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120
KUVALAYAMĀLĀ
to utter the value loudly by word of mouth but through a piece of cloth or a scarf on the jewels and pearls to be sold and then the buyer and seller put their hands under the cloth, both of them negotiating by means of some signs conveyed through the fingers of the hands (dinnā hattha-sannā). It is also stated that after taking other goods in exchange and before leaving the place the foreign merchant makes some charitable gifts to the local religious teachers and establishments (dinnam dāņām).
On the return journey the greedy merchant pushed his friend in the midocean and raised a false cry of his having slipped into the sea. The pious merchant after struggling for some time against the waves sank under the water and lost his life. He however became a Vyantaradeva who, in order to revenge himself against the mischief-making merchant, caused the storm leading to shipwreck. This had become a literary motif as appears from Jāyasī (1527 A.D.) describing a similar situation of a storm and ship-wreck brought about by a Rākṣasa when Ratnasena was returning from Singhala (Padmāvata, dohās 389-90, p. 68.12). A vivid description of the storm is given consisting of rushing or gathering of clouds, dashing of waves, splashing of sea-monsters, etc. As a result the ship was tossed from side to side, the masts were broken, etc. In such a plight the men on the ship uttered prayers to their respective gods of motley pantheon, e. g., reciting a stotra to Nārāyana, promising an annual sacrifice or offering to Candikā, a holy pilgrimage to Siva and prayers to Mātskas, Sūrya, Viānyaka, Skanda, Yaksa (probably Kubera), Revanta (the son of Surya), Buddha and others. Others vowed to feed Brāhmaṇas on their return. The ship was split into splinters and completely lost into vicious sea, the goods under water, and the sailors all died.
Page 69.18: A strange reference is found to the capture of the floating merchant by some people on Tārādvīpa and preparing from his blood and flesh an ingredient considered essential in making of gold. This ingredient was known as momāi in Muslim time and was highly praised by Unani physicians.
The motif of the Bhārumda bird darting from the sky and catching hold of and carrying a human victim to another place otherwise difficult of access was well-known in medieval time story-literature and occurs in the Brhatkathāslokasamgraha of Budhasvāmi, ascribed to Gupta period.
Page 71.1-8: There is a mention of four major languages, namely, Sanskrit, Prākrit, Apabhramsa and Paiśācī; and during the 8th century, vast body of Apabhramsa literature appears to have been already produced. The Paiśācī language seems to have been represented by the Brhatkathā which had survived in its original form upto the time of Uddyotanasūri. This appears to be very probable since the original Paiśācī Brhatkathā was known to Kșemendra who based his Sanskrit version on it.
Page 77.16-28; There is a reference to Madana Mahotsava on the madanatrayodas ī day in the bāhyodyāna where there was a temple at which the festival was held.
Page 80.17: There is a reference to Cāraṇa Sramana who moved alone in the air from place to place, whereas the other kind of teacher was gacchapariggahi who took his whole Gaccha or Gana with him while on the move. In
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