Nirgrantha-1

Author(s): M A Dhaky, Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: Shardaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre

Page 26

Vol. 1-1995
Editing of Ancient....
i. e. the Mahārāstri Prakrit, whereas the MSS. J and T preserve older forms and so the earlier stage of the Prakrit language and the MS. J preserves still earlier stage (i. e. older spellings of the words). 9. The language of the editions H and K had been regarded as the genuine language of the author until the palm-leaf MSS. J and Sam were discovered (i. e. the language having medial consonants generally dropped). Further non-dropping of medial - t- cannot be admitted as t- śruti because it is preserved in the MS-J also and, therefore, it constitutes a feature of the original language of the author. The way the language underwent change at the hands of copyists and teacher-reciters can be discerned from the editions H and K which are highly influenced by popular language as well as by the rules of later Prakrit grammarians. Hence the principle of editing ancient Ardhamāgadhi texts needs wholesale modification, namely adopting older words and forms from the available source-material, discarding the younger words and forms, and thus being faithful and closer to the original language. The comparative table of phonological variants in different editions and MSS. of VABh is appended as the sequel. (See phonological analysis of VABh Table for serial No. 8)
Notes and References :
1. L. D. Series 10, ed. Dalsukhbhai D. Malvania, Ahmedabad 1966. 2. L. D. Series 45, ed. W. Schubring, Ahmedabad 1974. 3. The MS. San. having auto-commentary is dated A. D. 1434, vide VABH, part I, Preface,
L. D. Institute of Indology, Ahmedabad 1996, p.4. 4. Palm-leaf MS. from Jaisalmer, datable to c. A. D. 950, vide ibid., p. 1. 5. Ibid., pp. 1, 3, 4. 6. Ibid., p. 1. 7. M. A. Mehendale, Historical Grammar of Inscriptional Prakrit, Deccan college, Poona 1948,
Pp. 326-7. 8. This change is higher in the North and North-West and lower in other regions. 9. D. C. Sircar, Select Inscriptions, Vol. 1, No. 32-34, (total instances 89; dropping 27, and
voicing 13, unvoicing 2 and retention 47). 10. Mehendale, Historical., p. 276. 11. L. D. Series No. 45, Ed. W. Schubring (of the original German edition), Ahmedabad 1974. 12. On the basis of the first chapter. 13. Ayaranga-suttam, Jaina-Agama-Series 2, Bombay 1977. 14. Some of them (i. e. the older forms) have been given in the footnotes of the text by
the editor.
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