Page:Sanskrit Grammar by Whitney p1.djvu/238

 so-called first persons imperative, and in the use (579) of the imperfect and aorist persons without augment after prohibitive. In the oldest period, however, it was a very frequent formation, being three or four times as common as the optative in the Rig-Veda, and nearly the same in the Atharvan; but already in the Brāhmaṇas it becomes comparatively rare. Its varieties of form are considerable, and sometimes perplexing.

558. In its normal and regular formation, a special mode-stem is made for the subjunctive by adding to the tense-stem an – which combines with a final  of the tense-stem to. The accent rests upon the tense-stem, which accordingly has the strong form. Thus, from the strong present-stem (√) is made the subjunctive-stem ; from  (√), ; from  (√), ; from  (√), ; from  (√), ; from  (√), ; from  (pass., √), ; and so on.

559. The stem thus formed is inflected in general as an -stem would be inflected in the indicative, with constant accent, and for  before the endings of the first person (733 i) – but with the following peculiarities as to ending etc.:

560. a. In the active, the 1st sing. has as ending: thus,, ,. But in the Rig-Veda sometimes simply: thus,,.

b. In 1st du., 1st pl., and 3d pl., the endings are the secondary: thus,, , ; , ,.

c. In 2d and 3d du. and 2d pl., the endings are primary: thus,, , ; , ,.

d. In 2d and 3d sing., the endings are either primary or secondary: thus, or,  or ;  or ,  or.

e. Occasionally, forms with double mode-sign (by assimilation to the more numerous subjunctives from tense-stems in ) are met with from non--stems: thus,  from ;, ,  from  (√).

561. In the middle, forms with secondary instead of primary endings are very rare, being found only in the 3d pl. (where they are more frequent than the primary), and in a case or two of the 3d sing. (and AB. has once ).

a. The striking peculiarity of subjunctive middle inflection is the frequent strengthening of to  in the endings. This is less general in the very earliest language than later. In 1st sing., alone is found as ending, even in RV.; and in 1st du. also (of rare occurrence), only is met with. In 1st pl., prevails in RV. and AV. ( is found a few times), and is alone known later. In 2d sing., for  does not occur in RV., but is the only form in AV. and the Brāhmaṇas. In 3d sing., for  occurs once in RV., and is the predominant form