Documenta Nepalica

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

Version with DOI and citation guidelines

An emancipation deed drawn up by Kaisāṃ Khunu to free his female slave Palsāṃ Buṭī after his death (VS 1949)

ID: E_3446_0032

Edited and translated by Manik Bajracharya in collaboration with Raju Rimal and Rajan Khatiwoda
Created: 2017-04-12; Last modified: 2018-06-22
For the metadata of the document, click here

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

Kaisāṃ Khunu, a resident of Sāmāgāũ in the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā region, makes official provisions to free his female slave Palsāṃ Buṭī after his death.

Diplomatic edition

[1r]

[unknown seal]

1स्वस्तिस्म्[?]१९४९सालमीतिकार्तीकशुदी९रोज६कादीन्‌मा
2लेषीतम्‌मअठारसये़षोलामधेसामागांऊवश्नेकैसांषुनु[...]
3गे४९सालकावर्षामागाँऊघरअनीकालपर्दानीजैगाँऊ[...]
4पल्सांछीरीं२जानीरछोरीपल्सांवुटीईन्‌हरूलेमेराघरमा[...]
5ईहाम्‌राजहान्‌भोक्‌अनीकाल्‌लेसारैदुषपाय़ोहाम्‌
6राजीय़ावजाईदीनपर्योभनीनीजपल्सांछीरीं२जानीलेर
7नीजकाछोरीलेभंनआऊदानीजपल्सांछीरीं२जानीलेमेरा
8छोरीपल्सांवुटीकोमोल्‌मोलाईगरीलीधर्मटेकाईदीनप
9र्योभनीभंदा१९४९सालकाजेश्ठशुदी५रोज२का[...]
10न्‌मानीजहरूकोमासीनेजात्‌हुनालेप⟪ल्⟫सांछीरींका[...]
11रिपल्संवुटीवर्ष१४भय़ाकापरम्‌पट्टारनीजकेटीका[...]
12जीनामस्मेत्‌कोकागजगरीमोलमोरू२५नीजकेटीकावावु
13रआमासंगवुझाईकपाल्‌मातेल्‌ठोकी५।६मैनाकमारी
14सरहकाम्‌लगाईभोक्‌चलन्‌भय़ाकोहोहाल्‌केगरु
15ये़सपल्संवुटीकमारीमैलेलीकेहीप्रय़ोजन्‌छैनपाप्[...]
16कोठीमावस्याजस्तोलाक्‌दारये़सकेटिलाईआजसम्मक[...]
17रीछतापनीअवप्राँन्तमेराजीय़ाभरजीऊपारगरीदीञ्यूं[...]
18म्‌काजरमेराचाकडीमेराजीय़ाभरगर्नुमरोजीय़ा
19लेछोडनापछीजातपनीकाम्‌पनीपारपर्छीनाभय़ोमेरा
20सन्‌तान्‌वाट७पुस्तासम्मतक्‌कसैलेहाम्रावावुवाजेको
21कमारीहोभनीपक्रीइदीनपाऊदैनजसलेदुषदीन्छ
22कमारीभनीकाम्‌चलाय़ोभन्यामेरासराप्‌लेज[...]
23नहव़स्‌मेराजीय़ाभरकाम्‌चाकडीमाकटछजा[...]
24माकरछैन⟪नी⟫जकेटीकोजात्‌भात्‌सुद्धगरीमेराजी[...]
25भरकोकाम्‌मात्रगर्नुभंन्येवेहोरकोधर्मपत्रको
26कागजलेषीईस्वरजी⟪ऊ⟫माअर्पनम्‌गरीनीजपल्सं
27वुटीकोवावुपल्सांछीं२जानीलाईसहीछाप्‌गरी
28दीञ्यूंये़सवेहोराकोसाछीतहवील्दारमर्गागुरुं१वंप
29राथकाली१सामागाऊका⟪मन⟫चीत्मुषीय़ा१ऐंगाऊका[...]
30भोटे१लेषत्‌कासाछीथाक्‌टुक्‌चेगाऊकाकाम्‌[...]
31थकाली१मीतीसद्रशु¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯

[1v]

श्रीसरस्वतिभगति•गुरुपिताचीत्रगुप्तनमस्तुते

Translation

[1r]

Hail! Written on Friday, the 9th of the bright fortnight of Kārttika in the [Vikrama] era year 1949 (1892 CE) [by] me, Kaisāṃ Khunu, resident of Sāmāgāũ, [which lies] in the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā [region].

Āge: During the rainy season of the year [VS 19]49, when a famine occurred in the immediate surroundings, Palsāṃ Chīrīṃ2 jānī1 and [their] daughter Palsāṃ Buṭī came to my house and said: "Our family has suffered excessively due to hunger and famine. Please save our lives." Palsāṃ Chīrīṃ 2 jānī then said: "Please determine a price for my daughter Palsāṃ Buṭī and uphold the dharma by accepting (i.e., buying) her." After he said this, since they were of an enslavable caste (māsīne jāt), on Monday, the 5th of the bright fortnight of Jyeṣṭha in the year [VS] 1949, after arranging a paramabhaṭṭā together with a deed of consentment (rājīnāmā) from the girl, [I] handed over mohara rupaiyā 25 [as the price] for the 14-year-old Palsāṃ Buṭī to her father and mother. [The girl officially became my slave] through oil being applied to her head (kapālmā tel ṭhokī). [I] have been assigning her work and using her as a slave for a period of 5 or 6 months. What shall I do now? I have no use for this Palsāṃ Buṭī as a slave. It has felt like living in a house of sin, and [therefore] even though this girl has been a slave up until today, I shall free her while I am [still] alive. Throughout my life she should work for and serve me. After my death she is free from both caste and work [obligations]. None of my descendants down to the 7th generation may take possession of her, stating: "[She was] the slave of our ancestors." May whoever troubles her or uses her for work as a slave be burnt [to death] under my curse. [Her time] will be spent in work and service [for me] throughout my life. She has no obligations [afterwards] regarding her caste. The said girl shall only work for the remainder of my life, [thereby?] purifying her caste and rice commensality [status].2 I have written this religiously solumnized document (dharmapatra), offered it to the body of the Lord, signed it and shall [now] hand it over to Palsāṃ Chīrīṃ 2 Jānī, the father of the said [slave] Palsāṃ Buṭī.

The witnesses to this document are: Tahabildāra Margā Guruṃ - 1, Vaṃparā Thakālī - 1, Manacīt, the mukhiyā of Sāmāgāū - 1, ...3 Bhoṭe of the same village - 1 and the witness of the writer Kām ...4 Thakālī of Thākṭukcegāū - 1. The date is valid. Auspiciousness.

[1v]

I bow down to the glorious goddess Sarasvatī, [my] guru, [my] father and Citragupta.

Commentary

This is a document from the collection of Tsering Wangdu of Nubri. It mentions the owner's applying oil to the forehead of the slave. One may assume that this was a ritual performed to formalize the act of enslavement. The Mulukī Ain repeatedly mentions the phrase tela ṭhoknu, "to pat with/apply oil", in the context of enslavement without explaining it further. This document places the practice within one concrete situation. Later in the document, the master declares that the slave girl's caste is purified (of its slave status), so that she would not remain enslaved after his death. This may prove that it was possible for a slave owner to raise the caste status of his slaves to a non-enslavable one, especially in a northern society. The identity of the master, Kaisāṃ Khunu, is not clear. Another document (Tsum_0014) concerning tax collection in Pārogāũ of the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā region mentions the name Kaisāṃ Khunu as the jimmāvāla.

Notes

1. The meaning is unclear. It may mean "2 persons", i.e., Palsāṃ Chīrīṃ and his wife. However, in line 27 of the document, the father of Palsāṃ Buṭī seems to be called Palsāṃ Chīrīṃ 2 Jānī, as if 2 Jānī were part of his name. [⇑]

2. It not clear whether she is purified first and proceeds to work for the rest of the masters life or the purification is something she herself does by serving for the rest of his life. [⇑]

3. A lacuna in the original. [⇑]

4. A lacuna in the original. [⇑]

Glossary

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.
dharmapatra	[fr. S.] n. 1) a religiously solemnized document. 2) a written oath (cf. Whelpton 1991: 282). 3) a religious deed (cf. Karmacharya 2001a: 321).
jimmāvāla	var. jimavāla, jimmavāla, jimvāla; n. a chief contractor (ṭhekedāra) who, before the introduction of the land administration, collected revenues from the lands in the hill region and submitted them to the government (Parājulī et al. 1995: s.v. jimmāvāla).
mohararupaiyā̃	var. mohararupaiyām, mohararūpaiyā, moharaṭaṃkā (New.); often abbreviated as moru, morū, moharu, moharū, moharru, mohorru; n. monetary unit based on and equivalent to two eight-anna silver coins (moharas); in calculations usually broken down into four sukās, 16 ānās or 64 paisās (cf. Pant and Pierce 1989: 93) or 256 dāmas; the exchange ratio with paisās was calculated differently at different times and in different parts of the kingdom, depending on the relative values of silver and copper, ranging between 52 and 80 paisās (Regmi 1982: 73). In documents sums are represented in four numerical fractions, with the rupaiyā represented by numbers; the sukās by one to three daṇḍas or the avagraha sign representing zero; the ānās by one to three diagonal dashes, sometimes as a loop with two or three jags; the paisās again by daṇḍas or numbers; the dāmas by numbers or horizontal dashes.
mukhiyā	var. mukhīyā, muṣiyā, muṣīyā; n. a designation for an administrative post used at the local, district and central level. At the local level mukhiyās functioned as village headmen and revenue functionaries (Pant and Pierce 1989: 93; M.R. Pant 2002: 134; cf. M.C. Regmi 1988: 269). District headmen were also called mukhiyās. In the central administration, mukhiyās were writers who kept accounts or supervised officials of lower ranks (Edwards 1975: 107 ; cf. M.C. Regmi 1978: 228 ; M.C. Regmi 1978: 862 ; Kumar 1967: 16).
paramabhaṭṭā	[fr. S.] var. parampaṭṭā, paramabhaṭṭa, parambhaṭṭa, parambhaṭṭi, paraṃbhātā, parāṃbhaṭṭa, pārabhātā; n. a deed, prepared by the seller, formalizing the sale of a slave.
tahabiladāra	[fr. A.] var. tahavīldāra; n. cashier or treasurer of a government institution (cf. Adhikari 1984: 357; Karmacharya 2001: 326), they would "receive the money brought in and pay the fees and salaries of the officials of that office [i.e. the Kumārīcoka].“ (Edwards 1975: 108).