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Jainism and Meat-Eating
: 197
the same verse the author gives for the sake of clarification the names of such fruits viz, अत्थियं, तिन्दुअं, बिल्लं, उच्छृखंडं and सिबलिं. All these fruits contain the soft pulp and seeds or uneatable hard stuff.
In spite of such a simple and straightforward meaning and the instances of fruits, given in support of the above meaning in the same verse and the preceding and the following verses of the same chapter dealing with vegetarian food, if a critic tries to misinterpret it into fish and meat food, it can only be attributed to his want of knowledge of the subject or his ignorance of the language.
Some of the Jain Ācāryas in their commentaries have taken बहुअट्ठियं, बहुकंटगं, मच्छं and अणिमिसं to be certain kinds of vegetable and have commented the word "भोचा' as 'used for external purposes' but apart from that, in this article the meanings of the same words have been given quite differently on the authority of dictionaries and their various uses in different places.
भगवती सूत्र (Bhagavati-sutra) The following is the text in connection with the medicinal use by Lord Mahāvīra of a certain preparation when he was suffering from bilious fever and profuse discharge of blood in stool.
"तत्थ णं रेवतीए गाहावतिणीए मम अट्ठाए दुवे कवोयसरीरा उवक्खडिया
तेहिं नो अट्ठो, अत्थि से अने पारियासिए मज्जारकडए कुक्कुडमंसए तमाहरादि एएणं अट्ठो''।।24
Abhayadeva Sūrī, one of the renowned and learned Jaina, Ācāryas, who has written commentaries on the nine (main or principal Sūtras) gives his comments as follows in respect of the above quotation.
“ततो गच्छ x x x x मदर्थ द्वे कूष्माण्डफलशरीरे उपस्कृते, न च ताभ्यां प्रयोजनं, तथाऽन्यदस्ति तद्गृहे परिवासितं मार्जाराभिधानस्य वायानिवृत्तिकारकं कुक्कुटमांसकं बीजपूरक-कटामहमित्यर्थः, तदाहर, तेन न: प्रयोजनमिति''25
