Paul Dundas (23 May 1952 – 5 April 2023) was a Scottish Indologist, an honorary fellow in Sanskrit language and Head of Asian studies at the University of Edinburgh. His teachings and research focused extensively on understanding Jainism, Buddhism, Sanskrit literature and Middle Indo-Aryan philology. He was regarded as one of the leading scholars in Jaina and Prakrit studies. He was a member of the Council of the Pali Text Society.
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In this Dossier
Paul Dundas in the context of Lesya
Lesya, according to the Jain theory of karma, is the coloring of the soul on account of its association with the karmic matter. The colour of leśyā varies from person to person depending on the psychic states and mental activities behind an action. The coloring of the soul is explained through the analogy of crystal, that acquires the color of the matter associated with it. In the same way, the soul reflects the qualities of colour, taste, smell and touch of associated karmic matter, although it is usually the colour that is referred to when discussing the leśyās. Paul Dundas notes the key text expressing this Jain doctrine, explaining how the literary form of the text is helpful in dating and reconstructing the history of transmission.