RAHUL SANKRITYAYAN’S CONTRIBUTION TO BUDDHIST SANAKRIT LITERATURE Dr. Sukomal Barua

Rahul Sankrityayan, an outstanding scholer is well known for his contribution in the field of Buddhism I convay my deepest respect to him for his scholastic works. He was a versatile genius working on many fronts and an indefatigable writer and author. He has dedicated himself to these works with all his energy. The pinnacle of his glory works on the Sanskrit Buddhist Iiterature that he brought from the Tibetan Monasterles, sa-my and others. By his learning tack and profession of Buddhism he favour with the monks and examined the manuseripts collection under their care, persuading them for permission to prepers photographs and hand copies. He was able to discover a number of texts of which the following may be noted! 1. pramana – Vartika of Dharmakriti in original Sanskrit with his own commentary (Svopajna Vrti). 2. Alankara Bhasya. 3. Manoratha Nandi Vrtti. 4. Commenfary by Karnagomin. 5. Hetu-Bindu and its Tikas. 6. Dharmottars Pradipu. 7. Nyayas text of Jnanasrimitra and Ratnakirti. 8. Abhidharma Kosha of Vasubandu. 9. Vijnapati Matrata-Diddhi. 10. Vada – Nyaya. 11. Abhyardha – Sataka. 12. Vigraha _ Vyavartini. 13. Kasika – Panchika. 14. Ashtasahasri Kaprajnaparam. Mahapandit Rahulji as a true scholar fulfilled his obligation to the Valuable treasure which he had himself discovered. This he accomplished in two ways firstly by editing the texts and secondly by writing Tikas and Translations on them, e.g. he edited the Vada - Nyaya (JBORS, XXI, 1935) PramanaVarttika (Vol. XXIV.1938), Abhyartha – Sataka (Vol. XXIII, 1937), Vigraha – Vyavartini of Nagarjuna (Vol. XXIII, 1937), pramana Varttika of Dharmakirti (Vol. XXII, 1936), Under second he wrote a Tika on Abhidharma - kosa, Vijnapti – Matrata-Siddhi, (Sanskrit restoration of Jan Chwang’s translation), Hitu Bindu, Samdandha – Pariksha and Pramana-varttika itself. It is obvioualy true that Rahul made a balanced analysis of Buddhism. While highlighting Dharmakristi’s vident attacks against many established belief, he never hesitated to criticize Buddhist practices. He quoted from Dharma kirti : acceping the outhority of the Veda and someone as the creator, the desire of getting merit through the holy dip, the vanity of casteism and torturing the body to redeem the sins these are the five characteristies of stupidity. “Rahul wrote at the same time” In spite of such radicatism in their philosoply, their belief in rebirth. Jogic moisticism and some other views are the same as in other religions”. Rahukl was awarded Tripitakachariya by Vidyalankar Parivena and D. Litt (hon) by Vidyalankar Visvavidyalaya of Sri-lanka for his erudition and his contribution to Buddhist studies. He had formed a dynamic eonception about the history and critique of Indian philosophical literature as it developed form the time of Dharma-Kirti up to the last days of the Nalanda teacher. he had visualized that the Buddhist, Jaina and Brahmanical logicians had developed a system of dialectic in which the points of controveray formulated in one system were met with one another and vicaversa so that in courae of time a very subtle system of arguments and counter – arguments dominated the whole dield preserving a faithful record of the intellectual activity of great mind for about 800 years without parochial distinction of sect and religion. He wanted to approach the problem in the same broad spirit and to reintroduce the study of medieval logic and metaphysics amongst scholars of India Philosophy at the present day, the in to make India Philosophy a creative subject of live interest and not a day load to the mind as it is today. He had an inspiration that Indian scholars should contribute their full share to the realization of this idea and that the old texts which at one time reduned with fame through out Asia should once again shed their luster on the philosophical studies at modern times.