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After viewing the concept of the Purana in general and the place of the Brahma Purana. in particular, let us now examine the Brahma Purana. from the point of view of its form. The formal study of the Brahma Purana. leads us to two extremely opposite possibilities: (i) of its being so bulky that it appears to be a conglomeration of the Mahapurana and upapurana an and (ii) of its being so small as to become only a handbook dealing with religion in its original form and later on becoming a collection of other chapters borrowed from different sources. Thus this bi-dimensional form of the Brahma Purana. has made itself quite problamatic and hence it needs careful consideration. Therefore, an attempt is made in this section to examine formally the whole of the material prevalent under the name of the Brahma P. and to furnish a framework including the nature and description of the Brahma Purana. so as to help in understanding it in a better way from the literal point of view and to provide a critical estimation of the contents of the Brahma Purana. ; The material available at present under the name of the Brahma Purana. is available in three forms: (1) In the form of printed editions (2) In the form of information gathered from

49 89 the catalogues and (3) In the form of quotations in different works. (1) In the form of printed editions: At present. four editions are available of the Brahma Purana., viz. (a) The Anandasrama edition, (b) The Vangavasi edition, (c) The Venkatesvara edition, (d) The Gurumandala series edition. (a) The Anandasrama edition on which the present study is based consists of 245 adhyayas and it is prepared from six mss., viz. ka, kha, ga, gha, nia and cab 6. The ms. 'ka' contains all the adhyayas, the ms. 'Kha' and 'ga' omit the Gautamimahatmya whereas the contain only the Gautamimahatmya. mss. 'na' and 'ca' Again the 'ka' and 'kha' the An. ed.; the ms. 70th adhyaya, the mss. 'ka' and 'ga' omit the nineteenth adhayaya. The us. 'ga' adds many slokas in adh. 13 and omits 191. 27-33, the ms. 'gha' begins the Gautamimahatmya with the Mangala slokas and the mss. 'gha' and 'ca' miss the slokas 81-85 of the adh. 85. These are the major peculiarities of each ms The variant readings and minor peculiarities of every ms. have been noted in the footnotes of the An. ed. But as they are too numerous to be noted here they are not taken into consideration. Moreover, they are more useful in the preparation of the critical edition of the Brahma Purana. (b) The vangavasi press edition (Calcutta): is chapter by chapter the same as the An. ed. There are join the first and the second adhyayas of 'ka' misses the first 10 slokas of the occasional variations in readings and numbers of verses in the 56 For details regarding their complete names, vide abbreviations. 鈥�

50 90 corresponding chapters, but these variations are not important and many for our purpose. (c) The venkatesvara steam press edition is available in two forms: (i) It contains the whole Brahma-Purana but instead of the Gautami-mahatmya after the adh. 69 as given in the An. ed., it occurs at the end 57 (ii) The other edition of the venkatesvara steam press contains only the Gautami-mahatmya. It contain consists of one hundred and five adhyayas and resembles to a great extent to the An. ed. The following are its main peculiarities. It joins the adhs. 76 & 77 of the An. ed. into one and forms the Adhs. 7th adh. Again after the/107.46, 108-82 and 108.118 of the Adhs. An. ed., the venk. ed. adds many slokas after/38.21, 38.872 and 38.125 respectively. Besides these, there are many other minor differences which should be carefully considered at the time of preparing a critical edition of the Brahma Purana. (d) The Gurumandala series, Calcutta, seems to have an intention of publishing the Brahma Purana. into various parts. The first part consisting of 57 adhyayas is out and follows the An.ed. chapter by chapter, and from the table of contents given at the beginning of this edition, it seems that the version of the Brahma Purana. that would be contained in the succeeding parts would also be the same as that contained in the An. ed. After discussing the information gathered from various editions, now let us discuss the information regarding the Brahma Purana. from the catalogues of Mss.

51 91 (2) Information gathered from the catalogues: According to the catalogues catalogonom by Theodor Aufreeht, the various mss. of the Brahma Purana contain the following topics.:- (i) Rsipancamivrata (ii) Kalahastimahatmya (iii) Kodandamandana (iv) Campasasthivratakatha (v) Nasikopakhyana or Naciketopakhyana (vi) Prayagamahatmya (vii) Ksetrakhande Mallarimahatmya (viii) Mayapur Imahatmy a (ix) Ramasahasranama (x) Lalitakhande (xi) Lalitopakhyana (xii) Venkatagirimahatmya (xiii) Sarasvatistotra (xiv) Hastigirimahatmya (xv) Janmastamivrata (xvi) Buddhastamivrata (xvii) Manimandapamahatmya (xviii) Laksmisahasranama (xix) Surpacandravratakatha (xx) Hastigirimahatmya (xxi) Godavarimahatmya.

52 (xxii) Gautamigangamahatmya (xxiii) Gautamimahatmya (xxiv) Purusottamamahatmya (xxv) Karmavipakasanhita (xxvi) Martandamahatmya (xxvii) Bharatavarsavivarana 92 The first twenty topics are not met with in the present Brahma P. whereas some of the topics resembling serial Nos. XXI to XXVII are found in the present Brahma Purana. R.L.Mitra describes a Brahma Purana. which consists of two khandas, Purva and Uttara, and is quite different from our present Brahma-Purana. As it mentions the history of Radha, her worship, Tulasi's marriage with sankhacula, the history of Manasa etc., it must be a very late work.58 According to Shri Haraprasad Shastri, the Brahma Purana. in catalogue No. 3450 seems to be a different recension from that of the An. edition. The Gautamimahatmya is not there and the last chapters on Samkhya and yoga with the interlocution between Vasistha and Karalajanaka are not there. Ch. 19 of the An. ed. has become Ch. 17 in the end. The next number begins as usual but ends with the end of krsna-caritra, the 212th chapter of the Anandasrama edition. There are three other compilations called 58 Mitra, a catalogue of Sanskrit mss. in the Library of His Highness The Maharaja of Bikaner, PP. 187-9.

93 53 Buddhastamivrata (No.3452), Margasirsackadasivrata (No.3453) and Kartikamahatmya (No. 3453陋) which though not found in the An. ed. are said to draw its authority from the Brahma Purana.58a The descriptive catalogue of the Sanskrit mss. in the Tanjore Maharaja Sartoji's Sarasvati Mahal Library, Tanjore informs us that the Brahma Purana. was printed at Bombay in 1906; and at cidambaram with a translation by V.S.Venkatarama Shastri in 1908. Moreover, the Prayagmahatmya, Srimasnamahatmya and Hastigirimahatmya also form a part of it. In some mss. the mahatmya of the sacred river Balaja occurs as the uttarakhanda of the Brahma Purana. 59 The present study does not aim at representing an exhaustive examination of all the mss., firstly, because the whole information regarding all the mss. is not at the disposal of the present writer and moreover it is not necessary also. But this material shows that a critical edition of the Brahma Purana. is a highly felt necessity as it would decide whether all these mahatmyas and other topics belonged to the original Purana or not. 1 After collecting the information regarding the Brahma Purana. from various catalogues, let us now see as to what information could be gathered about the Brahma Purana. from the various nibandha works. 58陋 Haraprasad Shastri, a descriptive catalogue of Sanskrit manuscripts. .59 Winternitz, Op. Cit., PP. 533 f.

54 94 (3) Information in the form of quotations in different works: Almost all the Nibandha writers have profe- use ssionally drawn upon the Brahma Purana. which was, therefore, one of the most authoritative works in the whole range of Puranic The following Nibandhakaras provide quotations literature. from the Brahma Purana. (1) Sulapani's Delayatraviveka & Rasayatraviveka (ii) Vacaspatimisra's Tattvacintamani (iii) Govindananda's Danakriyakaumudi & Sraddhakriyakaumudi (iv) Raghunandana's smrtitattva & yatratattua. (v) Hemadri's catervargacintamani (vi) Nilakanthabhatta's Mayukhas. (vii) Madhavacarya (viii) Jimatavahana (ix) Apararka (x) Haradatta's commentary of the Gautamadharmasutra (xi) Aniruddhabhatta (xii) Ballalasen (xiii) Kullukabhatta (xiv) Madanpala (xv) datta Upadhyaya (xvi) Candesvara (xvii) Rudradhara H (xviii)Narasimha Vajapeyin's Nityacarapradipa (xix) Laksmidharabhatta's krtyakalpataru.

55 works 95 Some of the verses quoted in the/form i-vii are traceable in the present Brahma Purana. whereas those quoted in works from viii-xx are not traceable in the present Brahma Purana. 60 The quotations made by the Nibandha writers show that it was a rich store of smrti materials. The multifarious smrti topics dealt with in this Purana, appear to have been the following.:- (a) The duties of the Asramas, (b) General customs and daily duties (Ahnika), (c) Eatables and non-eatables, (d) Rules of diet, (e) Purification of things, (f) Purification of the body, (g) Funeral sacrifices, (h) Impurity, (1) Bath, (j) Gifts, (k) Duties of women, (1) Different kinds of sins, (m) Penances, (n) vows (vrata), (o) Observances in the different months (masa-karya), (p) Sraddhas, and though many of the verses are not common, the present Brahma Purana. also is an encyclopaedia work containing most of the above smrti-topics. Thus we see that a vast material goes under the name of the Brahma Purana. most of which is not available in the present form which creates doubts regarding the authenticity of the present Brahma-Purana, raises problems as to whether the Brahma Purana. which contained all that material and which is now not available is some work completely different from the present one, whether there is some connection between the two or whether they are two completely independent works and it also leads to the necessity of a careful scrutiny of the Brahma P. in its present form. When the Brahma Purana. is viewed in its present form, it seems that 60 For the details regarding the traceable & untraceable verses, vide appendix No. 鈽慖

56 96 most of its chapters have been borrowed from various other works; and there is only a small portion which it can claim as its own.. It is a conglomeration of chapters mainly corresponding to those of the Visnu P., Markeandeya P., Samba P., Vaya P., Harivams and the Anusasana and the santi Parvans of the Mahabharata, as the following list will show: Brahma Purana. 1 (verses 21-30) 1 (verses 31 to the end) 2-5 vis. I, 2, 1-8 HV I, 19 to the end I, 2-7 11 6-8 9 10 11-17 18 (except verses 1-6) 19-24 27 (verses 10 to the end 29 (except verses 1-2,6b 7a,9b,& 25b) 30 verses 2b-21 XXX XXX - # # # # 鈽� I, 9-15 I, 25 1,26 (verses 1-11 & 48-49) and I, 27. # I, 28-39 = vis. II.,2-7 & 9 Mark. 57 (except verses lb, 50-52a & 64b)61 Samba Ch. 38 (except verses 1-2, 34a & 53b) = Samba ch.2, verses 2a and 3-21. 30 verses 22-23a,24-42a,44 = Samba ch.4, verses 3-18, and 30 verses 45,60a,62-65 75a,76-86,88-92 31 verses 1-14a 31 verses 14b-27 61 Hazra R.C., Op. Cit., P. 147. 20.24. = Samba ch.5, verses 1-20,21b- 238, Samba 24-30, 31b-39 = Samba ch.8, verses 1-13, = Samba ch.9, verses 1-13a & 14

62 97 Ch.31, verses 29b-38 Ch.32, verses 50-54 57 KOX XX XKNK = Samba ch.25, verses 3b-12 Samba 11, verses 1b,2a, 3b-5a, = 9-11, 12b, 16a, 19-31, 32a (Partly), 34b-38, 41 55b-67a, 68a, 69-73 75a(Partly),76-79,& 81 Ch.32, Verses 89a, 90-92 93b-94,95b-105,106- 108 Ch.33, verses 1-22a, & 23-31 Samba ch.12, verses 5a, 9a, = 11-20,22-26, 11, verses 42-43; 12, verse 27. = Samba ch.14, verses 1,4-17a, 18-24a and 26-34 Ch. 39-40 = va 30 (verses 7a to the end) Brahma P. 70, 12 to chap. 175 deal with Gautamimahatmya which constituted an independent work by itself. hv 210266-75) = HV 1,40,8 Br. 179 (except verses HU 1, 40,8 to the end (except 1-10 and 66-75) verses 41b-43a, 46b, 56a, 64 and 66a). Br. 180, 1-5 (except 3a) Mark. 4, 36-40a = Vin. I, 2, 1-8. 180, 6-13 180, 14 to the end. (except 29-38 & 42a) 181, (5 ff) 212 Xxxex = Mark. 4, 40b to the end 2 13,3-9 213, 10 to the end 164 & 171) (except 216-22a, 131a, 908 Vis. V, 1 to the end (except V,藲1, 1-11) HV, I, 40, 1-7 HV, I, 41 (except 12b-c, 15b 19, 21a, 22b, 28c,49b,55,58a, 59,83a, llb,138, 151b, 161-163 and 165-169). Hazra R.C., Studies in upapuranas, P. 82. 62

58 Br. 217 has many verses in common with Mark. 15. 220, 22-29 220, 33-42 220, 69-82a 220, 82b-99 220, 10lb 220, 102a 220, 105-110a 221, 1-109a (except 59b, 77b,84 and 85b) Mark. 32. 1-8 11 XXX XX XIX, 98 33, 8b to the end. # 30,12 to the end(except 19b) 31, 1-8. qian n 31, 23b 31, 25a 32, 28-37 34 (except 17b,30b,42b, 68-69a,74a, 76b-77,81a, 85b,88-90a, 92a, 93 and 102-103a). 35 (except 8b,33b and 55a) vis. III, 8,20,to the end 221, 109b-165a 222, 1-21 222, 22 to the end (except verses 51-52) -52) | vis. III, 9 223-225 Anusasana Parva adh.143-145. 230, 1 to the end Vis. VI, 1-2 232, 1 to the end 233, 1 to the end 11 Vis. VI, 3 dong zhe VI, 4 (except 15b & 49b)

59 99 234 (except 69b) 236 236 236 =>VI, 5 (except 52-54, 69-78a and 81a)63 = Mbh. (cr.ed.) XII (Santi Parvan) 231,232 = Mbh. 233 238, 239, 240 237 241, 242, 266 238 - 11 289 239 240 241 242 243 244 & Brahma Purana. 39 40 11 # 290 II 291 # 292 293, 294 295 64 296 # 274 274 If these chapters are left out of consideration, those which remain untraced are unimportant and insignificant in 63 Hazra R.C., Puranic Records on Hindu rites and customs, PP. 147-148. 64 Br.236-245 on Samkhya & Yoga were traced by F.otto Schrader in the Santi Parvan of the Mbh.and published in the Indian Culture (vol.II, 1935-36, PP. 592-3).

60 100 number. They are as follows: 65 Br. 1 (verses 1-20) 18 (verses 1-6 ) 25 26 27 (1-10) 28-38 41-70 (1-11) 176-178 XXX XX = Introductory verses 11. Enumeration of the topics treated of in chaps. 1-17. Names of holy places For introducing ch. 27 on Geography Gods & holy places in Orissa. 214-225 216-217 (Partly) 218 219,220 (verses 1-21, 30-32,43-68,100-101a, 102b-104, 120b-212) XXXX on hells. On the result of actions done, Karma-vipaka On Sraddha 226 -229 231 On the worship of Visnu Accounts of the Dvapara & Future ages Thus from this point of view the bulk of the Brahma Purana. seems to be very small. As regards the common chapters it is difficult to deduce the conclusions regarding which are the original but as Dr. Hazra says, the quotations made by the early 65 Hazra R.C., Op. Cit., P. 150,

61 101 authors from the Markandeya, Visnu, and Vaya P. show that the chapters borrowed by the Brahma Purana. have been occuring in these Puranas from a time earlier than that of the compilation of the present Brahma P. As to the chapters common to the Vaya, a comparison of them Harivansa and Brahma 66 Puranas/proves the indebtedness of the Brahma P. to Harivansa. As to the chapters common to the Brahma Purana. and the Mbh. the priority of those of the latter is un- 67 questionable. A comparison of the chs. 29-30 of the Brahma Purana. to the corresponding chapters of the Samba P. shows that the Brahma Purana. is the borrower.68