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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[DECEMBER, 1898.
His literary activity beonine still more extensive and fruitful, when, in 1881, after leaving the Indian Civil Service, he took the chair of Sanskrit in the University of Vienna. Partly through his iastruction, by which he trained a number of younger scholars, still inore by his numerous publicatione an l his extensive connections both in the East and in the West he became more and more the centre and the chief promoter of Indological studies in Europe - a fact which came out clearly enough at the Congress of Orientalis's held in Vienna in 1880. With itiring and never failing courtesy and with an unselfishness that was truly surprising, he placed the vast stores of his experiences and studies, as well as the rich treasures of his MSS. at the dis; osal of his fellow students, and by his numerous connections with the leading authorities in India he was able to procure for European and American scholars anything they might want for their work, if it could at all be had from Indis.
To meation even only the most important of Bühler's larger works or of his numerous articles in differeat journals both of Europe and India, wond of course be impossible here. Of his books, I will only mention that he translated for Max Müller's Sacred Looks of the East fire of the most important law-books, amongst them that of Manu - this alone a volume of 760 pages, including .nportant introduction and notes. Of his smaller essays also I will mention only one. In his book
India, what can it teach us? (London, 1883) Max Müller had expressed the startling view that the whole of the Indian literature, as far as it is not Vedic or Buddhistic, was written in the time after the Turanian (Indo-Seythian) invasion of India, i. e.. after the second century of the Christian era. The Vela, he declarel, was evidently a wreck saved from a general shipwreck ; everything else that has come down to us - epic literature, law-books, works on grammar, poetry - was merely a late reflorescence of a new life sprung up under more favourable circumstances : it was renaissance litrature. This hypothesis, of course, created a great sensation and called forth lively discussions. Mos: scholars Josed or doub.el this theory without however considering the great uncertainties prevailing in all questions of Indian chronology) being able to refute it entirely, others were led away by Max Müller's fascinating arguneatation, until Bübler took up the discussion with his splendid and methodical essay on the Indian inscriptions and the nge of the Indian Kavya literature (Sitzungsberichte der Wiener Akademie, 1890, Vol. 122). Starting from sonde recently discovered inscriptions, e'ghteen of wbich bear perfectly certain dates which are fully discussoul by Bühler, he refu'es in this essay Max Müller's arguments one by one, and establishes besides a number of secure dates.
Again in the discussion which has lately been revivel and has excitel such great interest, as to the age of the Veda, Bühler has taken the most sober and moderate view of the question.
About six years ago Bühler conceived the plan of editing an Encyclopedia of Indo-Aryan Research on a grand scale - a work which was, as it were, to crown his life-long efforts for the general development of Indology. Within a very short time he succeeded in securing the co-operation of about thirty scholars from different parts of the world - from America, India, England and the continent of Europe. With youthful zeal he set to work himself, and twice the Austrian Government granted him a year's leave of absence for the purpose of devoting himself entirely to bis work in connection with the Encyclopedia. Besides the Palaography, published in 1896, he intended to treat of the Antiquities, Geography and History. Especially in the last mentioned part he hoped to Le able to bring out new and unexpected results. Only a short time ago he explained to me with his cheerful enthusiasm, how he wasigoing once for all to refute the general talk about the Hindus lacking the historical sense - and now all at once this terrible blow, this sudden and cruel destruction of all hopes and schemes! And what might we not bave expected from a man so full of vigour and energy! His capacity, his love of work and his power of work seemed simply unlimited and now! It is true, we may hope that at least the Encyclopedia (to say nothing of his other schemes) is so firmly es ablished that it can safely be carried out to the end. But the parts which he was to work out bimself will never be accomplished by any one, as he would have done it. If there ever was a man," writes the Nestor of German Sanskritists, Professor Albrecht Weber in Berlin, “whose loss can be callel irreparable, it is Georg Bühler.” Of him it may be truly said: "He has lived for all ages"!
