Sambodhi 1978 Vol 07

SR No.: 520757
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Dalsukh Malvania, H C Bhayani, Nagin J Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad
Publication Year: 1978
Total Pages: 358
Language: English, Sanskrit, Prakrit, Gujarati
Classification: Magazine, India_Sambodhi, & India
File Size: 9 MB

Page 116

ANOTHER RARE SPECIMEN OF ARCHAIC JAIN-MĀHĀRĀSTRĪ : TARAMGAVAT
KAHĀ OF PADALIPTA
H. C. Bbayani In a valuable paper published in 1936 the late Dr. L. Alsdorf had pointed out the unique importance of the Vasudevahindi (- Vh) from the linguistic point of view. He had briefly enumerated and discussed ‘some of the more important striking features and peculiarities' of Vh. The numerous unusual or hitherto unattested grammatic forms and usages of the latter marked it as a type of early Prakit, which Alsdorf aptly designated as 'Archaic Jain Māhārāştri.' So far the language of no other Prakrit text is known to share these preculiarities and Vh. remained our one and only specimen of this type. But now another specimen of Archaic Jain-Māhārāstri has come to my attention in the form of a text that is preserved as an abridgement of an old Prakrit Kathā that is no longer extant. That text is Samkhitta-Taramgavai-kahā2 (known also as Taramgalolā) ( = STv), which is an abridgement of Padalipta's lost Taramgavaīkahas prepared possibly c. 1000 A.D. There is sufficient evidence to regard this abridgement as by and large reproducing faithfully the selected verse portions of the original. Consequently we can reliably take the language of STv. as a represetative specimen of the Prakrit of the original Taramgavai.
A brief account of some remarkable characteristic of the Prakrit of STv, is given below. It gives us a very valuable glimpse into the JainMāhārāştri used in Pādalipta's lost romance. Verbal Forms 1. 1st person sing. of present indicative in cam (and of optative in -ijam).
Alsdorf has noted a few forms from the Mahānisīha and the Ayāradasão and seventeen forms from Vh.
In STv, we find about twentyfour such forms as follows : passam (261, 1400) uppekkham (748) pāsam (1492)
accham (736, 818, dhāy(v)am (1090) peccham (252, 264,
1013, 1442) suņam (1135) 876, 1252) dajjham (356,763) samaņusavam (288)
iccham (786, 1507) gaccham (1200) jiyam (501)
gaccham (1073) pekkham (1491) labbham (839,922)