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Acārya Hemacandra and Ardhamaghi :
७९
the genius of Lord Mahāvira and his Ganadharas. It became the language of the vast and rich canonical literature of the Śvetāmbara
sect.
Now we come to discuss the views of Hemacandra as expressed in his Šabdānušāsana about the mutual relation of Prakrit and Sanskrit in respect of the most controversial question as to which language is earlier to which. Whether Sanskrit is the wofa of Prakrit or Prakrit is the sofa of Sanskrit. He clearly admits that Sanskrit is the wafa of Prakrit i.e. Sanskrit is the original language and Prakrita is the off shoot of it--
प्रकृतिः संस्कृतं तत्रभवं तत आगतं वा प्राकृतम् ।। The ardent lovers of Prakrita interpret it in other way. They say that Hemacandra means that Sanskrit is the प्रकृति i.e. base (आधार) for learning the Prakrit. He is explaining the nature of Prakrit vis-a-vis the structure of Sanskrit language. This does not mean that Sanskrit is earlier to Prakrit. This view is upheld by most of the Jaina scholars and monks like Namisādhu, the commentator of Rudrata's Kāvyālamkāra. Namisādhu says --
सकलजगज्जन्तूनां व्याकरणादिभिरनाहितसंस्कारः सहजोवचनव्यापारः प्रकृतिः। . तत्र भवं सैव वा प्राकृतम्। 'आरिसवयणे सिद्ध देवाणं अद्धमागहा वाणी' इत्यादि वचनाद्वा प्राक्पूर्वं कृतं प्राकृतम्बालमहिलादिसुबोधं सकलभाषानिबन्धनभूतं वचनमुच्यते।
१. भगवं च णं अद्धमागहीए भासाए धम्मभाइक्खइ - समवाओ- जैन विश्वभारती,
लाडनू, १९८४, ३४/२, पृष्ठ-१८३। देवा णं भन्ते कयराए भासाए भासंति? कयरा वा भासा भासिज्जमाणी विसिस्सन्ति? गोयमा! देवा णं अद्धमागहाए भासाए भासंति, सा विय णं अद्धमागाही भासा भासिज्जमाणी विसिस्सइ, – भगवतीसूत्र शतक ५ उद्देश ४। तए णं समणे भगवं महावीरे कूणिअस्स बंभसारपुत्तस्स अद्धमागाए भासाए भासति, -औपपातिकसूत्र। से किं तं भासरिया? भासारिया जेणं अद्धमागहाए भासाए भासेंति, - प्रज्ञापनासूत्र, आगम प्रकाशन
समिति, व्यावर, १९८३, १०७, पृष्ठ-९२। २. वृत्ति on the सूत्र “अथ प्राकृतम्', ८/१/१।
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