# Kanheri Cave 3 Left Pillar Inscription

Kelsey Martini and Vincent Tournier

Authors of digital edition: Kelsey Martini, Vincent Tournier

Contributor: Kelsey Martini

Identifier: DHARMA_INSKanheri00006

Repository: Early Western Deccan (tfb-earlywesterndeccan-epigraphy)

File path: xml/DHARMA_INSKanheri00006.xml

Language: Middle Indo-Aryan [Script (unspecified)]

Commit: 2026-09-17 08:03 (159f390), last modified 2026-09-17 05:29
(3d6ac09)

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## Edition

⟨1⟩ [9+]kha(bh)ālakarasu Ādhaṁ⟨2⟩[7+] Aka(sa) c(et)iAsa
bha⟨3⟩[5+]lakārasu (ca) (pa)vayitāṇaṁ ya⟨4⟩[3+]Akhayanivi (da)tā
sopārakāhāre ha⟨5⟩[lāṇi] (t)[i]nī 3 kālīAṇe Abālikāvihare
c(e)ti⟨6⟩[Agha]r(o)pathāṇas(ā)l(ā) Ovarakāni patiṭhāṇe vihā⟨7⟩[re]
[1+]ṭigupasada(riya) cetiAgharo ovarakā terasa ⟨8⟩ [10 3]
saAkha⟨ya⟩nivik(ā r)ājatalāka paIṭhāṇapathe ⟨9⟩ (A)saṇe culik(api)yakuṭi
koḍhi ca khāṇitā sa(ṁ)de⟨10⟩s(e) vā(ṇu)gha [1+] (rā/ro) saghārāmo
saAkhayaniviko kā⟨11⟩rāpito pu[ñaṭha] (ca) deyadhamāṇi ca Ānāni pi
(k)[ā](r)[i]tāni

## Apparatus

⟨1⟩ Ādhaṁ ⬦ Adha B&B; Adha G.

⟨2⟩ [7+] Aka(sa) ⬦ [5+] Aka[1×] B&B; [5+] Aka[2×] G • It is unclear if
the -sa in this sequence and the following cetiAsa is the genitive
singular ending or the particle sa- “together with”.

⟨3⟩ [5+]lakārasu (ca) ⬦ [5+]lakāresu (ca) B&B; [5+]lakārasa[1×] G.

⟨4⟩ ha⟨5⟩[lāṇi] ⬦ hā[3+] B&B.

⟨5⟩ kālīAṇe ⬦ kāliAṇe B&B; kāliAṇe G. — ⟨5⟩
c(e)ti⟨6⟩[Agha]r(o)pathāṇas(ā)l(ā) ⬦ ce ti [3+] Upathāṇasāl(ā) B&B;
cetiUpathāṇasāl(ā) G • The reading Upa is entirely impossible for the
bottom of the -ra- is still visible today. The o-mātra of the proposed
ro is partly preserved on the eye copy.

⟨6⟩ patiṭhāṇe ⬦ paIṭh(ā)ṇe G. — ⟨6⟩ vihā⟨7⟩[re] [1+]ṭigupasada(riya) ⬦
vihā [2+] tigupasadari(ya) B&B; vihātigupasadari(ya) G.

⟨8⟩ >[10 3] ⬦ [3+] B&B • G does not acknowledge these missing akṣaras. —
⟨8⟩ (r)ājatalāka • It is tempting to understand here rājatalāke.

⟨9⟩ (A)saṇe ⬦ [1×]saṇa B&B; saṇa G • The e-mātra is clear on both the
eye copy and photographs, however the first akṣara could be a ka/ra as
only the hooked bottom is preserved on the eye-copy. It is also possible
that another akṣara preceded it. — ⟨9⟩ culik(api)yakuṭi ⬦ culika [1×] ya
kuṭi B&B; culika [1×] ya kuṭi G. — ⟨9⟩ khāṇitā ⬦ coṇitā B&B; khanita G.
— ⟨9⟩ sa(ṁ)de⟨10⟩s(e) vā(ṇu)gha [1+] (rā/ro) ⬦ sadasevājuya (vihā)re
B&B; sadasevājuya (vihā)re G.

⟨11⟩ pu[ñaṭha] (ca) ⬦ pu[ñaṭha] B&B; pu[ñaṭha] G.

## Translation

⟨1–5⟩ … amongst the …khabhālakaras, half … of the shrine (cetiya) … And
for the ya[3+] renunciants amongst the …lakāras an akṣayanīvī is given:
In the Sopāraka district, three – 3 – ha[la]s

⟨5–6⟩ At the Abālikavihāra in Kalyan, an apsidal shrine cetiyaghara,
entrance hall, and cells.

⟨6–8⟩ At the vihāra in Patiṭhāṇa, at [1+]ṭigupasadarī (or in the
+ṭipasadarī vihāra), an apsidal shrine [as well as] thirteen – 13 –
cells – which are [provided] with a akṣayanīvīs.

⟨8–9⟩ At Asana, at the royal tank on the path to Païṭhāṇa, a small hut
for allowable goods and store room (koḍhi) were excavated.

⟨9–11⟩ At Sandesa, the vāṇugha+ramonastic compound saṅghārama – which is
[provided] with an akṣayanīvī — was caused to be built.

⟨11⟩ And [these] meritorious gifts and others were caused to be made for
the purpose of [acquiring] merit.

## Bibliography

### Primary

[B&B] Burgess, James & Georg Bühler. 1883. Report on the Elura cave
temples and the Brahmanical and Jaina caves in Western India: Completing
the results of the fifth, sixth, and seventh seasons’ operations of the
Archaeological survey, 1877–78, 1878–79, 1879–80. Vol. 5. Archaeological
Survey of Western India. London: Trübner & Co. Page 76, item 5.

[G] Gokhale, Shobhana. 1991. Kanheri inscriptions. Pune: Deccan College
Post Graduate and Research Institute. Page 52, item 6.

### Secondary

Naik, A. V. 1948. “Inscriptions of the Deccan: an epigraphical survey
(Circa 300 B.C.-1300 A.D.)” BDCRI 9 (1/2), pp. 1–160. [URL]. Page 19.

Lamotte, Etienne. 1958. Histoire du bouddhisme indien: des origines à
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Louvain, Institut Orientaliste. Page 569.

Njammasch, Marlene. 1971. “Akhayanivi-Schenkungen an Klöster Und Tempel
Im Dekhan Unter Den Sātavāhanas.” Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum
Hungaricae 24 (2), pp. 203–215. [URL]. Page 213.

Njammasch, Marlene. 1972. “Dorfverleihungen und Landschenkungen im
Dekhan vom 1. bis zum 5. Jahrhundert u. Z.” Klio 54 (54), pp. 251–308.
DOI: 10.1524/klio.1972.54.54.251. [URL]. Pages 262–263.

Hettiarachchy, Jayadevanandasara. 1973. “Buddhism in the Northern Deccan
under the Śātavāhana Rulers (c. 30 B.C. - 225 A.D.)” Doctoral Thesis,
University of London. London. Page 114.

Damsteegt, Theo. 1978. Epigraphical Hybrid Sanskrit: Its rise, spread,
characteristics and relationship to Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit. Orientalia
Rheno-Traiectina 23. Leiden: Brill. Page 335 n. 51.

Habib, Irfan & Faiz Habib. 1990. “A Map of India, B.C. 200 -- A.D. 300,
Based on Epigraphic Evidence.” Proceedings of the Indian History
Congress 51, pp. 103–114. [URL]. Pages 108, 111.

Dehejia, Vidya & Peter Rockwell. 2016. The unfinished: Stone carvers at
work on the Indian subcontinent. New Delhi: Roli books. Page 65.

Strauch, Ingo. 2021. “Money for rituals: akṣayanīvī and related
inscriptions from Āndhradeśa.” In: Power, presence and space: South
Asian rituals in archaeological context. Edited by Henry Albery,
Jens-Uwe Hartmann & Himanshu Prabha Ray. Archaeology and Religion in
South Asia. London and New York: Routledge, pp. 193–214. Page 206.