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16
S. M. Shaha
Out of the two original meanings of Puggala prevalent in the Jain tradition, viz. matter' and 'empirical being' the Buddhist tradition might have adopted the later meaning alongwith the term itself. In this respect I may quote Dr. A.N. UPADHYE, who says, “The Jain term for matter is Pud qala which in Buddhism means the individual, character, being and Ātman. From the shifting of its meaning, the word appears to be a later import in Buddhism alongwith Jain terms like asrava',41 In a foot-note, 15 Dr. UPADHYE quotes Mrs. C.A.F. Rhys DAVIDS-who says, "we do not know when this oddly ugly word pudgala came to be substituted for the older purisa, or pulisa, or puruşa, etc."
I may conclude saying: No doubt the word is 'oddly ugly'. Nevertheless, it has attracted many scholars and it still remains a riddle staring in our face.
Foot-notes : 1 Siddliasena on Tattvārtha-sūtra 5,1. quoted above. 2 Visuddhinagga 310. 3 P. Tedesco, Sanskrit Pudgala, body; soul: Journal of American Oriental Society,
Vol. 67, pp. 172–77, 4 Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary Vol. II, Delhi, 1970, p. 347. 5 Pali-English Dictionary 6 Tedesco, op. cit. 7 Buddhaghoşa op. cit. 8 Tedesco, op. cit. 9 T. Burrow and M.B. Emencau 'Dravadian Etymological Dictionary, Oxford, 1961,
word No. 3494, p. 283. 10 T, Burrow etc, op. cit, word No. 1102, p. 93. 11 T. Burrow etc, op. cit. word No. 3658, p. 295. 12 Apart from the meaning 'body' etc. some lexicons like Hemacandra's Abhidhāna
cintāmaại give entirely different meaning of 'Pudgala' viz. beautiful'-(sundarākāra). The lexicons base this meaning on a single literary passage of doubtful authenticity from Mārkandeya Purāna. The meaning therefore, appears to be of quite late origin
and also doubtful. 13 Dasareyaliyam 5,1. 73. etc. 14 Prof. A. N. Upadhye's introduction to Prayacanasära of Kundakunda, Rajachadra
Jain Granthamälā, Agas, 1964, p. 68 15 Ibid, foot note No. 2.
