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10
that it could be easily taken as H and hence Hemacandra noted both the alternative spellings.
A few words more regarding the presentation of the text. Even though all the lines have been metrically checked, the short e, o and the nasalization have not been separately marked in print, as they can be easily inade out by anyone with an ear for the metre. The anusvāra has been kept as it is, following the Mss. It has not been here changed to para-savarna nasals. The punctuation marks also are limited to the minimum. Variants noted without any siglum are from Ms. a.
Excepting a few sections and passages in Prakrit language and the Gatha metre, the whole of the Neminähacariya is composed in Apabhraṁsa language and mostly in the Radda metre. Haribhadrasūri has used the Radda as a Pañcapadı or five-lined metre, as against the usual practice, which knows it as a nine-lined metre consisting of five padas of the Mātrā and four padas of the Doha. Haribhadra treats as single units the usual (1) second and third padas and (2) the fourth and fifth padas of the Matra, and (3) the first and second pādas and (4) third and fourth padas of the Doha. Thus in his practice the Mātrā section of the Radda has three lines (15, 11(or 12)+15, 11(or 12)+15) and the Dobā section has two lines (13411, 13+11). But in the edited text the lines of the Radda are so arranged as to conform to the nine-line view. This liberty, we hope, will be excused because of the greater fecility created thereby for noting variants. It should be also noted that such an arrangement makes the metrical structure more patent, without doing any palpable harm to the original intent.
This first volume of the Neminahacariya covers the story of the first eight Bhavas of the life of Neminātha. The rest of the text covering the ninth Bhava will form the second volume. The general introduction, dealing with such topics as the life and works of Haribhadra, the language, metre and literary form of the text of the narrative and a glossary of important words of the text, would form an additional volume.
We are grateful to several friends and well-wishers for their generous help and co-operation in our present undertaking. Muni Maharaj Shri Punyavijayaji and Prof. Dalsukh Malvania have put us under great debt by giving us whatever help we required in either securing the Mss. materials or making arrangement for the publication. Muni Jinavijayaji's highly inspiring example and blessings have been for us always a source of unfailing guidance. We are thankful to the Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Institute of Indology for undertaking to publish the present edition of the Neminahacariya.
Ahmedabad
H. C. Bhayani M. C. Modi
August 15, 1970
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