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THE CANONICAL LITERATURE OF THE JAINAS
All these factors go against Parisistaparvan. But then there arises a question as to on what basis Hemacandra Sūri gave the episode in Parisistaparavan. Was it a tradition that he narrated or had he any specific work to rely upon ? Leaving this question for future investigation, I may note the following points :
(i) The 1st ajjhayaņa opens with the well-known sentence "PA आउसं भगवया एवमक्खायं"1 and all its uddesas as well as those of the rest of the 1st suyakkhandha and some of the 2nd, too, end with "fa f".
(ii) So far as I know it is not specifically mentioned as to who separated Nistha from Ayara. Even the reason of doing so is not stated. So I may suggest that the idea of teaching only the deserving may have been the cause of separating Nistha from Ayāra. To be explicit, as already noted on p. 87 the nuns were debarred from studying Nistha, a sātisaya work; but they were permitted to study Ayāra. So, from the days the above-mentioned restriction came into force, Nisīha must have got separated from Ayara.
(iii) Ayāra (II, 1, 10, 6)2 has been once a matter of great controversy between the Jainas and the late Prof. Jacobi. The latter translated the words 4 and hoes by meat and fish and thereby suggested that the Jaina ascetics in olden days accepted these articles of food. He, however, expressed his revised opinion in his letter dated 14-2-28. There he has said that “बहुअट्ठियेण मंसेण वा मच्छेण वा बहुकण्टएण' has been used in the metaphorical sense as can be seen from the illustration of Trafie chord given by Patañjali in discussing a Vārtika ad Panini (III, 3, 94 and 1 This furnishes us with an example of a gama, and as such it is interpreted in
8 ways by Malayagiri Suri in his com. (p. 212a) on Nandi while illustrating a gama from the stand-point of abhidheya (artha), the other view-point being abhidhāna. “से भिक्खू वा जाव समाणे सिया णं परो बहुअट्ठिएणं मंसेण वा बहुकंटएण मच्छेण वा उवनिमंतिजा-आउसंतो समणा ! अभिकंखसि बहुअट्ठियं मंसं बहुकंटयं मच्छं वा पङिगाहित्तए ? एयप्पगारं निग्घोसं सोचा निसम्म से पुव्वामेव आलोइज्जा—आउसो त्ति वा २ नो खलु मे कप्पइ बहु० पडिगा०, अभिकंखसि मे दाउं जावइयं पुग्णलं दलयाहि ।" .
(s. 281) 3 This original letter is in my possession and has been printed in my article
Prohibition of Flesh-eating in Jainism published in "The Review of Philosophy and Religion". (vol. IV, No.2) The pertinent lines are: arriereff FRIE EXCEL HUECOME fa hata chala Ya Jaciary pichlaucahrrafa geftaif" This passage is repeated ad verbatim in the Mahābhāsya ad IV, 1, 92.
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