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MAURYA DYNASTY.
Rock Inscription of king Asoka's Edicle at Junagadha.
B. C.250.
The rock, on which this inseription is engraved, is about a mile to the east of the town of Junigudha on the way to Diemodarji, a tank considered sacred as a place of pilgrimage. It is a dark granite stone having a face measuring 14' 4" lwy 12' 4". The surface is (livided into fourteen irregular parallelograms, each of which contains an edict. A large piece of stone appears to have gone off ; but the remaining portion is in a good state of preservation.
As the inscription contains no precise date, it can only be said that it must be of the time of King Asoka, in whose reign the edicts appear to be issued, and published, and who flourished about B. C. 250. He ruled at Patliputra, the modern Patní. The edicts are mostly of the character of moral prccepts.
The language of the composition is popular Magadhi in current use among the people at the time, and the character is quite unlike any of the modern oncs.
TRANSLITERATION.
१ इयं धंम लिपी देवानं पिवेन २ पियदसिना राजा लेखापिता इधं न कि ३ चि जीवं आरभिप्ता पि जुहितव्यं ४ नव समाजो कतव्यो बहुकं हि दोसं ५ समाजम्हि पसति देवानं पियो पीयदनि राजा ६ अस्ति पितुए. कचा समाजा माधुमता देवानं ७ पियस पियदसिनो रामो पुरा महानसे (म)म ८ देवानं पियस पियदसिनो राशी अनुदिवस ब
हनि पाण मतसहसानि आरभिनु सुपाथाय १. से अज यदा अयं धमालपो लिखिता ती एव पा११ णा आरभरे सपाथाय देमारा एको मगो सो पि१२ मगोन यो एते पिती पाम पछा न आभिसरे
Ahol Shrutgyanam
