Doha Giti Kosa

Author(s): Sarahpad, Dalsukh Malvania, H C Bhayani
Publisher: Prakrit Text Society Ahmedabad

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Mss. of Dk. now available to us are some three centuries later than the date of the composition of the work. Hence, as usual, the original language has been modernized and textual additions, omissions and alterations have taken place at the hands of the scribes during the written transmission. The verses, moreover, being of a religious character and regarded sacred, were memorized. Their recitation and performance as songs in oral transmission over centuries gave wide scope for verbal alterations. The text of Dk. as preseved in the availabe MSS. (or indirectly in the old Tibetan translation) is quite evidently highly corrupt as regards consistency and uniformity in spelling and grammar. Violations of metre abound. Interpolations and omissions of syllables and words also are numerous. The character of verses too, as being without a strong contextual or thematic linkage and capable of functioning as self-standing units, ran against preserving the original sequence. Under such confusing circumstances any attempt at restoring even in some measure the original text could be considerably speculative and tentative.
There are many differences between the three textual versions of Dk. that is preserved in the Tibetan translation, in Bagachi's edition and Sankrityayana's edition.
In Munidatta's Sankrit Commentary on the Carya-giti-kośa, there are several citations given under the name of Saraha, some of which can be identified from Saraha's Dohāgitikośa. In the case of a few of these only the beginning portion of the verses is given, but those on p.93,102,161 and 243 are complete verses corresponding to no. 16-17 (partly 32), 49, 58 and 115 respectively in Sankrityayana's edition. Of these the text of the second citation (M. p. 102, RDk. No.49) is almost identical in both. But there is considerable difference between the texts of the rest as found in M. and RDk. Below I give the text of these verses. 1. करुण-रहिअ ज्जो सुण्णहि लग्गा । णउ सो पावइ उत्तिम मग्गा ॥
अहवा करुणा केवल साहअ । सो जंमन्तरें मोक्ख ण पावअ ॥ जइ पुणु वेण्णिवि जोडण' साकअ णउ भव जउ णउ णिव्वाणे थाक्कअ॥
(RDk. v. 166-17)