Poetical Vision Of The BuddhaS Former Lives: Seventeen Legends From HaribhattaS Jatakamal

The Present Book Contains The First Indian Edition Of 17 (Out Of 34) Legends From The Garland Of Birth-Stories (J Takam L ) By The Kashmirian Poet Haribha A Who Lived Not Later Than 400 Ce. His Composition, Written In The Prosimetric Camp Style, Is A Worthy Successor To Rya RaS J Takam L . An Exemplary Representative Of The Chaste Style (Vaidarbh R Ti ), It Enchants The Reader By Its Perfectly Lucid Sanskrit, The Great Variety Of Metres (29) And Superb Prose Sections, Which Can Be Regarded As Forerunners Of Da InS And B AS Prose Novels. The Legends, Which Are Meant To Illustrate The Six Moral Perfections (P Ramit ), Viz. Giving, Morality, Forbearance, Striving, Meditation And Wisdom, Are Chosen Not Only From The Rich Store-House Of Buddhist Narrative Literature, But Occasionally Also From Other Sources, E.G., The Mah Bh Rata Or Even Folk Tales. In Contrast To His Predecessor Rya Ra, Haribha A Follows The Way Of Playwrights And Boldly Alters The Original Plot In Order To Achieve More Dramatic Effects. His Stories Vary Considerably In Length: Between 6 Pages (Containing 28 Stanzas) Such As The Legend Of The Ascetic Jajvalin (No. 26) And 60 Pages (Containing 242 Stanzas) Such As The Legend Of Prince Sudhana And His Wife, The Kinnar Manohar (No. 25; Still Unpublished), The Latter Story Being In Fact A Veritable Love Romance. Until 1973, Haribha AS Work Was Known Only From Its Medieval Tibetan Translation. Between 1973 And 1976, Michael Hahn Discovered Ten Of Its Legends In Anonymous Manuscripts From Nepal. They Were Published (In Latin Script) In Japan In 2007. In 2004, Michael Hahn Got Access To Another Fragmentary Sanskrit Manuscript That Permitted Him To Include Seven More Legends In The Present Indian Edition. An English Translation Is Currently Being Prepared. A Cd Containing Colour Photographs Of The Oldest Manuscript Of Haribha AS J Takam L From Nepal Is Attached To Book