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the same in English. In the Introduction Dr. Basak has dealt with the geographical distribution of the inscriptions, Asoka's administration, Asoka's Dharma and has given a linguistic study of the Aśokan dialects.
The inscription of Khāravela (Ist century B.C.) in the Hathigumphā cave on the Udayagiri-Khandagiri hills only five miles from Bhubaneswar is one of the most remarkable documents of Indian history, as it gives in chronological sequence a detailed account of Khāravela's career for 13 years after his coronation. This document was first correctly deciphered by Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji about a century back, and after that a number of cminent scholars both Indian and European-have read and interpreted this Prakrit epigraph of seventeen lines. There is no doubt that Khāravela was a great Jaina emperor who wielded suzerainty over the whole of Northern India and also some parts of. the South. But why is it that Khāravela is nowhere found mentioned in the vast Jaina literature composed after his times? Did he belong to the Yāpanīya sect or some other sect differing both from the Svetambaras and the Digambaras ? This problem has considerable bearing on the ancient history of Jainism in Orissa about which we get many references in Canonical literature, and scholars well-versed in the early history and literature of Orissa should work on it.
Even in modern times some Jaina monks are composing new works in Prākrit. Muni Nyāyavijayaji's philosophical poem, Adhyātmatattváloka, published several years back, is an instance to the point. Recently Acārya Vijaya Kasturasuri has written Prakrit Vijñānakathā (Ahmedabad, V.S. 2014). It is a collection of 58 Prákrit stories in prose newly composed, and may prove useful for beginners in Präkrit. The author fras imbibed the spirit of ancient Prakrit literature to such an extent that one would hardly suspect that this is a modern composition unless expressly informed.
Now let me refer to a few important papers in the field of Prälasit sturlies. Dr. V. Pisani has discussed thc etymological
