Page:The history of the Bengali language (1920).pdf/302

280 it is in the modern vernaculars, that the forms of the 1st person present indicative, signify the imperative mood in the 1st person. One special characteristic in Bengali is that to indicate stress or emphasis the particle 'গে' (which is the same in origin as 'গে' or 'গা' of Hindi, used almost as an auxiliary with the Hindi verbs to indicate futurity) is used as a post-position after the forms in the imperative mood as illustrated above.

There is one special form of the imperative mood in the second person which is formed by the suffix 'ইও'; করিও, যাইও, খাইও, etc., signify অনুজ্ঞা or command in such a manner that the action indicated by the verbs, is asked to be done, not immediately; consequently the form with ইও in the imperative mood is akin to future tense. It is of much importance to note (though it is a very common fact of phonology) that ব and ও are very much interchangeable alike in Prākṛta and vernacular; it is certainly well known that করিও (contracted in ordinary speech into কোরো) is found at times in old Bengali in the shape of করিব (earlier করিহ). We shall presently see, that it has been quite organic with us, since dim past, to develop the sound of ই at the end of the verb stem, when even in a little degree the idea of futurity is sought to be conveyed. If on reference to the arguments to be adduced presently, this phonetic peculiarity be considered to be a genuine phenomenon, the 'ইও' suffix of the imperative mood may be held to tender a good explanation of the origin of the future indicating ইব. However, I proceed to consider the whole question in connection with the origin of our future system; I may only note here that in the imperative form discussed here, the idea conveyed by the Sanskrit suffix 'তব্য' is not present.

As the particle 'ন' which is added to the words in the imperative form to give a stress, will be dealt with