Book Title: Epigraphia Indica Vol 27
Author(s): Hirananda Shastri
Publisher: Archaeological Survey of India

Previous | Next

Page 97
________________ 56. EPIGRAPHIA INDICA (VOL. XXVII of Menandros, where our inscription A has ja without the stroke, points to an ordinary j. And then it is tempting to infer that the simple ja in Vijayamitra denotes a sontewhat different sound. The remaining consonants which are provided with such bottom strokes in our inscription are g, t, d, dh, y, & and 8. In the case of g and I we find both the curved and the angular form, and the former clearly denotes an ordinary r; cf. grinayat(r)i 'causes to take', 1.1, patre 'vessel', 1.2; Vijayamitrena, 1.3 and Viyakamitras(r)a in B, where (r) has been used to transliterate the angular stroke. The latter is found in Bhaq(r)avatu of the Lord', 1.3, where there is another short stroke to the left, just above (r), which I cannot explain, and almost regularly in (r)a when this represents intervocalic t; thus palugabhut(r)ao 'become decayed', where Majumdar reads the blurred akshara as dr, sakareat(r)i 'is honoured, kept in proper state', 1.1 etc. The only exception is bhag(r)avatu, 1.3. The g() of this word must be explained in the same way as in bhag(r)avalo of the Swāt vase of the Meridarkh Theodorol and similar forms in other Kharðshthi inscriptions, for which the Lion Capital has bhak(r)avat(r). There can be little doubt about its meaning. It renders a guttural, probably voiced spirant, a 8. The akshara t(r)a must be explained in a similar way. It should be compared with writings such as pradiţhavid(r)a in the Theodoros epigraph, pral(r)ithavit(r)o on the Lion Capital, and similar forms in other Kharoshthi inscriptions. Inscription C has pradithavide, and the actual sound was probably a voiced dental spirant 8. In the case of d and dh we have kaladre and sadhro 1.1, where the joint seems to be curved at least in sadhro, which evidently corresponds to Sanskrit srāddham. About kalaire or kalaut(r)e I shall have something to say below. Y() is found in key(r)i 1.1, which evidently corresponds to Sanskrit kaschit. I am inclined to consider the (r) stroke as due to a mistake by the engraver. $(r) occurs in Ves(r)akhasa and pamchavis(r)aye 1.2, and should be compared with similar forms on the Lion Capital, where a voiced , i.e., a zt seems to be intended. S(r) only occurs in the name Viyakamitras(r)a in B, where we must probably think of a voiced , a %. The arrangement of the inscription is somewhat irregular. The first line contains the greater portion of a description of the state of things which led up to a new establishing of the relics. The last clause of this description is, however, transferred to 1.2, though there would have been room enough for it in 1.1. It seems to me that the most likely explanation of this state of things is that the first line of the office copy which had to be entered on the surface ended in this very place. The second line would then have contained the last sentence of the introduction and the date portion, after which there is a clear interval. The continuation follows after this interval, at a slightly lower level, and is continued in a fourth line. It would then seem as if the office draft consisted of three lines, and that this arrangement was followed by the writer who copied it for the guidance of the engraver. The second line does not, however keep the same distance from the first one throughout, but gradually increases it. The reason is, according to Majumdar, that B had already been incised, when D was engraved. As I have already stated I am much in doubt with regard to this. The letters of B are larger and bolder than those of D, but they seem to be contemporaneous. And Majumdar's interpretation of B as meaning the gift of Viyakamitra, the unequalled king' does not satisfy me. The original establishment of the relics in a casket was evidently done at the requent of Menandros, and what is indicated in inscriptions C and D is a second establishment, 10.1. 1., Vol. II, pt. I, pp. 1 ff, * Toid, p. 48. Ibid, pp. and exxy. ht, pol Ibid.

Loading...

Page Navigation
1 ... 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348 349 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 361 362 363 364 365 366 367 368 369 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443 444 445 446 447 448 449 450 451 452 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 465 466 467 468 469 470 471 472 473 474 475 476 477 478 479 480 481 482 483 484 485 486 487 488 489 490