Mahapurana of Puspdanta

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

Page 62

ROLE OF DEŠYA ELEMENT
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Items that have correspondents only in late Sk. lexicons and similar sources] and examine the Deśya words strictly so-called (Onomatopoetics, Foreign loan-words of Dravidian origin and words of Persian origin and the rest -Pure Dest words) the following facts emerge:
1. In all there are 710 words or items. Even if we make allowance for some difference of opinion about considering any particular item as Deśya or ctherwise and also for the greater extent of the area of extraction it will be readily admitted that our number compares fairly well the numebr given by Jacobi in Bhavisayatta kahā (10th cent.A.D.)? 2. Out of these 710 words 134 are Onomatopoetic and 45 (41+4) are
early identifiable (Foreign loaps, words of Dravidian or Fersian origin). 3. 331 are found in Hemacandia (Siddhabema & Deśivāmamālā). 4. Among the Dravidian 27 are recorded by Herracandra while 14 are not recorded by him.
5. 144 are not recorded in PSM. 6. For 45 words we have not been able to give any parallel from other Pk. and Ap. texts.
7. We find 340 words inherited in some form or other by N.I.A. while for 370 words no correspondents could be cited from N.I.A. languages like Hindi, Gujarāti, Majāthi or Konkani. Looking to the extent of the work and the number of Deśya elements used or employed in it we find ourselves in agreement with wbat Jacobi bas observed regarding the composition of the vocabulary of Bb: "...... We can say and demonstrate by a casual glance over the glossary of words that more than pine-tepth of the vocables of literary Ap. agiee with those of the literary Pk, and the sanie are presumably borrowed from the latter." (Jacobi, Introduction to Bh. S 2) Taking this fact into consideration and contrasting it with the far larger percentage of words of nor-sapskritic origin in NIA languages, we can conclude that literary Ap. made use of Desya words to a limited degree as compared to the contemporary spoken dialects. Secondly, though the vocabulary of literary Ap. hed by the time of 9th Cent. acquired a con silerably conventional pattern and pronounced standardisation, there was always some scope left for regional influences. Only this fact would account for the extra Dravidian element in Paspadanta, who, as is well known, carried on his literary activity in a Kannada-speaking territory. 3
1. Bh, has 357 Kadavakas (22 Sandhis) while MP, has 20,000 Kadavakas (102 Sandhis). 2. Gune, Intro, to Bh. p.3. But according to Gopani, the date of Bhavisayattakahā is later
than Nānapancamikaha. Premiji thought there is dearth of Kannada and Dravidian words in Puspadanta's works
(Jain Sabitya aur Itihas, p. 227). But obviously his was a casual impression, not based on any close study of the point,