In the first millennium of the Common Era linguistic issues became recurrent themes in the writings of many Indian thinkers. One of the most important linguistic theories of the period, the sphoṭa-doctrine of Bhartṛhari, was fervently criticized by adherents of the philosophical schools of Mīmāṃsā (Kumārila Bhaṭṭa) and Nyāya (Jayanta Bhaṭṭa). The philosophers of the Advaita tradition were not unanimous in this point. While Maṇḍana advocated the theory in his Sphoṭasiddhi, Śaṅkara remained rather unconcerned; however, in his Brahmasūtrabhāṣya (1.3.28) he argues against the sphoṭa theory as advanced by an opponent. On the basis of a textual analysis, the lecture will present Śaṅkara’s attitude towards some linguistic issues and his argumentation against the sphoṭa.
