But a case-form in the prior member of a compound is by no means rare, from the earliest period of the language. Thus:

a. Quite often, an accusative, especially before a root-stem, or a derivative in a of equivalent meaning: for example, pataṁgá going by flight, dhanaṁjayá winning wealth, abhayaṁkarácausing absence of danger, puṣṭimbhará bringing prosperity, vācamīn̄khayá inciting the voice; but also sometimes before words of other form, as áçvamiṣṭi horse-desiring,çubhaṁyā́van going in splendor, subhāgaṁkáraṇa making happy, bhayaṁkartṛ causer of fear. In a few cases, by analogy with these, a word receives an accusative form to which it has no right: thus, hṛdaṁsáni, makṣúṁgama, vasuṁdhara, ātmambhari.

b. Much more rarely, an instrumental: for example, girāvṛ́dh increasing by praise, vācā́stena stealing by incantation, krátvāmagha gladly bestowing, bhāsā́ketu bright with light,vidmanā́pas active with wisdom.

C. In a very few instances, a dative: thus, nareṣṭhā́ serving a man, asméhiti errand to us, and perhaps kiyedhā́ and mahevṛ́dh.

d. Not seldom, a locative; and this also especially with a root-stem or a-derivative: for example, agregá going at the head, divikṣít dwelling in the sky, vaneṣáh prevailing in the wood,an̄geṣṭhā́ existing in the limbs, proṣṭheçayá lying on a couch, sutékara active with the soma, divícara moving in the sky; āréçatru having enemies far removed, sumnáāpinear in favor, máderaghu hasting in excitement, yudhiṣṭhira firm in battle, antevāsin dwelling near; apsujá born in the waters, hṛtsvás hurling at hearts.

e. Least often, a genitive: thus, rāyáskāma desirous of wealth, akasyavíd knowing no one. But the older language has a few examples of the putting together of a genitive with its governing noun, each member of the combination keeping its own accent: see below, 1267 d.

f. Ablative forms are to be seen in balātkāra violence and balātkṛta, and perhaps in parātpriya. And a stem in ṛ sometimes appears in a copulative compound in its nominative form: thus, pitāputrāu father and son, hotāpotārāu the invoker and purifier. Anyonya one another is a fused phrase, of nominative and oblique case.

g. In a very few words, plural meaning is signified by plural form: thus, apsujā́ etc. (in derivation, also, apsu is used as a stem), hṛtsvás, nṝ́ṅḥpraṇetra conducting men, rujaskaracausing pains, (and dual) hanūkampa trembling of the two jaws.

h. Much more often, of words having gender-forms, the feminine is used in composition, when the distinctive feminine sense is to be conveyed: e. g. gopīnātha master of the shepherdesses, dāsīputra son of a female slave, mṛgīdṛç gaselle-eyed, praṇītāpraṇáyana vessel for consecrated water.