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Review
together constitute a separate topic with a special designation, Kavaca adhikara, in the bhakta-pratyākhyāna section of Bh.A. The book under review presents a critical study of the numerous aspects of VA. Besides discussing the problems of title (Vaddarādhane is in fact another name of Bh. A. itself and the Kannada work is actually anonymous), authorship (the author is unknown) and date, and summarizing the tales, Khadabadi has devoted separate sections to the religious, social, literary and linguistic aspects of the text. Thus this classical Kannada work receives here the scholarly attention commensurate with its manifold importance.
The tales of VA. are of course quite well-known in the Jain tradition and retold numberless times. There is enough evidence to indicate that VA. was dependent upon several earlier works, one of which was the same Prakrit commentary on Bh.A. that must have served also Harişeņa's Brhatkathakośa. But the author of VA. has adopted an expansive and leisurely style and Khadabadi's significant comparison of the tales with their various versions in earlier and later works can be further pursued fruitfully. The author of VA. has enriched the narratives by utilizing various sources, religious as well as literary, as can be seen also from the 131 citations listed and examined by Khadabadi (pp. 199-209).
We may offer here a few observations on some minor points to supplewi ment the rich information and excellent study offered by Khadabadi..
In the tale of Vțşabhasena (No. 10) we can detect one more borrowing. The source could be either the earlier Prakrit commentary or directly Hāla's Sattasai. With the following passage in the summary (p. 61):
'The king, while drinking (from his capped hands), found the stream of water becoming thinner and thinner from above, looked at her charm ing face and smiled.'
उद्धच्छो पिअइ जलं, जह जह विरलंगुली चिरं पहिओ। पावालिआ वि तह तह. धार तणुइ पि तणुएइ ॥'
(Sattasal, II 61) .
The incident of the compassionate elephant saving the rabbit that had taken shelter under the former's 'lifted foot' is well-known from the tale of Meghakumāra in the Nayādhammakaha, first chapter, which receives its title ukkhitte from this very incident. 2 A Sanskrit translation of this is found in the Subhāşita-bhandagāra (p. 313, verse 117):
यथोक्षिः पिबत्यंबु पथिकस्तरलांगुलिः । तथा प्रपापालिका पि धारां प्रतनुते तनु ॥
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