z:\ ambedkar\vol 011\vol11 10.indd MK SJ+YS 5 10 2013/YS 18 11 2013 ix
PREFACE (ix)
‘Dhammapada’ references were checked from Prof. N. K. Bhagawat’s translation into English. Barring few insignificant errors, most of the references were found correct. Anandji had given the references at the end of the chapter or part, mentioning the corresponding number against a verse. At some places, one reference indicated several stanzas from ‘Buddhacharita’. This raised difficulty in locating the exact verse of the original text. The references which Dr. Kausalyayan quoted were from the canonical literature. I also tried to search sources of other remaining portion which Dr. Kausalyayan had left out. Very few people might be aware that Dr. Ambedkar used some non-canonical literature also to substantiate his theory. To mention here but two examples: Firstly, let me mention the name of Krishnaji Arjun Keluskar, former Principal, Wilson High School, Bombay who had published a biography of Bhagwan Gautam Buddha, in Marathi, in 1898, a copy of which he personally presented to young Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar on his success in the Matriculation examination of the University of Bombay, in 1907. In Keluskar’s book—which undoubtedly influenced Ambedkar—we find references to disputes on the waters of the Rohini river and Siddharth Gautam’s intervention to avert outbreak of hostilities between the Sakyas and the Koliyas. Secondly, a mention must be made of Professor Dharmanand Kosambi whose name is familier in Maharashtra. He had devoted his whole life to scholarship on Buddhist studies. The study of Pali in Pune and Bombay Universities was started with his efforts. Under his guidance and teachership, Buddhist studies flourished and several scholars in Pali came to the fore. Beside his scholarly editing of ‘Visuddhimagga’ and ‘Visuddhimaggadeepika’ in Pali, his books on Buddhism in Marathi are very popular. They reveal his analytical aptitude