Agam 39 Chhed 06 Mahanishith Sutra

Author(s): Punyavijay, Rupendrakumar Pagariya, Dalsukh Malvania, H C Bhayani
Publisher: Prakrit Granth Parishad

Page 71

MAHĀNISIHA STUDIES AND EDITION IN GERMANY
(1)
Now who
Deleu, pp.136-7
Now whereas the Tirthamkaras who possess infinite knowledge and belief have expounded this explanation of the Great Text of Pancamangala in a great commentary, with (an) infini- (number of] sentences and paragraphs, and in Niryuktis, Bhäşyas and Cūrnis 'ndependent from the sacred text (itself), it here had to be expounded in brief. Now one day, owing to the wane of time, these Niryuktis, Bhäșyas and Cūrņis disappeared. Thereupon, as time went by, the saint) named Vajrasvāmin appeared, who knew the traditional lore of the twelve Angas, who had magic forces (and) the gift for combination. He [it was who) inserted an extract of the Great Text of Pancamangala in the original text (of the Mahānisiha). As to (its) wording the original text has been enunciated by the Chief Disciples (ganadhara), as to its) inner sense by the Arhat, the venerable Dharmatirthamkara (and) Master of the Three Worlds, the great Jina (Mahā]vira. This is the old tradition. Add to this that wherever a paragraph of the text lacks exact coherence, the Doctors should not put the blame on it that it has been badly written, but (one must consider that] many leaves of the original copy of the inconceivable wishing-stone-like Great Text of the Mahānisiha that was (available)
had partly gone to pieces owing to white ants and other causes. (9) Yet, esteeming this Book Mahānisiha (to) rank exceedingly high for (its) very
important subject-matter, (to be indeed) the most essential, most true (and) most
important part of the whole lore, (10) the acārya Haribhadra, out of love for the lore (and) in order to help many
beings receptive [to salvation as well as for his own benefit, wrote down what he
had seen in that (original) copy, putting everything in order at his discretion. (11) This (text) has also been highly esteemed by the other chief Doctors of the
epoch, all the Rishis Siddhasena Divākara, Vrddhavādin, Yakşasena, Devagupta,
Yasovardhana (who was Devarddhi Gani-]Kşamāśramana's pupil Raviguptas, : Nemicandra, Jinadāsa Gani-Kşamakas etc.
55 I would rather prefer to translato: "Ravigupta, the pupil of Yašovardhana kşamāśramaņa", thus dropping the brackets inserted by Delcu.
56 This is surely a reference to the famous Jinadāsa gani kşamāśramana, the author of the Nisithubhūsyavišeşacūmi and other works.