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ARCHEOLOGY IN WESTERN TIBET.
SEPTEMBER, 1906.]
It is proclaimed to all those under[my] government in general, and to the elders of Khalatse in particular, as well as to the messengers who are sent up and down on errands either of peace or of punishment (literally: peaceful and rough). 'aGongba-rgya-mthso, whose family has been Dragshos at Khalatse for three generations, on a certain occasion had a quarrel with Dongrubbsod-rnams (the head of the Gongmapa family). They came to the court at Leh and disputed. The elders of Upper and Lower Ladakh, having carefully listened [to the case], cast lots to find exactly the truth, and made the king swear an oath. 'aGongba-rgya-mthso won the case, and my oath is [this] I have shown kindness to Dragshos since [the days of] my forefathers, and [Dragshos] has always done his work in a clever way. Thus it is suitable for Dragshos to receive: - The place of honor (at festivals), the dish of honor, a share of the game from nine peasants [who are] to offer it in turns, [a share] at the harvest of straw and lucerne. As has been the former custom, I swear by the existence of the rNam-rgyal-rtsemo (Hill) and yYutur, and have made it clear that Dragshos receives the authority he has had before. As my mercy also extends to letting him rank with the nobility, it is important that you noblemen neither despise him nor give him any commands, &c., but let him live in peace. Whoever, when seeing this letter, does not heed it, will be sternly brought to judgment. This must be understood by everybody. The petitioner is bSodnamlhungrub. Thus it is written on the 29th of the 8th month of the wood-monkey year [about 1705] at the Leh Palace, Phobrang-thsemo.
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Notes on the Tibetan Text.
bye phragtu, is the same as classical bye bragtu, the Ladakhi word being probably the more original. 'agrim 'agrulgyi sku thsab, are the aides-de-camp of the kings.
bar shig, at an opportunity.
brdar, is the classical bdar.
dran krab laggis, means in a clever way.'
kyi thsir, is a plate filled with more flour pudding than ordinary people receive.
rkang ya gong phud, taking off a leg, or the upper part (when game was brought); this used to be the right of chieftains of villages.
rnam rgyal rtsemo, is the name of the hill behind Leh, on the southern slope of which the royal palace stands.
yyutur, seems to be a place-name; I do not know where it is.
gong ysal, were the noblemen, who were allowed to enter into the presence of the king. Other people had to speak to the king through one of them who was called the petitioner.' So Dragshos (probably dragchos, sorcerer) had to get his case started through a petitioner, as is shown at the end of the document.
Note on the English Translation.
The matter of special interest in this case is that even by this king, who was particularly famous for his wisdom in pronouncing judgment, lots were cast, previous to coming to a decision.
Seals of king Nyima-rnam-rgyal.
There are two red seals attached to the decree. The first is printed to the right of the first line in which it is stated that the decree is to be taken as the word of the king, and seems to be of an ornamental character only. The second seal is placed at the bottom of the document. It is a square, containing in the centre the second part of the name of the king, rNam-rgyal, which is also the name of the dynasty. It is in Hor-yig, or ancient Mongolian characters. These characters are a square form of Tibetan and are written from top to bottom, after the manner of Mongolian writing. They are occasionally used for ornamental writing in Tibet. The name rNam-rgyal is written in two vertical columns, the left column containing the first, and the second column the second syllable of the name.
(To be continued.)
