Sacred Literature of Jains

Author(s): Ganeshchandra Lalwani, Satyaranjan Banerjee
Publisher: Jain Bhawan

Page 61

SACRED LITERATURE OF THE JAINS
Abhayadeva in the scholia,188 the number of words in the case of angas 1-4, increases continually by half till the eleventh anga is reached ; and the Nandi and an anoymous writer thereupon asserts the same with the modification that, instead of angas 1-4, angas 1-5 are said to show this increase. This view is however in direct opposition to the actual facts of the case, for angas 7-11 are the least of all as regards their extent, which is so very small that there can be no thought of 100,000189 countable padas, 190 "countable" meaning here probably "those that need a special count", numerous" or "innumerable". If we reckon on the average for each padam three ak şaras191 and for each grantha (śloka i.e. 32 aksa.), twelve padas, the following is the result of a comparison of the number of these granthas, stated192 as in the MSS., with the above pada numbers [288].
1. anga 2,554 gr. i.e. 2. , 2,300 , , 3. „ 3,750 , „ 4. , 1,607 , , 5. „15,750 „:,
30,648 padas instead of 18,000 p.193* 27,600
36,000 45,000 ,
72,000 .19,284 , ,
144,000 189,000
84,000 2,88,000N
or
188 Likewise also Nemicandra in the Pravacanasāroddhāra $ 92 v. 726 : padhamam
āyārangam atthārasasahassapayaparimānam evan sesangāna vi dugunā dugunappama
naml] 189 N at least has only "thousands." 190 Accord, to Leumann samkhejja signifies merely an indefinite number that is still to
be counted, and not always a large number. 191 See Bhagav. 1,377. This is true in the case of the prose; in verse we must reduce
the number somewhat. The preliminary question is of course-What does the author understand by pada? (Malayagiri in the Nandi-fikā says p, 425 yatrarthopalabdhis tat padam. L.) In this approximation of three aksaras to a pada I have reckoned the single members of compounds as a single word, in so far as the
compounds can lay claim to be considered as such. 192 See above, p, 250, The grantha enumeration is of secondary origin in comparison
with the pada enumeration. 193* So also in nisithabhāsya pedh. 1 (taken from the Acara-niry). , It must, however,
be noted that the above number (18,000) is referred to the first Śrutaskandha only. Malayagiri says (Nandi-fikā p. 425 : atra para aha yath' Acāre dvau śrutaskandhau pancavinsatir adhyayanāni padāgreņa câştādaśa pada-sahasrani tarhi yad bharitam nava bambhaceramaio atthārasa paya-sahassao veo iti tad virudhyate; atra hi navabrahmacar yadhyayana-mātra evästādaśa-padasahasra-pramāņa Acara ukto, 'smins tv adhyayane dvau frutaskandhau pancavinsatir adhyayanāni etat samagras y Ācāras ya parimānam uktam, aştādaśa pada-sahasrāni punah prathama-śrutaskandhas ya navabrahmacar yadhyayanas ya, viciträrtho-nibaddhäni hi sutrani bhavanti, ata eva caisah samyagarthāvagamo gurupadeśato bhayati nanyathā, āha ca curnikut: do suyak handha panavisam ajjhayanāni, eyan āyāragäsahiyassa (?) Ayārassa pamānañ bhaniyah ; althārasa paya-sahassa puna padhama-suyak handhassa nava