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LECTURE IX
113
the same. The shadow problems, primitive cases of trigonometry and gnomonics, suggest a similarity among these three great writers, and yet those of Mahāvīrācārya are much better than the one to be found in either Brahmagupta or Bhaskara, and no questions are duplıcated "28 And we quote again "His labours have revealed to the world a writer almost unknown to European scholars, and a work that is in many respects the most scholarly of any to be found in Indian mathematical literature "29
30
In connection with Jaina contributions to grammar, we mus! mention the name of Hemacandra, the great Jaina scholar of the eleventh century who on account of his vast erudition and versatile genius enjoyed the patrange of Siddharāja at whose request he composed his famous treatise on gramman known "Siddha Hemacandra" which was extensively circulated all over India and beyond Over and above, Hemacandra also wrote a commentary on his own grammar He also composed Abhidhānacıntāmanı and Anekārthasamgraha and other innumerable works of great merit 31 Hemacandra was greatly influenced by his Hindu predecessors in his writings on grammar, metri s and poetics but he also added original element of his own His SiddhaHemacandra is clearly an imitation of Panini's grammar but his chapters on Piakrit dialects are really original contributions He wrote his secular works during the reign of Siddharāja and his religious works in the reign of Kumārapala,32 of Guzerat, his patron
(5) History
The Jaina wiiters wrote extensively on history, and their notable contributions being Prabandhas on diverse topics and Merutanga Acārya's Prabandhacıntămanı gives us valuable information regarding the social, political, economical and educational conditions of his time Forbes largely derived his source materials from this work for his Rasamala The Jainas occasionally interferred in politics The great author Hemacandia to whom we have already referred was, besides being many things, something also of a politician Kalāka Sūri, a Jaina
28 Mahāvīrācārya, Op Cit p xx
29 Ibid, p
V
30
Dr G Buhler, Life of Hemacandra, pp 15-16
31. Heniacandra, Kumārapālacarita, pp xxiv-XXV edited by Dhruva.
