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92 Harmless Souls extensively reviewed by Upadhye in his introduction to the Pravacanasāra.2 Here I shall confine myself to a brief summary of Upadhye's main arguments, and then offer some criticisms.
Upadhye remarks that Pūjyapāda, the earliest Digambara commentator on the Tattvārtha Sūtra, quotes (at Sarvārthasiddhi 2:10) five gāthās which are found in the same order in the Bārasa-Aņuvekkhā (25-19), a work ascribed to Kundakunda. Pūjyapāda, however, 'does not say as to from what source he is quoting'.3 Nevertheless, Upadhye thinks that their context and serial order indicate the genuineness of these quotations, i.e. Pūjyapāda is quoting from Kundakunda. If this is so then it would set a later limit to the age of Kundakunda since, according to Upadhye, Pūjyapāda lived earlier than the last quarter of the fifth century C.E.4 Upadhye then reduces this upper limit by reference to the Merkara (Mercara) copper plates of śaka 388 (466 C.E.) which mention a Kundakundānvaya, giving the names of at least six ācāryas of that lineage.5 This 'indicates that Kundakunda will have to be put at least a century, if not more, earlier than the date of the copperplates' (i.e. c.350 C.E.).6 Upadhye then assumes that the lineage of a saint does not begin immediately after his death, and so takes the date back a further 100 years. Thus his later limit is now c.250 C.E. He concludes, however, 'I am inclined to believe, after this long survey of the available material, that Kundakunda's age lies at the beginning of the Christian era' (his italics).8 In other words, he reverts to the traditional dating, albeit for
2 Ibid. pp. x-xxiv. 3 Ibid. p. xxi.
4 Bronkhorst p. 161, says that he lived 'not long after 455 A.D.'; see above, p. 46.
5See Upadhye pp. xix - xxii, where he refers to Epigraphia Carnatica I, Coorg Inscriptions No. 1., B.L. Rice, Madras, 1914.
6 Upadhye p. xix. 7 Ibid. p. xxii. 8 Ibid.
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