Shabda Cayanika'

In pure Bengali when someone was routed or defeated one used to say t'ekka' deoya'. For example: khela'dhu'loya saba'ike t'ekka' diyeche oi chot'a chelet'i [that little boy has defeated everyone in sports]. Because there is a distinctive similarity between t'ekka' and ekka', t'ekka' is sometimes used in Bengali where ekka' should be used. In card games we say t'ekka' [ace] in Bengali where we ought to use ekka'. In young children's games you find ekka' . . . dokka' . . . tekka'.

Beghore veha're car'inu ekka' -- Dwijendralal

[I rode the one-horse cart to my heart's content]

In olden times a one-horse cart was called ekka', and a two-horse cart was called t'omt'om. If the vehicle was covered, it was called tangaka in Sanskrit -- t'a'nga' in Shaorasenii Prakrta. Nowadays however, the horse-drawn vehicles which we know by the name of pa'lki or bagi are not very old. They were first introduced in Calcutta during British rule. Men and women in high posts used to use pa'lkis for going here and there. The Indian palanquin or sedan-chair was in use nearly up until the end of the Mughal Era but towards the end of the Mughal Era its use rapidly declined. In my childhood days I saw the palanquin* or sedan-chair used in Bihar but after I became a little older I never saw it again. In those days the village people would sometimes go to the city in palanquins for medical treatment.

(* In Old Bengal, the people who used to carry the palanquin were called duliya' or dule. In the Bengali army there were large numbers of bagdiis [a Hindu caste] During battle the duliya' or dule ba'gdiis used to help them by carrying their palanquins.)

At any rate, when the Europeans came to India at the end of the Mughal Era they brought with them their palanquin which in Bengali was called pa'lki. The British introduced it in Calcutta. The bearers were mostly from Orissa. The fare was one paisa per mile.** They petitioned to have the fare increased to one and a half per mile. When their petition was not approved they held a strike for several days. Then the English with their inventive intellect designed the pa'lki ga'r'ii or bagi [bogey] ga'r'ii and provided for it to be drawn by horses. In this way we got today's horse-drawn carriage. A single carriage is called a "bogey" in English. The pa'lki carriage had the convenience of the pa'lki and because it was horse-drawn it could go faster as well. As a result, after a short time the horse-drawn carriage became favoured by the people over the traditional palanquin. So the palanquin's days slowly came to a close; its fares also decreased. However, it managed to survive in villages where there were no proper roads that the horse-drawn carriages could travel.

(** In those days the half-paisa coin was quite common in the market and was worth something as well. Officially the pie-paisa was in use but practically it was the half-paisa or adhla'. In my childhood days in Bihar one could get four kacuri [a kind of pancake made from pulse] and vegetables for one adhla'.)

Similar to the ekka'-t'omt'om carriage in India was the phaeton carriage in Europe. The gentlemen of Calcutta used to ride in these phaeton carriages and enjoy the open air in the Esplanade. The pa'lki carriage gradually replaced the phaeton carriage because the women of this country who normally lived in seclusion at home did not like to ride in the open phaetons. They used to ride in the pa'lki carriages to maintain their sanctity.

The days of the ekka' also came to an end, pushed out by the pa'lki carriage. Only in those cases where the roads were poor or where there was a need to bring heavy loads of vegetables to the local market, did the ekka' carriage survive. It still survives today in a few places where cycles and rickshaws cannot do precisely this kind of work. Moreover, cycles and rickshaws need somewhat better roads than the ekka' does.

Speaking of the ekka', a story comes to mind in which the ekka' plays an important role.

I had gone at the time to a village in Nawada subdivision of Gaya district in search of archeological artifacts from Magadha. This place was more or less in the Ks'uri river basin. At the southwest it bordered the historically renowned Grdhraku't' mountain where the Buddha performed spiritual austerities and later gave his spiritual teaching.

I was somewhat late returning. Though it was night there was no harm done because the night train from Gaya would pass through Nawada station quite late. The train was running late and dawn was breaking when I arrived home in Jamalpur.

It was the full moon night in the middle of Hemanta* and a cool breeze was blowing; I had no trouble seeing even without a torch. I was feeling quite happy after having verified several important facts. The issue under consideration was whether or not the Buddhist Mantraya'na was dominant in Magadha during the middle of the Buddhist era or the Ka'lacakraya'na. In the Buddhist Mantraya'na they recognized the goddess (which also happened later in Tantra and the Puranic religion) and she was also honored in the Buddhist Ka'lacakraya'na, but the two were divided along doctrinal lines -- one accepted Vajrata'ra' and the other Niilta'ra' or Niil Saraswatii.* With the passage of time Niil Saraswatii took the form of Prajina'pa'ramita' in Tibet and later Prajina'pa'ramita' was accepted in India by the followers of Maha'ya'na. At the outset, Prajina'pa'ramita' and Niil Saraswatii were considered to be one and the same, but later they became separate goddesses. In the beginning, their Dhya'namantra was also the same, but it also became different afterwards.

(* The Bengali year has six seasons. Hemanta corresponds to the end of autumn and beginning of winter. -- Trans.)

(* In many people's opinion this Niil Saraswatii was later transformed into the white-coloured Puranic goddess Saraswatii. Up until the time of British rule what people meant by the worship of Saraswatii was the worship of books. After the first statue of Saraswatii was made during British rule the Saraswatii puja was introduced. The Saraswatii of the Vedic and post-Vedic eras and the Saraswatii which is worshipped today are not the same. The Dhyanamantra of the modern Saraswatii, Ya kundendu tus'a'raha'ra dhavala', [who is as white as the kunda flower and as glittering as a string of icicles] is not an ancient mantra.)

In Magadha I found the whole or broken statues or remainders of destroyed statues of Niil Ta'ra', Ugrata'ra', Bhra'mariita'ra', and Prajina'pa'ramita'. From this I arrived at the firm conclusion that they were accepted in Magadha despite the divisions that took place on or outside of Magadha soil.

I was walking in the direction of Nawada station, the station still about six miles away, when I saw a pond on the left side of the road. In Magadha there are very few ponds but during the Buddhist era ponds were often dug next to Buddhist monasteries because many mendicants and students used to stay there and a great deal of water was needed for them for which a well would not be sufficient.

When I saw the pond I stopped. I thought that perhaps there might be a garh* nearby. There was no garh to be seen but I did see a tall mound next to the pond. If one sat on one side of the mound then the other side was not visible but if one stood one could see all the way around it. I sat on one side of the mound and started pondering -- I had never heard of the existence of a Buddhist monastery in such a place. But then whose mound was this?

(* In Magadha the common people call the ruins of an ancient Buddhist monestary a garh [fort].)

Suddenly I saw an ekka' coming down the same path by which I had come. It came to halt in front of me and, lo and behold!, there was no driver, no one at the reins. The horse knew the path and brought the vehicle there. Just as it pulled up, a young gentleman appeared from the other side of the mound. I asked him in Magahii: "Who are you?" He greeted me with folded hands and said with a slight smile: "Look, it seems perhaps that the ekka' has come for you. Otherwise wherefrom would it come in such an unlikely moment and place? Quite astonsishing, in fact!"

"It certainly is." I replied. "You are quite correct."

"Please, get in the ekka'," he said.

"But there is no driver," I replied. "How will the horse go to where I want to go?"

"Don't worry about it. I can drive the ekka'." Saying this, he helped me get in the ekka' and then jumped into the driver's seat himself and started to drive.

"Look here," I said. "This is quite astounding. An ekka' has come for me -- how, I don't know how -- and you as well it seems. And another astounding thing is that you know how to drive it. It amazes me to see so many astounding things at one time."

"I am not any the less surprised to see you here," he said softly. "If you had gone a little further you would have come to Kaoya'kol village.* You used to be able to find statues of Vajraba'ra'hii and Vajrayoginii from the Chinese Buddhist Tantra there, in other words they were recognized goddesses in Ciina'ca'ra [Chinese Tantra]. Their main place was Vikramman'ipur's (Vikrampur) Vajrayoginii village in Bengal (the village name is Badarajoinii). Statues of Vajrayoginii and Vajraba'ra'hii were also found in old Tripura's Mayana'matii (subsequently British Tripura or Kumilla' district) and Dattapa'r'a' village of Bhuluya'."

(* Kaoya'kol is now a small town.)

"You are so knowledgeable," I said. "What do you do?"

He replied very politely and gentlemanly. "I drive the ekka' and I also do one or two other things. I was very happy to see that you are doing research on Magadha's archeological wealth. Actually, I didn't just come here; I've been with you secretly all along. When you sat down on one side of the mound, I sat down on the other side."

"I see. But how is it that you know so much about the Buddhist era?"

"I live in this land and I won't know it? I love every particle of Magadha."

I was very pleased to hear this from him.

Finally we arrived at Nawada station. I gave him my thank-you but when I offered him some renumeration he folded his hands and said: "I am so happy to have had the opportunity to drive you. If I accept a fee then I will not be so happy, so please, don't give me any money."

What could I do? I sat down in the waiting room and a short while later the train to Jamalpur arrived. The train was nearly empty and I was able to find a small compartment that was unoccupied. I fell asleep but at one point the rattling of the train woke me up and when I looked up I saw the same young man who had brought me to Nawada station in the ekka' sitting in front of me.

"When did you get in?" I asked.

This time he answered in Bengali. "I also got in at Nawada, just after you did."

"What happened to the carriage?" I asked.

"After you got down I could no longer see it, almost as if it was magic. As if you had conjured it up with your magic wand. Do you know what I am thinking now? I am thinking that this body of mine is also yours; as if you created it with a magic incantation."

"What are you saying!" I interjected.

He smiled. Now he was speaking completely in Bengali.

"I can see that you are also very enthusiastic about archeological research," I said. "Now tell me, what was this mound for?"

"That mound is not a relic of the Buddhist era, rather it dates from the British era. As far as I know -- but of course you are well aware of this -- in the year 1905, India's Viceroy, Lord Curzon, divided the land of Bengal, or Bengalistan, into two parts, East Bengal and Assam Province with its capital at Dhaka, and West Bengal with its capital at Calcutta. Included within East Bengal and Assam Province were:

a) North Bengal: Rajsa'hii, Pa'vna', Bagur'a', Dina'jpur, Raunpur, Jalpa'igur'i, and Northeast Raunpur (Dhuvr'i).

b) East Bengal: Mymensing, Dhaka, Faridpur, Ba'khargainja, British Tripura (Kumilla'), Noya'kha'li, Cat't'agra'm, Pa'rvatya Cat't'agra'm, Silet and Ka'char'.

c) The mountaineous areas of eastern India: Ga'ro hills (Previously part of the landholdings of Mymensing's Sus'anga kings. These kings were Ba'rendra Brahmins from Bengal), Kha'si hills (Formed from many very small native kingdoms, one of which was the kingdom of Miliyem. The city of Shilong was in this kingdom), Jayantiya' hills, Mikira hills, Na'ga' hills (Nagaland) and the Lusa'i hills (Mizoram).

d) Assam: Ka'maru'p, Darang, Shivasa'gar, Naga'on, North Lakhimpur, and the Ba'lia'pa'r'a' border district (later NEFA, and even later, Arun'a'cala).

Included within Bengal were:

a) West Bengal: Burdwan, Birbhum, Bankura, Hoogli, Howrah, Midnapore, Murshidabad, Nadia, Jessore, Khulna', 24th Paragana, Calcutta, Ma'nbhu'm, Singhbhum, Sa'onta'l Paragan'a, Ma'lda, Darjeeling, and Purnia.

b) Bihar: Bhagalpur, Monghyr, Tirhut (Dva'rbha'unga and Muzaffarpur), Campa'ran (Motihari), Sa'ran' (Cha'pra'), Sa'ha'va'd , Patna and Gaya.

c) Cut'iya'-Nagpur: Cut'iya' Nagpur (Ranchi), Pala'mu (D'a'lt'angainja), and Hazaribag.

d) Orissa: Cuttack, Puri, Ba'leshwar, Aungul-Khondmahal and Sambalpur.

"The people of Bengal did not accept this partition. They started agitating strongly for the reunification of Bengal. One can say that the struggle for Indian independance began with this movement.

"One may ask why the Sepoy Mutiny was not part of the struggle for independance. Because it was not inspired with the goal of liberating the country. That struggle began out of the fear that the East India Company would destroy religion. It was supported by some dispossessed local kings and nawabs. When the Sepoy Mutiny first started in Barrackpore and Berhampore, the thought of liberating the country was not in the smallest corner of their minds.

"When the movement began against the partition of Bengal, the desire to liberate the country had not yet arisen in their minds either. Their primary objective was to make the two Bengals one again. But after the agitation to unite Bengal had been going on for some time, the desire to liberate the country from the grip of foreign enemies arose in their minds. Thus we can say that this time saw the sprouting of the seed of desire for independence. The rulers of East Bengal and Assam Province at the time completely lost their senses, like a mad dog, in the effort to suppress the movement. As a result, "terrorism as an effect of helplessness complex" arose among the oppressed and persecuted Bengali population. Such tyranny was not seen in [west] Bengal, so terrorism also did not flourish there.

"How does it strike us today to think that in those days it was forbidden to publicly utter the words vande ma'taram.* For the offence of saying vande ma'taram in public the youth of Bengal had their skulls cracked open in Barishal by the police, and those who did not die filled up the jails.

(* The first two words of a song by Bakim Chandra eulogising the motherland -- "we salute thee, oh mother".)

"When people are not given an opportunity for civilized and orderly agitation, they take to the path of terrorism . . . they accept the path of guerilla warfare. This was the case in this situation. Two youths of that time, Manotos'a Vasu from Ma'lakha nagar in Dhaka district, and Shubhendu Na'ra'ya'n'a Guha from Va'na'riipa'r'a' in Bakharganja district, plunged bravely into terrorism under the inspiration of the intinerant troubedour, Mukunda Das. The police chief of East Bengal and Assam Province, Mr. Tegartt, scoured the region in a furious effort to capture them. Thereafter they quit East Bengal and Assam and came to Bengal where they continued to conduct their terrorist activities from Nawada in Gaya district. Along with their terrorist work, Shubhendra Narayana ran a betel shop in Nawada and Manotos'a Vasu used to drive an ekka'.

"The two friends used to meet each other in their spare time. As their terrorist activities in Gaya district grew, a lot of eavesdropping started going on. Informants were recruited in different neighbourhoods to help catch the terrorists. After a long search they were able to track the two of them down. There was a great battle between the police and these friends near the mound where you were seated, next to the pond. Both of them were killed. A grave was dug and Manotos'a was buried on the spot. A mound was built up over it so that the site could be identified.

"Many local villagers arrived before a grave could be dug for Shubhendra Narayana so the body was sent to Calcutta Medical College to be used there. That is why I told you that the mound dates from the British era, not the Buddhist era."

"What excellent research you've done!" I said. "You've done better than any famous archeologist could have done. I'm really amazed to see what excellent research work you've done at such a young age."

"I have lived on Magadha soil for a long time," he replied, "so I have a responsibility to know these things. You know, I love everything about Magadha."

"That I can see," I said. "When you were driving the t'omt'om you were speaking fluent Magahii."

He laughed softly. "Those same Bengalees who had once fought with all their might to unify Bengal presented a petition to the British in 1947 to once again divide Bengal in two. When the two Bengals were united in 1912* the Bengalees thought that they had won the fight. And when Bengal was again divided in two in 1947, again the Bengalees thought they had won the fight. What a tragedy of history!

(* When the two Bengals were reunited in 1912, the East Bengal and Assam Province's Secretariat at Dhaka, its capital, was divided; the newly created Province of Assam had its capital removed to Shilong and the newly created Province of Bihar-Chotana'gpur-Orissa had its capital removed to Patna. The word Chotanagpur was dropped from the name of the Province later on.)

"When the two Bengals became one in 1912, many parts of Bengalistan were kept outside it. History tells why. Nowadays I have realized that liberty not only means escaping the clutches of an external enemy; liberty means gaining one's freedom from all kinds of bondages -- economic, dialetical, intellectual, educational, linguistic and cultural. Geo-sentiment and racial sentiment alone are not all there is to freedom. External forces ruled this country because they were able to extract its essence, its vital juices. When they saw that they had to expend a lot of money to maintain the sugarcane production, when they saw that it was no longer profitable after having sucked the industry dry, then they left. They did not go due to any other pressure; economic difficulties forced them to leave. It is important to remember, both then and now, that it cannot be called freedom when black exploiters take the place of white exploiters. Even though the foreign powers have left, their exploitative machinery is still in place. That machinery will have to go. Then the threefold freedom will be possible -- physical, mental and spiritual.

"Now go to sleep and don't worry," he continued. "I'll return after I see that you've reached Jamalpur."

"Why should you go to so much trouble on my behalf?" I said.

"I love you very much," he replied, "and I'm concerned about you. Do you know what I am thinking?"

"Tell me," I insisted.

He smiled and said: "I feel as if I am inside your mind."

I laughed and he went on. "I won't keep you awake any longer by going on talking. You go to sleep. I'll be sitting here.

"I am always anxious to be able to do some good for other people but I don't have the means to do so."

I covered my face with my shawl and then said: "How so? You are so young. You'll have plenty of opportunities to do good work."

He replied with a choked voice. "I am that Manotos'a Vasu. You were sitting beside my grave."

I pulled the shawl away from my face to look at him but there was no one there.

Iungita
By adding the suffix kta to the verbal root iung (inj/igi) we get the word iungita. The meaning of the root iung is "to make something understood through the medium of gestures without using language", thus iungita means "to make something understood through gestures and postures" [ha'bebha'be bojha'no]. Often we say a'bha's'e iungite. A'bha's'a and iungita, however, are not identical. A'bha's'a [hint] means "to say something in abbreviated language or twilight language or aphoristic language" and iungita means "to make something understood without language". Ha'bebha'be bojha'no and iungita are also not identical. Ha'bebha'be bojha'no means "to make something understood without speaking", through mannerisms or any other means, but iungita is not exactly that.

A moment ago I used the word "twilight language". Twilight language means to use a language to express what I want to say which will have two meanings. A person who does not know the sign or the clue which indicates the real meaning will take it to mean one thing and the person who knows it will take it to mean another, that is, the real meaning. Suppose I write in twilight language bar'a' ba'bu a'j mar gaya', bar'ii bahko pat'ha' dena'. Someone who does not understood its actual significance will take it to mean: "The elder brother has died today, send for the elder sister-in-law" (that is, send the elder sister-in-law to do the obsequial rites). But those who understand the hint will take the correct meaning. "The elder brother (senior business partner) has gone to Ajmer, send the ledger (the elder sister-in-law) with the real balance sheet." Anyhow, now you have understood the subtle differences between the words, iungita, a'bha's'a, and ha'bbha'v. Sam'keta simply means "signal".

Ica'
In Old Bengali the word ica' means "developing without care". Those insects or worms which are born, according to the law of nature, in putrid or stagnant water are called ica' or ica' poka'. These ica' poka' were the food of some people. There is no relation between these ica's and fish. They do not belong to the fish group. But greedy-tongued people, those who on the one hand had a strong desire to eat them but who, at the same time, were ashamed to, called them ica' ma'ch [ica' fish] or cim'r'i ma'ch (lobster) in order to maintain some balance between their greed and their shame.

There is no relation between fish and cim'r'i. Cim'r'i are cim'r'i. Those uccim'r'e (ur' + cim'r'e = uccim'r'e) that we see flying in the evening during rainy season are born on the ground and survive on decaying earth and stagnant water. In the opinion of some biologists, uccim'r'e and ica' were the same species in very ancient times. In parts of western Ra'r'h and eastern Bengal, cim'r'i ma'ch is still called ica' ma'ch. In Ra'r'h one will also find villages by the name of Ica'gar', Ica'd'i, etc.

While there are 15 kinds of old Bengali cim'r'i, chiefly they are of six varieties:

1) galda' cim'r'i -- they favour stagnant, fetid water,

2) ba'gda' cim'r'i -- their favoured places are running, fetid water and fetid river water, and also slightly salty estuaries (east 24th Paragan'a' and east Khulana'),

3) moca' cim'r'i -- they live in the Ganges and in fresh-water rivers. They also reproduce in blocked-off pools of fresh-water rivers,

4) kuco cim'r'i -- they normally reproduce in fresh water,

5) ka'da' cim'r'i -- they normally reproduce in the water that washes down mountains in the rainy season, and

6) red cim'r'i -- their favourite place is the sea near rivermouths. If this cim'r'i is eaten too much then one will get skin disease.

However many varieties of cim'ri there are, the word ica' refers to all of them, although nowadays some people use ica' in a limited sense to mean only small cim'r'i.

Iccha'
By adding the noun suffix sha plus the feminine suffix a'p to the verbal root is' we get the word iccha'. The verbal root is' means "to desire, to long for". Iccha' means "desire" or "wish". The fundamental difference between iccha' and es'an'a' is that iccha' is limited to one's internal world but when that iccha' is associated with the effort to give it a practical shape or an actional expression then it is called es'an'a'. Thus hiteccha' (hita + iccha') and hitaes'an'a' (hita + es'an'a') are not identical. Keep in mind that the word hubahu [identical] is neither pure Sanskrit, nor derived from Sanskrit nor native Bengali. It comes from an old Persian word.

Icha'
The word icha' comes from spelling the word is'a with cha. Many mistakenly believe it to be a shortened form of iccha'. Jesus Christ was referred to as is'a in old Arabic. Is'a and Musa [Moses] were both accepted as prophets.

There are two rivers in Bengal with the name icha'matii -- one is in the Pabna' district of Bangladesh and the other is in Central Bengal. The river in Central Bengal issues forth from the Padma and passes through Murshidabad, Nadia, Kus't'hiya', Jessore, and 24th Paragan'a' before emptying into the ocean. A tributary breaks off from the middle part of this icha'matii on its right-hand side and joins the Bha'girathi near Shantipur. This tributary is known by the name of the Churni. It is said that the Dewan of Nadia, Raghunandan Mitra, made this river (or rather canal) in one night by pilfering the waters of the icha'matii with the help of a huge number of diggers. Since the canal (in subsequent times called a river) was fashioned with stolen waters it was given the name Churiye Neoya' [Pilfered] -- shortened to Churni. Up until the time that the Churni came out of the Icha'matii, that is, as long as the Icha'matii came from the Padma but before the Churni was made, the river is known as the Ma'tha'bhaunga'. Thereafter the right-hand river is known by the name of the Churni and the left-hand, original river, by the name of the Icha'matii. When this river approaches the Sundarban forest, a certain portion of it is known as the Ka'lindii* and Harina'bha'nga' (some people mistakenly say Harina'd'anga'). Some people call it Iccha'matii instead of Icha'matii in order to give it a more refined or correct form; no, the river's name is not Iccha'matii; it is Icha'matii.

(* The Ka'lindii river means "black river", or that river whose waters are black.)

Ijya
Yaj + kyap = ijya. The verbal root yaj means "to do great work", "to accept sacrifice", "to teach truth", "to work on another's behalf". Thus ijya means "teacher". Brhaspati, the teacher of the gods, accepted many sacrifices for the welfare of his pupils so he was referred to as ijya. The Asuras [demons] cannot forget the contributions of their guru, Shukra'ca'rya, on their behalf. Thus, in the language of the demons, ijya means Shukra'ca'rya. In the Vedic era, the offerings given or due the priests used to be spent for the people's welfare. Such priests were called ijya to show them respect, and the rest used to be considered traders in religion. Ijya also refers to those cows which give greater quantities of milk.

Itara
I means "one who has a desire to obtain". By adding the suffix ghain to the root trae or trr we get the word tara. Itara means "one who preserves the hope of getting a little". This is its etymological meaning. Its colloquial meaning is "general public or mass". Its synonyms in Sanskrit are pra'krta jana or sa'dha'ran'a ma'nus'a.

In the Bengali language the meaning of the word itara has become distorted. In a broad sense, if we say itara we mean a man or animal of inferior standard. Thus, to a certain extent, we use itara as a derogatory expression. Itar lok [vile person], itara pra'n'ii, itara pa'shu [lower animals], itara'mi [meanness]. Here the word itara is taken in a mistaken sense and the common people are shown disrespect, which is not at all desirable. Krs'n'a has said: Yadyada'carati shres't'hastattadevetaro janah. The general public or itara jana follow and copy the behaviour of those in positions of leadership. Here the word itara jana has not been used with contempt at all.

Kanya' barayati ru'pam' ma'ta' vittam' pita' gun'am
Ba'ndhava'h hitamicchanti mis't'a'nnamitare jana'h

The meaning of the Shloka is: Before a wedding the bride-to-be wishes the groom to be handsome, the mother of the bride wishes the groom to be rich, the father of the bride wants the groom to be virtuous, the friends and relations wish that whatever happens will be for the good, and the public hopes that there will be all the sweets they can eat.

Here also itara jana does not convey the sense of inferior or lower standard people. We should be careful how we use the word itara.

Iti
By adding ktin to i (verbal root ya') we get the word iti whose etymological meaning is "that which is moving", or "that which has been", or "that which has been in such a way". Its colloquial meaning is "whatever more I may say or write, it goes on in such a way". Iiti means "a great kind of danger". Many think that iti, perhaps, means "end". No, it does not. At the end of a letter we write iti. Here it also means -- as I wrote, so it goes, what more can I write?

Many people become confused by taking iti to mean "end". A certain person had many daughters. He gave his seventh daughter the name A'nna'ka'lii (A'r na' Ka'lii = A'nna'ka'lii -- O Ka'lii, it is too many, no more!). The eighth daughter he named Cha'i-na' Ka'lii [I do not want, Ka'lii]. He gave the ninth daughter the name iti thinking that iti meant "end". But actually iti means "let it continue as it has gone". One day a gentleman told him the real meaning of iti -- let it continue as it has been. "Just as you have had one daughter after another born to you, so will it continue." Dazed and confused, he ran home straightaway to change his daughter's name.

Did you get the joke?

Aveti means a temporary or partial punctuation mark, not a permanent cessation. This aveti carries a special significance, not only in the written language, but in the spoken language as well. Aveti should be part of any proper collection of words.

"He is devouring a bad kind of good yoghurt" or "He is lamenting his mother in perfect calm". These sentences are against the spirit of aveti. Using punctuation marks haphazardly in a letter is also against the spirit of aveti. You might remember the following story: A gentleman was staying in the city when a letter arrived from his village home. "Today respected mother-in-law vomited twice. From the Brahmin priest's mouth you will hear everything. The farmers have cut down all the date palms. Our cows are well." Due to confused aveti, it was written: "Today respected mother-in-law vomited twice from the Brahmin priest's mouth. You will hear everything the farmers have cut down. All the date palms, our cows, are well."

Itikatha'
Iti means "to continue just as it has been". Katha' means story. To arrange events by means of narrative is itikatha' or "history". Behind the word "history" lies the original French word, estoire. Because the beginning of the word is pronounced as a vowel, one used to say "an historian" rather than "a historian". Nowadays, in English, both are current.

Itiha'sa
Ha'sa means "smile" or "laugh" and ha'sa means "to shine". Itiha'sa means "These shining words that I have spoken will continue on". That portion of history which is particularly shining, that is, that portion of history which has educative value for the people is itiha'sa. There is no proper English synonym for itiha'sa.

Dharma'rthaka'mamoks'a'rtham' niitiva'kyasamanvitam
Pura'vrttakatha'yuktamitiha'sah pracaks'yate

That portion of history in which there is morality and in which the four vargas, dharma, artha, ka'ma, and moks'a, attain fruition is called itiha'sa.

In
In is a suffix. Normally, the suffix in changes a noun into an adjective or a verb into an adjective or an adverb. For example, gun' + in = gun'in (1st person singular -- gun'ii); karma + in = karmin' (karmii); viraha + in = virahin' (virahii). Similarly, jina'nin (jina'nii), tapsvin (tapasvii), vidya'rthin (vidya'rthii), a'rohin' (a'rohii). In compound words where in is attached to the end of the first word, the na is dropped and the form of the compound word is determined according to the form of the first word. For example, gun'in + gan'a = gun'igan'a, karmin' + brnda = karmibrnda, virahin' + gopala = virahiigopala, jina'nin + samu'ha = jina'nisamu'ha, tapasvin + niva'sa = tapasviniva'sa, a'rohin' + gan'a = a'rohigan'a. The feminine form of words ending in in is inii. (in + ip = inii). Eka'kin (first person singular eka'kii -- masculine gender) -- in feminine gender eka'kinii, karmin' (karmii) -- in feminine gender karmin'ii, tapasvin (tapasvii) -- in feminine gender tapasvinii.

Inda
Ind (idi) + ac = inda. The verbal root ind means "to collect in abundance", or "to be established in abundance".

Indi/Indii
Indi/indii means "adorned with the abundance of beauty". Colloquially it means "beautiful flower". Indivara/indiivara means "blue lotus". Some people believe that the feminine form of indra is indira' but this is incorrect. The feminine form of indra is aendrila' or indra'nii. In laokik Sanskrit some people use the word indira' to mean laks'mii. They think that inda or indi means "the splendour of abundance" and ra means "that which gives". That is, that goddess which gives in abundance. But there is a fundamental error here. In Vedic or laokik Sanskrit, ra' is used to mean "manifestation", "vocality", "receive" or "obtain". It is not used in the sense of "giving". When thus analysed, indira' means "one who gets or receives abundance". The Puranic goddess Laks'mii gives abundance, so to use the word indira' for her is completely unjustified.

Indu
Ind + un' =indu. "The one in whom there is nectar or the abundance of beauty" -- this is the etymological meaning of indu. Its colloquial meaning is the moon. According to the yogic scriptures, among the sixteen kala's [sixteen divisions of the lunar cycle] the fourteenth is seen on the fourteenth lunar day and the fifteenth is seen during the full moon but since the moon remains in a certain position the sixteenth kala' is not visible. It remains in darkness. This sixteenth kala' is the receptacle of ambrosia. Because it remains covered in darkness, its name is ama'kala' and because it is the recptacle of nectar, its other name is indu.

In the individual this indu resides in the sahasrara cakra of the human body. By dint of sadhana, the yogis drink this indu-mixed nectar. (Sura' pa'n karine a'mi, sudha' kha'i jay ka'lii bale -- Ramaprasa'd. [I do not drink wine; I drink nectar by singing the praises of the Divine Mother.]) Shiva was the King of the Yogis so the yogis used to think that this ama'kala' was permanently bound up in his matted locks. Thus one of the names they gave him was indushekhara. But in laokika Sanskrit and in the people's languages the word indu is also used to refer to the entire moon. If indu was only used for the sixteenth kala' where would the complete moon (indumatii) be able to go?

Jat'a'jut'asama'yukta' arddhendukrtashekhara';
navayaovanasampanna' pu'rn'endusadrsha'nana'.

If, in a mantra, it is said about the face of a goddess pu'rn'endusadrsha'nana',[having a face resembling the full moon] and here indu is taken to mean the sixteenth kala' of the moon, then it will mean that her countenance is disfigured. And precisely for this reason where will the krs'nendus, pu'rnendus (the kala', not the entire moon), shubhendus go? If yet another error is indulged, saying that indu means the entire moon, in order to shore up this prevalent error, will this be proper? In this case, in order to mend the situation and to rectify another mistake, I can say emphatically that indu means the sixteenth kala' of the moon. Still, in some people's opinion, indu refers to the entire moon.

Indura
The root ind means "to accumulate in abundance". Ind + uras = indura. Its etymological meaning is "one whose natural activity is accumulating abundance"; colloquially it means "mouse". Its synonyms are a'khu, mu's'a', mu's'a, cuha', cuhiya', cut'ariya'. Some people believe Ganesh to be the god of accumulation and as the representative form of accumulation they believe that his mount is a mouse.