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Panini’s Astadhyayi as a Formal Grammar System

Dr. Sourabha Srinivasa Havaldar(Mentor),Aaditya Bardhan(ME004)Pani

Abstract- Pāṇini’s Aṣṭādhyāyī represents one of the earliest and most sophisticated formal descriptions of a natural language, predating modern linguistic theory by over two millennia. This paper examines the Aṣṭādhyāyī as a formal grammar system, analyzing its rule-based architecture, meta-rules, and derivational mechanisms through the lens of contemporary formal linguistics and computational grammar. We argue that Pāṇini’s use of concise sūtras, ordered rule application, and interpretive principles such as anuvṛtti (rule inheritance) and vipratiṣedha (conflict resolution) constitute a generative system with properties comparable to modern formal grammars. The study highlights parallels between the Aṣṭādhyāyī and later developments in automata theory, context-sensitive grammars, and algorithmic rule systems, while also emphasizing features that exceed or differ from standard Western models of grammar. By situating Pāṇini’s work within the framework of formal systems, this paper demonstrates its relevance to theoretical linguistics, the history of logic, and computational approaches to natural language, underscoring the Aṣṭādhyāyī as a foundational and still-influential model of formal grammatical theory.