Documenta Nepalica

Commentary

The two editorial corrections in the edition of the present document were made based on an extant copy of the same document microfilmed as K_0132_0025. A translation of what appears to be the same document is published in Land Tenure and Taxation in Nepal (Regmi 1968:181). Significant differences between my translation and Regmi's are laid out in the footnotes.

Although the document is the only one in the corpus of documents related to the Tripureśvara temple that specifically defines the tasks of the people working there, some uncertainty regarding their roles still exists. It remains to be verified whether at one point in history Tripureśvara’s Bhaṭṭas belonged to the same lineage as the priests serving at the Paśupatinātha temple in Kathmandu, who very likely came from South India (Michaels 1994, 123). The Mulukī Ain implies as much when it lists Bhaṭṭa Brahmins alongside other types of Brahmins who originally came from foreign kingdoms (Mulukī Ain 1.26; Khatiwoda, Cubelic, and Michaels 2021, 590; 825). The current priest's family, which has served the temple since the 1930s, originally comes from Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The term Jaisī/jaisī can refer to both a member of a caste group and to a specific function. As a caste, Jaisīs were Brahmins, ranked below Upādhyāyas. They are traditionally considered the offspring of an Upādhyāya Brahmin and a Brahmin woman (Jaisīs included), without formal marriage (Regmi 2002, 300). The members of this group were often employed as astrologers (jaisī goes back to Skt. jyotiṣa for astrology) or clerks (Regmi 1970, 277). Tripureśvara’s Jaisī was tasked with maintaining accounts on revenue and expenditures, and as such, was required to be present at the annual reassignment of contracts (pajanī) and during all administrative activities at the temple treasury. Similarly, Bhaṇḍārī/bhaṇḍārī can denote both a Brahmin caste and the office of a treasurer or supervisor of a storehouse (bhaṇḍāra). The two Bhaṇḍārīs associated with Tripureśvara’s worship guṭhi seem not to have performed such oversight duties, as matters relating to the treasury were handled by the biseṭa and the Jaisī (hence the capitalized form Bhaṇdarī appears in the translation). While the description of their duties is vague, it suggests that they were chiefly involved in conducting worship at the temple. They also had a hand in the annual reassignment of contracts (pajanī), overseeing the selling of paddy, and conducting surveys of the temple treasury. The post of a temple administrator (biseṭa) is also somewhat obscure. It appears that the function pre-dates the Śāha period and was prevalent in Newar guṭhi organizations. A lālamohara issued on the 10th of the bright fortnight of Māgha, VS 1877 records the appointment of Hanumana Siṃ Mahāṭa as the Tripureśvara temple's biseṭa (K_0002_0041D), but does not further elaborate on his tasks. See the commentary of K_0017_0002A for a discussion of the tasks of a biseṭa of a Newar guṭhi. Other documents (see K_0119_0007, K_0119_0010, and K_0119_0011) record the employment of Kusles as musicians at the Tripureśvara temple.

Supplementing the present document, DNA_0012_0016 (a lālamohara formalizing the guṭhi) lists the annual emoluments in murīs of unhusked rice granted to members of the Tripureśvara guṭhi during rougly the same time period.

Notes