Jain Journal 1968 04

Author(s): Jain Bhawan Publication
Publisher: Jain Bhawan Publication

Page 25

APRIL, 1968
TRISSION O
From Tatile nearby knon, the godecome all the way what he
capacity of retaining a hundred thousand padas in mind; so he took permission of his guru to propitiate the goddess living in Kasmira-kāsmtra. desaväsint From Tamralıptı, i.e., Cambay he started and put up for the aught in a Jaina temple nearby known as Sri Raivatavatara. At midnight as he was sitting in meditation, the goddess Brahmi appeared to hm and asked him not to take the trouble of going all the way to K28mira, as she bemag satisfied with his devotion, would grant him what he desired. After spending the night in her praises, in the morning Somacandra returned to his upātraya--place of residence Thus Soma became a Siddha (Sarasvata) without any trouble" (vs 37-46) Then Soma was made a Surt (vs 48-59)
Jinamandana in his Kumārapāla-prabandha describes a similar event with more mystifying details
Devacandra, the guru of Hemacandra, was no doubt a learned man But the question is whether he alone could have taught the various branches of learning whose mastery Hemacandra reveals in his works Stambhatirtha or Cambay, where Hemacandra appears to have passed his early years, was no doubt, then an important port of India and must have ample facilities for acquiring learning But it is nowhere referred to as a centre of learning in the way Anahıllapura is It is likely that Somacandra might have studied for some time in Anahillapura, but we have no information to that effect
The reference to kāšmiravāsint goddess, seems to me to be of some significance Somacandra, no doubt, wanted to go to Kasmira for further study We know from Bilhana, what a great centre of learning Kasmira was in those days But as the journey to Kasmira was, in those days, full of danger, the young scholar was advised not to go there The appearance of the kalmiravāsını goddess may be interpreted as suggesting that Hemacandra had something to do with Kasmira in matters of study
We know from Bilhana's sojourn in Anahıllapura that Pandits from that land of Sarada-as Kasmira was called--used to come to Gujarat. In the assembly of Jayasimha was a Pandit named Utsaha who was a great grammarian and whose learning was even famous in Kasmira It was thus Utsaha who was sent again by the Kasmira Pandits with the
The fact that one of the earliest coramentaries of Mammata's Kayyaprakasa, viz., the Samketa of Manikyacandra was composed to Gujarat confirms the fact that there was intimate contact between Gujarat and Kasmira in matters of loarning