Sri Lankan grammatical discoveries (final report)

After a gruelling 48 hours of transit, I am now back in the Lao P.D.R.
(by plane -> train -> bicycle).

Nyanatusita and I had mixed results from various research trips to the
Royal Asiatic Society, National Museum Library, National Archives,
National Library, National Ministry of Culture, and various university
campuses in Colombo.  I should here thank Nyanatusita for accompanying
me throughout, playing the role of Virgil to my Dante in navigating
the rings of Colombo's streets in the withering heat.  I was able to
return the favour somewhat, by playing the Kappukara's role, and
buying some books to donate to the Forest Hermitage collection.

We ordered five MS from the National Museum's collection --only 2
could be found.  When they invited me to check for a missing Kacc. MS
myself, I could easily see significant numbers of "missing" MS in the
numbering system for every shelf.  Evidently, the collection is being
looted at a gradual pace; on an earlier trip, Nyanatusita had a
similar proportion of MS discovered to be "not present" in response to
his requests.  It may be that some of these MS have been "legitimately
misplaced" --but I doubt that this is the significant cause.  We duly
requested to have one rare meditation text and one edition of Kacc.
Xerox copied for our edification, and I shall hope that the Museum
Library will follow through on our requests.

One of the most unexpectedly positive experiences (in negotiating our
way through various bureaucratic organizations and libraries) was at
the Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka (RASSL).  The staff were truly
very helpful, and eagerly encouraged us in photographing Ta Do Oung's
rare grammar, as well as encouraging Ny. to become a member, and
requesting that I return and give a formal lecture on Kacc. after my
book is complete.  While it is a small office, the RASSL is genuinely
well organized, and encouraging of visiting scholars (not the
impression one gets at the Peradeniya library!); I would also note
that in an era of very poor content filling the pages of
once-prestigious academic publications, the recent issues of the
journal of the RASSL really did seem to contain much of merit, from
all fields of archaeology, history, etc., including (but not limited
to) textual studies.  As I perused various issues of their journal, I
certainly found it much less depressing than reading such stuff as
"Philosophy East and West" now publishes, etc.!

In passing, I will mention that I met Ms. Anne Blackburn, who later
gave a speech at the RASSL herself (I did not attend, and had already
departed the island).  I was rather shocked that her long and verbose
book on the "transitional period" of the establishment of the Siam
Nikaya in S.L. hardly mentioned the case system --i.e., the most
interesting and significant aspect of that "transition" being the
formal incorporation of caste into the Sinhalese monastic system (and
the exclusion of low-caste persons from higher ordination, etc., by
the Siam Nikaya).  This subject was only mentioned on four pages of
her text, about three of them were brief footnotes, and the fourth
said nothing of substance on the matter.  I would assume that she is
trying to earn her place in the "good graces" of the Siam Nikaya by
saying nothing "offensive"; I take a dim view of such a compromise
--and I can only surmise that her scholarship is thus "compromised".

Here is the final report of grammatical "discoveries" from my Sri
Lankan research trip.  For all sources, I am particuar in reproducing
the (mis-)spellings of the title and author's names as they appear in
the text itself --as the same spellings (erroneous or not) will likely
appear in library catalogues.  The usual ambiguities between "w" and
"v", the presence or absence of a redundant "-ya" ending, etc., should
always be considered when searching for Sinhalese editions.

1. Of all the Sinhalese editions of the Sadda-Niti that I've seen (and
I saw many during this trip), the most impressive seemed to be the
following:
   _Mahaasaddaniiti: an advanced grammar of the Paali language_,
Aggawa.nsa Mahaa Thera, (revised by:) Aruggoda Seelaananda Thera,
1909, Colombo, H.C. Cotte, Government Printer.
    I say it is "the most impressive" on fairly superficial grounds,
i.e., the beauty of the edition, legibility, etc., but these are
fairly weighty considerations if you plan to spend much time with a
text; I also assume that because it is of sufficiently late date (and
is a large, handsome edition, evidently produced for local consumption
by experts) that some care has been taken to correct errors from
earlier 19th century editions (of which there are many) --but this is
a crass assumption on my part.

2. I can now provide somewhat fuller citations for the
"A.t.thakatha-suuci" that I have alluded to earlier.  It does indeed
seem to be an excellent resource, but Nyanatusita expressed a very
reasonable concern in asking if it had been completed, or if the
project was abandoned after the first few volumes (as per the CPD!).
In any case, we have only seen the first few volumes, and it would be
very useful if Rett or Ole could check their library catalogues to
determine whether or not this was compiled for the entire alphabet.
If so, it is a major "Pali-Pali dictionary", that provides references
to the word definitions found throughout the commentaries.
   _Atthakathasuuci_, (editor:) Kosagoda Sirisumedha, 1961 (vol. II =
1962), Anula Press, Colombo (NB: that's Anula Press --I think I
mis-reported the publisher in an earlier e-mail).

3. I note two Sinhalese editions of the Netti., both looking very good
by the superficial criteria I could apply, and with the same peculiar
spelling of the author's name, but, apparently, each created by a
completely different editorship (working from different MS??):
   _Nettippakarana.m_, Bhadanta Maha Kachchayana, (revised by:)
Deniyapitiye Sudassi Thera & Ven. Sri Sumangala Ratanasara, 1923,
(printed in:) Tal-arambe (!! a small town in Sri Lanka).
   _Nettippakarana.m_, Bhadanta Maha Kachchayana, (revised by:) Pandit
D. Siri Sudassi Thera & Pandit K. Sirinivasa, 1948, (printed in:)
Kandana (?? alternate spelling of Kandy??).

In closing, I do not know if I mentioned that I made a long trip
through the ancient cities, etc., in the company of two veterans of
humanitarian causes in Burma (i.e., providing direct assistance to
concentration camps and prisoners of "detention centres" on the
Burma-Thai border), namely, Ken & Vishaka Kawasaki.  I thus learned a
great deal of practical significance about the slow-motion genocides
that are proceeding in Burma, while at the same time inspecting the
old inscriptions, etc., in the ancient cities.  My own presence on the
journey was incidental --the original cause for their organizing the
trip was to provide an opportunity for two Indian monks (part of the
"New Buddhist" movement in India) to conduct a pilgrimage.  I learned
a bit more about the ongoing caste struggle in India from these monks;
I also note that they chanted Pali at a few of the sites, and their
phonetic reading of the Pali was impeccable.  Perhaps the Maharastri
Prakrit has preserved a sense of the pronounciation and elocution of
Pali?  One can only hope.

E.M.