Indian Antiquary Vol 04

SR No.: 032496
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: Jas Burgess
Publisher: Swati Publications
Publication Year: 1984
Total Pages: 410
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 18 MB

Page 365

NOVEMBER, 1875.]
[Thrown in a faint] with the chitaur. Fulfilled is Janki's heart's desire, And Janak's and the multitude.
Beams from Narain all hearts made glad, The gods upon their harps do play. Mahadeva ka byah.
NICOBARESE HIEROGLYPHICS OR PICTURE-WRITING.
[This song is in the pure Tirhuti dialect.] Âge mâi! ehân umat bar lai la. Hemat-girit dekhi dekhi laga-ichh rang. Ehân umat bar ghora bo na charha ik, Jehi ghora rang rang jang. Bâghak chhal je basaha palânal
Sâpak bhîr-al tang.
Dimiki dimiki je dimaru baja-in,
Khatar khatar karu ang.
Bhakar bhakar je bhâng bhakosa-thi,
Chatar patar karu gâl. Chânan son anurag-al,thikain, Bhasam charhâwa-thi ang.
Bhût pisach anek dal sâj-al,
The marriage of Mahadeva. Oh, heavens! such a fool for a husband brought! The father looks and looks, in wonder lost;A lout who cannot even ride a horse Who's been in all his paces broken in; Stretched on a bullock is a lion's skin, A snake strapped round to serve for girth; He rattling keeps a pebble in a box, Crack, crack, [his bones all in] his body go; (5) Gobble, gobble, lumps of bhang go down,
Flop, flop, chuck, chuck, his [swollen] chops both go,
(10)
BY V. BALL, M.A., F.G.S., In the somewhat extensive literature of the Nicobar Islands and their inhabitants, which consists of numerous though much scattered papers, I can find but little allusion to, and no adequate description of, the hieroglyphic devices which are so common a feature in Nicobarese houses.
NICOBARESE HIEROGLYPHICS OR PICTURE-WRITING. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA.
The subject appears to me to be deserving of more than a mere passing notice when viewed in connection with the discoveries which have been made of somewhat similar but prehistoric figures engraven on stones, bones, and other substances.
As the Andamanese may be said to have not progressed in civilization beyond that stage which was represented by the people of the Stone' Periods of Europe, so the Nicobarese, who are much less savage and degraded than their neighbours of the Andamans, may justly be compared
341
Sir son bahi gel Gang.
Bhana-hin Bidyapati, ‡ suniye Manâin,§ (15) Thikâha digambar bhang.
1 Age, H. he! Lai-la, H. lâya.
The father of Parvati.-2 Laga-ichh, H. lagta hai. 3 ghora bo, H. ghora bhi; ik, H. ke. 4 jang, pace, H. chal. 5 bagh-ak chhal, H. bigh ka chhal; basaha, Eastern Hindi busaha; Western Hindi nadia, nâdia, a bullock with the rudiments of a fifth, and sometimes sixth and seventh leg, esteemed sacred as carrying Siva on his back; palân-al, H. bichhaya (Persian pâlân, a pannier). 6 Bhiral, H. kasa, drawn tight. 7 baja-in, H. bajta hai. 8 Karu, H. kare. 9 bhakosa-thi, H. bhakosta hai, gobbles. 11 chânan, H. chandan; anurag-al, adorned, H. sanwara.
Decked out with painted streaks of sandalwood, Begrimed with ashes o'er his body all, Arrayed a cloud of demons various, see; The [river] Ganges flowing from his head; 'Tis Bidyapati sings, listen Manâin. Patience, [it is the god] "digambar bhang."
with the inhabitants of Europe in the 'Bronze' Period-their villages, erected on posts below high-water mark, alone serving to suggest a comparison with the lake dwellings of Switzerland and other countries.
The example of Nicobarese hieroglyphics represented in the accompanying illustration was obtained by me in the year 1873 on the island of Kondul, where I found it hanging up in the deserted house of a man who was stated to have died a short time before.
Before removing it I obtained the consent of some of the villagers, who seemed amused at my wishing for it. Sundry bottles of rum, some cheroots and rupees, enabled me to collect a goodly number of images, weapons, utensils, &c.; but these, more than incidentally, I do not propose to describe at present.
While fully recognizing the possibility of this
thika-in (honorific form), H. hain. 12 Charhawa-thi, H. charhâta hai. 13 sj-al, H. saja hua. 14 Gel, H. gya. 15 bhana-hi, H. kahte hain.
In Tirhut, Bidyapati is said to have been a brother-inlaw of Raja Pratap Singh, of Raj Durbangah. Mahadeva (Siva) is said to have been wont to dance with Bidy&pati. § The mother of Parvati.-16 Thikaha (honorific formu), H. hain.
I have a Nicobarese spear-head made of copper. Ordinarily iron, obtained from ships, is used for making their spears.