884. Certain roots in ā weaken the ā in middle inflection to i (as also in the root-aorist: above, 834 a): these are said to be sthā, dā, and dhā; in the older language have been noted ádiṣi and adiṣata from √dā give (and adiṣi perhaps once from √dā bind), adhiṣi and adhiṣata (with the optative dhiṣīya) from √dhā put, and asthiṣata; also agīṣṭhās and agīṣata from √gā go (with adhi).
a. The middle inflection of the aorist of √dā would be, then, according to the grammarians: ádiṣi, ádithās, ádita; ádiṣvahi, ádiṣāthām, ádiṣātām; ádiṣmahi, ádiḍhvam, ádiṣata.
885. Roots ending in changeable ṛ (so-called roots in ṝ: 242) are said by the grammarians to convert this vowel to īr in middle forms: thus, astīrṣi, astīrṣṭhās etc. (from √stṛ); of such forms, however, has been found in the older language only akīrṣata, PB.
886. The s-aorist is made in the older language from about a hundred and forty roots (in RV., from about seventy; in AV., from about fifty, of which fifteen are additional to those in RV.); and the epic and classical literature adds but a very small number. It has in the Veda certain peculiarities of stem-formation and inflection, and also the full series of modes — of which the optative middle is retained also later as a part of the "precative" (but see 925 b).
887. Irregularities of stem-formation are as follows:
a. The strengthening of the root-syllable is now and then irregularly made or omitted: thus, ayokṣīt (AB.), chetsīs (B.S.; also occurs in MBh., which has further yotsīs), rotsīs (KU.); amatsus (RV.); ayāṁsi and arāutsi (AB.), asākṣi etc. (V.B.: √sah), māṅsta (AV.) and māṅstām (TA.); lopsīya (U.); and MBh. has drogdhās. From √saj is made sān̄kṣīt (U. etc.), and from √majj, amān̄kṣīt (not quotable). The form ayun̄kṣmahi (BhP.) is doubtless a false reading.
b. A radical final nasal is lost in agasmahi (RV.) and gasāthām (TA.) from √gam, and in the optatives masīya and vasīmahi (RV.) from √√man and van.
c. The roots hū, dhū, and nū have ū instead of o in the middle: thus, ahūṣata, adhūṣata, anūṣi and anūṣātām and anūṣata; √dhur (or dhūrv) makes adhūrṣata.
d. ÇB. has once atrāsatām for atrāstām (√trā).
888. The principal peculiarity of the older language in regard to inflection is the frequent absence of ī in the endings of 2d and 3d sing. act., and the consequent loss of the consonant-ending, and sometimes of root-finals (150). The forms without ī are the only ones found in RV. and K., and they outnumber the others in AV. and TS.; in the Brāhmaṇas they grow rarer (only one, adrāk, occurs in GB.; one, ayāṭ, in KB.; and two, adrāk and ayāṭ, in ÇB.; PB. has none).
