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PREFACE
When in 1934 the original edition of this book, "Die Lehre der Jainas, nach den alten Quellen dargestellt" (Grundriss der indo-arischen Philologie und Altertumskunde Vol. III No. 7), had been published, there were voices from India regretting that the book had not been written in English and demanding for a translation. Of the various projects regarding such a version none has been effected until the matter was taken up by the reputed publishers whose names appear on the title-page of this English book. The present writer is highly indebted to the able translator, Herr Wolfgang Beurlen, with whom to collaborate was a pleasure at all stages of the difficult task.
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In harmony with the character of the "Grundriss" certain limits had to be respected. Often outlines and references had to suffice, though, especially in the first chapters, the description thus came near to a sketch. The author consciously neglected the treatment of other religious and philosophical systems and historical facts of Old as well as of Mediaeval and New India in order not only to avoid an excessive extent of the book, but also, eventually, to give the old sources, i. e. the Svetambara Canon, their due, but not neglecting Digambara writers. It need not be said that it was impossible to render all details themselves or even to register all references to the same. Hence the reader must be warned against taking this book for a bibliography or an encyclopedia. The names of the Jain authors and Jain works can but serve to indicate the untiring zeal of scholars and the grand liberality of donators in favour of their noble religion. That the bibliographical survey of the first edition has been altogether dropped secms to be excusable, since the conditions of the present epoch did not allow of bringing forward a survey of all that in the mean time had been printed and published on the field of Jainism in India.
