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Supplement to the Rishyashringa article

Source:
The Mahabharata, Vol. II
2. The Book of the Assembly Hall
3. The Book of the Forest
Translated and Edited by J.A.B. van Buitenen
The University of Chicago Press (1975)
Pages 188-193

For the history of unicorn and Rishyashringa, main sources quoted by van Buitenen are as follows:
1) Heinrich Luders, "Die Saga von Rsyasrnga", Nachrichte Gottinygen Academy, Phil.-hist. class. 1897
2) Odell Shepard, The Lore of the Unicorn (New York, 1967).

Other works quoted in these books:
1) Francis J. Carmody, Physiologus: The Very Ancient Book of Beast, Plants and Stones, limited edition (San Fransisco, 1953).
2) Fray Luis de Urreta, Historia de los Grandes y remotas Reynos de la Etopia, Monarchia del Emperador Ilamado Presto Luan (Valencia, 1610).
3) Samuel Beal, Romantic Legend of Sakya Buddhism (London, 1875)

According to Luders, Rishyashringa appears in the following ancient eastern texts:
1) Mahabharata
2) Ramayana
3) Padma Purana
4) Skanda Purana
5) Several Jatakas and other Buddhist texts
6) Tibetan Kanjur
7) Jaiminiya-Upanishad-Brahmana of ca. 800 B.C.

To quote van Buitenen:
" Pursuing his personal quest for the source of the unicorn legend, Sheperd finally comes to rest with the account given by Fray Luis of the capture of the African Rhinoceros. ........"

" I think that a better source can be found. It is sad, and in view of his meticulous research mot a little surprising, thet Shepard was not aware of an 1897 article by Heinrich Luders, "Die Sage von Rsyasrnga". ....... .... Luders foregoes much detail and points out that Samuel Beal had footnoted: "The connection of this myth (that is of Rishyashringa) with the midieaval story of the unicorn being capable of capture only by a chaste woman is too evident to require proof."

van Buitenen continues for two more pages saying that "The connection deserves more than a footnote". He ends by pointing out connections between poison in unicorn legend and milk in Rishyashringa story. van Buitenen concludes his discussion that lasts five pages:" But it does not do to insist on this coincidence: the career of Rishyashringa has already been marvelous enough".