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romance which deals with tragic incidents of conjugal life, eschewing romantic love in favour of grim realities and the working of fate'. Though the chief object of this tale is to propound the highest standard of human morals, namely, the principle of Ahimsa, Somadeva has made his religious romance an elegant specimen of artistic Sanskrit prose and poetry. Apart from its special characteristics as a prose narrative, Yajastilaka combines features which bring it into relation with diverse branches of Sanskrit literature. It is not only a Jaina romance in prose and verse but a learned compendium of Jaina and non-Jaina philosophical and religious doctrines, a manual of statecraft, and a great repository of Kavya poetry, ancient tales, citations and references, and numerous rare words of lexical interest. Somadeva's Yasastilaka is a work of massive scholarship enlivened by occasional flashes of literary genius and poetic feeling'.
YASATILAKA AND INDIAN CULTURE
It is indeed very happy that such a masterpiece of literature as the Yasastilaka is thoroughly studied in its various aspects by an eminent and versatile Sanskritist of the status and standing of Professor Handiqui. His mastery over the niceties of the Sanskrit language and Kavya poetry are well-known to all by his English Translation Sriharṣa's Naiṣadhacarita with extracts from unpublished commentaries, appendices on philosophical allusions etc. ', Lahore 1934. Thus Somadeva for his literary rehabilitation has found a worthy scholar in Professor Handiqui who possesses rare qualities of sympathetic and judicious understanding, wide and rich information and deep and critical learning. He undertook and completed the study of Yasastilaka while he was the Principal and Senior Professor of History and Sanskrit at J. B. College, Jorhat (Assam). Very few Sanskrit works have been studied as thoroughly as the Yasastilaka in this work; and Professor Handiqui deserves every praise for his steady labours and painstaking researches. The Sanskrit studies have become richer by his present
contribution.
The Authorities of the Jivaraja Jaina Granthamala offer their sincere thanks to Professor K. K. Handiqui for his generosity in placing his learned dissertation at their disposal for publication in this Series.
It is a matter of pleasure for the General Editors to record their thanks to Br. Jivarajaji as well as to the members of the Trust Committee and Prabandhasamiti for their active interest in the Series, and also to Professor Handiqui for his willing cooperation. They trust that the present volume is a worthy contribution to Indian studies, and it would open in future many a new line of study in the fields of Jaina religion, philosophy and literature.
KOLHAPUR, May 1949
Jain Education International
A. N. UPADHYE and H. L. JAIN General Editors.
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