All the affixes to be treated of hereafter should be understood to come in the sense of past time.,
The phrase 'with the sense of past time' is an adhikara or governing aphorism and exerts its influence up to aphorism 123 of this chapter; that is to say, these affixes give a signification of the past tense to the verb whose anuvritti is also understood throughout the subsequent sutras; see 3.1.91.
Thus it will be taught in the next aphorism: 'after the verb यज्, when the word in composition is in the instrumental case, the affix णिनि is employed'. Here to complete the sense we must read into the sutra, the words 'with the sense of past time'. As अग्निष्टोमेनेष्टवान् = अग्निष्टोमयाजिन् 'who has sacrificed with an Agnishtoma or a five-day series of offerings'.
Why do we say 'with the sense of past time' ? Otherwise these affixes will not be employed. As अग्निष्टोमेन यजति 'he sacrifices with Agnishtoma'.,