Book Title: Jain Shwetambar Conference Herald 1915 Book 11 Jain Itihas Sahitya Ank
Author(s): Mohanlal Dalichand Desai
Publisher: Jain Shwetambar Conference
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274 J
Shri Jain Conference Herald.
dark; while the traditional date of Haribhadra's death is corroborated by subsequent authors closely near him in time and well in a position to speak authoritatively in such matters.
The epithets Purvakavi and Parmarthgnanin &c. used by Shantyacharya and others are explained away by you with one stroke of pen by declaring them as legendary. Legends are likely to arise in a oriental country, but under these cir cumstances the interval between Shantyacharya and Haribhadra will be so small that it would be simply a feat of ima gination and an effort to reconcile unreconcilables only. 50 years is such a small period that eyewitnesses also might be living. Besides you ought to consider the place where these words are used. In the matter of discussions his name and quotation is given as an authority. If there is ony weekness in the opponent's argument it is sure to be exposed. Hence we must come to an inevitable conclusion that the date of his death can be brought down to the 9th century. This part of my argument is so carefully prepared that I hope you will please once consider it exactly from the above standpoint. सिद्धसेन is a commentator of उमास्वाति's तत्वार्थाधिगम and so also Haribhadra. you confound this सिद्धसेन with सिद्धसेन दिवाकर the well known author of संमतितर्क - This सिद्धसेन has copied from what Haribhadra the commentator of a and a contemporary of Yoshobhadra said in his commentary on ; but I do not understand how it goes against my rule. Had they been contemporaries they generally would not have copied each other. This is the only maxim which I tried to lay down generally for all the ancient authors. I never meant to say that because an author writes on a subject and does not mention the name of the author who previously has written on the same subject, both are to be regarded as contemporaries. This I never said. My meaning is that generally not only they did not mention each other, but they never copied from each other. Quotations from and in these two commentaries, on the contrary streng thens my position. It clearly shows that they are not contemporaries, This was the only relation I tried to establish between Devardhigani and Haribhadra.
