Mahapurana of Puspdanta

Author(s): Ratna N Shriyan
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 16

DESCRIPTION OF THE BASIC SOURCES
(iii) Variants and Gloss in Vaidya's edition of MP. In all the three volumes, the bottom portion of the printed text is divided into two parts. The first part, separated from the text by a wavy line gives the variants found in different Mss. or recorded in the margin of Mss. and also in the Tippana of Prabhacandra. The second part, separated from the first part by a double line, gives a short gloss in Sanskrit on the constituted text. The editor has culled the gloss from old marginal notes found in the Mss. that he has used and also from the Tippana of Prabhacandra (1023 A. D.) and Pañjikā of an unknown author. Extracts from Prabhācandra's Tippana, where they are extensive are given in the notes at the end."
(iv) Alsdorf's edition of MP. (81-92 Sandhis): A portion of the MP. containing Sandhis 81-92 and dealing with the narrative of Harivaṁśa has been edited and published by Ludwig Alsdorf of Hamburg University, Germany, in Roman characters under the title "Harivamsapurāņa, ein Abschnitt ous der Apabhramsa-welt-historie "Mahapuraṇa Tisaṭṭhima. hapurisaguṇālamkara" von Puspadanta" in 1936.
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Alsdorf's edition is based upon three Mss. which he designates as A, B and C. They correspond to B, P and S respectively of Vaidya's edition. Alsdorf gives the variants and the gloss at the bottom of the text in the manner of Vaidya.
Alsdorf has reproduced some of the glosses which Vaidya has exclu. ded. According to Alsdorf there are primarily two recensions of Mss. A and BC and secondarily two versions B and C. He further states that in many cases A Ms. has more correct and older readings than B and C. So he has taken as his basis A manuscript which corresponds to Vaidya's B Ms. But Vaidya has basically relied on K Ms. in constituting the text. Hence there is some difference in the text of MP. (81-92 Sandhis) according to Vaidya and according to Alsdorf.
In the Introduction to his edition Alsdorf gives an account of the poet, Puspadanta and his patron (pp. 1-10), description of Harivamsapu. rana (pp. 11-12), description of the Mss. (pp. 122-129), relationship of the Mss. (pp. 131-133), attempt for a text history (pp. 129-134), account of old gloss-works on the MP. (pp. 129-131), basis of the edition, attempt at a genealogical tree of the Mss. (pp. 133), detailed study of grammar of the text (pp. 134-140), orthography (p. 140) and metre (pp. 183-190).
Alsdorf also gives a translation of the edited text portion in German. In the end he gives a glossary which includes desi words and a catalogue of Proper Names (pp. 490-502).
1. MP. vol. III, Introduction, p. XXIII.
2. See MP. volume I, Introduction, p. XXXV.
3. See Harivamsapurāṇa, Alsdorf, L., Introduction, pp. 133-134,