567. Precative

Precative. Precative forms are such as have a sibilant inserted between the optative-sign and the ending. They are made almost only from the aorist stems, and, though allowed by the grammarians to be formed from every root — the active precative from the simple aorist, the middle from the sibilant aorist — arepractically of rare occurrence at every period of the language, and especially later.

a. The insertedsruns in the active through the whole series of persons; in the middle, it is allowed only in the 2d and 3d persons sing. and du. and the 2d pl., and is quotable only for the 2d and 3d sing. In the 2d sing. act., the precative form, by reason of the necessary loss of the addeds, is not distinguishable from the simple optative; in the 3d sing. act., the same is the case in the later language, which (compare 555 a) saves the personal endingtinstead of the precative-signs; but the RV. usually, and the other Vedic texts to some extent, have the proper endingyās(foryāst). As toḍhin the 2d pl. mid., see 226 c.