Jinamanjari 1996 09 No 14

Author(s): Jinamanjari
Publisher: Canada Bramhi Jain Society Publication

Page 53

from all water, refusing cold water. They say that cold water contains (the consciousness of a) living being(s) and therefore one does not use it. Curiously enough the following three times sabba vāri is explained differently, "sabba vāri yuto" means, being intent (yutto) upon warding off (vāra) all evil". Vāri being explained as vāra, the "warding off the inflow of all evil karmic matter" is a familiar expression in Jain literature. Western Pali dictionaries, the Abhidhānappadipikā, the Saddunīti, and the Pūli-Burmese Dictionary (the Tipitaka Pālimrunmā Abhidhān) present only "water" as the translation for vāri. Why would Buddhaghosa have given two meanings for the same word in the same passage? The Papañcasūdunī, the commentary on the Majjhimanikāya, repeats the same explanation of the Sumungalāsni: "One should not use cold water as there are living creatures in it," after which is added, "or (athavā), sabba vāri vārito means having all evil warded off by warding off all evil (subbenu pāpa vāraṇena vārila pāpo)." The second explanation in both texts agrees with its meaning in a Jain context. As vāri only means "water" in Pali, we can assume that Buddhaghosa properly knew the Jain meaning of the word. If he had read vāraṇa in sabba vāri vārito, this would have meant that Nigantha, "was restrained -- warding off all (evil)," and this is hardly fit for a passage which aims at extolling Buddhism and refuting other religions. The precepts of early Buddhism and Jainism were extremely similar, and giving descriptions of them must have been a delicate matter, especially in parts containing common religious idioms like samvara. I would like to add, that among many scholars, only L. Renou has consistently interpreted vāri as vāruņu: "...le Nigantha s'abstient de toutes choses en les écartant."
2.6 From Jaina text, Sūyagadanga 1.6.28., I will now give some examples of the use of vāri (ya), and comparable words
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