Documenta Nepalica

Documents on the History of Religion and Law of Pre-modern Nepal

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A travel document issued by Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā and Raṇa Uddīpa Siṃha Rāṇā to Diṭṭhā Dharma Siṃha before a journey to Kāśī (VS 1921)

ID: RRC_0021_0001

Edited and translated by Manik Bajracharya in collaboration with Rajan Khatiwoda
Created: 2016-05-10; Last modified: 2018-06-15
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Published by Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities: Documents on the History of Religion and Law of Pre-modern Nepal, Heidelberg, Germany, 2017. Published by the courtesy of the National Archives, Kathmandu. The copyright of the facsimile remains with the Nepal Rashtriya Abhilekhalaya (National Archives, Government of Nepal). All use of the digital facsimiles requires prior written permission by the copyright holder. See Terms of Use.
The accompanying edition, translation/synopsis and/or commentary are available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License

Abstract

This is a travel document issued in the year VS 1921 by Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā and Raṇa Uddīpa Siṃha Rāṇā to Diṭṭhā Dharma Siṃha to ensure safe and unhindered passage within Nepal on his way to Kāśī.

Diplomatic edition

[1r]

किनं.३

१९२१कोतेस्रोकिताब.

(कौसलकोपुछ्रे)

१.1स्वस्तिश्रीमदतिप्रचण्डभुजदण्डेत्यादिश्रीश्रीश्रीमहाराज
2जङ्गबहादुरराणाजिसिविप्राइममिनिष्टरयाण्ड
3कम्याण्डरइनचीफकस्यरुक्का
4श्रीमद्राजकुमारकुमारात्मजश्रीकम्याण्डरइनचीफ
5जनरलरणउदीपसिंकुंवरराणाकस्यपत्रम्
6आगेचिसापानीलगायतहाम्रासीमानासम्मजगा
7जगाकाअफीसरकारिन्दाचौकिदारगैह्रकेयथोचित
8उप्रान्तडी.धर्मसिंहबढाईश्रीकासीवासगर्नजाना
9लाईहामिसंगबिदाभैआफ्नुषान्यापीन्यावरन्या
10वीछौन्याभारीतौलीआयाकोछतीनलेल्यायाको
11भारी९षोलानगरीसरासरजानदेऊरोकटोक
12नगर‌इतिसंवत्१९२१सालमितिपौषवदि५
13रोज२शुभम्

Translation

[1r]

Book no. 3

Third book of [VS] 1921

Stamp of the Kauśala

1.1

Hail! A rukkā from him who is mighty and has an arm like a staff, the thrice venerable great king, GCB, Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā.

A letter (patram) from the glorious prince born to a prince, the venerable Commander-in-Chief General Raṇa Uddīpa Siṃha Kũvara Rāṇā.

Āge: To the officers, clerks (kārindā), watchmen etc. of various places within the borders [of our territories] including Cisāpānī.2

Uprānta: Ḍi. (probably for Ḍiṭṭhā) Dharma Siṃha Baḍhāī, after bidding farewell to us, has arrived [there] bearing nine pieces of luggage containing food, drink, blankets and a mattress [on his way] to reside in glorious Kāśī (śrīkāśīvāsa).3 Let him go uninterrupted without opening the 9 pieces of luggage that he has brought with him. Do not obstruct [him].

Monday, the 5th of the dark fortnight of Pauṣa in the [Vikrama] era year 1921. [May there be] auspiciousness.

Commentary

This document is a copy of a travel document provided to one Dharma Siṃha before he set off for Kāśī. This copy is found in vol. 21 of the Regmi Research Collection (RRC). According to the information written on the upper margin of the page, this document was copied from the third book of the year [VS] 1921 of the State Council (Kauśala).

In another document, K_0031_0026B of VS 1904, Dharma Siṃha is authorized to manage the Bhagavatī Guṭhī of the Kaḍela Coka for fifteen years starting from the year VS 1905. There his name is spelled as Dharma Sīṃ Varai.

Notes

1. This refers to as the first document in vol. 21 of the Regmi Research Collection. [⇑]

2. Cisāpānī lies in Banke district on Nepal's south-western border. [⇑]

3. The term kāśīvāsa denotes an outsider's residency in the sacred territory, Kāśī. It may mean that the person has travelled there in order to perform pious activities or else to end out his days there so that he can be emancipated upon his death. The exact intention of Dharma Siṃha's going to Kāśī is not made clear in this document. [⇑]

Word	Notes
āge	[fr. S. agre] adv. lit. "henceforeward" (Riccardi 1976: 150 n. 6), especially used in administrative and legal documents to mark the beginning of a text or paragraph. In its function it is similar to uprānta.
ḍiṭṭhā	var. ḍīṭṭhā, ḍiṭhā; a civil servant ranking above a mukhiyā and lower than a subbā (cf. Stiller 1981: 379). According to Edwards 1975: 107, ḍiṭṭhās originally had been the judges who presided over the courts in Kathmandu but later could serve in a number of other offices (such as the kausī, the hāttīsāra or the sadara daphtarakhānā; see also Kumar 1967: 165; M.C. Regmi 1978: 226). The Mulukī Ain distinguishes three categories of the ḍiṭṭhās; the jaṅgī kote ḍiṭṭhā (probably, combatant personnel), the lājimā ḍiṭṭhā and the ḍiṭṭhā in charge of Elephant or horse stable or cowshed (MA-54.31.11).
kaḍela coka	var. kaṇḍela coka; n. a section of the Basantapur Palace where the Kapardārī Koṭhā, responsible for controlling the royal household and salaries to the royal officials and servants, was housed. For this reason, the Kapardārī Koṭhā was also referred as Kaḍela Coka (Cf. Adhikari 1984 :80, Edwards 1975: 112-113)
kausala	also Bhārādāri Kausala (cf. Adhikari 1984: 70); n. the State Council.
rukkā	[fr. A. ruq'a] n. an executive order, short note, missive from the highest authority. The king, the crown prince, but also queens and the Rāṇā prime ministers issued rukkās.
uprānta	var. uprāṃta, ūprāṃnta, ūprā̃nta, prāṃta; also yathocita uprānta; conj. after that, besides, in addition to, hereafter. In earlier prose and official documents, this word marked the beginning of a text or paragraph. It has no equivalent in English (Clark 1989: 231). In some (mostly Rāṇā period?) documents, it takes the form of yathocita uprānta.