Metadata

Support
Āyaka pillar; h. 320 ×  w. 48 ×  d. 16 cm.
Text
Middle Indo-Aryan, Southern Brāhmī script. h. 85 ×  w. 52 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 North side of the Mahācaitya. Identified at Nagarjunakonda Museum (acc. no. 557) in February 2016.
Visual Documentation
Photo(s):
  • photos AL 2017
    • Photo(s) of estampage(s):
  • estampage Leiden N9
  • Raghunath
    • Editors
    Stefan Baums, Arlo Griffiths, Ingo Strauch and Vincent Tournier.
    Publication history
    First described by Vogel 1929–30a: 14 (D4) , but without edition of the text. This was first integrally published by Raghunath 2001: 95-6 (no. 10A) , but with numerous involuntary errors. We re-edit the text here from the Leiden estampage, and after autopsy of the stone.

    Edition

    (1) sidhaṁ namo bhagavato saṁmasaṁbudhasa dhātuvaraparigahītasa °imaṁmhi mahācetīye (2) mahārajasa virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahītasa °agihotāgiṭhomavājapeyāsa(3)medhayājisa hiraṁṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasatasahasapad⟨ā⟩yisa savathesu (4) °apatihatasaṁkapasa vāsīdh[ī]putasa °ikhākusa siricāṁtamulasa sodarā bhagini raṁño (5) sirivirapurisadatasa pituchā mahāsenāpatisa mahātalavarasa vāsīdhīputasa pūkīyānaṁ (6) kadasirisa bhariya samaṇabaṁmhaṇakavaṇavaṇijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhāgavochina(7)dhārapadāyini savasādhuvachala mahātalavari khaṁdasāgareṁṇakamātā cātisiri °apano °ubhayakulasa (8) °atichit{i} -m- anāgatavaṭamānake parināmetuna °atano ca nivāṇasa⟨ṁ⟩patisaṁpādake °imaṁ khaṁbhaṁ sava(9)lokahitasukhanivāṇathanāya ca patiṭhapitaṁ ti ◊ raṁño sirivirapurisadatasa (10) ◊ saṁva 6 vāpa 6 diva 10

    (1) sidhaṁ namo bhagavato saṁmasaṁbudhasa dhātuvaraparigahītasa °imaṁmhi mahācetīye
    (2) mahārajasa virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahītasa °agihotāgiṭhomavājapeyāsa-
    (3)medhayājisa hiraṁṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasatasahasapad⟨ā⟩yisa savathesu
    (4) °apatihatasaṁkapasa vāsīdh[ī]putasa °ikhākusa siricāṁtamulasa sodarā bhagini raṁño
    (5) sirivirapurisadatasa pituchā mahāsenāpatisa mahātalavarasa vāsīdhīputasa pūkīyānaṁ
    (6) kadasirisa bhariya samaṇabaṁmhaṇakavaṇavaṇijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhāgavochina-
    (7)dhārapadāyini savasādhuvachala mahātalavari khaṁdasāgareṁṇakamātā cātisiri °apano °ubhayakulasa
    (8) °atichit{i} -m- anāgatavaṭamānake parināmetuna °atano ca nivāṇasa⟨ṁ⟩patisaṁpādake °imaṁ khaṁbhaṁ sava-
    (9)lokahitasukhanivāṇathanāya ca patiṭhapitaṁ ti ◊ raṁño sirivirapurisadatasa
    (10) ◊ saṁva 6 vāpa 6 diva 10 
    <ab xmlns="http://www.tei-c.org/ns/1.0">
					          <lb n="1"/>
               <w xml:id="tok634">sidhaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok635">namo</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok636">bhagavato</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok637">saṁmasaṁbudhasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok638">dhātuvaraparigahītasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok639">°imaṁmhi</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok640">mahācetīye</w>
					          <lb n="2"/>
               <w xml:id="tok641">mahārajasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok642">virūpakhapatimahāsenaparigahītasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok643">°agihotāgiṭhomavājapeyāsa<lb n="3" break="no"/>medhayājisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok644">hiraṁṇakoṭigosatasahasahalasatasahasapad<supplied reason="omitted">ā</supplied>yisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok645">savathesu</w>
					          <lb n="4"/>
               <w xml:id="tok646">°apatihatasaṁkapasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok647">vāsīdh<unclear>ī</unclear>putasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok648">°ikhākusa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok649">siricāṁtamulasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok650">sodarā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok650bis">bhagini</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok651">raṁño</w>
					          <lb n="5"/>
               <w xml:id="tok652">sirivirapurisadatasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok653">pituchā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok654">mahāsenāpatisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok655">mahātalavarasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok656">vāsīdhīputasa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok657">pūkīyānaṁ</w>
					          <lb n="6"/>
               <w xml:id="tok658">kadasirisa</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok659">bhariya</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok660">samaṇabaṁmhaṇakavaṇavaṇijakadīnānugahavelāmikadānapaṭibhāgavochina<lb n="7" break="no"/>dhārapadāyini</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok661">savasādhuvachala</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok662">mahātalavari</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok663">khaṁdasāgareṁṇakamātā</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok664">cātisiri</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok665">°apano</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok666">°ubhayakulasa</w>
					          <lb n="8"/>
					          <w xml:id="cmp1">
                  <w xml:id="tok667">°atichit<surplus>i</surplus>
                  </w>
                  <w xml:id="tok668" type="hiatus-breaker">m</w>
                  <w xml:id="tok669">anāgatavaṭamānake</w>
               </w>
					          <w xml:id="tok670">parināmetuna</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok671">°atano</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok672">ca</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok673">nivāṇasa<supplied reason="omitted">ṁ</supplied>patisaṁpādake</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok674">°imaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok675">khaṁbhaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok676">sava<lb n="9" break="no"/>lokahitasukhanivāṇathanāya</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok677">ca</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok678">patiṭhapitaṁ</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok679">ti</w>
					          <space type="horizontal" quantity="1" unit="character"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok681">raṁño</w>
					          <w xml:id="tok682">sirivirapurisadatasa</w>
					          <lb n="10"/>
					          <space type="horizontal" quantity="10" unit="character"/>
					          <w xml:id="tok684">saṁva</w>
					          <num xml:id="tok685" value="6">6</num>
					          <w xml:id="tok686">vāpa</w>
					          <num xml:id="tok687" value="6">6</num>
					          <w xml:id="tok688">diva</w>
					          <num xml:id="tok689" value="10">10</num>
				        </ab>

    Apparatus

    • (4) vāsīdh[ī]- Emend vāsiṭhī-.
    • (5) vāsīdhī- Emend vāsiṭhī-.
    • (7) -sāgareṁṇaka- Emend -sāgaraṁṇaka-.
    • (8) °atichiti- Emend °atichita-.
    • (9) -nivāṇathanāya The <ya> is not completely executed, since the central vertical has been omitted, but no ambiguity results from this omission.

    Translation

    (1) Success! Homage to the Bhagavant, the Perfect Buddha who is ensconced in the excellent relic [or: element (i.e., nirvāṇadhātu)]!
    (1-9) At this Great Shrine, Cāntisirī — uterine sister of Great King Vāsiṭṭhīputta Siri-Cāntamūla the Ikṣvāku, favored by Mahāsena who has Virūpākṣa as his lord, sacrificer of the Agnihotra, the Agniṣṭoma, the Vājapeya and the Aśvamedha, 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 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-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 achieving the fortune of nirvāṇa for herself, and for the sake of the well-being, happiness and nirvāṇa of all people.
    (9-10) In the 6th year of King Siri-Vīrapurisadatta, in the 6th fortnight of the rainy season, on the 10th day.

    Secondary bibliography