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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 24 December 2009
When first examining, now quite some time ago, the Tibetan version of the Karmavibhaṅga in the MS Kanjur of the British Museum, I was struck immediately by the preservation therein of the ‘introductory tale’, which apparently has not survived in the printed Kanjurs. On closer inspection the MS version showed two other prominent features which, taken together with the first, may justify the present note and, it is hoped, may make it acceptable to the great Indo-Iranian scholar in whose honour it has been written.
1 BM Or. 6724, Vol. 59, pp. 300A7–325A1. See Grinstead, E. D., ‘The manuscript Kanjur in the British Museum’, Asia Major, NS, XIII, 1–2, 1967, 48–70Google Scholar. Cf. also Barnett's, L. D. ‘Index der Abteilung mDo des handschriftlichen Kanjur im Britischen Museum Or. 6724’, Asia Major, VII, 1–2, 1932, 157–78Google Scholar.
2 Lévi, S. (ed. and tr.), Mahākcarmavibhaṅga (La grande classification des actes) et Karmavibhaṅgopadeśa (Discussion sur le Matā Karmavibhaṅga), Paris, 1932Google Scholar.
3 As a matter of special interest I noted as proper names not included in S. Lévi's index the names of the Elders (gnas-brtan) Lekuñcika (Le-kun-tsi-ka) in ch. xl and Śaivala (Śeb-la) in ch. xli.
4 The heading yi-dagsu skye-ba renders pretalopapatti (see Lévi, p. 46, n. 6). Note the alternative heading yamalokopapatti preferred by T xvii: gśin-rjeẖi ẖjig-rten-du skye-ba.
5 This first numerical discrepancy has been caused by the insertion as S xviii and T xviii of āsuralokopapatti (lha-ma-yin-gyi ẖjig-rten-du skye-ba).
6 Note this first shift of a group of chapters, xxii-xxiv becoming S and T xxx-xxxii, and cf. Lévi, p. 47, n. 7.
7 The insertion of S and T xxvi, obviously a belated afterthought of an ‘act committed while asleep’, has resulted in a further numerical discrepancy.
8 Note the shifts within the group ‘rich and a miser’, ‘rich and generous’;, ‘poor and generous’, and the deletion (though still listed [MS B] in the table of contents, see Lévi, p. 31, n. 1) of ‘poor and a miser’. See also Lévi, p. 16 sub xxxviii bis.
9 See also Lévi, p. 75, n. 1.
10 See above, p. 163.
11 See also Lévi, p. 18, top of second column.
12 See also Lévi, pp. 80–1, n. 8.
13 In his ‘Tableau comparatif’ (p. 18) Lévi refers under lxx to the offering of sandals (upānah) being mentioned in the ‘table of contents’ (see p. 31, n. 13) as an alternative to ‘transport’ (yāna).
14 The colophon of the BM version (pp. 324B8–325A1) bears the same names (Jinamitra, Munivarma, Dānaśīla, and Ye-śes-sde) as the Derge Kanjur and the supplement (K'a-shaṅ) to the Narthang Kanjur which according to the Otani Catalogue (p. 386, No. 1005), quoting H. Beckh'sVerzeichnis, reprints (pp. 130A1–157B2) the whole Tibetan version. See also Tohoku, Catalogue, pp. 62–3, No. 338Google Scholar.
