Documenta Nepalica

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

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A letter from Jīta Jaṅga formalizing a raitāna lokābhāra contract in favour of Mukhiyā Chiduṃdu after the death of his predecessor (VS 1941)

ID: E_3446_0001

Edited and translated by Rajendra Shakya in collaboration with Rabi Acharya
Created: 2020-04-24; Last modified: 2020-09-10
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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, 2020. 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 letter from Jīta Jaṅga formalizes a raitāna lokābhāra lease contract in favour of Mukhiyā Chiduṃdu at the request of Jimmāvāla Chīma Dorjye Khunu after the death of the previous mukhiyā, Pāsāṅ Chiriṃ.

Diplomatic edition

[1r]

1श्रीपश्चिमतर्फकाकम्यां
2डिङ्‌जनरल
3१

[Seal of Jīta Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā]

[Unknown seal]

1[?][?]द्राजकुमारकुमारात्मजश्रीकम्याडरइनचीफजनरलजीत[?]
2[?]णाकस्यपत्रम्‌
3[?][?]ठारसयेषोलाकुटांभोट्‌मध्येप्रोकगाउकामुषियाछिदुंदुकेहाम्रा
4¯ ¯१¯षान्गीमादरियाकोअठारसयेषोलाकुटांभोट्‌‌मध्येप्रोकगाउ
5कासाविककोमुषियापासाछिरिंमर्दानीजकोसट्टामुषियाछिदुंदुकोनाउमा
6पट्टागरिपाउभनिजीम्माव़ालछीमदोर्ज्येषुनुलेवीन्तीपत्रचह्रायावमोजिम्‌नी
7जप्रोकगाउ१कोइस्तक्‌सम्वत्‌१९४१सालआश्वीनवदि१रोजदेषि४२साल[...]
8द्रसुदि१५रोजतक्‌वर्ष१कामितिलेहामीलाइषानगिछंज्याल्‌सालवसाल
9सीवाये¯ ¯२¯अंककल्यान्‌धनधर्माधीकारपंचषतरहतावहताउडंतागडं
10तारकमिघरकोझारावेदर्तारकमकलम्‌पगरिकाचुक्‌षतवाहेकव़ाजवीसे
11र्मासाउन्याफागुस्याफलसिर्तोसावीक्‌दरिचलिआयाकोरकमकलमरअै
12नवमोजीमकाडंडकुंडमर्‍याअपुतालि∙चाकचकुईमारिमेटिवेमोजरैवर्ष
13१कोनगदव़ाजवी१७६अस्मानि१२५||ज्मामोहरु३०१||∙नुन्‌पाथी|५|५
14मारैतान्‌लोकाभारठेक्‌गरिवक्स्यौंरस्तीचलाईवस्तीवसाइजगाअवादगुल
15जारगरिरैतीराजीराषिसावीक्‌चलिआयावमोजीम्‌असुलतहसिलगरिकवु
16लवमोजिम्‌‌कानगदजीनिसयकैकीस्तासालसालकामाघमैन्हामाजीम्माव़ाल
17मार्फत्‌चुक्तिगरिहाम्रातहसिलअडामादाषिलगरिरसिदलिनुकदाचितजीम्मा
18वाल्‌‌लेदामकाम्‌हीनामिनापार्‍योमर्‍योभाग्योभन्यातिमिमुषियारैतिहरूका
19घरघरानावाटलिवक्सौला∙फर्मायसिवेसौतिजीन्सीमालहरुचाहिदास
20नदपुर्जिमालेषीयावमोजिम्‌‌∙कामालसावीक्‌वमोजीम्‌गव़ैयाभाउलेषरिद
21गरिदाषिलगर्नुसोमाल्‌चलान्‌गर्दाअघिचलिआयाकाअडाअडावाटचला
22उनुआफ्नागाउमाभयाकामैनकस्तुरिअनेत्रनवेचनुजोभयाकोहाम्राहजुरमा
23दाषिलगरिठेकमध्येमिन्हालिनु¯ ¯३¯काआजापुजादसैमामुलिषर्चजो
24छसावीक्‌वमोजीम्‌कत्तीनघटाइठेकवाहेक्‌चलाउनुकवुलवमोजीमकाजं
25म्मामा¯ ¯४¯पर्‍योअथवाजगामाउठाउनसकेनौभनियेक्‌दाम्‌मिन्हापाउ
26न्याछैनलोकाभारठेकभंन्दावढताभयारैतिलाइदामासाहिगरिवाडिदिनुनो
27कसान्‌पर्‍यारैतिसगदामासाहिकाहिसावलेउठाइवुझाउनु∙रैतिदुनीयाकाझै
28झगडामामिलामुद्दापर्दाअैनथीतिवमोजीम्‌गर्नुवीजाञीवीदुतनगर्नुलेषि
29यावमोजीम्‌नगरिघटिवढिपारि∙घुसरोसवत्‌सर्सलामिषाइनञारकमकलम
30लगाइली∙हक्‌कुराछाडि∙वीजाञीवीदुतगरिरैतिदुनीञालाईदुषदिकामका
31जगर्‍यौरकोहिकराउनआयोर∙सोमुद्दामासावीतगरायोभन्याअैनवमोजी
32म्‌वुझाउनुपर्लाकवुलवमोजीम्‌‌कानगदजीनीस्‌सालवसाल्‌माघमैन्हामा
33दाषिल्‌गर्नसकेन∙मैनकस्तुरि∙हाम्रातहवीलमादाषिलनगरिहीनामिनापा
34र्‍यौ∙अनेत्रवीक्रिगर्‍यौ∙भन्याअैनवमोजीम्‌सजायेगरिनगदरुपैञाकोदो
35चंन्दारजीनसिमालकोअसनकादरभाउलेमोलस्मेत्‌तेराघरघरानावाटली
36लोकाभारटोडीवक्सौला∙लोकाभारहोभनिउजुरगर्नपाउन्याछैनपगरिकाचु
37क्‌‌षत∙कोअस्मानी∙आम्दानी∙ठेक्‌वाहेक्‌वुझाउनल्याइरसिदलीनुभनिसावी
38क्‌दरसावीक्‌वमोजीम्‌सालवसालि∙लोकाभारठेक्‌‌कोपट्टागरिवक्स्यौंआफ्‌
39नाषातीरज्मासगरैतानलोकाभारठेक्‌जानीजगाकोचलन्‌गरइतिसम्वत्‌
40१९४१सालमितिफागुणसुदि२रोज२श्भ्म्‌

Translation

[1r]

Śrī Western Commanding General – 1

Hail! A letter from Commander-in-chief General Jīta Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā, a prince born of a prince

Āge: To Chiduṃdu, the mukhiyā of Prok village [within] the Kuṭāṃbhoṭ sector of the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā [region]

In accordance with the supplication submitted to us by Jimmāvāla Chīma Dorjye Khunu regarding Prok village [within] the Kuṭāṃbhoṭ sector of the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā [region], which has been registered as our khānagī under the western commanding generalship, stating: “May a lease contract be formalized in favour of Mukhiyā Chiduṃdu by replacing the previous mukhiyā, Pāsā[ṅ]Chiriṃ, since the latter has passed away,” we have formalized an annual lokābhāra lease contract at the usual rate for as long as [this] khānagī remains with us, with the following details:

“Except for rāja aṅka 1 , kalyānadhana, dharmādhikāra pañcakhata and arrearages (rahatā bahatā, uḍaṃtā, gaḍaṃtā)2 , jhārā levies on rakamī households, unregistered customary taxes and levies (rakamakalama), and [fines for] faults (cukṣata)3 [committed by holders of] pagarī [contracts], [all other liabilities]—the scheduled sermā, syāphala4 and sirto [revenue], [and also] registered customary taxes and levies, and daṇḍakuṇḍa, maryo aputālī, cākacakui [levies] that are imposed in accordance with the Ain, [all of which] have been imposed on the 1 village of Prok on a yearly basis, shall [now] receive a complete exemption for a period of one year [beginning] (istaka) from the 1st of the dark fortnight of the month of Āśvina in the year VS 1941 (1884 CE) to the 15th of the bright fortnight of the month of Bhādra in the year [VS 19]42 (1885 CE). You shall [therefore] submit a total sum of 301 mohararupaiyā̃s 2 sukās, which includes the scheduled [tax] of 176 mohararupaiyā̃s and an asmānī [levy] of 125 mohararupaiyā̃s 2 sukās, along with 5 pāthīs 5 mānās of salt for [a period of] 1 year.

“Keep the ryots well disposed by overseeing affairs, founding settlements and making crops flourish (ābāda guljāra garī), and collect revenue as listed and managed previously, and submit [the total amount] which you have agreed to pay, in cash and kind, for each year in a single instalment in the month of Māgha through the jimmāvāla, delivering it to our Tahasila Aḍḍā and obtaining a receipt.

“In the case where a jimmāvāla mishandles money matters, [and then] dies or runs away, then you, the mukhiyā and the ryots, shall have to pay from your household property. When [there are orders] in writing in [the form of] a sanada or purjī for particular market products [or other] items, make the purchase at the current rate in the village, as was done previously, and deposit them. When dispatching such items, do so from the government offices (aḍḍā) that were previously used. Do not sell elsewhere the wax and musk available in your village. Deposit all available [wax and musk] here [into our treasury] and get the reduction in [the amount due according to] the lease contract.

“Besides [the commitments under] the contract, use [the revenue], without any reduction [to the previous outlays,] for whatever general expenses there are for [observing] the Dasaĩ festival or for the worship of -3- [the glorious gods/divinities]5 . You shall not receive even a single dāma remitted on the total amount you have agreed to pay in the case where -4- [some act of the glorious gods/divinities has befallen you]6 or you fail to collect [what is owed] on [lokābhāra] land. In the case where there is a surplus [in the collection of revenue mentioned in] the lokābhāra contract, proportionally distribute it to ryots. If there is a loss, proportionally collect from the ryots [the shortfall] and submit [it to our treasury].

“Follow the rules set by the Ain when settling lawsuits between subjects. Do not cause injury and oppression. If you do not follow what has been written [in the Ain] by inflating or reducing [figures], taking bribes or [embezzling] sarsalāmī [payments], and imposing and collecting new levies, overstepping your authority, causing injury and oppression, and so making subjects suffer, and if anyone comes to complain and proves [such wrongdoing], then you shall pay in accordance with the Ain.

“If [anyone among you] is unable to deposit the instalment that is to be paid as a [single] annual instalment in the month of Māgha, [or] if [anyone among you] is found to have misappropriated wax and musk instead of depositing them into our treasury or sold elsewhere, then you shall be punished in accordance with the Ain: double the amount of cash due and with [due] items assessed at the rate in Asana 7 shall be exacted from your household property, and the lokābhāra contract shall then be annulled. You shall not have the right to file a complaint, claiming: “It is a lokābhāra [contract].” Deposit the asmānī revenue gained from [fines for] faults (cukṣat) [committed by holders of] pagarī [contracts] in addition to the contractual amount and obtain a receipt.”

Tend the land with content (khātirajāmā), considering [it] as a raitānalokābhāra lease contract.

Monday, the 2nd of the bright fortnight of Phālguṇa in the [Vikrama] era year 1941 [1885 CE]. Auspiciousness.

Commentary

Jīta Jaṅga, the third son of Jaṅga Bahādura, issued this document as the commander-in-chief general to formalize a lokābhāra lease contract for his khānagī, which he held in the capacity of western commanding general. This suggests that he had recently been promoted to the post of commander-in-chief general and the annual pajanī function was yet to take place. Another document, Tsum_0001_0012, dating from 1888 CE, is an example of a similar situation: Raṇa Śamśera was being paid under a khānagī held in the capacity of western commanding general while having already been promoted to commander-in-chief general, and indeed had already passed away, when the payment was made for that khānagī.

Jīta Jaṅga’s tenure as commander-in-chief general ended with a sudden decision to resign from his post and go into self-imposed exile to India. He left Kathmandu for India around May 1885 on the pretext of getting treatment for a hearing impairment and sent in his resignation once there. The real reason behind his departure was apparently his suspicion that some untoward incidents might take place due to rising political tensions in the capital (Rāṇā 2059 VS: 239-240). There is another, more personal reason, though: Prime Minister Raṇa Uddīpa Siṃha (Rāṇā) had transferred some of Jīta Jaṅga’s power to the sons of Dhīra Śamśera, leaving him distraught. Despite his resignation, his name continued to appear on official documents as the occupant of that position, although Raṇavīra Jaṅga Rāṇā officiated on his behalf (Sever 2014: 198). The date of issuance of this document, mid-February 1885, was just months before Jīta Jaṅga went into exile. He was still being mentioned as the commander-in-chief general at the time of the assassination of Raṇa Uddīpa Siṃha on 22 November 1885 (Sever 2014: 470).

Notes

1. Here, the text gives a reference to the space above in the document with a reference number ‘¯ ¯2¯’, followed by the word aṅka. Probably the missing text is ‘Śrī Rāja-2’, as seen in another document from the same area, L_1200_0029. [⇑]

2. See Regmi 1981: 56. [⇑]

3. Cuka (“mistake, carelessness”) + khata (“fault, accusation”); see Turner s.v. [⇑]

4. The term syāphala is not clear, but it probably is also a kind of tax. [⇑]

5. This reference is unclear due to the missing topmost part of the document. However, another document, E_3446_0003, which has its topmost part intact, mentions the reference as ‘the glorious gods/divinities’. [⇑]

6. This reference is not clear due to the missing top part. However, another document, E_3446_0003, which has its topmost part intact, mentions śrī daivi in a similar context. [⇑]

7. Asana was and still is one of Kathmandu’s main markets. [⇑]

Glossary

Word	Notes
aḍḍā	var. aḍā; n. an office, post or station where state functionaries carry out their duties.
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.
ain	var. āin, aina; n. 1) laws, statutes, rules, regulations enacted by authority 2) law-code of Nepal, first promulgated in 1854 during the rule of Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā and amended several times before it was completely revised in VS 2022. The revised law-code was renamed as Mulukī Ain.
asmānī	[fr. P] n. 1) a kind of tax or amount imposed on each household of the mountain region of western Nepal in the ancient time (Parājulī et al. 2010: 90). 2) miscellaneous levies and payments such as judicial fines and escheats, which were not collected on a periodic basis. (M.C. Regmi 1970 (No. 4): 100; cf.: M.C. Regmi 2002: 297; M.C. Regmi 1978b: 853; M.C. Regmi 1978: 161).
cākacakuī	var. cākacakui, cāṣa caṣui; n. often translated as "adultery" or "fine for adultery" (see e.g. M.C. Regmi 1982: 135; cf. Śarmā VS 2032: s.v. cākacakuī) and sometimes as "incest" (cf. Bhaṭṭarāī and Dāhāla VS 2041: s.v. cāka cakuī) the word also denotes forms of marriage among different ethnic groups which are not in accordance with the Hindu ideal of marriage (see Stiller 1976: 174). According to the Mulukī Ain, the punishment for members of Enslavable castes was the enslavement of the man (cāka) and the woman (cakuī or cakuī) (see Fezas 1986: 173 with reference to the Mulukī Ain, ch. 86"māsinyā jyū amālile lināko" [MA-KM VS 2022: 367-68], for further details, see note in DNA_0014_0028).
dāma	var. dām; n. the smallest monetary unit, one-fourth of one paisā (in case of measurements of land etc.) and one-256th of one mohararupaiyā̃.
daṃḍakuṃḍa / daṇḍakuṇḍa	n. generic term for judicial fines and penalties.
dasaĩ / daśaĩ	[fr. S. daśāha] var. dasai; n. festival to worship the goddess Durgā as slayer of the buffalo demon, held over the bright half of the autumn month of Āśvina (baḍā dasaĩ) and, on a smaller scale, over the bright half of the spring month of Caitra (caite dasaĩ).
dharmādhikāra / dharmādhikārī	[S. dharmādhikārin] n. chief judge in religious jurisdiction whose main duties are to grant expiation and rehabilitation to polluted individuals. The term is exclusively used for Brahmins.
istaka	The meaning is unclear, but the form always occurs before a samvat (era) period. It may be a truncated form of 'istakbīl-tā-gāyat', which means "from a certain date to a certain date, used chiefly with respect to notes" (Wilson 1855: 220).
jhārā	n. forced labor, unpaid work or assistance exacted from the people by the government or a landlord for the cause of the state or public welfare; can also be commuted into cash payment (M.R. Pant 2002: 133; M.C. Regmi 1988: 267).
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).
kalyānadhana	n. hidden treasures (Adhikari 1984: 350) and “unclaimed wealth or property“ (Krauskopff and Meyer 2000: 186) that acrued to the state.
kamyāṇḍara ina cipha janarala	[fr. E.] mod. N. kamāṇḍara °; var. kamyāṇḍara īna cīpha janarala; n. commander-in-chief general, formal head of the army; second in the Rāṇā hierarchy and first in the Rāṇā roll of succession.
khānagī / khānkī / khāngī	n. 1) salary, wages, or an annual emolument. 2) emoluments of government employees and functionaries, generally in the form of land assignments (M.C. Regmi 1978: 227; cf. M.C. Regmi 1978: 860; Adhikari 1984: 351). 3) rents accruing from the lands assigned to jāgiradāras (cf. M.C. Regmi 1965: 18-19).
khātirajamā / khātirajāmā	[fr. A.] var. khātirjmā, ṣātīrajāmā; n. 1) faith in a person or to one's own duty. 2) confidence. 3) good conduct. 4) "sympathy, pity" (Turner 1931: s.v. khātirjāmā).
lokābhāra	[S.] n. "a system under which the local community undertook liability for payment of the stipulated revenue through a representative designated for that purpose" (M.C. Regmi 1978: 162)
mānā	n. a volumetric unit equivalent to 0.568 litres, or 1/8 of a pāthi.
maryo aputālī / moroaputālī	var. maryo aputāli, moroaputāli; also aputālī; n. escheatable property (on a discussion of the term, see Fezas 1986).
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).
pagarī	n. 1) turban, often given as a token of honor or as official appointment to office. 2) wearer of a turban of honor, thus 2a) general term for civil and military personnel (Adhikari 1984: 354); 2b) officer of higher rank (subedāra or above) (Whelpton 1991: 285); 2c) “Member of a Limbu village council in Pallokirat.“ (M.C. Regmi 1978: 863); 3) “an additional sum of rupees demanded from a winner of a court case in return for a turban (pagarī) accorded to him.“ (M.R. Pant 2002: 134; cf. pagarī-dastura).
pajanī	n. annual reassignment of offices and contracts, such as by a king.
pañcakhata	n. a generic term for heinous crimes (see e.g. M.R. Pant 2002: 134; Whelpton 1991: 285).
pāthī	var. pāthi; n. 1) a volumetric unit equivalent to 4.546 litres comprising of 8 mānās with 20 pāthīs in one muri. 2) a container for grains having a volume of one pāthī.
purjī	[fr. P. purja] var. purji, pūrjī; n. 1) slip of paper, note. 2) formal letter written by a government institution or an official to another institution or to a person.
raitāna	n. a group of ryots (raitī) or tenants (cf. Kṛṣṇaprasāda Parājulī et al. 2010: 1085).
rāja aṅka	n. generic term for taxes levied on occasions of royal rituals and others that went directly to the royal palace, including cumāvana, goḍadhuvā, godāna, gādīmubārakha, and phattemubāraka (M.R. Pant 2002: 135; M.C. Regmi 1970 (No. 9): 225; M.C. Regmi 1978: 864).
rakamī	adj./n. a holder of rakama land.
salāmī	[P.] var. salāmi; n. payments due to the government including fines, levies, fees etc. See also sarsalāmī.
sanada	var. sanad; n. a regulation, order, decree or certificate of appointment, esp. from the prime minister (prāimaminisṭara yaṇḍa kamyāṇḍara ina cipha) or the commander-in-chief general (kamyāṇḍara ina cipha janarala); "government orders" (Karmacharya 2001: 327).
sermā	n. an annual homestead tax collected in cash on pākho land (see e.g. M.C. Regmi 2002: 302).
sirto	var. sirto, sīrto, sirtto, sirttā; n. tribute paid by Vassal states to the Central government (see Adhikari 1984: 356; Pant and Pierce 1989: 94; M.C. Regmi 1978: 865; M.C. Regmi 2002: 303).
śrī	[S.] n. word of blessing, can be used as apprecatio, in which case it means 'good fortune' (Pant and Pierce 1989: 12), can be used as a prefix to names of persons and gods, in which case it means 'venerable' or 'glorious' respectively. The number of śrīs used varies, depending on context.
sukā	n. monetary unit worth one fourth of a rupee, i.e. half of a silver mohara, and comprising four ānās; in documents the second of the four usual monetary fractions of the system based on the rupee, usually represented by either the avagraha-shaped sign for zero or one to three daṇḍas.
tahasila aḍḍā	office responsible for collecting dues and receiving taxes.

Bibliography

Regmi, Mahesh C (ed.). CE 1981. "Mukhiyabhar Arrangements in Kagbeni and Other Villages." Regmi Research Series 13 (4): 55-57.
Rāṇā, Puruṣottama Śamaśera. VS 2059. Śrī 3 harūko tathya vṛttānta. Kathmandu: Vidyārthī Pustaka Bhaṇḍāra.
Sever, Adrian. CE 2014. Nepal Under the Ranas (Vol. 1 and 2). Revised and Enlarged Edition ed. Delhi: B.R. Publishing Corporation.