Which of the following Buddhist texts were written in Sanskrit language ? Choose the correct option from below : A. Divyavadan B. Deepvansha C. Mahavansha D. Aryamanjushree Moolkalp

Correct — option (3), A, D.

A. Divyavadana: Sanskrit. M. Winternitz's A History of Indian Literature, Vol. II (English translation, University of Calcutta, 1933) calls it 'a later Sanskrit work', a collection that as a whole belongs to the Hinayana and often quotes the Sanskrit canon.

B. Deepvansha (Dipavamsa): Pali. Winternitz calls it the first, very imperfect attempt to mould Sri Lanka's commentary traditions into an epic, and remarks that writing in Pali was still an unaccustomed thing for its author.

C. Mahavansha (Mahavamsa): Pali. Winternitz attributes it, probably, to the poet Mahanama of the last quarter of the 5th century CE, and discusses it with the Dipavamsa among the Pali chronicles of Ceylon.

D. Aryamanjushree Moolkalp (Arya-Manjusri-mula-kalpa): Sanskrit. Winternitz treats it among Buddhist Sanskrit works, in the spirit of the Mantrayana; T. Ganapati Sastri edited it in the Trivandrum Sanskrit Series (1920, 1922).

The Sanskrit texts are A and D, so the answer is option (3), A, D.

The idea to remember: Sri Lanka's chronicles, Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa, are Pali; Divyavadana and Manjusrimulakalpa are Sanskrit.

Why the others are wrong

• (1)
  A, B — A is right, but B is not. The Dipavamsa is in Pali: Winternitz notes its author's many offences against grammar and metre and says it was still an unaccustomed thing for a Sinhalese to write in Pali.

  A, B would be the answer only if the Dipavamsa were a Sanskrit text.

• (2)
  B, C — This code picks the two chronicles of Sri Lanka, both of which are in Pali, and misses both Sanskrit texts.

  B, C would be the answer to the reverse question: which of these Buddhist texts were written in Pali.

• (4)
  A, C — A is right, but C is not. The Mahavamsa, probably by Mahanama in the late 5th century CE, is a Pali epic chronicle that Winternitz treats alongside the Dipavamsa.

  A, C also leaves out the Manjusrimulakalpa, which is a Sanskrit work.

Buddhist literature survives in more than one language. The Theravada canon and Sri Lanka's early chronicles, the Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa, are in Pali.

Winternitz notes that by far the greater part of Buddhist Sanskrit literature, in pure or 'mixed' Sanskrit, belongs to the Mahayana or came under its influence. Not every Sanskrit text is Mahayana: Winternitz places the Divyavadana as a whole in the Hinayana. It and the Mantrayana work Manjusrimulakalpa are both in Sanskrit.

Winternitz explains the Pali vamsa as a lineage, hence a chronicle or history, as in Buddhavamsa, Dipavamsa and Mahavamsa.

Key facts

• Winternitz calls the Divyavadana 'a later Sanskrit work'; it was edited by E. B. Cowell and R. A. Neil in 1886.
• The Dipavamsa, a Pali chronicle, was probably composed between the early 4th century and the first third of the 5th century CE, per Winternitz.
• The Mahavamsa, a Pali epic chronicle, is probably by the poet Mahanama of the last quarter of the 5th century CE.
• The Arya-Manjusri-mula-kalpa, a Buddhist Sanskrit work, was edited by T. Ganapati Sastri in the Trivandrum Sanskrit Series (1920, 1922).
• Winternitz says the Manjusrimulakalpa was translated into Chinese between 980 and 1000 CE and into Tibetan in the 11th century.

Common traps

• Assuming every Buddhist text is in Pali: the Divyavadana and the Manjusrimulakalpa are Sanskrit works.
• Taking the -vamsa ending as proof of Pali: Winternitz points to Sanskrit titles such as Harivamsa and Raghuvamsa built on the same word.
• Mixing the chronicles' authors: the Mahavamsa is probably by Mahanama, while the name of the Dipavamsa's author has not come down.

UnlockIAS will link similar questions from RAS Pre 2016 here once that paper is published on this site.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which of the following is a Pali chronicle of Sri Lanka?

  • (a)Divyavadana
  • (b)Mahavamsa
  • (c)Manjusrimulakalpa
  • (d)Lalitavistara
  Answer(2) — The Mahavamsa, probably by Mahanama, is a Pali chronicle of Sri Lanka. Options (1) and (3) are Sanskrit works, and option (4) is also a Buddhist Sanskrit text that Winternitz names with the Mahavastu and Divyavadana.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Winternitz names the poet Mahanama as the probable author of which work?

  • (a)Dipavamsa
  • (b)Mahavamsa
  • (c)Divyavadana
  • (d)Buddhacharita
  Answer(2) — Winternitz attributes the Mahavamsa, probably, to Mahanama of the late 5th century CE. Option (1) has an author whose name has not come down; option (3) is a Sanskrit avadana collection; option (4) is not by Mahanama.