Mariano Saldanha, "A literatura puranica christam"

 Yesterday, visiting the Xavier Historical Centre, Porvorim, I browsed through Mariano Saldanha's very interesting account of Christian puranic literature. Some points I found useful:

1. His list of Christian puranas - at least 8.

2. His mention of a Devanagari script MS of the Khristapurana in the Bibliothek National, Vienna. (M. Saldanha p. 8)

3. That this literature is largely unknown and forgotten in Goa - the reasons he gives are that, with education, people were unable to access the Marathi language Puranas. The exceptions in Portuguese Goa are the fishing communities of Tiracol, Chapora, Morgim and Assanora:

"constituindo o único deleite literário de alguns rendeiros e pescadores de nossas remotas aldeias, como Tiracol, Chaporá, Morgim e Assonorá," (M. Saldanha p. 5)

4. He takes issue with Abbott, who considered the Marsden Devanagari MSS the originals. [However, the issue is still debatable, according to me.] Abbott does, however, reveal an insufficient knowledge of the Stephens' KP, as when he says that no one even suspected the existence of a Devanagari MS. J.L. Saldanha clearly mentions that he had one such MS at his disposal.

"The discovery I made that these two parts (do Purana de Londres) were the Devanagary Original of the Christian Purana of T. Stevens, edited by J.L. Saldanha and published in Mangalore in 1907, was a complete surprise, for I believe it has not even been suspected that such a Devanagary original existed. » (Abbott, at M. Saldanha p. 8)

5. M. Saldanha considers the Mangalore edition of J.L. Saldanha as standard. 

6. Cunha Rivara did not know any Indian languages. He considered the KP as a work in Konkani, which is clearly contradicted by what Stephens himself writes.

Mariano Saldanha's MS of the Khristapurana

Just discovered Marian Saldanha's MS of the KP in possession of the Thomas Stephens Konknni Kendra, Alto Porvorim, Goa (TSKK no. V 353).

Leather bound volume, with The Christian Puranna embossed on the spine, along with M.C. Saldanha embossed lower down. In pencil, on the first page, is also M.C. Saldahna. With all likelihood this is one of the MS used by J.L. Saldanha in his work, and mentioned by him in his Preface to The Christian Puranna (1907): "Mr Marian Saldanha, "an enthusiast of Purannic literature".

Is this M.C. Saldanha the same as Dr Mariano Luis Jose de Gonzaga Saldanha of Ucassaim? More proof will be needed. Could it be "M.G. Saldanha" rather than "M.C. Saldanha"? And did the Professor from Ucassaim sign himself "M.G. Saldanha"?

On the 'first' page, written in blue ink:

Father Thomas Stephens
Padri Thomas Estevao
Hea Puranncha adicary
Author of this Puranna...

Next: "Paixao de Christo". First line begins thus: "Namana Marie mate maza..."

Next item: Frei Gaspar de San Miguel's praise of Thomas Stephens.

On a retro: A handwritten page, seems to have been pasted over, but someone has cut out parts.

Next: Pailem Puranna. The first pages seem to be in a more recent hand, probably because the 'original' MS had been corrupted. The later pages, the majority of the MS, is in a more elegant hand.

The language seems Romanized: Spiritu Santu; padri guru.

The praise of Marathi is there: Avesvaru 1, 121 ff.

At the end of the first Puranna someone has counted the verses in each of the Purannas: 1st: 4296; 2nd: 6722; a total of 11018 verses.

Dussarem Puranna: same hand as the Pailem. Romanized: Sao Joao (Av. 18, 54).

Av. 59 ends with v. 122. The Drago edition instead, for examle, goes further; it gives the date of completion as 1614 in v. 129.

Next: "Avesuara Dussara 1722" in blue ink at the head of the page, obviously added later.

The title: "Calvarincha pravatu tethe...." This might be another Paixao. It looks similar to the one in the Goa Central Library MS. Even the date - 1722 - seems familiar. In fact, the last page of this unit reads: "Padra Pascual Gomes de Faria / Hea Purannaca Adicary / 1722 Varussim Rachila."

next item, in a different hand: begins abruptly: "Quarto Mistero / Quinto Mistero".

next item: "Mrutichiya Banna."

A stamp on one of the last pages, or perhaps the inside back cover: CODIALBAIL PRESS, MANGALORE. Perhaps an indication that these MS were bound there.