Metadata

Support
Āyaka pillar in two fragments. We have only identified the upper fragment, whose dimensions are: h. 137 ×  w. 47 ×  d. 38 cm.
Text
Middle Indo-Aryan, Southern Brāhmī script.
Inscribed area: h. 44 ×  w. 55 cm.
Date
Sixth regnal year of Siri-Vīrapurisadatta, approximately between 225 and 275 CE.
Origin
Erected originally at findspot.
Provenance
Discovered between March 1926 and October 1927 at Nagarjunakonda, Site 1, on the West side of the Mahācaitya. Upper fragment identified at Nagarjunakonda Museum (acc. no. 79) in February 2016. Lower fragment not found.
Visual Documentation
Photo(s):
  • photos AL 2017
    • Photo(s) of estampage(s):
  • Est. ASI: Vogel
  • estampage Leiden N7 (two sheets)
    • Editors
    Stefan Baums, Arlo Griffiths, Ingo Strauch and Vincent Tournier.
    Publication history
    First described and edited by Vogel 1929–30a: 14, 15-7 (C3) . Edited again, from the EI estampage, by Sircar 1942: 219-21 and Sircar 1965: 228-30 . Re-edited here from the two estampage sheets held at Leiden and after autopsy of the one fragment of the stone that we have been able to identify.

    Edition

    (1) sidhaṁ namo bhagavato devarājasakatasa supabudhabodhino savaṁñuno (2) savasatānukaṁpakasa jitarāgadosamohavipamutasa mahāgaṇivasabha(3)gaṁdhahathisa saṁmasaṁ[budh]asa dhātuvaraparigahitasa mah[ā]cetiye mahārajasa (4) virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahitasa hiraṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasa(5)tasaha⟨sa⟩padāyisa savathesu °apatihatasaṁkapasa vāsiṭhiputasa °ikhākusa (6) siricātamūlasa sodarā bhagini raṁño māḍharīputasa sirivirapurisadatasa (7) pituchā mahāsenāpatisa mahātalavarasa vāsiṭhīputasa pūkīyānaṁ kaṁdasiri[sa] (8) bhariyā samaṇabam⟨h⟩aṇakavaṇavanijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhagavo(9)chiṁnadhārapad[ā]yini savasādhuvachalā mahādānapatini mahātalavari khaṁdasāgaraṁṇakamātā (10) cātisiri °apano °ubhayakulasa °atichita -m- anāgatavaṭamānakānaṁ parināmetunaṁ (11) °ubhayalokahitasukhāvahathanāya °atano ca nivāṇasaṁpatisaṁpādake (12) savalokahitasukhāvahathanāya ca °imaṁ khaṁbhaṁ patithapitaṁ ti – (13) raṁño sirivīrapurisadatasa sava 6 ⟪ vāpa 6 ⟫ diva 10

    (1) sidhaṁ namo bhagavato devarājasakatasa supabudhabodhino savaṁñuno
    (2) savasatānukaṁpakasa jitarāgadosamohavipamutasa mahāgaṇivasabha-
    (3)gaṁdhahathisa saṁmasaṁ[budh]asa dhātuvaraparigahitasa mah[ā]cetiye mahārajasa
    (4) virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahitasa hiraṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasa-
    (5)tasaha⟨sa⟩padāyisa savathesu °apatihatasaṁkapasa vāsiṭhiputasa °ikhākusa
    (6) siricātamūlasa sodarā bhagini raṁño māḍharīputasa sirivirapurisadatasa
    (7) pituchā mahāsenāpatisa mahātalavarasa vāsiṭhīputasa pūkīyānaṁ kaṁdasiri[sa]
    (8) bhariyā samaṇabam⟨h⟩aṇakavaṇavanijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhagavo-
    (9)chiṁnadhārapad[ā]yini savasādhuvachalā mahādānapatini mahātalavari khaṁdasāgaraṁṇakamātā
    (10) cātisiri °apano °ubhayakulasa °atichita -m- anāgatavaṭamānakānaṁ parināmetunaṁ
    (11) °ubhayalokahitasukhāvahathanāya °atano ca nivāṇasaṁpatisaṁpādake
    (12) savalokahitasukhāvahathanāya ca °imaṁ khaṁbhaṁ patithapitaṁ ti –
    (13) raṁño sirivīrapurisadatasa sava 6 ⟪ vāpa 6 ⟫ diva 10 
    <ab xmlns="http://www.tei-c.org/ns/1.0">
					          <lb n="1"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok119">sidhaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok120">namo</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok121">bhagavato</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok122">devarājasakatasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok123">supabudhabodhino</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok124">savaṁñuno</w>
					          <lb n="2"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok125">savasatānukaṁpakasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok126">jitarāgadosamohavipamutasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok127">mahāgaṇivasabha<lb n="3" break="no"/>gaṁdhahathisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok128">saṁmasaṁ<unclear>budh</unclear>asa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok129">dhātuvaraparigahitasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok130">mah<unclear>ā</unclear>cetiye</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok131">mahārajasa</w>
					          <lb n="4"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok132">virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahitasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok133">hiraṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasa<lb n="5" break="no"/>tasaha<supplied reason="omitted">sa</supplied>padāyisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok134">savathesu</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok135">°apatihatasaṁkapasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok136">vāsiṭhiputasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok137">°ikhākusa</w>
					          <lb n="6"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok138">siricātamūlasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok139">sodarā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok140">bhagini</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok141">raṁño</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok142">māḍharīputasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok143">sirivirapurisadatasa</w>
					          <lb n="7"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok144">pituchā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok145">mahāsenāpatisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok146">mahātalavarasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok147">vāsiṭhīputasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok148">pūkīyānaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok149">kaṁdasiri<unclear>sa</unclear>
					          </w>
					          <lb n="8"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok150">bhariyā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok151">samaṇabam<supplied reason="omitted">h</supplied>aṇakavaṇavanijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhagavo<lb n="9" break="no"/>chiṁnadhārapad<unclear>ā</unclear>yini</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok152">savasādhuvachalā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok153">mahādānapatini</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok154">mahātalavari</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok155">khaṁdasāgaraṁṇakamātā</w>
					          <lb n="10"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok156">cātisiri</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok157">°apano</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok158">°ubhayakulasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="cmp2">
						            <w xml:id="tok159">°atichita</w>
                  <w xml:id="tok160" type="hiatus-breaker">m</w>
                  <w xml:id="tok161">anāgatavaṭamānakānaṁ</w>
					          </w>
					          <w xml:id="tok162">parināmetunaṁ</w>
					          <lb n="11"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok163">°ubhayalokahitasukhāvahathanāya</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok164">°atano</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok165">ca</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok166">nivāṇasaṁpatisaṁpādake</w>
					          <lb n="12"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok167">savalokahitasukhāvahathanāya</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok168">ca</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok169">°imaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok170">khaṁbhaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok171">patithapitaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok172">ti</w>
					          <pc>–</pc>
					          <lb n="13"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok172bis">raṁño</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok173">sirivīrapurisadatasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok174">sava</w>
					          <num xml:id="tok175" value="6">6</num>
					          <add place="below">
                  <w xml:id="tok176">vāpa</w>
						            <num xml:id="tok177" value="6">6</num>
               </add>
					          <w xml:id="tok178">diva</w>
					          <num xml:id="tok179" value="10">10</num>
				        </ab>

    Apparatus

    • (4-5) satasaha⟨sa⟩padāyisa satasaha⟨sa⟩dāyisa JPhV .
    • (7) vāsiṭhīputasa vāsidhīputasa JPhV .

    Translation

    (1-3) Success! Homage to the Bhagavant, worshipped by the king(s) of the gods, who completely realized Awakening, the Omniscient One, who is compassionate with all beings, who conquered and is released from lust, hate and delusion, the bull and rut elephant among great leaders, the Perfect Buddha who is ensconced in the excellent relic [or: element (i.e., nirvāṇadhātu)]!
    (3-12) At the Great Shrine, Cāntisirī — uterine sister of Great King Vāsiṭṭhīputta Siri-Cāntamūla the Ikṣvāku, favored by Mahāsena who has Virūpākṣa as his lord, giver of tens of millions of (pieces of) gold, hundreds of thousands of cows and hundreds of thousands of plows (of land), whose will is unimpeded in all matters; paternal aunt of king Māṭharīputta Siri-Vīrapurisadatta; wife of Great General, Great Talavara Vāsiṭṭhīputta Kandasiri of the Pūkīyas; giver of an unequalled and uninterrupted stream of velāmika gifts as a favor to ascetics, brahmans, beggars, mendicants and the wretched; affectionate to all good people; great donor; Great-Talavara-wife, mother of Khandasāgaraṇṇaka — having dedicated (the merit) to the past, future and present members of her family on both sides, established this pillar for the sake of bringing about well-being and happiness in both worlds and for achieving the fortune of nirvāṇa for herself and for the sake of bringing about the well-being and happiness of all people.
    (13) In the 6th year of King Siri-Vīrapurisadatta, in the 6th fortnight of the rainy season, on the 10th day.

    Commentary

    • (3) dhātuvaraparigahita On the interpretation of this epithet, see Baums et al. 2016: 383-9 .
    • (4) virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahita On the interpretation of this epithet, see Mann 2012: 168-9 ; Baums et al. 2016: 386-7 .
    • (7) pūkīyānaṁ The Pūkīyas are mentioned in the same context in other insctiptions from the same site (EIAD 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 16, 17, 19, 25, 40). It seems likely that this same ethnonym (?) lies behind the word pukiraṭhe in EIAD 329, and that puṣyakandīya in EIAD 53 is a Sanskritization of it.

    Secondary bibliography