In Sanskrit, we call the word Padam. Panini, the grammarian, says १.४.१४ सुप्तिङन्तं पदम् ।
(Ashtadhyayi.com : Any word ending in a सुप् प्रत्यय or a तिङ् प्रत्यय is called a पद.)
As a struggling but enthusiastic student of Sanskrit under the best of teachers, I wondered how we can make friends with a word. I found out we can do so in seven different ways!
- Understand its meaning when we hear or read it - Understanding.
- Understand its derivation or how the word came to mean what it does - etymology (निष्पत्ति).
- Remember a famous line in a poem or story you have heard where the word was used - Kavya.
- Think of a person you associate that word with. For example, Buddhi reminds us of Ganesha - Itihasa.
- Think of other words that form a family - synonyms, antonyms, alliteratives, and so on - Shabdakosha.
- Grammar. For example, रामाय comes from राम through a Paninian derivation like this:
 |
| From Vyoma Labs lesson |
And finally, 7. Begin to use it in our own sentences!
So you see, you can make friends with every word you hear or read in so many different ways! Thus, you can enlarge your circle of friends and you can sport with all of them!
So here is my attempt to say this in Sanskrit 😀🙏
पदस्यार्थाः सर्वे बहुविधहिता ये अभिमताः ।
यथा भावान्वेशः प्रयतविधिना ते हृदिभृताः ॥
All the meanings and attributes of a word are beneficial in many ways and are meant to be understood.
As the right effort is made to delve into the spirit of the word, with deference, they will become enshrined in my heart.
॥ हरिः ॐ तत् सत् ॥
