Page:Sanskrit Grammar by Whitney p1.djvu/125

 (RV.) may we not go away from the path;  (MS.) he verily goes away from the face of the sacrifice;  (AV.) far from us be your missile;  (RV.) save us from the wolf;  (RV.) he kept (lit. made firm) the sky from falling.

291. The ablative is used where procedure or issue from something as from a source or starting-point is signified: thus, (RV.) the bright one has been born from the black one;  (MBh.) passion arises from greed;  (AV.) I have won thy life-breath from the wind;  (AV.) who attack us from the eastern quarter;  (MBh.) having heard that from the troop of friends;  (MBh.) the wind spoke from the sky.

a. Hence also, procedure as from a cause or occasion is signified by the ablative: this is especially frequent in the later language, and in technical phraseology is a standing construction; it borders on instrumental constructions. Thus, (RV.) from (by reason of) the fury of the thunderbolt he burst asunder;  (MBh.) from fear of whose rod all are constant to duty;  (Tribh.) because  contains an element of.

b. Very rarely, an ablative has the sense of after: thus, (MBh.) they went to the shrine after a whole day;  (APr.) after, before , is inserted.

292. One or two special applications of the ablative construction are to be noticed:

a. The ablative with words implying fear (terrified recoil from): thus, (AV.) everything was afraid of her at her birth;  (RV.) at whom mortals tremble;  (RV.) through fear of you;  (BhG.) of whom the world is not afraid.

b. The ablative of comparison (distinction from): thus, (RV.) Indra is greater than the heaven and the earth. With a comparative, or other word used in a kindred way, the ablative is the regular and almost constant construction: thus, (RV.) sweeter than the sweet;  (MBh.) what is more painful than that?  (H.) who else than a friend;  (AB.) thou hast chosen the kine rather than me;  (M.) possessors of texts are better than ignorant men; rememberers are better than possessors;  (AV.) we set this down elsewhere (away) from thee;  (RV.) earlier than all beings.

c. Occasionally, a probably possessive genitive is used with the comparative; or an instrumental (as in a comparison of equality): thus,