Vaishali Institute Research Bulletin 3

Author(s): R P Poddar
Publisher: Research Institute of Prakrit Jainology & Ahimsa Mujjaffarpur

Page 55

THE PRAKRIT WORKS ATTRIBUTED TO KUNDAKUNDA
SOME OBSERVATIONS Dr. GOKUL CHANDRA JAIN
The Prakrit works attributed to Kundakunda are well-known to the scholars and several editions, some with Sanskrit commentaries, some with Hindi or English translation have been published from various places. But I am afraid to say that except one i.e. the Prava cana-sära?
dited by late Dr. A. N. Upadhye, none else can be called to be a critical edition. Of course some of the editions have been very well printed on heavy weight paper and brought out with a nice cloth binding. Some contain important introductions etc. Still I feel, the first and foremost need for the study of Kundakunda is to prepare really critical editions of all the works attributed to him. When I say so, one should not be confused that I mean to lower the importance of all the earlier editions. I simply want to emphasise that unless critical editions of all the works of Kundakunda, are published, the true history of Jaina-Church and Jaina Philosophy cannot be written and even scholars of great repute may continue to be confused to understand the development of the Jaina Philosophical thoughts and let others confuse by false findings drawn by false comparison,
Dr. Upadhye in his introduction of Pravacana-sāras had presented critical survey of the works attributed to Kundakunda. As far as I know, no fresh efforts have been inade after that to examine the extent of the texts, though many editors claim that their's are the critical editions. The word 'critical edition' has its significance and merely collating and recording different readings of two or three manuscripts never mean a critical edition, unless the MSS used for the edition belong to different age, different traditions and different places. Even the editor of Kundakunda-Bharati has made no effort to decide the extent of the works. As a matter of fact, it is still a controversial point whether all the works attributed to Kundakunda, are written by him.
1. Pravacana-sara, ed. by Dr. A.N. Upadhye, Srimad Rajachandra
Jaina Sastramala, Agas, Post-Boria, via Anand (Gujarat-India ), 3rd
ed., 1964. 2. See the Hindi introduction of Nyayavataravartikavrtti of Santi Suri, ed. by Pt. Dalasukha Malwaniya, Bharatiya Vidya Bhawan, Bombay,
first ed., 1949. 3. See the English introduction in the edition of Pravaçan-sāra referred
above.