svasti. pañcanagaryyā bhaṭṭāraka-pādānuddhyātaḥ kumārāmātya-kulavr̥ddhir etad-viṣayādhikaraṇañ ca
vāyigrāmika-trivr̥taā-śrīgohālyoḥ brāhmaṇottarān samvyavahāri-pramukhān grāma-kuṭumbinaḥ kuśalam anu
varṇya bodhayanti.
vijñāpayator atraivavijñāpayato 'traiva-vāstavya-kuṭumbi-bhoyila-bhāskarāv. āvayoḥ pitrā śivanandi
nā kāritakao bhagavato govindasvāminaḥ deva-kulas tad-asāv alpa-vr̥ttikaḥ. Iha viṣaye samudaya-
bāhyādy-astamva-khila-kṣaettraāṇām akiñcit-pratikarāṇāṁ śaśvad-ācandrārkka-tāraka-bhojyānāṁm akṣaya-nīvyā
dvi-dīnārikkya-kulya-vāpa-vikkrayo 'nuvr̥ttas. tad arhathāvayos sakāśāt ṣīaḍ dīnārān aṣṭa ca rūpakān āyī
kr̥tya bhagavato govindasvāmino deva-kule khaṇḍa-phuṭṭa-pratisaṁskaāra-karaṇāya gandha-dhūpa-dīpa-
sumanasāṁ pravarttanāya ca trivr̥tāyām bhogilasya khila-kṣettra-kulya-vāpa-trayaṁ śrīgohālyāṁ Api
tala-vāṭakārthaṁ sthala-vāstuno droṇa-vāpapm ekaṁ bhāskarasyāpi sthala-vāstuno droṇa-vāpañ ca dātu
m iti.
yato yuṣmān bodhayāmaḥ. pustapāla-durggā
dattārkkadāsayor avadhāraṇayā Avadhr̥ta
m astīha-viṣaye samudaya-bāhyādy-astamba-khila-kṣettrāṇāṁ śaśvad-ācandrārkka-tāraka-bhojyānāṁ dvi-dī
nārikya-kulya-vāpa-vikkrayo 'nuvr̥ttaḥ. Evaṁ-vidhāpratikara-khila-kṣettra-vikkraye ca na kaścid rājārttha-
virodha Upacaya Eva bhaṭṭāraka-pādānāṁ dharmma-phala-ṣaḍ-bhāgāvāptiś ca . tad dīyatām iti Etayoḥ
bhoyila-bhāskarayos sakāśāt ṣaḍ dīnārān aṣṭa ca rūpakān āyīkr̥tya bhagavato govindasvāmino
deva-kulasyārtthe bhoyilasya trivr̥tāyāṁ khila-kṣettra-kulya-vāpa-trayaṁ tala-vaāṭakādy-artthaM
.
śrīgohālyāṁ sthala-vāstuno droṇa-vāpaṁ bhāskarasyāpy atraiva sthalia-vaāstuno droṇa-vāpa
pm.
evaṁ kulya-vāpa-trayaṁ sthala-droṇa-vāpa-dvayañ ca Akṣaya-nīvyās tāmra-paṭṭena dattaM. ninna
ku 3 sthala-dro 2.
te yūyaṁ sva-karṣaṇāvirodhi-sthāne darvvīkarmma-hastenāṣṭaka-navaka-naḷābhyā
m apaviñcchya cira-kāla-sthāyi-tuṣāṅgārādinā cihnaiś cāturddiśo niyamya dāsyathākṣaya-
nīvī-dharmmenṇa ca śaśvat-kālam anupālayiṣyatha varttamāna-bhaviṣyaiś ca saṁvyavahāryy-ādibhir eta
d dharmmāpekṣayānupālayitavyam iti. Uktañ ca bhagavatā veda-vyāsa-mahātmanā.
sva-dattāṁ para-dattāṁ
vvā
yo hareta vasundharāṁ.
sa viṣṭhāyāṁ krimir bhūtvā
pitr̥bhis saha pacyate
ṣaṣṭiṁ varṣa-saha
srāṇi
svargge pmodati bhūmidaḥ
Ākṣeptā cānumantā ca
tāny eva narake vaseT
pūrvva
-dattāṁ dvijātibhyo
yatnād rakṣa yudhiṣṭhira
mahīṁ mahiīmatāṁ śreṣṭha
dānāc chreyo 'nupāla
nam
iti. saṁ 100 20 8 māgha di 10 9.
Hail! From Pañcanagarī,
See 3562 which identifies this with modern Panchbibi in Bogra District — a place I cannot identify. Perhaps it is the same as
Panchanagar, substrict Kushmundi, dt. Dakshin Dinajpur, West Bengal, India, which seems a safe identification for Pañcanagarī.
the princely advisor Kulavr̥ddhi,
favored by the feet
The expression bhaṭṭāraka-pādānuddhyātaḥ can also be found in [Raktamālā #1](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00039.xml) line 1 : paramabhaṭṭāraka-pādānuddhyātaḥ kumārāmātya-yūthapatir.
of His Majesty the Gupta Sovereign,
According to the table in 135, Kumāragupta’s reign lasted till 477, after which date we enter Skandagupta’s reign.
and the council of this district,
greet the village tenants of the hamlets Trivr̥tā and Śrī-Gohālī of the village Vāyigrāma
Vāyigrāma is also mentioned in [Damodarpur #3](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00032.xml), line 9.
— consisting chiefly of Brahmins,
The expression brāhmaṇottarān occurs in several other plates: [Raktamālā Grant no. 1, year 159](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00039.xml), line 2; [A grant of land in the Tāvīra district](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00051.xml), line 6 ; [Paharpur Charter of the Time of Budhagupta](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00052.xml), line 3; [Nandapur Plate of 169 GE](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00054.xml), line 1 and [A second grant concerning the Raktamālā](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00057.xml) line 2. The translation suggested here corresponds to the specific meaning of the compound brāhmaṇottara- reported by 1174. If we only follow the meaning given by 8408 and 178 for the word -uttara in fine compositi, the translation would be followed by Brahmins
.
led by the administrator saṁvyavahārin —
and inform them:
The two tenants Bhoyila and Bhāskara
who reside in this very place
Presumably in Vāyigrāma.
respectfully request:
This temple of Lord Govindasvāmin,
founded by our father Śivanandin,
has limited means.
In this district,
the custom is sale for two dīnāras of one kulyavāpa
of uncultivated land that is without revenue charges,
covered with original shrubs,
See 3569 for this interpretation of ādya-stamba.
and yields no tax,
as permanent endowment to be enjoyed in perpetuity
as long as the moon, the sun and the stars will last.
Thus tad,
be so kind as to take from us in cash āyīkr̥tya
āyīkr̥tya is derived from āya in the sense of income
, so having made income from …
. This expression can be found in [Kalaikuri Copper-plate of Kumāragupta I](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00033.xml) (line 20), in [Paharpur plate](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00052.xml) (line 18) and in [Damodapur Plate #3](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00032.xml) (line 8).
six dīnāras and eight rūpakas
and — for the purpose of carrying out the repairs of breaches khaṇḍa and cracks phuṭṭa
Article von Hinüber. Originally Buddhist terms used in Vaiṣṇava context! See also other trace of Prakrit as administrative language in ninna = diṇṇa l. 17. See also 2357.
in the temple of Lord Govindasvāmin,
and for offerings of perfume, incense, lamps and flowers — give
- in the hamlet Trivr̥tā, to Bhogila, three kulyavāpas of uncultivated land;
- and in the hamlet Śrī-Gohālī, to serve as parcel adjacent
to the temple,
Note on talavāṭaka: see 334-335.
one droṇavāpa of inhabitable terrain;
- and in the same hamlet to Bhāskara, one droṇavāpa of inhabitable terrain.
Wherefore we Kulavr̥ddhi and the council inform you:
It has been ascertained
through the investigation of the record-keepers Durgādatta and Arkadāsa
that the custom in this district is sale for two dīnāras
of one kulyavāpa of
uncultivated land that is without revenue charges,covered with original shrubs,
to be enjoyed in perpetuity as long as the moon, the sun and the stars will last.
And in the sale of such uncultivated land that yields no tax
there is no conflict with the interest of the king;
there is only benefit,
and obtainment by His Majesty the Sovereign of a sixth part of the merit accruing from the donation;
Indeed, the king usually takes a sixth of each transaction as it is mentionned in Manusmr̥ti 7.131-132. Here, as the land yields no tax, the benefit for the king is only meritorious and due to his act of protection. This understanding is also confirmed by the final stanzas which emphasises the act of protection and by the verse I.331 from Yājñavalkya's Dharmaśāstra:
puṇyātṣaḍbhāgamādatte nyāyena paripālayan . sarvadānādhikaṁ yasmānnyāyena paripālanam .
He the king takes a sixth portion of the merits by providing protection justly, because providing protection justly greater than all gifts.
Translation 107.
so that it ought to be given
After six dīnāras and eight rūpakas
had been taken in cash
from these two, Bhoyila and Bhāskara,
for the purpose of the temple of Lord Govindasvāmin,
- to Bhoyila, in the hamlet Trivr̥tā, three kulyavāpas of uncultivated land to serve as parcel adjacent to the temple etc.;
- in the hamlet Śrī-Gohālī,
The place name Śrī-Gohālī can also be found in a
[A fragment of a second plate from Baigram](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00050.xml) and in [A grant of land to monasteries at Śiṣīpuñja, Madhyamasṛgālikā and Grāmakūṭagohālī](DHARMA_INSBengalCharters00055.xml).
one droṇavāpa of inhabitable terrain;
- and in this very place to Bhāskara, one droṇavāpa of inhabitable terrain;
in this way three kulyavāpas and two droṇavāpas have been given with a copper plate for a permanent endowment. Low ninna: 3 kulyavāpa; inhabitable: 2 droṇavāpa.
You there mentioned at the start of the grant
shall separate them off using two reeds,
eight by ninefold with the ladle-work darvīkarma cubit,
A note is necessary on this translation. Predecessors have assumed Darvīkarma was a proper noun, and that it designated the person after whom the standard had taken its name.
in a place that does not conflict with your own cultivation;
shall limit them in the four directions
with long-lasting markers such as pots filled with
This interpretation is based on the Smr̥ti passages cited in the commentary. Others sources give details about the manner to mark boundaries. For example, Manusmr̥ti 8.249-50 suggests demarcating boundaries by several objects (translation ) :
upachannāni cānyāni sīmāliṅgāni kārayet .
sīmājñāne nṛṇāṁ vīkṣya nityaṁ loke viparyayam .
aśmano 'sthīni govālāṁs tuṣān bhasma kapālikāḥ .
karīṣam iṣṭakāṅgārāṁś śarkarā vālukās tathā .
Seeing that in the world controversies constantly arise due to people's ignorance of boundaries, he should also have other concealed boundary markers ensconced stones, bones, cow's hair, chaff, ashes, potsherds, dried cow dung, bricks, coal aṅgāra, pebbles, and sand.
Yājñavalkya's
Dharmaśāstra 2.154-5 gives also a list of materials used to mark boundaries (translation ):
sīmno vivāde kṣetrasya sāmantāḥ sthavirā gaṇāḥ . gopāḥ sīmnaḥ kṛśāno'nye sarve ca vanagocarāḥ .
nayeyur ete sīmāntaṃ sthalāṅgāratuṣadrumaiḥ . setuvalmīkanimnāsthicaityādyair upalakṣitam .
When there is a dispute regarding a boundary of a field, neighbours, elderly people, persons from an association, herdmen, others famers near the boundary, and all men roaming in the forest should ascertain the boundary revealed by mounds sthala, charcoal aṅgāra, chaff tuṣa, and trees, and by dikes, anthills, trenches, bones, shrines, and the like.
.
See also
7358
chaff or charcoal; shall make the donation and shall protect it in perpetuity according to the rule of a permanent endowment. And out of deference to this rule it is to be protected by present and future administrators, etc.
And it has been said by the magnanimous Lord Vedavyāsa:
The one who would steal land given by himself or another becomes a worm in excrement and is cooked with his ancestors.
This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 132 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar see II170-200.
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.
This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 123 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar see II170-200.
You, excellent Yudhiṣṭhira, must strenuously protect land previously given to brahmins by kings. Safeguarding is even better than giving.
This verse corresponds to the verse numbered 131 among the Stanzas on Bhūmidāna listed by Sircar see II170-200, but shows a different reading of its first pāda.
Year 128, month of Māgha, day 19.
Regarding the indication ninna ku 3 sthala dro 2 (line 17), in one reads the following note: This word (ninna) put before the abbreviated totalisation of the amount of land purchased does not appear to me explicable. [Phuṭṭa (= Skt. sphuṭṭa) in line 7 would suggest that it might stand for Skt. nimna meaning low land.—Ed.]
. The editor’s hypothesis is confirmed by the fact that nimna and sthala form a fixed pair. See
Rāmāyaṇa 6.93.19
sthalanimnāni bhūmeś ca, but particularly these stanzas from the
Nāradasmr̥ti (11.3–5):
grāmasīmāsu ca bahir ye syus tatkṛṣijīvinaḥ |
gopaśākunikavyādhā ye cānye vanagocarāḥ ||
samunnayeyus te sīmāṃ lakṣaṇair upalakṣitām |
tuṣāṅgārakapālaiś ca kumbhair āyatanair drumaiḥ ||
abhijñātaiś ca valmīkasthalanimnonnatādibhiḥ |
kedārārāmamārgaiś ca purāṇaiḥ setubhis tathā ||
In the case of the village boundaries, those who make their living by farming outside it, cowherds, bord catchers, hunters and others who inhabit the forest should delineate the boundary which is marked by such things as pots–of chaff, charcoal or crockery–shrines, trees, and by familiar markers such as ant hills, mounds, depressions, elevations, etc., and paddies, groves, roads, or old dikes.
(edition and translqtion )
In the context, the word ninna serves as an equivalent to khilakṣetra.
The
Nāradasmr̥ti passage just cited also clarifies another word figuring immediately after this indication in the inscription, viz.
tuṣāṅgāra. The somewhat cryptic statement of the
Nāradasmr̥ti passage is in turn clarified by the following passage translated from fragments of the
Br̥haspatismr̥ti (
351):
This rule regarding rescission of purchase and sale has been declared. Hear the laws concerning boundaries of villages, fields, houses, and so forth.
The determination of boundaries should be settled at the time of foundation, and it should be marked by visible and invisible signs, so as to dispel doubt.
Wells, tanks, pools, large trees, gardens, temples, mounds, channels, the course of a river, reeds, shrubs, or piles of stones:
By such visible signs as these a boundary line should always be caused to be marked; also, by other marks deposited underground which the earth is not likely to destroy.
Dry cowdung, bones, chaff, charcoal, stones, potsherds, sand, bricks, cows’ tails, cotton seeds, and ashes:
After having placed these substances in vessels, one should deposit them underground at the extremities of the boundary.
These translated stanzas seem to correspond to the following in the Br̥haspatismṛti as reconstructed by , Vyavahārakāṇḍa, chapter 19, pp. 159–162:
krayavikrayānuśaye vidhir eṣa pradarśitaḥ |
grāmakṣetragr̥hādīnāṃ sīmāvādaṁ nibodhata || 1 ||
niveśakāle kartavyaḥ sīmābandhaviniścayaḥ |
prakāśopāṁśucihnaiś ca lakṣitaḥ saṁśayāpahaḥ || 7 ||
vāpīkūpataḍāgāni caityārāmasurālayāḥ || 8cd ||
sthalanimnanadīsrotaḥ śaragulmanagādayaḥ |
prakāśacihnāny etāni sīmāyāṁ kārayet sadā || 9 ||
nihitāni tathānyāni yāni bhūmir na bhakṣayet | 17ab |
karīṣāsthituṣāṅgāraśarkarāśmakapālikāḥ || 20ab ||
sikateṣṭakagobālakārpāsāsthīni bhasma ca || 20cd ||
prakṣipya kumbheṣv etāni sīmānteṣu nidhāpayet | 21ab |
On these stanzas, see 99-100.