Page:Systems-of-Sanskrit-Grammar-SK Belvalkar.pdf/36

 Systems of Sanskrit Grammar § 16 - ] Between Panini and the next great grammarian, Kāt- yayana, came many authors, who attempted, more or less successfully, to emend or justify Panini's rules, and some of the metrical värtikas found in the Mahabhashya pro- bably belong to these predecessors of Katyayana. We must needs assume this, unless we are ready to suppose that the considerable interval of time that exists between Pāṇini and Katyayana was altogether barren of grammatical spe- culations. Whoever these predecessors were, as our knowledge about their works is next to nothing, we must now pass on to Katyayana himself. 28 17. Katyāyaus: His date.-The Kathasaritsagara makes Katyāyana the contemporary of Pāṇini, or more accurate- ly, the senior of the two; and had not this tradition been to this extent accepted by so great an authority as Max Müller, we might have explained this on the analogy of a row of columns seen in perspective, where the columns which are farthest from us look nearest to each other, for the simple reason that we cannot discern any marks in the interspaces. We must be prepared however to give up this view and presuppose between Panini and Katya- yana that much time which the nature of the changes in the forms of language above indicated will reasonably require; and unless we assume that language and customs were in an extraordinarily volatile condition in ancient times, 1 Goldsticker proves this by show- ing that 1. grammatical forms current in Panini's time are obsolute in that of Katyayana. 2. So also the meanings of worde. 3. Words acquire in Katyayana's time significances which they had not in Pauini's. 4. Literature known to Katya- yana was unknown to Panini. 5. Writers contemporary with or little separated in time from Panini are looked upon by Katyayana as very ancient, e.g. Yajayavalkya; on his last point the Kasika remarks: af Parator graag araf. For fuller particulars ace Goldstücker on Papini, pp. 122-157 (Re- print, pp. 94-120).