________________
THE RISTASAMUCCAYA
me to the effect that some references may be found regarding the Riştas in the Suttanipāta (edited by him ) as well as in his article in the Sir Ashutosh Mukerjee Memorial Volume. I have attached in the Appendix a passage from the MP (SBE, Vol. 36, pp. 157-162 ) just describing the phenomenon of Dream and its implication ( App. VIII ). But it is clear that there is not much material to be found in the Buddhist literature regarding this occult science.
It is the Jain literature rather than the Buddhist that abounds in references to this mystic science of omens and portents. The earliest reference to the Astānganimitta which predicts good or bad and is in a way a branch of the Ristasõstra is found in the Acāravastu of the third chapter of the ninth Purva of the Drsțivāda according to the Nāyādhammrkahão (The canonical books all referred to are the Ayamodaya Samiti Editions), (1, 1), the Bhagavai (11, 11; 15, 1;) and the Siagada (1, 12, 9). SBE, Vol. 22 considers it as the last of the seventy-two sciences. The ?hānanga (1a Fasori, 10th thāņa ), the Anuogadāra (Forumluft
1973 a 5 a, 985)and the PSU (1238) passingly refer to this. The Samaruya ( 47 ) and the Panha (1, 4) allude to it while describing the Utpăta etc. The commentary on the Uttarujjhayana takes note of the signs and symptoms furetelling good as the following stanzas will show -
सिरफुरण किर रजं पियमेलो होइ बाहुफुरणमि । अच्छिफुरगंभि अ पियं अहरे पियसंगमो होइ ॥
(com. on the 8th chap. ). चक्खुसिणेहे सुभगो दंतसिणेहे अ भोयणं मिटुं। तयने हेण य सोक्खं नहनेहेण होइ परमधणं ॥
( com, on the 15th chap. ). So far as non-canonical literature is concerned, Haribhadra in the Vyaovahārakalpa and Hemacandra in the predominently mention it. This remark is illustrated by the following stanzas :
पुरुषेणाथवा नार्या द्रष्टव्यं न कदाचन । चन्द्रबिम्ब निशि शुक्लचतुर्थीसम्भवं किल ॥
(796R767)
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