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PRAJŇĀPANĀ AND ṢATKHANDAGAMA
independently and only afterwards we should try to fix their chronological order. According to both these works, literature of both these types is rooted in Dṛṣṭivāda. This means that innumerable Acāryas have variously presented the subject-matter of Drstivada itself to achieve different objectives. This presents one more difficulty in fixing up the chronological order of the works on the basis of the nature of the treatment of the subject-matter simple or subtle. If one were not to take into consideration all these facts he can easily-but wrongly-conclude that as the discussions in Prajñāpană are more simple and brief than those in Satkhandagama the former is prior to the latter. But on account of the difficulty as already pointed out it is not proper to fix Prajñāpanā prior to Satkhaṇḍāgama. So, we have given up this manner of fixing up the chronological order of the works on the basis of the nature of their treatment. Now, it becomes necessary for us to employ the different method for fixing up their chronological order. Only after we have done so, we can utilise the argument based on the nature of
treatment.
The Author of Prajñāpanā and His Date: In the original text of Prajñāpanā there occurs no reference to its author. But in the beginning, after benedictory verses, there are two gathãs which have some connection with this problem. Ac. Haribhadra and Ac. Malayagiri have commented on them. But they consider them to be of the nature of interpolation. These two gāthās mention Ārya Śyāma as the author of Prajñāpanāsūtra. This means that even before the time of Ac. Haribhadra, Prajñāpanā was known as a work of Ārya Śyāma.
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Ac. Malayagiri uses an epithet 'Bhagavān for Arya Syama.' The passages in point are as follows:
"bhagavan Arya Syamo'pi ittham eva sūtram racayati" (Comm. p. 72).
"bhagavan Ārya-Śyāmāh paṭhati" (Ibid, p. 47). "sarveṣām api prāvacanikasūriņām matāni bhagavān Ārya Śyāma upadiṣṭavān” (Ibid, p. 385). "bhagavad-Arya-Śyāma pratipattau" (Ibid., p. 385) 15. This points out his greatness. From these two gāthās it becomes clear that Arya Syama belonged to Vācaka lineage (vamśa), and was well versed in Purvaśṛuta. In the composition of Prajñāpanā-sūtra he had displayed his talent to such an extent that even Anga and Upanga works recommend the readers to refer to Prajñāpanā for detailed discussions on various subjects.
The Nandisutra Paṭṭāvali enumerates the names beginning from Sudharma. There the eleventh name is of Arya έyāma. The actual words of the Patṭāvali are: "vamdimo hāriyam sāmajjam". Thus according to this Paṭṭāvali he
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