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104
RTAM
J. Bloch tries to get over the above difficulty and bring out the difference between the low and the high persons by translating the particle kho as 'above all, chiefly'. His translation of the last section runs as "Mais c'est difficile surtout aux grandes" (Les Inscriptipn d'Asoka p. 119).
But it is possible to seek the distinction between the low and the high persons without taking any liberty with the text. We should divide the line differently into two sections as follows:
E
dukaram tu kho etam chudakena va janena usatena va /
F
añatra agena parākramena savaṁ paricajitpă eta tu kho usatena dukaram /
This will mean that accomplishment of merit is difficult for both the classes of people. But the highly placed ones will be required to put in extra effort and abandon every other aim in case they wish to attain merit. Abandoning every other aim seems to go better only with the highly placed persons.
The word order in the Dh. and the Jaug. versions is somewhat different. There we have to divide the text as follows:
E
[dukale ........ anata agena palākamena savam] ca palitijitu khudakena vă usatena vā /
F usatena cu dukalatale /
It is now obvious that the division of the text into two sections as done by Hultzsch for the Girnar and the other versions was influenced by the text in the Dh. and the Jaug. versions. According to these versions, both the classes of men are required to make extra effort and abandon every other aim in pursuit of merit. But section 'F' makes a distinction between the two classes by pointing out that this aim is more difficult (dukalatala) for the high persons.
It is worth noting that although the Yerra. version in general agrees with the Dh. and the Jaug. versions, in this instance it disagrees with them and agrees with the Girnar and the other versions in placing khudakena va vagenä usafenat va before, and not after, amnata agena palākamenă sayam palitijitu. This suggests that the Girnar and the other versions faithfully represent the word order of the original text as it was issued from the
Madhu Vidya/308
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