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Literary References to the Rāvanahasta
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(i.e. an epic poem).? From the illustration of the Rāvanahastaka metre given by Svayambhū, it however appears that the metre was also used for the Dhruvās in the drama. The fact that a particular Apabhramśa metre is called Rāvanahatthaya presupposes possibly two things : (1) The legend of Rāvana's lifting up of Mount Kailāsa (or Aștāpada for the Jainas) and his fashioning of the peculiar chordophone. (2) AD Apabhramśa poetic composition that used for the first time to describe that episode in a metre that had 7 + 13 Mātrās in each half.
The verse-example given in the Chandonuśāsana to illustrate the Rāvanahastaka metre can be translated as follows :- ‘Taking Viņā and holding Rāvanahastaka in their hands, the gods performed the Samahasta (hand-pose in dancing) on the occasion of the ceremonial bathing of the Jina. Apparently the theme of the verse derives from the description of Rāvana'a Jina-worship referred to above.
In the Paryāya Commentary on this verse of the Chamlonusasana, the word Rāvanahatthaya is explained as follows :
रावणहस्तक: आतोद्य, यत् पुरा दशास्येनाष्टापदे जिनेन्द्राणामग्रो स्वहस्त79192929 aifea faraleg 391# () 2104 1
This means, 'Rāvnahastaka is a musical instrument, which after first plucking out sinews from his own arm, was played by Rāvana, on the Aștāpada in front of the Lords of the Jinas. It has three chords and is........(?).'
The second characterizing adjective in the original text, viz. 729* is obscure. Most probably the text here is corrupt. We are not sure if we can emend it as waa'a' ('provided with a gourd') or something similar. The date of the Paryāya commentary is unknown. The manuscript is dated 1659 V. S. i.e. 1603 A.D.
Regarding the early references to Sārangi in the Prakrit literature of the Jainas, Bor observes :8 'Apparently the Sārangi played an important role in Jain religious music during the 11th and 12th centuries, and like its modern counterpart, it was used to accompany singing. The fact that it is first mentioned in popular narra
