History of Canonical Literature of Jainas

Author(s): Hiralal R Kapadia, Nagin J Shah
Publisher: Prakrit Text Society Ahmedabad

Page 65

48
THE CANONICAL LITERATURE OF THE JAINAS
So it may be inferred that Pindanijjutti is an off-shoot of the Dasaveyāliyanijjutti and hence, in a way, that of Dasaveyāliya as it after all supplements the information given in Piņdesaņā, its fifth ajjhayaņa. Similarly Ohanijjutti, too, is an off-shoot of Āvassayanijjutti (v. 665) and somehow that of Avassaya. Consequently if these off-shoots are not separately counted but are somehow looked upon as included in the works of which they are the off-shoots, the number of the 5 Mülasuttas comes to 3.
Dr. Charpentier, Prof. Winternitz and Dr. Guérinot add to this number Pindanijjutti, and thus they consider the number of Mülasuttas as four. There are persons who, instead of looking upon Pindanijjutti as the 4th Mülasutta, consider Ohanijjutti as the 4th. This will explain why I say that there is none who considers the number of Mūlasuttas as 5. Nevertheless, apparently Prof. Schubring seems to be an exception to this rule; but I think he, too, is not keen on believing or maintaining that the traditional number of the Mülasuttas is anything else but three or four.
Just as there is a difference of opinion regarding the number of the Mülasuttas, so is the case with the orders in which they are enumerated by different scholars. They are :
(1) Uttarajjhayana, Āvassaya and Dasaveyāliya. (2) These three works in this very order with Piņdanijjutti as the 4th. (3) Uttarajjhayaņa, Dasaveyāliya, Āvassayanijjutti, Piņdanijjutti
and Ohanijjutti. (4) Uttarajjhayaņa, Āvassya, Pindanijjutti, Ohanijjutti and Dasaveyaliya.
Of these various orders, the first is mentioned by Prof. Weber and Prof. Bühler; the second by Dr. Charpentier, Prof. Winterni Dr. Guérinot; the third by Prof. Schubring;1 and the 4th by Bhāvaprabha Sūri in his com. (p. 94) on Jainadharmavarastotra.
It is very difficult to say as to which order is to be preferred in view of its being more scientific than the rest. If we were to examine this question from the stand-point of authorship, we may allot to Pindanijjutti and Ohanijjutti, the last place in the lot. Previous to them may be assigned a place to any of the remaining three Mūlasuttas, and their inter-arrangement may vary according to the stand-point we 1. See my Preface (p. XVIII) to D C GCM (Vol. XVII, pt. III).