Sanskrit Manuscripts : Tantrākhyāna, Ekādaśīvratanāṭaka

Sanskrit Manuscripts

<p style='text-align: justify;'>A palm-leaf manuscript containing the <i>Tantrākhyāna</i> and the <i>Ekādaśīvratanāṭaka</i>. The <i>Tantrākhyāna</i> is the Nepalese recension of the <i>Pañcatantra</i>, consisting of a collection of forty-three tales, without a frame story and in a different order than in other <i>Pañcatantra</i> recensions. Each tale begins with a <i>subhāṣita</i> summarizing the morale, followed by a shortened version of the tale, limited to the bare plot. The <i>Tantrākhyāna</i> enjoyed great popularity in Nepal, and was translated into Newari. Originally belonging to one manuscript, the two works were separated and assigned different shelfmarks (Or. 727 and Or.719 respectively), but now they have been digitally reunited ("I obtained another copy of the <i>Tantrākhyāna</i>, a work already in the Wright collection [...] In the same covers, and written by the same scribe 'Jasavarma, is a quasi-dramatic piece on the <i>Ekādaśīvratanāṭaka</i> or the vow of the eleventh day, composed (fol. 4, a 4) for king Jayaratna Malla", Bendall 1886: 55-56). The two works are yet unpublished (some stories from the <i>Tantrākhyāna</i> have been edited, together with a translation, in Bendall 1888), but are being edited in the framework of a project on the "Malla Renaissance" by C. Formigatti and D. Cuneo.</p>