168. ā.

[8.] ā always agrees with the ablative, and is put before its noun. It serves to denote the boundary or limit, either the terminus a quo or the terminus ad quem, mostly the latter. It is available both in space and in time, and may be rendered accordingly now by „since” and „till”, now by „from” and „to.” M. 2, 22 is an example illustrative of its signifying the two termini ā samudrāt tu vai pūrvād ā samudrāt tu paścimāt / tayor evāntaraṃ giryor āryāvartaṃ vidurbudhāḥ (the wise know Âryâvarta to be the country between the said mountains from the eastern ocean to the western).

Other examples: 1. term. a quo. Çâk. I ā mūlāc chrotum icchāmi (I wish to hear it from the root); Kathâs. 24, 186 ā bālyāt tāpaso ‘bhavam (since my childhood I was an ascetic);

2. term. ad quem. Mhbh. 1, 163, 8 ā karṇād dhinnadaktraḥ (having his mouth split up to the ears), Çâk. IV odakāntātsnigdho jano ’nugantavya iti śrūyate; — Çâk. V ā prasavād asmadgṛhe tiṣṭhatu (let her stay with us till her delivery), Âçv. Grhy. 1, 19, 5 ā ṣoḍaśād [viz. varṣād] brāhmaṇasyānanītaḥ kāla ā dvāviṃśāt kṣattriyasyā caturviṃśād vaiśyasya (until the sixteenth year the time is not passed for the brahman, etc.). — In a figurative sense f. i. Çâk. I ā paritoṣād viduṣāṃ na sādhu manye prayogavijñānam (I do not approve the skill of performing a representation, unless the connoisseurs be contented).

ā is often compounded with its noun into an avyayîbhâva. Daç. 175 ākaṇṭhaṃ papau (he drunk his fill, liter. »till his throat”), Kathâs. 5, 103 āsaṃsāraṃ jagatyasminnekā nityā hyanityatā (for, since the world exists, there is but one thing steady in the Creation, namely unsteadiness); Panc. I, 39 āmaraṇaṃ bhikṣā (a lifelong beggary).

Rem. In the vaidik mantras ā is of the utmost frequency, and is put to different cases, sometimes before, sometimes behind. In most instances it is rather a mere adverb. (*1).

(*1)
In a period as early as Yâska, ā with loc. had antiquated, for this exegete deems it necessary to interprete the mantric expression abhra ā apaḥ (water in the cloud) by apo ‘bhre ‘dhi (Nir. 5, 5). In a subsequent time the very gloss of Yâska would have required another, for adhi with loc. in this meaning being obsolete (156), classic Sanskrit would have employed antaḥ or -madhye or have said abhragatā apaḥ.

168. ā

[8.] āは常にabl.と一致し、その名詞の前に置かれる。境界や限界、出発点か到達点（ほとんどは後者）を表すことに資する。どちらも時間や空間に用いることができ、「…以来」や「…まで」、「…から」や「…へ」で翻訳しうる。M. 2, 22は、その2種の終着点を表す好例である：ā samudrāt tu vai pūrvād ā samudrāt tu paścimāt / tayor evāntaraṃ giryor āryāvartaṃ vidurbudhāḥ (the wise know Âryâvarta to be the country between the said mountains from the eastern ocean to the western)

他の例は以下の通り：
1. 出発点
Çâk. I ā mūlāc chrotum icchāmi (I wish to hear it from the root)
Kathâs. 24, 186 ā bālyāt tāpaso ‘bhavam (since my childhood I was an ascetic)

2. 到達点
Mhbh. 1, 163, 8 ā karṇād dhinnadaktraḥ (having his mouth split up to the ears)
Çâk. IV odakāntātsnigdho jano ’nugantavya iti śrūyate
Çâk. V ā prasavād asmadgṛhe tiṣṭhatu (let her stay with us till her delivery)
Âçv. Grhy. 1, 19, 5 ā ṣoḍaśād [viz. varṣād] brāhmaṇasyānanītaḥ kāla ā dvāviṃśāt kṣattriyasyā caturviṃśād vaiśyasya (until the sixteenth year the time is not passed for the brahman, etc.)
（比喩） Çâk. I ā paritoṣād viduṣāṃ na sādhu manye prayogavijñānam (I do not approve the skill of performing a representation, unless the connoisseurs be contented)

āはしばしば名詞と複合してavyayībhāvaになる。
Daç. 175 ākaṇṭhaṃ papau (he drunk his fill, liter. »till his throat”)
Kathâs. 5, 103 āsaṃsāraṃ jagatyasminnekā nityā hyanityatā (for, since the world exists, there is but one thing steady in the Creation, namely unsteadiness)
Panc. I, 39 āmaraṇaṃ bhikṣā (a lifelong beggary)

【補足】
ヴェーダのマントラでは、āは非常に頻繁であり、〔abl.とは〕異なる格の前後に置かれる。ほとんどの用例では、むしろ単なる副詞である（*1）。

（*1）
Yāskaあたりの時代においてはloc.を伴うāが古びており、解釈者はそのためにマントラ的表現であるabhra ā apaḥ（雲の中の水）をapo ‘bhre ‘dhi（Nir. 5, 5）で解釈する必要があったのだと思われる。後代、Yāskaのその〔āをadhiで置き換える〕語注は、loc.を伴うadhi（156）が廃れたために他の語を要するようになった。古典サンスクリットではantaḥや-madhyeを用いるかabhragatā apaḥとする。