Old Buddhist Shrines at Bodh-Gaya Inscriptions
By B.M. Barua
The Indian Historical Quarterly
Vol. VI, No. 1, MARCH, 1930, pp. 1-31
p. 1
Inscriptions
Here our task is to compile the various
inscriptions which still linger on the remnants of
the pillars of the Jewel-walk shrine, the edges of
the upper surface of the covering stoneslab of the
old Diamond-throne and the different parts of the old
Stone-railng; and as regards the old Stone-railing,
both those which were incised when it was first
erected or repaired, and those which were incised in
after ages having no bearing on the history of its
construction. We are to offer our own readings and
interpretations only in those cases where previous
attempts have proved unsatisfactory; in the remaining
cases we are to remain content with quotations from
previous publications. But the grouping and
arrangement of the inscriptions are to be entirely
our own.
1. Purva-Pasana-Lekha: Writings On
The Old Stone-Railing
The writings on the old Stone-railing consist of
certain Brahmi inscriptions found engraved on some of
the railpillars, the rail-bars and the coping-pieces.
Along with these may be considered those consisting
of certain Brahmi letters on the shafts and fixed
bases of the pillars of the Jewel-walk- shrine, and a
mutilated inscription on the upper edge of the outer
Vajrasana or Diamond-throne.
p. 2
The Brahmi letters on the shafts and fixed bases
of the pillars of the Jewel-walk-shrine were nothing
but some visible signs or marks to indicate (1) which
of the pillar-shafts was meant for which of the fixed
pillar-bases, and (2) the relative position of these
pillars and their fixed bases set up in two rows on
two sides of the raised platform inside the
Jewel-walk-shrine. As Sir Alexander Cunningham points
out, in each row there were eleven pillars, each of
the pillar-shafts and fixed pillar-bases being marked
with a separate Brahmi letter and the same letter
marking the fixed pillar-base as well as the
corresponding pillar-shaft. Thus in each row of
eleven pillars there were two rows of Brahmi letters,
the row on the south side of the platform
representing two series of eleven vowels, one on the
line of fixed pillar-bases and the other on that of
pillar-shafts, and the row on the north side of the
platform representing two series of the first eleven
consonants, one on the line of fixed pillar-bases and
the other on that of pillar-shafts. The eleven vowels
comprised, according to Cunningham, a, a, i, i, u, u,
e, ai, o, au and ah, and the eleven consonants were
ka, kha, ga, gha, na, ca, cha, ja, jha, na, and
ta.(1) No one can reasonably doubt the accuracy of
Cunuingham's statement except with regard to the
specification of ah as the eleventh vowel. If it be
that Cunningham had actually found the ah mark on the
eleventh fixed pillar-base, we would have no grounds
for reasonable doubt. In the Indian alphabetical
system ah being rather a vowel-sign than a
vowel-letter, it would seem more probable that the
eleven Vowels were a, a, i, i, u, u, r, e, ai, o, and
au. We have to understand from Cunningham's own
statement(2) that he observed just six letters, the
volwel a on the westerly pillar-base in the southern
row, and the consonants ka, ga, ca, ja and to on the
five pillar-bases in the northern row.(3) The vowel a
was traced also
______________________
1. Cunningham's Mahabodhi, p.8.
2. Ibid., p.16.
3. See Pl, I, No.I.
p. 3
on a pillar-shaft, which now stands on the westerly
base of the northern row.(l) The fact that this shaft
is marked with the letter a is enough to prove that
it stood originally on the westerly base of the
southern row. The list published by Dr. Luders on the
strength of Sir George Grierson's paper contains the
letter a, ka, na and ca.(2)
Of the six letters noticed by Cunningham, the
letter a was traced on the shaft and also on the
fixed base of the first pillar of the southern row,
counted from west to east; the letter ka was found on
the first pillar-base of the northern row, opposite
a; and the remaining four letters, ga, ca, ja and ta,
were found on the 3rd, 7th, 8th and 11th bases of the
same northern row. Irresistible is the conclusion
drawn by Cunningham from these data, that the eleven
pillars of the southern row were serially marked with
eleven vowels and those of the northern row with the
first eleven consonants, the pillars being observed
and counted in each row from west to east.
The letter a as was found by Cunningham on the
base and the same letter as he found it on the
pillar-proper represent two different forms, in each
of which, however, the two left strokes meet the
vertical line, leaving a small space between them.
The letter ka is dagger-shaped, that is to say, it
appears in the form of a plus sign with the lower
part of the vertical stroke longer than the upper.
The letter ga shows a prominently rounded top,
instead of being sharply angular. The letter cha is
of a double-looped butterfly pattern. The letter ja
appears in a form in which the two semi-circular
curves meet each other vertically in a straight line
instead of forming a loop in front. And the letter ta
represents a vertically set segment of a circle.
__________________
1. Cunningham's Mahabodhi, Pl. IV.
2. List of Brahmi Inscriptions, No. 938.
p. 4
All these letter-marks may go to show that the
masons, craftsmen or artists, employed to fashion and
set up the pillars and their fixed bases, hailed from
or, at least, had to do their work in, that part of
India where Brahmi was the prevalent form of writing.
The order of eleven vowels in the southern row
and that of the first eleven consonants may serve to
prove either (1) that the pillars and their fixed
bases were serially set up in each row from west to
east, or (2) that these were marked with letters in
this order.
The difference observed in the two forms of the
same letter a, as it was incised on the piller-base
and on the corresponding pillar-shaft, has, perhaps,
to tell its own tale. Having regard to the fact that
these two forms of a distinguish the majority of the
inscriptions on the old Stone-railing, we may be
inclined to think that the pillar-bases and the
pillar-shafts were marked by two different scribes or
'engraver-writers' (lekhaka, lipikara). In the
absence, how ever, of the remaining pillar-shafts and
their letter-marks, it is impossible to hazard any
more than a surmise or conjecture about the marking
of tile pillar-bases sud pillar-shafts by two
scribes.
Cunningham has rightly observed that the
arrangement of letters on the pillars of the two rows
"has an important bearing on the antiquity of the
Indian alphabet, as it shows that the several
characters had already been arranged in their present
groups as gutturals, palatals, cerebrals, dentals,
labials, semi-vowels, and sibilants."
On the surviving fragments of the old
Stone-railing we can trace as many as twenty-two
votive labels engraved on seventeen rail-pillars,
rail-posts and gate or corner pillars, three
Pail-bars and two coping-pieces. In all these labels
we find the use of altogether twenty-one letters and
seven letter-signs, as the subjoined two tables will
indicate:--
1. Table of Letters
Vowels--a, i.
p. 5
Consonants--ka, kha, ga, gha, --, ca, --, ja, --, na,
ta, --, --, --, --, ta, --, da, dha, na,
pa, --, ba, --, ma, ya, ra, --, va, --,
--, --, sa, --, --.
2. Table of Letter-signs
Signs for a, i, u, e, o, m, ra, stop.
As regards the Brahmi letter-forms, their importance
lies in the fact that they enable us at once to
divide the votive labels broadly into two groups, the
first comprising those inscriptions in which one of
the two forms of the letter a detected on some of the
pillar-bases is associated with that form of the
anchor- shaped letter ya in which two separate curves
at the base meet in the vertical line, and the second
comprising those inscriptions in which the second
form of the letter a is associated with that form of
the anchor-shaped letter ya in which the vertical
line stands on a single semi-circular curve at the
base. It will also be noticed that in all the labels
the letter ka is dagger-shaped; the letter ga is
still sharply angular; the letter ta, too, shows a
sharp angular form; the letter ja has precisely the
same form as on the pillar-bases; the letters gha
and pa have each a flat base; the letters ma and va
have a triangular body; the letter ra represents a
cork-screw pattern; and the vowel-sign for i
presents an abruptly out-stretched elongation. It is
just in one example that we trace a form of the
letter ma, in which the upper stroke stands above a
circle without touching each other, precisely as in
the form of the letter ma on the Sohgaura
Copper-plate and in the Brahrnagiri and two other
South Indian copies of Asoka's M.R.E. I. In this
particular case the letter a, too, has form different
from those noticed above.
Thus comparing the Brahmi letter-forms in thes in-
p. 6
scriptions, we can discriminate in them three kinds
of handwriting, and the conclusion which may be drawn
therefrom will undoubtedly be this, that either three
different groups of masons, craftsmen or artists were
employed, or among the masons, craftsmen or artists
employed to do the work in connection with the old
Stone-railing, three, at least, had done the work of
scribes.
As for the Vajrasana inscription, the Brahmi
letter- forms are mostly like those of the railing
inscriptions. But it will be noticed that the letter
ra, so we find it in the Vajrasana inscription, is a
simple vertical line, instead of being of a
cork-screw pattern.
In accordance with their position on the
different component parts of the Stone-railing we may
conveniently deal with the votive labels by dividing
them into three separate groups, the first comprising
those inscriptions which are incised on the
rail-pillars, the second comprising those incised on
the rail-bars, and the third comprising those on the
coping-pieces.
1. Those on the Rail-pillars
A. Nos. 1-15
[Noticed by Prinsep, JASB., 1836, Vol. V, p. 658,
Pl. XXXIII; JASB., 1837, Vol. VI, p. 468, with
facsimile; Kittoe, JASB., 1847,Vol., XVI, part I,
p.339, with facsimile; Cunningham, ASR, 1871, Vol. I,
p. 10, Pls. VII, IX; ASR, 1873, Vol. III, p. 88, Pl.
XXVI; Fergusson, Tree and Serpent Worship, p. 130
(facsimile only); R. L. Mitra, Buddha Gaya, 1878, pp.
182 foll; Indraji, IA, 1880, Vol. IX, p. 142;
Cunningham, Mahabodhi, 1892, p. 15, Pl. X; Luders,
List of Brahmi Inscriptions in EI.1909-10, Vol. X,
Nos. 939-42; Bloch, ASI, Annual Report, 1908-9, p.
147.]
a. Text on 14 Rail-posts(1)
Ayaye Kuramgiye danam [.]
"The gift of the Noble Lady Kurangi."
________________________
1 Sec Pl. I, Nos, 2-13.
p. 7
b. Text on one Rail-post(1)
Ayaye Kuramgiye dinam [.]
"Donated by the Matron Kurangi."
[Notes:-- Dr. Bloch has rightly pointed out that
"not less than fifteen times (which is to say, on not
less than fifteen rail-posts) was met with the
following well-known inscription:-- Ayaye Kuramgiye
danam," and that "in one instance, the insciption has
dinam, which, of course, is Sk. dattam, 'given'." The
honorific epithet Aya, Sk. Arya, "the Noble Lady",
seems to signify the benevolence and high social
position of Kurangi as well as her superior rank as a
Buddhist nun or lay woman by reason of her age and
advanced spiritual state. In other words, it is not
unlikely that Kurangi, as her epithet Aya indicates,
joined the holy order of the Buddhists and was held
in high esteem for her noble deeds, remarkable
personality, high social position as a queen, and
spiritual outlook and insight. (See Barua and Sinha's
Barhut Inscriptions, note on Aya). Here Aya might,
perhaps, be better rendered as "Matron". Cunningham
is perfectly right in suggesting that Kuramgi is a
female name meaning 'fawn-eyed', or with eyes like
the Kuramgi deer. Dinam, even if it mere not due to
an error on the part of the scribe, is as good a
reading as danam, the use of dinam (=dinnam) as a
substantive being not uncommon in Pali (cf. dinnam
hoti mahapphalam, where dinnam simply means danam, "a
gift" (literally, that, which is given away as a
gift).]
B. No. 16
[Noticed by Bloch, ASI, Annual Report, 1908-9, p. 147.]
Text on another Rail-post(2)
Rano Im(dagimi)tra [.......] (S)irimaye [danam.]
Text as might be restored
Rano Im(dagimi)tra[sa pasada-cetika](S)irimaye [danam.]
___________________
1. Pl. I, No. 14.
2 Pl. I, No. 15.
p. 8
"The gift of Sirima (Srimati), a female donor
from the palace of King Indragnimitra."
[Notes:--Dr. Bloch is the first to observe that
the name of Indragnimitra is met with in a "mutilated
inscription on one of the railing pillars, where he
appears to have bad the title 'King' (Rano; gen,
sing.) added before his name." But, curiously enough,
no attempt whatever was made since, either to
decipher and restore the text of this inscription or
to discuss the whole of its importance. It is quite
true, as Dr. Bloch has pointed out, that
Indragnimitra has been honoured in this inscription
with the title of Raja, "King", It will be seen that
the inscription was damaged in the middle on account
of a mortice cut through it on that portion of a face
of the rail-post where the missing letters were
incised. The space covered by the breadth of the
mortice is large enough, as will appear from similar
spaces on other Pail-posts bearing inscriptions, to
contain seven Brahmi letters. As for the restoration
of the letters that are now lost, there is hardly
any reason for doubting that the letter coming
immediately after tra of Imdagnimitra is sa and that
the syllable sa is the genitive singular termination:
sa = Pali ssa = Sk. sya. The reasons for restoring
the remaining six letters as pasada-cetika will be
set forth when we come to deal with two inscriptions
on two copingpieces. For the equation of the name
Sirima with Srimati, the reader is referred to Barua
and Sinha's Barhut Inscriptions, note on Sirima
devata.]
C. No. 17
[Noticed by Bloch, ASI, Annual Report 1908-9, p.
147.]
Text on the N. E. Corner-pillar(1)
Rano Brahmamitrasa pajavatiye Nagadevaye danam
[.] "The gift of Nagadevi, the wife of King
Brahmamitra."
[Notes:--Pajavati is the same word as the Pali
pajapati and the Sk. prajavati. Following the
authority of Sanskrit
________________________
1. Pl. I, No, 16.
p. 9
lexicon and literature. Cunningham and Luders have
interpreted the word pajavati in the sense of
bhratrjaya, "brother's wife'' or "sister-in-law".
Bloch has explained this word as meaning "wife" and
Buhler, too, has done the same in translating the
votive labels on the stone-railings of the Sanchi
Stupas(El, vol. II), It would seem that as, on the
one hand, the rendering of pajavati by "brother's
wife" is wide of the mark, so, on the other hand, the
rendering of it as "wife" may seem too wide in
denotation. According to Pali Usage, which is clearly
illustrated by a passage in the Vanarinda Jataka
(Fausboll, No. 57), a wife is to be called a pajapati
only when she is with child. Pali passage:--Tasmim
pana kale eko kumbhilo sapajapatiko tassa nadiya
vasati. Tassa sa bhariya Bodhisattam. aparaparam
gacchantam disva Bodhisattassa hadaya-mamse dohalam
uppadetva kumbhilam aha. (Now there lived in those
days in that river a crocodile and his mate; and she,
being with young, was led by the sight of the
Bodhisatta journeying to and fro to conceive a
longing for the monkey's heart to eat. So she begged
her lord).
If this be the correct explanation of pajapati,
pajavati or prajavati, the text, of the inscription
under notice may be taken to imply that, the
north-eastern corner-pillar was donated by Queen
Nagadevi when she was about to be a mother. But there
are certain Pali passages in the Vinaya
(Sutta-vibhanga) where the word pajapati has been
used in the general sense of "a wife." Here attention
may be particularly drawn to two passages: (1)
Sutta-vibhanga, Bhikkhu-vibhanga, Sanghadisesa, II.
1, 1, in which the word bhariya, meaning "a wife'',
occurs as a synonym of pajapati; and(2) Ibid.,
Sanghadisesa, V. 1, 1, in which an unmarried girl
(apatika kumarika) is said to have been engaged as a
suitable bride for an unmarried young man
(apajapatikaka kumaraka).]
II. Those on the Rail-bars
D. No. 18
[Noticed by Cunningham, Mahabodhi, 1892, p. 16,
No. 2,
p. 10
Pl. X; Luders, List of Brahmi Inscriptions in EI,
1909-10, Vol. X, No. 945.)
Text on a Rail-bar(l)
Amoghasa danam [.]
"The gift of Amogha."
[Notes: --The rail-bar bearing the above
inscription was removed to and is now exhibited in
the Barhut Gallery hall of the Indian Museum,
Calcutta, as Bg. 2.]
E. No. 19
[Noticed by Cunningham, ASR, 1873, Vol. III, p.
89, Pl. XXVI; R. L. Mitra, Buddha Gaya, p. 184, No.
3; Indraji, IA, 1880, Vol. IX, p. 142; Cunningham,
Mahabodhi, 1892, p. 16, No. 3, Pl. X; Luders, List of
Brahmi Inscriptions in EI, 1909-10, Vol. X, No, 946;
Bloch. ASI, Annual Report, 1908-9, p.156.]
Text on another Rail-bar(2)
Bodhirakhitasa Ta(m)bapa(m)nakasa danam [.]
"The gift of Bodhiraksita, the Tamraparnika--a
man belonging to Tamraparni."
[Notes: --The rail-bar bearing the above
inscription was removed to and is now exhibited in
the Barhut Gallery hall of the Indian Museum,
Calcutta, as Bg.1. Here the really important word
requiring explanation is the geographical patronymic
Tambapamnaka, derived from Tambapamni, Pali
Tambapanni, and Sk. Tamraparni. Tambapamni, as known
to Asoka, was the southernmost land which lay to the
south of his Indian empire (R. E. XIII). Rev, A. P.
Buddhadatta has collected certain interesting Pali
references in the introduction to his edition of
Buddhadatta's Manuals (Pali Text Society
publication),
_________________
1 Pl. I, No, 17.
2 Pl. I, No. 18.
p. 11
which go to prove that the name Tambapanni was
applicable not only to the island of Ceylon but also
to that part of the Deccan which was situated to the
south of the Tambapanni (Tamraparni) river. The
Asokan sense, too, does not preclude the possibility
of inclusion of this part of South India in the
territorial limits of Tambapanni. The account of
Prince Vijaya's conquest of Ceylon in the Pali
chronicles suggests that the island of Lanka came to
be known as Tambapanni, on account of the fact that
when Prince Vijaya landed on its sea-shores, the palm
of his hand was touched by the copper-coloured
particles of sand. We might say that originally the
name Tambapanni was restricted to the south-western
part of the island of Lanka where the beaches were
covered with copper-coloured sand. Gradually, as we
may suppose, the name came to be applied and even
exclusively applied to the whole of Ceylon. As
regards Tambapamnaka of the Bodh Gaya Inscription,
Cunningham and Bloch seem to be perfectly right in
identifying Tambapanni with Ceylon.]
F. No. 20
[Noticed by Cunningham, ASR, 1873, Vol. III, p.
89, Pl. XXVI, 2; R. L. Mitra, Buddha Gaya,1878,p.183,
No. 2; Luders, List of Brahmi Inscriptions in EI,
1909-10, Vol. X, No, 947.]
Text on a third Rail-bar
Patihara . . Na ....danam[.]
"The gift of the door-keeper (with
Na as the initial of his name).''
Or,
"The gift of a man of Pratihara.
(the initial of whose name is Na.)"
Or,
"The gift of (the city-judiciary) of Pratihara."
[Notes:--Cunningham who first noticed it found
the inscription "to comprise thirteen letters, of
which the 5th,
p. 12
6th, 8th,9th, 10th, and 15th were illegible. The
inseription might, perhaps, be restored as:-
Patihara[kasa] Na [... sa] danam[.]
Here Patihara may be treated either as an
official designation or a place-name, and Na may be
treated either as an initial of a personal name, or
of an official designation, such as Nagarika.]
III. Those on the Coping-pieces
G. Nos. 21-22
[Noticed by R. L. Mitra, Catalogue and Handbook
of the Archaeological Collections in the Indian
Museum, 1883, Part I, pp, 130 foll.; Mahabodhi, 1892,
p. 15, Nos. 8-10, Pl. X; Luders, List of Brahmi
Inscriptions in El, 1909-10, Vol, X, Nos, 943-4;
Bloch, ASI, Annual Report, 1908-9, p. 147.]
a. Text on a Coping-piece(1)
(Rano Kosi) ki-putrasa Imdagimitrasa pajavatiye
jivaputraye Kuramgiye danam [:]
raja-pasada-cetika-(Siri)ma(ye) [danam.]
b. Text on another Coping-piece
[Rano Ko]siki-putrasa Imdagimitrasa pajavatiye
jivaputraye Kuramgiye danam [:]
raja-pasada-cetika-Si[rimaye danam.]
"The gift of Kurangi, the wife of King
Indragnimitra, the son of Kausiki,--Kurangi who is
the mother of living sons: the gift (as well) of
Sirima (Srimati ), a female donor from the royal
palace of King Indragnimitra."
[Notes:--Cunningham and other Indian epigraphists
have agreed in reading the letter before putrasa as
ka. With regard to the first inscription, Cunningham
was
____________________
1 Pl. II, No. 19.
p. 13
able to note that there were traces of two other
letters before ka, the one immediately preceding it
being no other than sa. He was led even to think that
saka before putrasa might be taken as the latter part
of the name of Asoka. The presumption as to the
possibility of occurrence of the name of Asoka in
these inscriptions is due to a bias under which
Cunningham and the rest of the old school of Indian
epigraphists conducted their researches. This
presumption has no sound basis for its justification,
first, because Asokaputra as a personal epithet of
King Indragnimitra is meaningless; and, secondly,
because the three letters before putrasa may still be
read as Kosiki, with the result that King
Indragnimitra has been represented in these coping
inscriptions as a Kausiki-putra. We can go so far as
to suggest that there are traces of two other letters
before Kosikiputrasa, and that these may be read as
Bano. Even if this suggestion do not bear scrutiny,
there is one inscription on one of the rail-posts to
prove that Raja, "King", was the title of
Indragnimitra, we mean the Bodh-Gaya Stone-railing
Inscription, No. 16. The epithet Kosiki-putra is a
matronymic like Gagiputa, Gotiputa and Vachhiputa of
the Barhut E.Gateway Inscription, not to mention the
hosts of other similar matronymics which are met with
in both inscriptions and literary texts. As regards
Kosiki-putra itself, it may be noted that the List of
Brahmi Inscriptions published by Luders includes one
inscription (No.94), in which Kosiki is found as a
surname of Simitra; a second (No.105), in which
Kosikiputra occurs as a surname of Sihanadika; a
third and a fourth (Nos.159, 662) in which Kosikiputa
is employed as a surname of a Buddhist monk; a fifth
(No. 1079), in which Kosikiputa adorns the name of
Maharathi Vinhudata; a sixth (No.1100), in which
Kosikiputa is an ornament of the name of Maharathi
Mitadeva; and a seventh (No.1196) in which
Kosikiputta appears as a surname of Nagadatta.
Finally, in the ''Sunga Inscription of Ayodhya",
edited by Mr. K.P. Jayaswal, we find that
p. 14
Kausikiputra has been used as a surname of a high
personage. The epithet signifies that King
Indragnimitra was a son of Kausiki who was a lady of
Kausika or Visvamitra gotra.
Cunningham has translated pajavati (Pali
pajapati, Sk. prajavati, Bengali poyati) by
"brother's wife", and Luders by "sister-in-law''. But
it would seem strange that in one inscription
Nagadevi should be introduced as pajavati (the
"brother's wife" or "sister-in-law") of King
Brahmamitra, and in two other inscriptions Kurangi
should be introduced as pajavati (the "brother wife"
or "sister-in-law") of King Indragnimitra. We cannot
but welcome Bloch's rendering of it as "wife" in view
of the fact that, according to the Pali usage, the
word pajapati is a synonym of bhariya, in some
instances it denotes "a wife who has a clear prospect
of becoming a mother." Here we have to make a
distinction between a pajavati and a jivaputra
pajavati. As for the distinction, it may suffice to
say that a pajavati is either simply "a wife'' or she
is "a wife who is about to be a mother," and a
jivaputra(1) pajavati (jivaputrika prajavati Bengali
jeyas poyati) is, on the other hand, "a wife who has
not only become a mother but can be proud of being a
mother of living children." Bloch has rightly
remarked that "Indian ladies still consider it a
pride to call themselves jivaputra 'a mother of
living sons', an expression very familiar to every
reader of ancient Indian inscriptions."(2)
Kurangi was a jivaputra Pajavati of King
Kausikiputra Indragnimitra, King Indragnimitra's
wife, who was a mother
_______________________
1. Luders'interpretation of jivaputra in the sense of
"daughter" of Jiva" does not deserve any comment.
2. Cf. Asoka's edict on his Second Queen's donations,
which contains the king's order directing the high
officials at Kausambi to re-label all the donations
made by his second queen by inscriptions recording
them as: "[Donations] of [his] second queen Kaluvaki,
the mother of [Prince] Tivala".
p. 15
of living sons. This may help us to explain why in
each of the fifteen rail-post-inscriptions Kurangi
has been honoured as an Aya (Sk. Arya), "a Noble
Lady," "a Matron."
Cunningham has regretted the loss of the latter
part of these important records. As regards the first
coping inscription, he has found traces of eleven
Brahmi letters after Kuramgiye danam, the first nine
of which read rajapasada-cetika sa. Bloch reads these
nine letters as raja-pasada-cetikasa and translates
this expression in relation to the preceding words:
"(the gift of Kurangi, the wife of Indragnimitra and
the mother of living sons), "to the caitya (cetika)
of the noble temple", taking the word raja before
pasada as an epithet on ornans, distinguishing the
temple as a particularly large and stately building
similar to such expressions as rajahastin 'a noble
elephant', rajahamsa `a goose (as distinguished from
hamsa 'a duck'), etc." Cunningham has translated the
expression by "the royal palace, the caitya",
suggesting that "the mention of the raja-pasada would
seem to connect the donor with the king's family,"
Luders doubtfully suggests "to the king's temple" as
a rendering of raja-pasada-cetikasa.
Before giving countenance to the hitherto
suggested reading and rendering of raja-pasada-cetika
sa one has to consider and decide these two points:
(1) is the letter, after cetika, sa or si? and (2)
what are the three letters after cetika. It can
hardly be doubted that the letter after cetika is not
sa (the Dative singular termination) but si, and that
the three letters may still be read as Sirima. If so,
it is not difficult to restore the missing syllables
and complete the first coping- inscription as raja
pasadaida-cetika-(Siri)ma(ye) [danam], and to
complete the second coping-inscription as
raja-pasada-cetika- Si[rimaye danam]. We have already
dealt with the rail-post inscription, Rano
Imdagimitra[sa......] Sirimaye [danam], in which the
female donor has in some way been connected with King
Indragnimitra. As to the nature of the connection, it
all depends on the missing expression which filled
p. 16
the middle part of the mutilated inscription. Seeing
that the expression raja-pasada-cetika precedes the
name of Sirima in the first coping-inscription, it
may be safely surmised that the seven missing letters
of the rail-post-inscription recorded the expression
pasada-cetika after sa of putrasa. Considering the
text of the first coping-inscription in relation to
that of the rail-post, we find no other alternative
than to regard Rano Kosikiputrasa Imdagimitrasa
raja-pasada-cetika or Rano Imdagimitrasa
pasada-cetika as an epithet of Sirima, in the same
way that pajavati jivaputra is an epithet of Kurangi.
Now the question is--what does the epithet
pasadacetika or raja-pasada-cetika signify? Is there
any reference here at all to the temple at Bodh-Gaya?
The question must, in our opinion, be answered in the
negative for the simple reason that the construction
or existence of the Bodh- Gaya temple prior to the
visit of Fa-Hian (first quarter of the 5th century
A.C.) is inconceivable. Cunningham was perfectly
right to suggest that the donor was somehow or other
connected with the royal palace. Here the word
cetika, a feminine form of cetaka (Prakrit ceyaga),
may be consistently interpreted in the sense of
datri, "a female donor." Sirima (Srimati) was a
female donor from the royal palace of King
Indragnimitra. We cannot interpret cetika as "a
female attendant unless it is a mistake for cetika.
The raja-pasada, "royal palace", may be regarded as
the name of a Buddhist monastery built at Bodh-Gaya
to commemorate the name of King Indragnimitra,
compare, Migaramatupasada, which was the name of the
Buddhist monastery built by Visakha, the
daughter-in-law of Migara.
Our reading and rendering of the two
coping-inscriptions will help the reader to ascertain
that the two copiog-stones bearing these records were
joint donations of Kurangi and Sirima, the former
being the elderly wife of King Indragnimitra and the
latter a female donor from the palace of the same
royal personage.
p. 17
IV. That on the Diamond-throne(1)
H. No.23
[Noticed by Cunningham, Mahabodhi, 1892, pp.20,
58, Pl. X. 11; Luders, List of Brahmi Inscriptions in
EI, 1909-10, Vol.X, No.948.]
a. Text on the west and south sides
W------? pajaya? aga?ya hitaya;
S. mata-(pituno ka)rito [.]
b. Text on the north side?
[Notes:--Cunningham rightly says that "all that
remains of this inscription is so much injured that
very little can be read consecutively." There are
faint traces of a large number of letters on the
western edge, about 35 letters preceding three which
one may tentatively read as pajaya. We cannot but
agree with Cunningham when he says that towards the
end, on the right hand, one may read "the well-known
words mata-pita, 'mother and father'." But we must
differ from him when he tends to to hold that "the
letters certainly belong to the Indo-Scythian or
early Gupta period, about the 2nd. century A.C.", and
that the two words which distinctly precede mata-pita
are patima patithapat, "statue established". It would
seem that a new set of letters was incised on an
earlier one at a later age, and that the forms of
earlier letters are in no way very different from
those of the inscriptions of Kurangi and Nagadevi on
the rail-posts and coping-pieces of the Old
Stone-railing. The language of the earlier
inscription, too, seems to bear resemblance with that
of the well-known inscriptions of Kurangi and
Nagadevi.]
Importance of the writings
The historical importance of the writings,
considered in this section, lies, first of all in the
fact that from the
__________________________
1. P1. II, No. 21.
p. 18
close similarity of the Brahmi letter-forms, it may
be inferred that the Old Stone-railing bearing the
donative inscriptions of Kurangi, Sirima, Nagadevi
and others, the old Diamond-throne bearing a donative
inscription on the upper edges of its covering
stone-slab and the Jewel-walk-shrine bearing the
Brahmi letter-marks on the shafts and fixed bases of
its two rows of pillars were erected at the same
time, and, probably, under the auspices of certain
common donors. The twofold impression which may be
gathered from the study of the votive labels
inscribed on the rail pillars and the coping-pieces
and which lingers is (1) that originally when the
Stone-railing was erected, the rail-bars remained
uninscribed, which is to say, that the three railbars
recorded as donations of Amogha, Bodhirakhita of
Tambapamni and another donor of Patihara(?) were
somewhat later additions, and(2) that the entire Old
Stone-railing at Bodh-Gaya, together with the Old
Diamond-throne and the Jewel-walk-shrine, was a
memorable erection of devotional female piety. The
first of these two impressions is strengthened as we
consider that the length and letter-forms of the
inscribed rail-bars, notably that donated by Amogha,
differ considerably from those of the uninscribed
rail-bars in that portion of the Stone-railing which
appears to have been donated only by Kurangi.
On as many as fifteen rail-pillars we trace
inscriptions recording them in bold letters as
donations of Aya Kuramgi. It is only on one of the
inscribed rail-pillars that we come across an
inscription recording the same to be a gift from
Sirima who was connected in some way with King
Indragnimitra. Only one of the surviving
corner-pillars is recorded to have been a gift from
Nagadevi, the wife of King Brah- mamitra. Two pieces
of old coping-stones which now survive are labelled
each by an inscription, in which Kuramgi and Sirima
figure as joint female donors. It is very interesting
indeed to find that here Kuramgi has been represented
not as Aya, "Noble Lady" or "Matron" but as King
Kosikiputra
p. 19
Imdagimitra's wife who had the pride of having been a
mother of living sons. Both here and in the rail-post
inscription, Sirima has been represented as cetika or
female donor from the royal palace of King
Imdagimitra. The south side of the quadrangular
Stone-railing bears only the inscriptions of Kuramgi.
From all these facts, the impression cannot but be
this, that the Old Stone-railing, and, a posteriori,
the two other old shrines were mainly a pious
erection of Kuramgi.
The Old Stone-railing at Bodh Gaya must have been
erected by Kurangi, Sirima and Nagadevi either during
the reign of King Indragnimitra or during that of
King Brahmamitra. If the inscribed corner-pillar
commemorating the piety of Nagadevi, represented as
the wife of King Brahmamitra, was donated along with
the donations of Kurangi, it is difficult to think
that this Stone-railing was erected during the reign
of King Indragnimitra, unless it be supposed that
Indragnimitra and Brahmamitra reigned together, which
seems, however, unlikely. Both Indragnimitra and
Brahmamitra, as their names imply, were rulers of the
same Mitra family, and, what is more, in the absence
of any evidence to prove the contrary, both of them
must be regarded as kings of the same place, we
mean, of Magadha, Bodh Gaya, nay, the whole of Gaya
it being an integral part of the kingdom of Magadha
throughout the historical period of its existence.
The erection of the inscribed Stone-railing at Bodh
Gaya by Kurangi and Nagadevi is not, however, the
only reason for assuming that Indragnimitra and
Brahmamitra to be kings of Magadha. Over and above
this, we find that Bahasatimita (Brhaspatimitra),
evidently a king of the same Mitra family, has been
expressly mentioned in the Hathigumpha Inscription of
Kharavela as contemporary ruler of Magadha
(Magadhanam raja ).(1)
____________________
1. Barua's 0ld Brahmi Inscriptions in the Udayagiri
and Khandagiri Caves, I. 13; Jayaswal's reading in
JBORS., vol. III, part IV,
p. 20
If it can thus be satisfactorily proved that
Indragnimitra, Brahmamitra and Brhaspatimitra were
all kings of Magadha and rulers of the same Mitra
dynasty, it is important to inquire if any clue may
be obtained from the inscriptions and sculptures of
the Bodh Gaya Stone-railing to the chronological
succession of them.
So far as the inscriptions of Kurangi and
Nagadevi go, these clearly indicate that the
Stone-railing was erected when Nagadevi, the wife of
King Brahmamitra. (Brahmamitrasa pajavati), was not
yet a mother, and when Kurangi, the wife of King
Kausikiputra Indragnimitra was an elderly lady,
mother of living sons (jivaputra pajavati), honoured
in fifteen rail-post inscriptions with the epithet of
Aya, "Noble Lady" or "Matron." The epithet Aya may be
taken even to suggest that Kurangi undertook to erect
the Stone- railing and two other shrines at Bodh Gaya
after her retirement from the world, and after she
had assumed the vows of a Buddhist nun and resided in
a monastery built at Bodh Gaya commemorating the name
of King Indragnimitra, her deceased husband, the
monastery itself having been known by the name of
"King Indragnimitra's Palace" (Rano Imdagimitra [sa]
pasada) or "Indragnimitra's Royal Palace"
(Indagimitrasa raja-pasada). From this, it may be
clearly inferred that the pious donations were made
by Kurangi rather when she became a queen dowager to
King Brahmamitra than when she remained in her full
glory as the queen of King Indragnimitra. In other
words, the historical importance of the inscriptions
of Kurangi, Sirima and Nagadevi lies in the fact that
these, when properly studied, afford us a definite
epigraphic evidence to prove that King Brahmamitra
was the immediate successor of King Indragnimitra in
the throne of Magadha.
Now as to the bearing of the sculptures of the
Old Stone-
_____________________
and vol. IV, part IV; Indraji's reading in Actes du
Sixieme International Congres des Orientalistes, part
III, sec. II, pp. 152-177.
p. 21
railing at Bodh Gaya, it is to be noted that in
several instances their designs are inspired by those
of the Barhut bas-reliefs, which is to say, that they
are posterior to the earvings of the Barhut Inner
Railing. As has been shown elsewhere,(1) the Barhut
Stone-railing with its quadrants, returns, gateways,
carvings and purely ornamental devices is a purely
Sunga art and architecture. The ornamental gateways
which were pious donations of King Dhanabhuti were
last additions that were probably made towards the
close of the Sunga-Mitra reign. On the other hand,
from a comparative study of certain common
representations, notably those of the Sun-god, it
becomes increasingly clear that these were handiworks
of art of the same period, the Bodh Gaya reliefs
appearing to have been somewhat earlier than those of
some of the Orissan caves on the hills of Udayagiri
and Khandagiri.(2) And fortunately enough, in the
Hathigumpha Inscription on the Udayagiri hill,
Bahasatimita (Brhaspatimitra) finds mention as the
contemporary king of Magadha who was subdued by King
Kharavela in the twelfth year of his reign.(3) Thus
if any idea of succession of the Mitra kings can be
formed on the ground of the close similarity of the
handiworks of art, it will be that King
Brhaspatimitra, a contemporary of King Kharavela, was
the immediate successor of King Brahmamitra during
whose reign Kurangi, Sirima and Nagadevi completed
their pious erections at Bodh Gaya.
If Bahasatimita (Brhaspatimitra), mentioned in
the Hathigumpha Inscription as a contemporary of King
Kharavela, be taken to be the immediate successor of
King Brahma-
___________________________
1. Barua's paper-- "Age of the Stupa of Barhut'' in
the Proceedings of the Fourth All-India Oriental
Conference.
2. Barua's Old Brahmi 1nscriptions in the Udayagiri
and Khandagiri Caves, pp. 285-6; views of Dr.
Stella Kramrisch in Ibid, pp. 310 foll.
3. Ibid., P.45.
p. 22
mitra, it is impossible to identify him with
Pusyamitra, the Senapati Pusyamitra who is the
traditional founder of the Sunga or old Mitra
dynasty.(l) As a matter of fact, none of the three
above mentioned Mitra kings can be definitely
identified with any king either of the Sudga or of
the Kanva dynasty.(2) The same remark holds true of
three other Mitra kings, (1) Brhasvatimita,
represented as the father of the elderly Queen
Yasamata in Yasamata's Brick-tablet, found in
Mathura(3); and (2-3) [?Dhar]mamitra, mentioned as
the father of Visnumitra, and Visnumitra, mentioned
as the father of Idragibhadra (Iudragnibhadra) in the
inscription of Gautamimitra.(4)
On both palaeographic and linguistic grounds the
Bricktablet of Yasamata must be assigned to a date,
which is earlier than the inscriptions or Kurangi,
Sirima and Nagadevi. As regards its palaeography, the
Brahmi letter-forms are "still Mauryan."(5) Dr. Vogel
feels inclined to assign it on account of the
character to "third or second century B.C."(6) And as
regards its language, it will be noticed that still
the spelling of Jivaputra is Jivaputa. and that of
mitra is mita, although Mathura is its find-place. We
have been inclined elsewhere to equate Brhasvatimita
of this tablet with Brhatsvatimitra or
Brhaspatimitra. But now we finally abandon Dr.
Vogel's equation of it with Brhaspatimitra and
_______________________
1. K. P, Jayaswal identifies Brhaspatimitra with
Pusyamitra mainly on the ground that in the
Sankhyayana Grhya-Sutra (i, 26, 6), Brhaspati is
mentioned as the presiding deity of the Pusya
constellation, See, for criticism, Barua's Old Brahmi
Inscriptions, pp. 277-9.
2. Ibid., p. 275
3. JRAS, , 1912, p. 120, where J. Vogel reads:
Jivaputaye rajabharyaye Brhasvatimitadhitu Yasamataye
karitam.
4 I.H.Q., vol, II, no, 3, p. 442, where N. G.
Majumdar reads: ............mamitrasa rano
Visnumitrasa dhitu Idragibhadraye dhatiye Gotamiye
Mitraye danam thambho.
5 Barua's Old Brahmi Inscriptions, p. 274.
6 JRAS., 1912, p. 120.
p. 23
adhere to the first alternative, and hold that Queen
Yasamata's father was King Brhatsvatimitra (cf.
Pali Behapphala = Behaphala = Sk. Brhatphala), and
not Brhaspatimitra. It seems likely that
Brhatsvatimitra was the precursor of King
Indragnimitra.
As for King Dharmamitra and his son King
Visnumitra, neither the palaeography nor the language
of Gautamimitra's Inscription stands in the way of
regarding them as successors of King Brhaspatimitra.
There cannot be any serious objection to
identifying Kharavela's contemporary Magadhan king
Bahasatimita with Bahasatimita of the coins that have
been found at Kosam, about thirty miles south-west of
Allahabad, and at Ramnagar (Ahichatra) in
Rohilkhand, "(1) and with King Bahasatimitra,
mentioned in one of the two Pubhosa cave inscriptions
as the nephew of King Asadhasena of Adhichatra.(2)
Mr. Jayaswal identifies Bahasatimitra of this
inscription outside the Pabhosa cave with Pusyamitra
on the ground that it assigns the date of excavation
of the cave for the residence of the Kasyapiya Arhats
to the tenth regnal year of Udaka (Odraka, Odruka or
Ardraka) who finds mention in the Puranas as the
fifth king of the Sunga- Mitra dynasty.(3) Mr.
Jayaswal's theory is untenable, not to say, absurd on
the face of it. For if Bahasatimitra were the same
person as Pusyamitra, the first king of Sunga- Mitra
dynasty, is it not inconceivable that his maternal
uncle King Asadhasena could be a contemporary of
Udska, the fifth king of the same dynasty? In the
absence of the word rajno preceding Udakasa, it is
difficult to say at once whether Udaka is the
personal name of a king or the local name of the
place where the cave was excavated. Dr. Kielhorn, who
has edited the two Pabhosa inscriptions for EI,
____________________________
1. V.A. Smith's Catalogue of the Coins in the Indian
Museum, Calcutta, pp.146, 158, 185; JRAS., 1912,
P.120.
2. EI., vol. II, p.242.
3. JBORS., vol. III, part IV, pp. 477-8,
p. 24
vol.II, observes that all the four letters
representing Udakasa are doubtful. There is nothing
to prevent one reading them as Udaka(si). And if the
Pabhosa expression lenam Karitam Udakasi be on a par
with iyam kubha... Khalatikasi of Asoka's Third
Barabar Hill Cave inscription, the year
dasama-savachara must be interpreted as the regnal
year of King Asadhasena himself.
The discovery of a purely Sanskrit inscription in
Brahmi orthography prior to the birth of Christ,is
still pious hope The evidence of the so-called "Sunga
Inscription of Ayodhya," published by Mr. Jayaswal,
cannot surely be brought forward to prove the case.
This inscription, as read by Mr. Jayaswal, yields
the following text(1):
Kosaladhipena dvir-asvamedha-yajinah Senapacteh
Pusyamitrasya sasthena Kausikiputrena Dhana....
dharmarajnih pituh Phalgudevasya ketanam karitam [.].
We prefer to read Sasthena for sasthena, and
dharmarajnah(2) for dharmarajnih, and to imagine that
the word Dhana... is a genitive form "Dhana..[sya]'',
and not an instrumental case "Dhana..[na]". The crux
of the inscription lies indeed in deciding (1)
whether Sastha is a personal name or it is an ordinal
(sastha, ''the sixth, " "sixth son, brother or
descendant of Pusyamitra);(3) (2) whether the person
who erected the ketana of Phalgudeva was connected by
blood with Pusyamitra or not; (3) whether Phalgudeva
was the father of the king or of the queen of Kosala;
and (4) whether one or two ketanas (perhaps meaning
memorial shrines)(4) were erected. In
_______________________
1. JBORS., vol.XIII, Parts III-IV, p.247
2. Ramaprasad Chanda would read rajnah, I.H.Q.,
vol.V, No.4.
3. Ramaprasad Chanda has sought to establish with
some apt quotations from the old strata of the
Mahabharata that the ordinal in such a context may be
safely taken to mean ''the sixth in descent." I.H.Q.,
vol.V, No.4.
4. See Ramaprasad Chanda's note in I.H.Q., vol.V,
No.4.
p. 25
accordance with the interpretations hitherto offered,
the ruler of Kosala, named Dhana.., who was the sixth
son, brother or descendant of Pusyamitra caused to be
made a ketana of Phalgudeva, the father of his queen.
But the more plausible interpretation seems to be
this, that the ruler of Kosala, named Dhana..,
erected the ketana of Pusyamitra, and Kausikiputra
Sastha erected the ketana of Phalgudeva, who was the
father of the ruler of Kosala. If this be the right
interpretation, it follows that the inscription is
far from being a record of the Sunga period.
Brhatsvatimitra, Indragnimitra, Brahmamitra.
Brhaspatimitra, [Dhar]mamitra and Visnumitra were all
kings of a Mitra dynasty. Until we are in possession
of a definite evidence to connect them either with
the Sunga-Mitra or or the Sungabhrtya Kanva kings, it
would seem far safer to think with Dr. Raychaudhuri
that they belonged to a neo- Mitra dynasty that rose
into power on the disruption of the rule of the
Kanvas. The interest of Yasamata's brick-tablet is
that it shows that the neo-Mitras were connected by a
matrimonial alliance with the ruling family of
Mathura. The interest of the Pabhosa Cave Inscription
is that it shows that they were connected by the same
alliance with the ruling family of Ahichatra.
The interest of the so-called "Sunga Inscription
of Ayodhya" is that it is probably the record of a
time when the official language became Sanskrit, and
Kosala was still under the sway of some kings whose
boasted ancestor was Pusyamitra, the traditional
founder of the Sunga-Mitra dynasty. The interest of
the Bodh-Gaya inscriptions of Kurangi, Sirima and
Nagadevi is that they clearly prove that the
Stone-railing was erected during the reign of King
Brahmamitra and that Brahmamitra was the immediate
successor of King Indragnimitra. The interest of the
Hathigumpha Inscription is that it unmistakably
proves that Brhaspatimitra, the king of Magadha, was
a contemporary and weaker rival of Kharavela. Lastly,
the interest of the
p. 26
inscription of Gautamimitra is that it definitely
proves that King Visnumitra, the father of
Indragnibhadra, was the son and immediate successor
of King [? Dhar]mamitra.
2. Uttara-Pasana-Lekha: Later Writings
On The Stone-Railing
The later writings on the Bodh-Gaya stone-railing
comprise three inscriptions incised at different
periods of time.
The first inscription is written on the inner
face of a coping-stone belonging to the south side of
the Old Stone-railing. It consists of two lines, the
beginning and the end of each of which are missing.
"The style of writing employed in the inscription
allows us", says Dr. Bloch, "to put down the date at
about the 6th or 7th century A.D."
The second inscription in two lines is written on
the inner face of a broken fragment of another
coping-stone belonging apparently to the south side
of the ancient railing. "Its characters agree in
every respect," says Dr. Bloch, "with the writing of
the first inscription."
And the third inscription in ten lines is written
on the upper part of a rail-post. It is written in
the Devanagari characters by Samgatta for Jinadasa
who has been described as a Pandita from the Parvata
country, and may be assigned to as late a date as the
15th or 16th century A.D. The author of the
inscription was evidently a learned pilgrim from
Nepal or a Himalayan state near about it.
A. No.1
[Noticed by Cunningham, ASR., 1873, Vol.III,
p.99, No.D. Pl. XXIX; R.L. Mitra, Buddha Gaya, 1878,
p.192, No.5, P1.II; Indraji, IA., 1880, Vol. IX,
pp.142 foll.; Cunningham, Mahabodhi, 1892, pp.23, 58,
P1. XXVII, Luders,List of Brahmi Inscriptions in EI,
1909-10, Vol. X, No.950; Bloch, ASI., Annual Report,
1908-9, p.153.]
Text as read and rendered by Bloch
l.1 ......karito yatra Vajrasana-vrhad-gandhakuti
p. 27
[.] Prasadam = arddha-trikair = ddinara-
satais-sudha-lepya-punar-nnavikaranena samskaritam[.]
Atr = aiva ca pratyaham = a-candr-arkk-a-tarakam
Bhagavate Buddhaya go-sata-danena ghrta-pradipa
akaritah[.] Prasade ca khanda-sphatita pratisamaradhane
tat-pratimayam ca pratyaham ghrtapradipo
go-saten = aparena karitah[.] Vihare=pi Bhagavato
raitya-Buddha-pratima(yam go-saten = aparepa
ghrta-pradip..... [.]
1.2 ...............(ghrta)-pradipaksayanivini(ba)n(dha)h
vihar-opayo(gya) karitas=Tatra =Pi (u) pavogaya mahantam=adharam
khanitam, tad-anupurvam c = utpaditam [.]
Tad=etat=sarvvam yan=maya puny-opacita-sambharam
tan = matapitroh p(urvamgamam krtva...) [.]
............ has been made, where the great
Gandhakuti(1) of Vajrasana (sc. Buddha)(l) is.
The temple(2) has been adorned with a new coating
of plaster and paint, at the cost of 250 dinaras.
And in the temple a lamp of ghee has been
provided for the Lord Buddha by the gift of a
hundred cows, for as long as the moon, sun, and
stars shall endure. Also, by another hundred
cows, in addition to the cost of small,
perpetually recurring repairs to
______________________________
1. "The word vajrasana (l,I) is occasionally met
with as a name of Buddha, the meaning which it
clearly has in this inscription."
2."The word gandhakuti means `a chamber, where Buddha
used to reside,' hence a shrine, containing an
image of Buddha'. It would be useless to try and
find out which of the many small shrines, the
foundations of which cover the ground all around
the temple at Bodh-Gaya, has been referred to in
this inccription. Possibly the large temple on the
west side of the Bodhi Tree, mentioned by Hiuen
Tsiang, may be meant."
3 "The temple (prasada) naturally must have been the
same edifice which we still have at the present
day, although it certainly has undergone a number
of alterations."
p. 28
the temple, provision has been made for another
lamp of ghee, to be burnt daily before the image
inside the temple. By another hundred cows
provision has been made for having a lamp of ghee
burnt before the brass image of the Lord Buddha
in the Monastery (vihara).......
1.2 ............ a perpetual endowment of a lamp
of ghee has been made for the benefit of the
Monastery. There also..... a large water
reservoir has been dug out for the use of the
noble congregation of monks, and to the east of
it a new field has been laid out. Whatever merit,
may have been acquired by me by all this, may
this be for the benefit of my parents at first
..........."
[ Notes:--Sir Alexander Cunningham was inclined
to take this inscription to be a Brahmi epigraph of
so early a date as the reign of Huviska, and to
believe that it was intended to record the
construction of the Diamond-throne, the
Fragrant-chamber and the Bodh-Gaya temple itself. But
Dr. Bloch's reading and rendering of the inscription
has served to show that it is far from recording such
a fact. It is impossible to think that the epigraph
is of so early a date as Huviska's reign. The
inscription records some work of merit done near
about the great Fragrant-chamber enshrining the
Diamond-throne, and records also the amount spent for
adorning the temple with a new coating of plaster and
paint, and, what is more, it contemplates the need of
a suitable provision to be made for "perpetually
recurring repairs to the temple." The Diamond-throne,
the great Fragrantchamber and the temple itself were
already there when the inscription was caused to be
incised on the coping-stone of the ancient railing.
We think it safer to interpret the expression
Vajrasana-vrhad- Gandhakuti as signifying an
architectural representation of the Diamond-throne
retreat of the Buddha than to treat Vajrasana as a
name of the Buddha. The inscription must indeed be
considered as
p. 29
later than the erection of the temple, and referred
to a time when the temple needed to be repaired with
a new plaster and paint coating.]
B. No. 2
[Noticed by Bloch, ASI, Annual Report, 1908-9,
p.156; JBORS, 1918, vol. IV, part IV, pp. 405-11].
Text as read and rendered by Panday
[1.1] Lanka-dvipa-narendranam Sramanah kula-jo
bhavat(l) [1]
Prakhyatakirttir = ddharmatma sva-kula-am-
bara-candramah [II (1)]
Bhaktya tu bhiksuna-nena Buddhatvam-
abhikamksata[1]
Kararatna-traye samyak karitah(2) santaye nrnam
II (2)[1]
Ito(3) maya yat=kusalam hy=uparjjitam
Tad = astu bodhaya(4)
[1.2] Subhena tenaiva (pha)lena yujyatam [11 (3)]
"The virtuous Sramana Prakhyatakirtti having been
a descendant of the rulers of the Island of Lanka
(Ceylon) (has become) moon to the firmament of his
family (v.1)."
"This monk, through devotion, desirous of
attaining Buddhahood, caused to be performed proper
acts of worship at the Ratna-traya [the Buddhist Holy
Triad] for the peace of mankind (v.2)."
"Whatever merit has been acquired by me through
this,
_________________________
1. Bloch reads bhavet,
2. Bloch reads Karita.
3. Bloch reads tato. Panday says, "The first letter
of the third verse is distinctly i--two dots with a
vertical stroke on the right."
4. Bloch reads tadasty upadh(ya)ya. According to
Panday, "The letter after tadastu is bo, not pa".
This means indeed a material improvement in both
reading and sense.
p. 30
let that be for the enlightenment (of).... Let that
very auspicious reward be shared by (v. 3)."
[Notes: --Here the two words which need
explanations are kara and ratna-traye. In the opinion
of Dr. Bloch one "can hardly imagine it (kara) to
mean 'a prison' as it generally does," and as to
Ratna-traya, "it may refer to some sacred spot within
the Bodhi area at Bodh Gaya, where, perhaps, a symbol
of the 'three jewels'--Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha,
may have stood." But Mr. Panday has convincingly
proved by a number of apt quotations from the
Divyavadana, pp.133, 166, 289, 329, 420, and 583,
particularly by one from p.329 (Buddhe Dharme Sanghe
karan akarisyat), that kara is "a fairly well known
term in Buddhist literature meaning 'acts of
worship,' and Dr. Bloch's conjecture as to the
existence of a symbol of the three `jewels at Bodh
Gaya having the shape of three wheels placed upon a
pillar is not tenable." The Ratna-traya is but a
collective expression denoting the Budhist Holy Triad
enumerated in the Divyavadana passage as Buddha,
Dharma and Sangha.]
C. No. 3
Text
[1. 1] // Name Buddhaya //
[1. 2] Parvatadagata-pa-
[1. 3] ndita-Jinadasa te-
[1. 4] na Sriman Mahabodhi-
[1. 5] bhattaraka-darsana-
[1. 6] krta-yad punyam ta-
[1. 7] dbhavati mata-pi-
[1. 8] tr- purvagamam krtva
[1. 9] ana(n)ta-punyam likha-
[1. 10] pitam // // Samgatta //
"Salutation to the Buddha. The merit which is
acquired by Jinadasa, a learned man who came from
Parvata, the mountainous country, by means of
visiting (the place) to
p. 31
have a view of the Mahabodhi (shrine which reigns on
the spot)in its glory as the supreme lord falls,
first of all, to the share of the parents. Having
done this infinite work of merit, it is (here) caused
to be written. [Written by the scribe] Samgatta."