Jain Journal 1992 04

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

Page 9

198
Years before my visit, I had known of its existence from my own Guru, who was equally anxious with myself to place the fact beyond doubt, and on the very day of our arrival, he hastened to 'worship the Bindar'. The council was convened, before whom my Yuti produced his Patravali, tracing his descent from Hemacharya himself, which acted like a spell, and he was invited to descend and worship the treasures of ages. The catalogue forms a large volume, and I should fear to hazard my own veracity, or that of my Guru by giving his estimate, from its contents, of the number of books which filled these chambers. They are carefully packed in cases, filled up with the dust of the Mugd, or Caggarwood, an infallible preservative against insects. The old man returned to me in raptures at what he had seen. But there was a want of correspondence between the catalogue and the contents of the boxes, forty of which he examined in seeking for two works named therein. The excessive closeness of the subterrene atmosphere compelled him to desist from the search, which he did the more readily, as he was promised permission to copy any work he desired."
JAIN JOURNAL
How remarkable that in 1839, the very year in the west that Sir Anthony Panizzi published the first set of cataloging rules for the library of the British Museum, which led to the establishment of standardized principles for the organization of libraries, in Patan the Hemacandra Bhaṇḍār amply demonstrated to Col. Tod that it too had evolved into a library. The library had a catalog, although we must be cautious as to what bibliographic information appeared in the entries for Tod's Guru did have difficulties finding two works noted in it. The library also had a well-defined administrative structure, rules regarding use, procedures to preserve and care for the manuscripts, and, alas, probably crowded conditions since the Guru reported "excessive closeness".
Unfortunately Tod gives no indication in his account that he actually entered the library for he based his description upon the statements of his Guru. Such a pity we do not learn from Tod if he was refused admission to the library or if he failed to see it for some other reason. Tod, however, clearly recognized the great importance of this library to understanding Jain culture and civilization. His closing remarks urged others to continue his discovery but "extreme caution and
2 James Tod, Travels in Western India: Embracing a Visit to the Sacred Mounts of the Jains and the most Celebrated Shrines of Hindu Faith between Rajputana and the Indus, with an Account of the Ancient City of Nehrwalla. London: W. H. Allen, 1839, pp. 233-4.