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The Sacred Books of the Jainas
excellent ) Māna is Pramāna ( i. e. the omniscient Arhat) from whom right knowledge can be obtained (Arthasamsiddhih) and from his Abhāsa ( viz. Gods like Hari, Hara etc. ) the opposite happens. It must be confessed that this interpretation is too farfetched. There are instances of writers like Dharma-kirti beginning his work without any Mangalacharaṇa, which was completed and there are instances of works like Baṇa-bhatta's Kādambari which was never completed though it began with a Mangalacharana. To readers of the present day, this question of Mangalacharana may appear to be of little importance, but in old texts and commentaries, a good deal of ingenuity has been displayed to
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1 " ननु निःशेषविघ्नोपशमनायेष्टदेवतानमस्कारः शास्त्रकृता कथं न कृत इि न वाच्यम् । तस्य मनः कायाभ्यामपि सम्भवात् । अथवा वाचनिकोऽपि नमस्कारोऽवादिवाक्येनाभिहितो वेदितव्यः । केषांचिद् वाक्यानामुभयार्थप्रतिपादनपरत्वेनापि दृश्यमानत्वात् ।.... .. तत्रादिवाक्यस्य नमस्कारपरताभिधीयते ।....अनन्त चतुष्टय स्वरुपा .. न्तरंगलक्षणा समवसरणादिस्वभावा वहिरंगलक्षणा लक्ष्मीर्मा इत्युच्यते । आणः शब्दः । मा च आणश्च माणौ । प्रकृष्टौ माणौ यस्यासौ प्रमाणः । हरिहराय - संभविविभूतियुक्तो दृष्टेष्टाविरुद्धवाक् च भगवान् अर्हन्नेवं अभिधीयते इत्यसाधारणगुणोपदर्शनमेव भगवतः संस्तवनमभिधीयते । तस्माद् प्रमाणाद् अवधिभूताद् अर्थ - संसिद्धिर्भवति । तदाभासाच्च हरिहरादेरर्थसंसिद्धिर्न भवति ।"
Prameyaratnamālā.
2 Dharmakirti the celebrated Buddhist philosopher is said to have flourished in the 7th Century A.D. He is mentioned by the Jain writer Vidyanandi Svami in Asta-sahasri and Patraparikṣā. He begins his work without any Mangalacharaṇa thus: “सम्यग्ज्ञानपूर्विका सर्वपुरुषार्थसिद्धिः । " Prabhāchandra hints that Dharmakirti must have made mental or bodily obeisance though not verbal salutation : “दृश्यते धर्मकीर्त्यादीनामप्येवंविधा प्रवृत्तिः, वाङ्नमस्कारमन्तरेणैव 'सभ्यग्ज्ञानपूर्विका सर्वपुरुषार्थसिद्धिः' इत्यादि वाक्योपन्यासात् ।”
Prameyakamalamārtaṇda.
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