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VI] THE CANONICAL EXEGETICAL LITERATURE
187 Bhāsa is styled as Gāhā, too, since it is composed in gathās in Prākṣta. This is what we learn from the Vyākhyā of Visehacunni of nisīha (XX). There its author Sricandra Sūri, pupil of Silabhadra has made the following observation
“जे गाहेत्यादि । 'गाथा'शब्देन भाष्यं गाथानिबद्धत्वादभिधीयते ।" Just as we have not got Nijjuttis for all the canonical texts, similarly there are not Bhāsas for every Nijjutti' –much less for every Agama. It seems that Bhāsas were composed in the case of at least the following 11 Agamas:
(1) Avassaya, (2) Dasaveyāliya, (3) Uttarajjhayana, (4) Kappa, (5) Pañcakappa?, (6) Vavahāra, (7) Nisīha, (8) Pañcamangalasuyakkhandha, (9) Jiyakappa, (10) Ohanijjutti and (11) Pindanijjutti.
For Avassaya, there are three Bhāsas, one of which is known as Mulabhāsa. The others are known as Bhāsas and Visesão. There are about 183 verses in Mulabhāsa, about 350 in Bhāsa and about 4314 in Visesão.
Visesā - This is Sāmāżyabhāsāó i. e. to say a Bhāsa on the Nijjutti of Avassaya (I). Not only are some of the verses of this Nijjutti incorporated in it?; but, even some of the gāthās of two earlier Bhāsas on this Nijjutti, too, are assigned a place herein. This work is named as Visesão in order to distinguish it from this Bhāsa ard that, too, probably by some commentator other than
1 For instance there seem to be no Bhāsas pertaining to the Nijjut tis on
Ayāra, Süyagada, Sūriyapannatti, Dasāsuyakkhandha and Isibhāsiya. 2 I have included Pancakappa in this list, as I think that it is after all &
Nijjutti on a portion of Kappa. Herein there is a reference to Kālika Sūri's
going to an Ajivaka for studying the aştānga-nimitta. 3 The Bhāsa on this is extant. See p. 80, fn. 4.
4-5 See the edition (pp. 573 and 591) of Visesa with Gujarāti translation. 6 of. "Parupatorie HE ATAETIA HOT I
Et qfFf4 GT Tutte ll **8711" Visesa 7 For a list of these verses see Av. Lit. (pp. 35-86).
