Naming
''Trikāṇḍī'' which literally means three books, is the name of the works. However, the early printed editions of the work, such as those from 1888 and 1905, incorrectly presented ''Vākyapadiya'' as the title of the entire collection containing the three books. ''Vākyapadiya'' originally referred only to the second book of the collection, and later came to refer to the first two books.Structure & content
The ''Trikāṇḍī,'' also known as ''Vākyapadīya,'' contains 3 ''kāṇḍas'' (sections): ''Brahmakāṇḍa'' (Book of Brahman), ''Vākyakāṇḍa'' (Book of Sentences), and ''Padakāṇḍa'' (Book of Words). Bhartrhari's ''Trikāṇḍī'' presents Vedas as the organizing principle of the world, serving not just as a guide (''upadestr'') for proper conduct and knowledge, but as the underlying essence (''prakrti'') of the universe, suggesting that the Veda is both the source of knowledge and the foundation of the world's existence. The first two parts are divided into ''kārikā''s (verses) and ''vṛtti'' (commentary). Since the earliest times, tradition attributes the authorship of the ''vṛtti''s to Bhartṛhari himself, although some manuscripts name Harivṛṣabha alias Vṛṣabha as their author. The structure of the text provides a holistic view of language, encompassing its philosophical foundations, sentence structurer, and word formation.Brahmakāṇḍa
The ''Brahmakāṇḍa'' discusses the concept ofVākyakāṇḍa
The author lists various definitions of a sentence by different authorities, such as Katyayana, the Mimamsa school, and different logicians (''nyaya-vadins''). He then discusses the concept of '' sphota'', and various views regarding the divisibility and indivisibility of a sentence and its meaning. The author discusses 12 views regarding the meaning of linguistic forms. He lists six varieties of intuition, and discusses the role of intuition in understanding the meaning of a sentence. He then discusses constituents of words (such as prefix, suffix, stem, and roots); linguistic forms (nouns, verbs, prepositions, particles, and postpositions); phonemes; compound words; homophones; concatenations of words. The author states that one must distinguish between the possible and intended meanings of the linguistic forms, and discusses various factors that determine the meaning. He also discusses various views on the relationship between language and meaning. For example, some people think that language only produces a memory, it does not establish the meaning: a burned man understands the meaning of burning when he comes in contact with fire, as opposed to learning the meaning of the word "burning" through language. The author also discusses other related topics, such as completeness of a sentence, emphasis, and related topics. In the epilogue, the author talks about different grammar traditions of India, stating that his teacher had mastered all of them. He mentions several earlier scholars, including Panini,Padakāṇḍa
The final book is focused on individual words, their formation, and their meanings. The rules governing the formation and interpretation of words is also discussed here. Book 3 comprises 14 chapters (''samuddeśas''): # On Universal Property (''Jāti-samuddeśa'') # On Substance (''Dravya-samuddeśa'') # On Relation (''Saṃbandha-parīkṣā'') # More on Substance (''Bhūyodravya-samuddeśa'') # On Quality (''Guṇa-samuddeśa'') # On Spatial Direction (''Dik-samuddeśa'') # On the Means to Action (''Sādhana-samuddeêa'') # On Action (''Kriyā-samuddeśa'') # On Time (''Kāla-samuddeśa'') # On Person (''Puruṣa-samuddeśa'') # On Number (''Saṃkhyā-samuddeśa'') # On Aspect (''Upa-graha-samuddeśa'') # On Gender (''Liṅga-samuddeśa'') # On Linguistic Formations (''Vṛtti-samuddeśa'')Commentaries
The following commentaries of the work are known: Book 1 * ''Paddhati'' or ''Sphutakshara'', a ''tika'' by Vṛṣabhadeva. Harivṛṣabha alias Vṛṣabha (c. 650 CE) was a son of Devayashas and a protege of king Vishnu-gupta; his ''Vakyapadiya-paddhati'' is the earliest known commentary on Bhartṛhari's work, composed by someone other than Bhartṛhari. Book 2 * Original ''vritti'' by Bhartṛhari or Harivṛṣabha * ''Vakyapradipatika'', by Bhartrhari, provides an explanation of the ''kārikās'' * A summary in verses of the ''tika'' by Punya-raja or Rajanaka-shura-varman; this was likely a summary of a now-lost commentary by Helaraja * ''Vākya-padiya-prameya-samgraha'', a summary of the ''tika'', by an unknown redactor. Book 3 * ''Prakirna-vrtti'' by the Yogachara teacher Dhrama-pala (6th-7th century); this work is now lost, and is known from the Chinese tradition and I-tsing. The title ''Prakirna-vrtti'' is known from Durveka Mishra's ''Dharmottara-pradipa''. * ''Prakirna aprakasha'' by Hela-raja, with two gaps filled by Phulla-raja (likely same as Punya-raja); this work contains an explanation of the ''kārikās''References
{{reflist Ancient Indian grammar works 5th-century Sanskrit literature 5th-century books