Oh dear, you're absolutely right, Madhav -- but with regard to the Halāyudhakośa (which I saw in a poor-quality PDF of a printed edition and obviously misread) rather than to the manuscripts in question. I have two for this particular verse; here is the one with the more legible handwriting:



This matches the way the scribe writes द्य in other places as well. Thanks for setting me straight, although that means I'm back to square one: the text almost certainly does mean to say prādyuṇika (or -aka), but what does it mean? 'Guest' doesn't really fit anyway; from the context as well as the Arabic original, it should relate to something everyday or frequently recurring, to contrast with 'special occasions' like weddings (and, in the Arabic, circumcisions).

Best wishes,
Martin

Den 2022-05-19 kl. 17:31, skrev Madhav Deshpande:

Hello Martin,

     I wonder if the reading prādyuṇika is actually a misreading for prāghuṇika/prāghuṇaka which refers to a visitor or guest, and has Prakrit cognate in pāhuṇia, and pāhuṇā in Marathi. The characters द्य and घ can often be misread in manuscripts. Best,

Madhav

Madhav M. Deshpande

Professor Emeritus, Sanskrit and Linguistics

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Senior Fellow, Oxford Center for Hindu Studies

Adjunct Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, India

[Residence: Campbell, California, USA]