṭasthaḥ varṇasaṃśrayaḥ” as being from the Harivaṃsa, Bhaviṣyaparvan 16.52. īs it possible Veṅkaṭanātha had received a variant reading of this half-verse, and treated the Harivaṃśa as part of the Mahābhārata?

    One puzzling thing is that the quote as you have it – sphoṭas tvaṃ varṇasaṃghasthaḥ makes for an odd pāda of the anuṣṭubh metre, while in the hemistich quoted in the Śabdakalpadruma, it occupies an even pāda.

    • Dear Dominik,
      I am sorry, I should have stated it. I used John Smith’s e-text (based on the text of BORI entered by Muneo Tokunaga).