Paharpur Charter of the Time of Budhagupta

Editors: Dániel Balogh, Amandine Wattelier-Bricout, Arlo Griffiths.

Identifier: DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00052.

Hand description:

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: Bengal Copper Plates (tfb-bengalcharters-epigraphy).

Version: (ac4f77d), last modified (32b4399).

Edition

⟨Page 1r⟩ ⟨1⟩ svasti⟨.⟩ puṇḍravarddhanād āyuktakā Āryya-nagara-śreṣṭhi-purogañ cādhiṣṭhānādhikaraṇaM dakṣiṇāṁśaka-vītheya-nāgiraṭṭa⟨2⟩-māṇḍalika-palāśāṭṭa-pārśvika-vaṭa-gohālī-jambudeva-prāveśya-pr̥ṣṭhima-pottaka-goṣāṭapuñjaka-mūla-nāgiraṭṭa-prāveśya- ⟨3⟩ vilva-gohālīṣu brāhmaṇottarān mahattarādi-kuṭumbinaḥ kuśalam anuvarṇṇyānubodhayanti ⟨.⟩

vijñāpayaty asmān brāhmaṇa-nātha⟨4⟩śarmmā Etad-bhāryyā rāmī ca ⟨.⟩ yuṣmākam ihādhiṣṭhānādhikaraṇe dvi-dīnārikkya-kulya-vāpena śaśvat-kālopabhogyo ’kṣaya-nīvī-samudaya-vāhyā⟨5⟩pratikara-khila-kṣetra-vāstu-vikkrayo ’nuvr̥ttas⟨.⟩ tad arhathānenaiva kkrameṇāvayos sakāśād dīnāra-trayam upasaṁ{ṅ}gr̥hyāvayo sva-puṇyāpyā⟨6⟩yanāya vaṭa-gohālyām ¿a?⟨e⟩vā¿ś?⟨s⟩yāṅ kāśika-pañca-stūpa-nikāyika-nigrantha-śramaṇācāryya-guhanandi-śiṣya-praśiṣyādhiṣṭhita-vihāre ⟨7⟩ bhagavatām arhatāṁ gandha-dhūpa-sumano-dīpādy-arttha¿n? tala-vāṭaka-nimittañ ca (A)tavaṁ vaṭa-gohālīto vāstu-droṇa-vāpam adhyarddhañ ja⟨8⟩mbudeva-prāveśya-pr̥ṣṭhima-pottak¿e?⟨ā⟩t kṣetra-droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭayaṁ goṣāṭapuñjād droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭayaM mūla-nāgiraṭṭa- ⟨9⟩ prāveśya-vilva-gohālītaḥ Arddhatrikan droṇa-vāpān ity evam adhyarddhaṁ kṣetra-(kulya)-vāpam akṣaya-nīvyā dātu(m iti) (ya)taḥ

tatra yataḥ prathama- ⟨10⟩ pustapāla-divākaranandi-pustapāla-dhr̥tiviṣṇu-virocana-rāmadāsa-haridāsa-śaśinandi-(su)prabhamanu(da)[ttā]nām avadhāraṇa⟨11⟩yāvadhr̥taM Asty asmad-adhiṣṭhānādhikaraṇe dvi-dīnārikkya-kulya-vāpena śaśvat-kālopabhogyo ’kṣaya-nīvī-sa[mu]da[ya-vā]hyāpratikara ⟨12⟩ (khila)-kṣetra-vāstu-vikkrayo ’nuvr̥ttas tad yad yuṣmā¿m?⟨n⟩ brāhmaṇa-nātha-śarmmā Etad-bhāryyā rāmī ca palāśāṭṭa-pārśvika-vaṭa-gohālī(sva) [1×]⟨Page 1v⟩ ⟨13⟩ [kāśi]ka-pañca-stūpa-kula-nikāyika-Ācāryya-nigrantha-guhanandi-śiṣya-praśiṣyādhiṣṭhita-sad-vihāre Ar{a}hatāṁ gandha-[dhūp]ādy-upayogāya ⟨14⟩ [tala]-vāṭaka-nimittañ ca Atraiva vaṭa-gohālyāṁ vāstu-droṇa-vāpam adhyarddhañ kṣetrañ jambudeva-prāveśya-pr̥ṣṭhima-pottake droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭaya ⟨15⟩ ṅ goṣāṭapuñjād droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭayaṁ mūla-nāgiraṭṭa-prāveśya-vilva-gohālīto droṇa-vāpa-dvayam āḍhavā[pa-dva]yādhikam ity evam a⟨16⟩dhyarddhaṁ kṣetra-kulya-vāpam prārtthayete ’tra na kaś cid virodhaḥ guṇas tu yat parama-bhaṭṭāraka-pādānām artthopacayo [dharmma]-ṣaḍ-bhāgāpyāya⟨17⟩nañ ca bhavati tad evaṅ kr¿i?⟨ī⟩yatām⟨.⟩ ity anenāvadhāraṇā-kkrameṇāsmād brāhmaṇa-nātha-śarmmata Etad-bhāryyā-rāmiyāś ca dīnāra-tra⟨18⟩yam āyīkr̥tyaitābhyāṁ vijñāpitaka-kkramopayogāyopari-nirddiṣṭa-grāma-gohālikeṣu tala-vāṭaka-vāstunā saha kṣetra⟨19⟩kulya-vāpa Adhyarddho ’kṣaya-nīvī-dharmmeṇa dattaḥ ⟨.⟩ ku 1 dro 4

tad yuṣmābhiḥ sva-karṣaṇāvirodhi-sthāne ṣaṭka-naḍair-apa⟨20⟩viñcchya dātavyo ’kṣaya-nīvī-dharmmeṇa ca śaśvad ācandrārkka-tāraka-kālam anu-pālayitavya Iti

sa¿M? 100 50 9 ⟨21⟩ māgha di 7

Uktañ ca bhagavatā vyāsena

I. Anuṣṭubh

sva-dattāṁ para-dattāṁ vā

a

yo hareta vasundharāM

b

⟨22⟩ sa viṣṭhāyāṁ k¿ri?mir bhūtvā

c

pitr̥bhis saha pacyate

d
II. Anuṣṭubh

ṣaṣṭi⟨ṁ⟩ varṣa-sahasrāṇi

a

svargge vasati bhūmidaḥ

b

⟨23⟩ Ākṣeptā cānumantā ca

c

tāny eva narake vaseT

d
III. Anuṣṭubh

rājabhir vvahubhir dattā

a

dīyate ca punaḥ punaḥ

b

yasya yasya ⟨24⟩ yadā bhūmi⟨s⟩

c

tasya tasya tadā phalaM

d
IV. Anuṣṭubh

pūrvva-dattāṁ dvijātibhyo

a

yatnād rakṣa yudhiṣṭhira{ḥ}

b

mahīm mah¿i?⟨ī⟩matāṁ śreṣṭha

c

⟨25⟩ dānāc chreyo ’nupālanaṁ

d
V. Anuṣṭubh

vindhyāṭavīṣv anambhassu

a

śuṣka-koṭara-vāsina⟨ḥ⟩

b

¿kr̥ṣnāhino? hi jāyante

c

deva-dāyaṁ haranti ye

d

Apparatus

⟨1⟩ puṇḍravarddhanād ⬦ puṇḍra(varddha)nād KND DCS DB. — ⟨1⟩ āyuktakā Āryya° ⬦ āyuktak¿(ā) Ā?⟨(aḥ) Ā⟩ryya- KND DCS DB.

⟨3⟩ vilva ⬦ nitva- KND DCS DB.

⟨4⟩ ihādhiṣṭhānādhikaraṇe KND DCS DB • The expression is surprising, because in parallel passages for the certification by record-keepers one never sees an adhikaraṇa, but it is confirmed by line 11. — ⟨4⟩ °bhogyo ’kṣaya- ⬦ °bhogyākṣaya- KND DCS DB. — ⟨4⟩ -vāhyā- KND DCS DB • KND and DCS observe that this is to be read as -bāhyā-. The spelling of v for b is noteworthy.

⟨5⟩ upasaṁ{ṅ}gr̥hyāvayo ⬦ upasaṅgr̥hyāvayo⟨s⟩ KND; upasaṅgr̥hyāvayo⟨ḥ⟩ DCS DB • The (superfluous) anusvāra seems rather clear on the facsimile.

⟨6⟩ vaṭa-gohālyām ¿a?⟨e⟩vā¿ś?⟨s⟩yāṅ ⬦ vaṭagohālyāmavāsyāṅ KND DCS DB • KND DCS emended to vaṭagohālyām evāsyāṅ. But the akṣara they read syā really looks more like śyā. Cf. the problem at the end of line 12. I provisionally assume that one must indeed emend vaṭagohālyām evāsyāṅ here.

⟨7⟩ dīpādy-arttha¿n? ⬦ dīpādy-artha¿n? KND DCS DB. — ⟨7⟩ -nimittañ ca Atavaṁ ⬦ -nimittañ ca A⟨ta⟩ eva KND; -nimittañ ca A⟨taḥ⟩ DCS; -nimittañ ca A eva DB • Emend Atraiva, as in line 14 and Baigram Charter of the Time of Kumāragupta I, line 16.

⟨8⟩ pottak¿e?⟨ā⟩t DB ⬦ pottak¿et?⟨e⟩ KND DCS. — ⟨8⟩ kṣetra-droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭayaṁ ⬦ kṣetraṁ droṇa-vāpa-catuṣṭayaṁ KND DCS DB • Cf. kṣetrakulyavāpam in lines 9, 16 and 18–19.

⟨9⟩ -prāveśya- DCS ⬦ -prāveśyā- KND DB. — ⟨9⟩ -vilva- ⬦ -nitva- KND DCS DB. — ⟨9⟩ Arddhatrikan droṇa- ⬦ Arddha-trika-droṇa- KND DCS DB • Is there a need to emend Arddhatrikān droṇa-? — ⟨9⟩ kṣetra-kulya-vāpam ⬦ kṣetra-⟦droṇa⟧⟨⟨kulya⟩⟩-vāpam KND DCS DB • Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 notes that ‘The engraver first wrote droṇavāpam but finding his mistake later, appears to have made an attempt at correction. The erased letters droṇa are clearly visible below kulya.’ Sircar 1965DCS has an equivalent note. — ⟨9⟩ dātu(m iti) _ (ya)taḥ ⬦ dātum i(ti) ⟨|⟩ yataḥ KND; dātum i[ty atra] yataḥ DCS; dātum iti DB.

⟨10⟩ -suprabhamanu(da)[ttā]nām ⬦ -ṣu prathamanu [2×] [nā]m KND; -suprabhamanuda[ttānā]m DCS; suprabha-manudattānām DB • Sircar 1965 notes the alternative possibility -manudāsānām. The editor’s note 8 to Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930’s text states: “The text of the Dāmodarpur plates would suggest that avadhāraṇayā was preceded by the names of the record-keepers which were put in the genitive plural.—Ed.”.

⟨11⟩ °vadhr̥taM Asty DCS ⬦ °vadhr̥tam asty KND DB. — ⟨11⟩ °bhogyo ’kṣaya- ⬦ °bhogyākṣaya- KND DCS DB. — ⟨11⟩ -sa[mu]da[ya-vā]hyā- ⬦ -samu[daya-vā]hyā- KND; -samu[daya]-vāhyā- DCS; samudaya-vāhyā- DB.

⟨12⟩ (khila) ⬦ [khila] KND DCS DB. — ⟨12⟩ yuṣmā¿m?⟨n⟩ ⬦ yuṣmā¿m? KND DCS DB • Already corrected by Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 and Sircar 1965. — ⟨12⟩ -gohālī(sva) [1×]- ⬦ -gohālī(stha?)ya- KND DB; -gohālīsth[āyi]- DCS • For the penultimate akṣara, sva (or ṣva) seems the most evident choice; see the shape of the same akṣara in line 25. Cf. the problem in line 6.

⟨13⟩ -[kāśi]ka- DCS DB ⬦ [2×]ka- KND • Thus restored by Sircar 1965. — ⟨13⟩ Ar{a}hatāṁ ⬦ Ar¿a?hatāṁ KND DCS DB • Emend Arhatāṁ as noted by Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 and Sircar 1965.

⟨14⟩ [tala]-vāṭaka- ⬦ [tala-v]āṭaka- KND DB; [tala-vā]ṭaka- DCS. — ⟨14⟩ Atraiva ⬦ tatraiva KND DCS DB. — ⟨14⟩ adhyarddhañ ⬦ adhyarddhaṁ KND DCS DB. — ⟨14⟩ -droṇa-vāpa- KND DCS ⬦ droṇa-vāpa- DB. — ⟨14⟩ -catuṣṭaya ⟨15⟩ ṅ goṣāṭa° ⬦ -catuṣṭayaṁ ⟨15⟩ goṣāṭa° KND DCS DB.

⟨15⟩ -vilva- ⬦ -nitva- KND DCS DB.

⟨16⟩ prārtthayete ⬦ prārtthayate KND DCS DB • Sircar 1965 emend to prārtthayete, but the e-mātra on the y seems clear enough. — ⟨16⟩ [dharmma]-ṣaḍ- ⬦ dharmma-ṣaḍ- KND DCS DB.

⟨17⟩ kr¿i?⟨ī⟩yatām ⬦ kriyatām KND DCS DB • Emend krīyatām?

⟨18⟩ vijñāpitaka-kkramopa° ⬦ vijñāpitaka-kramopa°- KND DCS DB. — ⟨18⟩ tala-vāṭaka-vāstunā KND DCS DB • Sircar 1965 proposes to emend talavāṭakaṁ vāstunā, but this does not seem to me to yield a better sense. — ⟨18⟩ kṣetra ⟨19⟩ kulya-vāpa ⬦ kṣetraṁ kulyavāpa KND DB; kṣetraṁ kulyavāpa⟨ḥ⟩ DCS.

⟨19⟩ sva-karṣaṇāvirodhi° DCS ⬦ sva-karmmaṇāvirodhi° KND DB.

⟨24⟩ yudhiṣṭhira{ḥ} ⬦ yudhiṣṭhira KND DCS DB • Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 and Sircar 1965do not read the (unwanted) visarga.

⟨25⟩ anambhassu DCS ⬦ anambhasṣu KND DB.

Plate

Part A

(1–3) Hail! From Puṇḍravardhana, the officers and the city council led by the city’s guild-president (nagaraśreṣṭhin)1 Ārya greet the peasant householders, beginning with the notables — the most eminent among them being the Brahmins — in [the hamlet of] Vaṭa-Gohālī by the side of Palāśāṭṭa, [that of] Pr̥ṣṭhimapottaka under Jambudeva, [that of] Goṣāṭapuñjaka, and [that of] Bilva-Gohālī under Mūla-Nāgiraṭṭa, (all) in the Nāgiraṭṭa circle of the Dakṣiṇāṅśaka territory, and inform them:

(3–9) The brahmin Nāthaśarman and his wife Ramī respectfully request us:

In the council of your capital here, the custom is sale for two dīnāras of a kulyavāpa of uncultivated land (khilakṣetra) or homestead land (vāstu) that is without revenue charges and yields no tax, as permanent endowment to be enjoyed in perpetuity. Thus (tad), in this very manner, be so kind as to take from both of us three dīnāras and — for the purpose of the merit of the both of us being increased — to give as permanent endowment, for the sake of perfume, incense, flowers and lamps, etc., for the venerable Arhants of the monastery in the same Vaṭa-Gohālī, overseen by the disciples and grand-disciples of the Jaina śramaṇa master Guhanandin of the Kāśika-Pañcastūpa school and for the purpose of (use as) adjoining parcel:

  • from Vaṭa-Gohālī itself: one-and-a-half droṇavāpa of homestead land;
  • from Pr̥ṣṭhimapottaka under Jambudeva: four droṇavāpas of land;
  • from Goṣāṭapuñja: four droṇavāpas of land;
  • from Bilva-Gohālī under Mūla-Nāgiraṭṭa: a two-and-a-half droṇavāpas;
thus one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land.

(9–19) Wherefore, it has been established through the investigation of the chief record-keeper Divākaranandin, and the record-keepers Dhr̥tiviṣṇu, Virocana, Rāmadāsa, Haridāsa, Śaśinandin, Suprabha and Manudatta:

That the custom in the council of our capital is sale for two dīnāras of a kulyavāpa of uncultivated land or homestead land that is without revenue charges and yields no tax, as permanent endowment to be enjoyed in perpetuity. So, with regard to the one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land — to be used for perfume, incense, etc., and for the venerable Arhants of the good monastery in ??? Vaṭa-Gohālī by the side of Palāśāṭṭa, overseen by the disciples and grand-disciples of the Jaina master Guhanandin of the Kāśika-Pañcastūpakula school, and for the purpose of (use as) adjoining parcel: in Vaṭa-Gohālī here itself, one-and-a-half droṇavāpa of homestead land; in Pr̥ṣṭhimapottaka under Jambudeva, four droṇavāpas; from Goṣāṭapuñja, four droṇavāpas; from Bilva-Gohālī under Mūla-Nāgiraṭṭa, two droṇavāpas plus two āḍhavāpas — which the brahmin Nāthaśarman and his wife Ramī ask you, there is no conflict (with the interest of the king); on the contrary, there is virtue, in that wealth will accrue to his Majesty as well as the increase of (the king’s own merit by his obtaining) the sixth part of the merit (accruing from the donation). So, let it be done (or: sold?) in this way.

On the basis of this procedure of investigation, in accordance with the rule for permanent endowments, after three dīnāras had been received (by us) in cash from this brahmin Nāthaśarman and from his wife Ramī, the two have given one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land with homestead land (for use) as adjoining parcel, in the above-mentioned village gohālikas (hamlets?) for the purpose of the requested procedure. 1 ku, 4 dro.

(19–21) So you must separate them off using six reeds, in a place that does not conflict with your own cultivation, make the donation according to the rule for permanent endowments and protect it in perpetuity as long as moon, sun and stars will last. Year 159, (month of) Māgha, day 7.

(21–25) And it has been said by the Lord Vyāsa:

I
The one who would steal land given by himself or another becomes a worm in shit and is cooked with his ancestors.2
II
The giver of land resides sixty thousand years in heaven; the one who challenges (a donation) as well as the one who approves (of the challenge) will reside as many [years] in hell.3
III
Numerous kings have been and are giving land again and again. Whoever holds land at a given time, to him does the fruit belong.4
IV
You, excellent Yudhiṣṭhira, must strenuously protect land previously given to brahmins by kings. Safeguarding is even better than giving.5
V
Those who steal a land donation are born (again) as black snakes living in dry caves in the waterless Vindhya forests.6

New translation suggested by amwb

(1–3) Hail! From Puṇḍravardhana, the officers and the city council led by the guild-president of the town (called) Ārya7 (nagaraśreṣṭhin) greet the peasant householders, beginning with the notables consisting chiefly of Brahmins,8 (residing) in Vaṭa-gohālī (which is situated) by the side of Palāśāṭṭa, (residing) in Pr̥ṣṭhima-pottaka, (which is) a part of Jambudeva, (residing) in Bilva-gohālī (which is) part of Mūlanāgiraṭṭa (the original Nāgiraṭṭa town ?), (residing) in Goṣāṭapuñjaka, (all) attached to the Nāgiraṭṭa circle of the Dakṣiṇāṅśaka territory9 and inform them:

(3–5) The brahmin Nāthaśarman accompagnied with his wife Ramī respectfully requests us:

In your city-council which is held here, the custom is sale for two dīnāras of a kulyavāpa of uncultivated land (khilakṣetra) or homestead land (vāstu) that is without revenue charges and yields no tax, as permanent endowment to be enjoyed in perpetuity.

(5–9) Thus (tad), in this very manner, after receiving from both of us the sum of three dīnāras, in order to increase the merit of the both of us, be so kind as to give to the venerable Arhants of the monastery in the same Vaṭa-Gohālī, overseen by the grand-disciple of the disciple of the Jaina śramaṇa master Guhanandin of the Kāśika-Pañcastūpa school,10 for the sake of perfume, incense, flowers and lamps, etc., , and for the purpose of (use as) an adjacent park, one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land as permanent endowment (divided) exactly as it follows:11

  • in this very place (atraiva ?), from Vaṭa-Gohālī itself: one-and-a-half droṇavāpa of homestead land;
  • from Pr̥ṣṭhimapottaka part of Jambudeva: four droṇavāpas of land;
  • from Goṣāṭapuñja: four droṇavāpas of land;
  • from Bilva-Gohālī (which is) part of Mūlanāgiraṭṭa: a two-and-a-half droṇavāpas;

(9–17) Wherefore, it has been established through the investigation of the chief record-keeper Divākaranandin, and the record-keepers Dhr̥tiviṣṇu, Virocana, Rāmadāsa, Haridāsa, Śaśinandin, Suprabha and Manudatta:

That the custom in the council of our city is sale for two dīnāras of a kulyavāpa of uncultivated land or homestead land that is without revenue charges and yields no tax, as permanent endowment to be enjoyed in perpetuity. So (tad), concerning the one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land that the brahmin Nāthaśarman and his wife Ramī ask you, in order to be used for perfume, incense, etc., and for the venerable Arhants of the the virtuous monastery overseen by the grand-disciple of the disciple of the Jaina master Guhanandin of the Kāśika-Pañcastūpakula school12 located in Vaṭa-Gohālī by the side of Palāśāṭṭa13 and in order to be used as adjacent park — (dividing as follows)

  • one-and-a-half droṇavāpa of homestead land in Vaṭa-Gohālī here itself,
  • four droṇavāpas in Pr̥ṣṭhimapottaka part of Jambudeva,
  • four droṇavāpas from Goṣāṭapuñja,
  • two droṇavāpas plus two āḍhavāpas from Bilva-Gohālī (which is) part of Mūlanāgiraṭṭa —
; ( concerning this one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land), there is no conflict (with the interest of the king); on the contrary, there is virtue, since wealth will accrue to his Majesty by the additional coming of a sixth part of merit (accruing from the protection providing by the king)14 So, let (this transaction) be done in this way.

(17–19) On the basis of this procedure of investigation, after three dīnāras had been received (by us) in cash from this brahmin Nāthaśarman and from his wife Ramī, the two have given one-and-a-half kulyavāpa of land with homestead land as well as an adjacent park, in the above-mentioned villages and gohālikas (hamlets?) for the purpose of the requested procedure, in accordance with the rule for permanent endowments. 1 ku, 4 dro.

(19–21) So (tad), after separating them off using six reeds, in a place that does not conflict with your own cultivation, you must make the donation and,according to the rule for permanent endowments, you must protect it in perpetuity as long as moon, sun and stars will last. Year 159, (month of) Māgha, day 7.

(21–25) And it has been said by the Lord Vyāsa:

I
The one who would steal land given by himself or another becomes a worm in excrement and is cooked with his ancestors.15
II
The giver of land resides sixty thousand years in heaven; the one who challenges (a donation) as well as the one who approves (of the challenge) will reside as many [years] in hell.16
III
Numerous kings have been and are giving land again and again. Whoever holds land at a given time, to him does the fruit belong.17
IV
You, excellent Yudhiṣṭhira, must strenuously protect land previously given to brahmins by kings. Safeguarding is even better than giving.18
V
Those who steal a land donation are born (again) as black snakes living in dry caves in the waterless Vindhya forests.19

Commentary

Bibliography

First edited by Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930, who described the circumstances of its discovery on page 59. Re-edited here by Arlo Griffiths based on the facsimile published by Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930. The text has been encoded by Amandine Wattelier-Bricout using a digital edition created by Dániel Balogh for the Siddham project as starting point. Since some readings differ from this previous digital edition, as well as those of Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 and of Sircar 1965, these ones are reported in the apparatus. The text has been translated by Arlo Griffiths and Amandine Wattelier-Bricout.

Primary

[KND] Dikshit, Kashinath. [1933] 1929–1930. “Paharpur copper-plate grant of the [Gupta] year 159.” EI 20, pp. 59–64. Pages 59–64.

[DCS] Sircar, Dines Chandra. 1965. Select inscriptions bearing on Indian history and civilization. Volume I: from the sixth century B.C. to the sixth century A.D. 2nd edition revised and enlarged. Calcutta: University of Calcutta. Part III, entry 42, pages 359–363.

Agrawala, Prithvi Kumar. 1983. Imperial Gupta Epigraphs (गुप्ताधिराजलेखमण्डल). Ancient Indian Epigraphical Sources (प्रत्नाभिलेखसंहिता) X.1. Varanasi: Books Asia. Entry 50, pages 98–101.

Goyal, Śrīrām. 1993. गुप्तकालीन अभिलेख/Guptakālīna Abhilekha (Inscriptions of the Gupta Age). Jodhpur: Kusumanjali Prakashan. Pages 277–81.

[DB] Balogh, Dániel, Csaba Kiss and Eszter Somogyi. 2019. “Siddham Epigraphic Archive - Texts in EpiDoc [Data set].” Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.2574901. [URL]. Item IN00065.

Secondary

Bhandarkar, Devadatta Ramakrishna. 1927–1936. A list of the inscriptions of northern India in Brahmi and its derivative scripts, from about 200 A. C.: Appendix to Epigraphia Indica and record of the Archaeological Survey of India, volumes XIX to XXIII. Calcutta: Archaeological Survey of India. [URL]. Page 283, entry 2037.

Chandra, B.C. 1957. Annual report on Indian epigraphy for 1956-57. New Delhi: Manager of Publications (Department of Archaeology). Item 27, entry 14, appendix A.

Notes

  1. 1. Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930 interpreted this word to mean ‘mayor’. Basak 1919–1920, p. 131, in his publication of the Damodarpur grants, had adopted the translation ‘guild-president of the town’, which was retained without discussion by Chattopadhyaya 1990, p. 39. Sircar 1966, p. 209 favors something like the former interpretation: “according to some, the city banker or guild president of the town; but actually, the chairman of a board of administration like the Panchāyat; same as the Nagarseṭh who was the chairman of the board called Cauthiyā in late medieval Rajasthan”. In view of the context in which the term occurs in two of the Damodarpur plates (Damodarpur#1, line 4 and #4, line 3), and in view of the fact that śreṣṭhin seems to designate a merchant or banker in the epigraphy of the Gupta period, as elsewhere, I tentatively decide against Sircar’s argument, although the matter is not clear-cut to my taste: the compound nagaraśreṣṭhin is too rare (none other than in this one and in two of the Damodarpur plates are known to me) to be sure whether the usual meaning of śreṣṭhin must be assumed to be pertinent in this compound too..
  2. 2. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 132 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  3. 3. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 123 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  4. 4. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 2" among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  5. 5. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 131 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  6. 6. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 150 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200), but shows some different readings of the pādas c and d.
  7. 7. I assume Ārya as a name of place from several reasons. First, in Damodarpur plates, when the expression nagaraśreṣṭhin is used, the name of the nagaraśreṣṭhin is placed after and not before :

    • Damodarpur plate #1, line 4 : nagaraśreṣṭhidhṛtipāla "Dhṛtipāla, the town’s guild-president";
    • Damodarpur plate #2, line 4 : nagara(śre)ṣṭhidhṛtipāla "Dhṛtipāla, the town’s guild-president";
    • Damodarpur plate #4 lines 3-4 : nagaraśreṣṭhiribhupāla "Ribhupāla, the town’s guild-president";
    • in the Damodarpur #5 plate, line 4, we are faced the same expression, āryyya(na)gara(śreṣṭhi)ri(bhu)pāla, that I suggest translating as here by "Ribhupāla, the guild-president of the town (called) Ārya.

    Then, in the grant of land to monasteries at Śiṣīpuñja, Madhyamasṛgālikā and Grāmakūṭagohālī, Ārya is the name of a village. In the compound used in this plate in lines 1-2 "(ṣa)ṇḍ(ika-)vīth[e]yā[r](y)ya(-g)r[āma]-prāveśya-śiṣīpuñja-maddhyamasr̥gālikā{yā}bjataṭāpagaccha-prāveśya-grāma-kūṭagohāly(āṁ), we can observe that the name of the village Ārya is placed before its designation as a village grama. In consequence of this, in the compound Āryyanagaraśreṣṭhipurogañ, it could be possible to construe Ārya as the name of the nagara.
  8. 8. The expression brāhmaṇottarān occurs in several other plates: Raktamālā Grant no. 1, year 159, line 2; Baigram Charter of the Time of Kumāragupta I, line 2 ; A grant of land in the Tāvīra district, line 6; Nandapur Plate of 169 GE, line 1 and A second grant concerning the Raktamālā line 2. The translation suggested here corresponds to the specific meaning of the compound brāhmaṇottara- reported by Apte 1890, p. 1174. If we only follow the meaning given by Apte 1890, № 8, p. 408 and Monier-Williams et al. 1899, p. 178 for the word -uttara in fine compositi, the translation would be “followed by Brahmins”.
  9. 9. The term X-prāveśya-Y in cadastral contexts indicates that Y is part of the larger unit X. See the glossary in Schmiedchen forthcoming.
  10. 10. I see the part of the compound °nigrantha-śramaṇācāryya-guhanandi-śiṣya-praśiṣyādhiṣṭhita° in line 6 as a kind of guru-lineage whose function would be to proove the great age of this monastery or to assert the high standing of its leader. Consequently I translate both śiṣya and praśiṣya by a singular.
  11. 11. From the repartition given below, one can deduce that one kulyavāpa is worth eight droṇavāpas, as Dikshit [1933] 1929–1930, pp. 60–1 had already underlined.
  12. 12. See the previous note (line 6) about the translation of the compound °nigrantha-śramaṇācāryya-guhanandi-śiṣya-praśiṣyādhiṣṭhita° as a guru-lineage.
  13. 13. Here, as the last akṣara in line 12 is illegible, I don’t take into account this missing akṣara and conjecture two scribal errors in palāśāṭṭapārśvikavaṭagohālīsva : first a superfluous a at the end of the compound and a plural locative instead of a singular one. So I translate as if it was palāśāṭṭapārśvikavaṭagohālyām.
  14. 14. On the sixth part of the merit obtained by the king for his protection of the given lands, see Yājñavalkya I.331 (Olivelle 2019, p. 107): “puṇyātṣaḍbhāgamādatte nyāyena paripālayan | sarvadānādhikaṁ yasmānnyāyena paripālanam ||331” “he (the king) takes a sixth portion of the merits by providing protection justly, because providing protection justly greater than all gifts.”
  15. 15. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 132 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  16. 16. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 123 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200), except for the verb used in the pāda b.
  17. 17. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 23 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  18. 18. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 131 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200).
  19. 19. This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 150 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar (see Sircar 1965, appendix II, pp. 170–200), but shows some different readings of the pādas c and d.