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Works on anuprekṣā in Kannada Literature
Sri Shubha Chandra
जिनधर्मावासमादत्तु अमळ विनयदागारमादत्तु पद्मासननिर्वापद्ममादत्तु अतिविशद यशोधाममादत्तु
विद्याधन जन्मस्थानमादत्तु असमतरळगंभीर सद्गेहमादत्तु एनिसल्के
इंतुळ्ळ नाना महिमेयोळेसे गुं चारु कर्णाटदेशं ॥
This is a Kannada inscription which says about the distinguished qualities of Karnata Country1.
It was an abode of the Jina-Dharma,
It was a mine of pure discipline,
It was the temple of one who is in Padmasana
It was the dwelling place of fame which is exceedingly bright,
It was the birth place of lore and wealth,
It was the worthy house of matchless splendid dignity, Thus distinguished in various glories was the beautiful Karṇāta
country.
According to this inscription the very first greatness of Karnataka is that it was an abode of Jina-Dharma. I think, this single inscription is enough for us to give a clear picture of Jainism in Karnataka. It is quite natural that Jainas wrote in Kannada because Karnataka was the birth place of lore as we know from the above inscription. Jainas contribution to Kannada literature is very rich both in quality and quantity. "The earliest cultivators of Kannada language for literary purpose were Jainas. The oldest works of any extent and value that have come down to us are all from the pen of the Jainas. The period of Jaina predominance in the literary field may justly be called the Augustan Age of Kannada literature. The beauty and the high polish of the Kannada language are almost entirely due to the Jaina authors of an earlier period 1. Epigraphia carnatica, Vol. VIII, Soraba No. 261
१२
परिसंवाद -४
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१७८
जैनविद्या एवं प्राकृत : अन्तरशास्त्रीय अध्ययन
who by writing works in chaste and dignified language have raised the literary excellence of Kannada to a high standard............ Almo the works useful for the study of the Kannada language, such as those on poetics, prosody, grammar and laxicons etc. have been written by the Jainas”.
Jaina poets have written in Kannada not only independent works on Prathamānuyoga but also commentaries on ancient authoritative Prakrit and Sanskrit Jainagama works. A few Kannada poets have written independent works on anu prekśä and also commentaries to Prakrit and Sanskrit anu prekșa works.
Anu preksā
The Sanskrit term anu prekşā, when it is used in Kannada becomes anu prekşe.. Dr. A. N. Upadhye in his introduction to 'Kirtikeyānu preks' has discussed beautifully the etymology and meaning of the word anu prekšā. This term has come from the root 'iks' with the prepositions 'anu' and 'pra', meaning, to ponder, to reflect, to think repeatedly. The anu prekshās are in general, topics of meditation or for reflection, twelve in number, and embrace a wide range of subjects particularly covering all principles and cardinal teachings of Jainism 3 “They are in the nature of reflections on the fundamental facts of life, and remind the devotee of the teachings of the master on the subject of rebirth, Karma and its distruction, equanimity and self control, the glory of the law and the final goal. They are no doubt designed to develop the contemplative faculty of Yogin and may be called the starting Point of dhyāna. But they have also a great moral significance in as much as they are meant to develop purity of thoughts and sincerity in the practice of religion."4
In Kannada Literature
Jaina Poets in their Kannada Kavyas as a rule write on anupreksi either in short or in long, depending on the context. If the Kavya is a small one then the poet atleast mentions the word anu preksa.
2. R. Narasimhācārya, Karnataka Kavicarite' introduction, Vol.
III, 1929. 3. A. N. Upadhye, 'Kārtikeyānuprekşā’, Introduction, pp. 6-7. 4. K. K. Handiqui, Yasastilaka and Indian culture' p. 293.
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Works on anuprekşā in Kannada Literature
१७९
We have, in Kannada literature, two poets who have written independent major works on anu preksā. They are Bandhuvarma and Vijayanna.
Band huvarma and his works
Bandhuvarma (A. D. 1200) gives no information, except his clan, about his personal details at any point in his works. He has written two major works namely 'Jivasanbod hane' and 'Harivams bhyudaya'. Jiva: ambodhane is the first work in Kannada which is solely devoted to anu prekşās. Harivamsābhyudaya deals with the life of Tirtharkara Neminātha. Also their is a work called "Satid har masara' in Bandhuvarma's name, which deals with the duties of Jaina women. But there is controversy regarding the authorship of this work. The term 'yarma' ( 9 ) in his name makes our mind to suspect whether he comes from a Ksatriya class. But in the colophon of Jivasambod hane' the Poet says that it was composed by Bandhuvarma who was a da azala. By this we can say that he comes from the merchant class. Jivasambodhane's
Eandlurarma's Jivasambodkane' is the fiirst work in Kannada which is fully devoted to deal with anu prekşās. The name of his work itself is very different from other anu preksā works. This is an address to the souls which are in sorrow because of Knowledgelessness. This work is in cam pu style. There are in total 558 verses and also prose rendering of the same number. The noticable point here is that each verse has a prose part which almost explains what is said in the previous verse. In some places the poet says after the verse that the above verse was like a sutra and it could not be understood without special exposition. Then he explains it in simple language (Ex. PP. 122-20, 216-8). Sometimes his prose looks abridged summary of the corresponding previous verses; and at some places they explain the meaning of the verse with different examples and some other places give inore informations.
There is one significant feature in Band huvarma's 'Jivasombod hane'. He narrates most suitable stories to illustrate anu prekşās. So for I have not come across any work of this nature either in Prakrit or in Sanskrit. We know anu preksā is a dogmatic subject. But Band huvarma has made
5. Ed. by. H. Shesha Aingar, Madras, 1955
africa
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जैन विद्या एवं प्राकृत : अन्तरशास्त्रीय अध्ययनै
this work worth reading by using appropriate similies and metaphors drawn from different walks of public life. His fluent language, intimate way of addressing the Jiva and the lucid arguments make the reader to read his work repeatedly. Sometimes he, appears to be talkative, but never he bores his readers. His usage of desi words and popular proverbs are very touching and they appeal the comman man's mind. He argues with jiva logically as if the jiva is before him. He advises jiva as teacher or an elder, requests him as a friend, takes him to task as a very intiinate person and this style is very rare in literature.
By giving suitable stories he has made his work a very good Kathākośa also. A detailed study of his work shows that he was indebted to Jatasimhanandi, Harişeņa, Pampa, Ranna, Säntinäha, Nāgacandra, Nayasena and others for the stories he has narrated.
The table given below shows how sensible he is in selecting the stories for anu prekşās. Anu prekşā
Story 1. Adhruvānupreksā
Sagaracakravarti 2. Aśaraņānuprekşā
Candakausika 3. Ekatvānupreksā
Varāng 4. Anyatvānupreksā
Rāvana 5. Samsārānupreksā
Vasantatilakā 6. Lokānupreksā
Sukumāra 7. Asucitvānupreksā
Suhhauma Rāja 8. Asravānuprekşā : i. For Krodha
Dipāyana ii. For māna
Bahubali iii. For māyā
Puspadanta iv. For lobha
Pațahasta 9. Samvarānuprekṣā
Nägilagāvunda 10. Nirjarānuprekṣā
Suvarnabhadra 11. Bodhidurlabhānupreksā
Dhanyakumāra 12. Dharmānuprekşā : i. For dāna
Somila ii. For pūjā
Dhanapati iii. For sila
Prabhāvati iv. For vrata
Nāgadatta
ofrare-
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Works on anuprekşā in Kannada Literature
Vijayanna and his work
Vijayanna (A. D. 1448) gives some information about himself in his work. He was not only a poet but also, like many other Jaina poets, was an ascetic. He wrote his work 'Dvādaśānu prekşe' at the request of Devabhūpa of Honnabandi, for the benefit of people. He composed his work in Šāntinátha temple at Ammenabhāvi, seven miles from Dharwar in Karnāṭaka. He was a pupil of Pārsvakirti muni.
There are in total 1362 verses in Sangat ga metre and they are divided into 12 chapters. Depending on the context, to justify the particular anu preksī the poet refers to one or more than one story in one or two verses or in 3-4 lines in prose. The table given below shows the relevancy of the illustrated stories :
Anu preksā 1. Adhruvănuprekşã 2. Anyatvānuprekņā 3. Aśucitvānupreksā 4. Āsravānuprekşã
Story refered (i) Cova, (ii) Nāgaśrī (i) Baladeva and Vasudeva (i) Rāvana (i) Subhauma, (ii) Amitārisakti,
(iii) Amstamati (i) Rāvana (ii) Pāņdavas (iii) Baka (iv) Cārudatta (v) Brahmadatta (vi) Śrimati and Vajrajangha (vii) Srişeņa (viii) Dandaka (ix) Vțşabhașena (x) Kauņdeśa (xi) Manduka (xii) Prabhāvati
5. Dharmānuprekşã
Minor Works
1. Dvādaśanu prekşe of Balacandra muni
There is an anuprekșa work by Bālacandramuni. Kannada inscriptions praise his name as Adhyātmi Bālacandra (1176 A. D.). He is one of the significant commentators in Kannada. He has written commentaries on Pañcustikayasira, Pravacanasāra, Samayasära, Mokșa prābhrita and T atvärthashtra. In his Dudas anu prekse, there are 14 verses (vpttas) and each verse ends with the word 'Jineś warā'. The poet himself has named these verses as jinaguna-st avanañgal'. This work is also called Jina-stuti.
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2. Kalyanakirti's Anuprekse
Kalyanakirti (A. D. 1439) has written Jnanacandrabhyudaya, Ki man kathe, Cinmaya-cintamani, Nigakumira-carite, Tatvabhedāṣṭaka, Ananda-kand ali, and anuprekşe in Kannada and Jina-yajna-phalodaya, Yasodhara-carita and a work on medicine in Sanskrit.
विद्या एवं प्राकृत : अन्तरशास्त्रीय अध्ययन
There are 76 verses in Kalyāṇakirti's anu prekṣe. He says that he wrote this anu prekṣe for boys to read and so he stands first among the poets who wrote children's literature. He is influenced by Kundakunda's Bi rasa-aṇuvekkhā and has brought its meaning into Kannada.
Two more anu prekṣa works have come to my notice. They are yet in the manuscript stage. The manuscripts of these works are in the library of Jainadharmaśāla, Moodabidre and a microfilm of it is in the microfilm library of Institute of Kannada studies, Mysore University. Both these anu prekṣa works have thirteen verses each. No information about the author and other things could be known from the manuscripts.
Commentaries
(i) Viranandi (c. A. D. 1153) in the 10th chapter of his Acārasara' has written on anu prekṣā in 12 Sanskrit verses in Śärdülavikridita metre. Viranandi has written an auto-commentary on acarasara in Kannada. Though acarasara is not yet published with Kannada commentary, the anu prekṣa part of it has come to light. This part has some how entered into some of the manuscripts of Bandhuvarma's 'Jiva-Sambodhane'. In 'Jivasambodhane' at the beginning of each anuprekṣā there is a corresponding vrtta with commentary as an introduction which is taken from Acarasāra, In the printed text of 'Jivasombod hane' we have got vṛttas with Kannada commentary.
(ii) We have manuscripts of Kannada Commentary on Kundakunda's Bārasa-aṇuvekkha'. Dr. A. N. Upadhye had made a mention of one such manuscript in his introduction to 'Kartikeyanuprekṣa' (P. 21). This Ms. is in the Laxmisena Matha, Kolhapur. But he has not mentioned the name of the commentator.
(iii) I have seen a paper-manuscript of Brasa-aṇuvekkha's commentary in Kannada in the manuscript library of Bähuvali Asrama near Kolhapur. There are 90 gähäs in this Ms. and there is no mention the commentator.
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Works on Anupreksā in Kannada Literature
(iv) A Palm-leaf Ms. is there with Dr. M. D. Vasantharāj in Mysore and the text is identical with Bāhubali Aśrama paper Ms. Dr. M. D. Vasantharaj's Ms. is an incomplete one and also does not give any details about the commentator.
(iv) In the Ms. Library of Jaina Mutha, Humca, there is a papermanuscript of a commentary on Bārasa-aņuvekkhā (No. H. 1818). In the colophon it is said, that the commentary was written in softKannada ( 3) by Sāntikityārya. A microfilm of this Ms. is in the microfilm Library, I. K. S. Mysore University. When I compared the text of this commentary with Bāhubali-Aśrama's and Dr. M. D. Vasantharāj's Mss., it became clear that they are not identical.
(v) There is another Palm-leaf Ms. of the commentary on Bārasaanuvekkha in the Ms. Library af Jaina Dharmaśālā, Moodabidre. The commentator's name is mentioned as Bahubali.
So far no commentary of Bārasa-aņuvekkhā is published. Critical edition of these Kannada commentaries is an urgent necessity. Dr. A. N. upadhye had already mentioned about this in his introduction to Kārtikeyânupreksā. A good critical edition of Kannada commentary may throw light on the original gāhās of Būrasa-a nuvekkha.
A Tamil work on Anu preksā
There is a work on anupreksă in Tamil Literature. As in Kannada, the name of this work is also “Jivasambod hanai”. This work was written by Devendramahämuni. No information is available on the date and place of the author. By his name we can only say that he was an ascetic. Though the work begins with the description of Samavasarana, Gautama-gañadhara and king Sreņika in a traditional way, the form and the contents are identical with the Kannada Jivassbodhane. In Tamil work the verses and prose writings are in equal number and Venbās are always accompanied by a prose as in Kannada work. The style of the language of this work is mani pravālam.
The stories narrated here to illustrate the anu prekşās are identical with Kannada work, except at one place. In Kannada, Bandhuvarama, gives four stories to asravānuprekse, where as Devendramuni in his Tamil work gives two more stories. Mr. Gajapati Jain opines that there is a great deal of influence of Bandhuvarma on the Tarnil work.
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________________ 184 जैनविद्या एवं प्राकृत : अन्तरशास्त्रीय अध्ययन The ideal example of Lard Mahavira served as a beacon light for the Jaina poets in Karnasaka. Because they also shared the same conviction of using the regional languages as the medium of expression. and writing for the cominon masses. Further the Jaina poets contributed a great deal in enriching the variety of literature in Karnataka. It is because of their efforts, the people of Karnataka recognise Jaina's contribution to the development of Kannada language and literature. Department of Jainology and Prakrits, University of Mysore, Mysore, Karnataka. Lafran