Documenta Nepalica

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

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A copy of a purjī from C-in-C Bhīma Śamśera instructing the Guṭhī Kharca Aḍḍā to disburse funds to the Pūrṇeśvarapākaśālā on the occasion of Baḍādasaĩ (VS 1969)

ID: K_0384_0064

Edited and translated by Astrid Zotter in collaboration with Pabitra Bajracharya
Created: 2019-04-16; Last modified: 2020-02-12
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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

The purjī from Commander-in-Chief General Bhīma Śamśera of which this is a copy directs officers of the Gūṭhī Kharca Aḍḍā to disburse a customary sum for purchasing sweet breads, sweets and yoghurt to feed the poor on the occasion of the Baḍādasaĩ festival in VS 1969 at the Pūrṇeśvarapākaśālā.

Diplomatic edition

[1r]

160

1श्री२

1श्रीजङ्गनन्दप्रकासेश्वर
2३

1श्रीपुर्णैश्वर
2२

1श्री३सर्कार
2१

[Unknown Seal]

1ष:भवप्रसादसकलवमोजींन
2कलदुरुस्तछलेषंडास्‌सेरवहादुर
3स्ही[?]

1स्वस्तिश्रीमद्राजकुमारकुमारात्मजश्रीकम्यांडरईनचीफ़जनरलसरभीमसम्सेरजङ्गवहादुरराणाके∙सी∙भी∙ओ∙कस्य¯ ¯१¯त
2र्फगुठीषर्चअडाकाहाकींकारींदाहरूकेपुर्जीऊप्रान्त¯ ¯२¯पाक्सालामाभातषानेगरीवगुरुव़ाहरुलाईवडादसैमांनालाई६७साल
3मामोहर्रू२७कोस्वाहारीमालपुव़ामीठाईदहीषुव़ाईवक्सेकोहुनालेयो६९साल्कावडादसैमाननालाई¯ ¯२¯पाक्सालामाभा
4तषानेगरीवगुरुव़ाहरुलाईसावीकवमोजींस्वाहारीमालपुव़ामीठाईदहीस्मेत्‌केमोहर्रु२७।सताईसरुपैञावक्सेकोछ¯ ¯३¯गु
5ठीकास्याहामाषर्चलेषी¯ ¯२¯पाक्सालाकानायवराईटरपृथीमंगलहस्तेदीनेकामगरवहीवुझदानीजनायवराईटरकासही
6छापपरेकास्याहाभरपाईवमोजींमौजराहोलाईतीसम्वत्‌१९६९सालआश्वीं२०गतेरोज७शुभ्म्‌¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯

Translation

[1r]

[no.] 601

Śrī

Śrī Jaṅgānandaprakāseśvara – 3

Śrī Purṇaiśvara – 2

Śrī 3 Sarkāra – 1

[Unknown Seal]

Kha[ridāra]Bhavaprasāda [certifies that] the copy is true to the original. Lekhanadāsa Sera Bahādura, Signature: ...2

Hail! A purjī of the venerable Commander-in-Chief General Sir Bhīma Samsera Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā, a venerable prince born of a prince, KCVO 3 , to the chief and clerks of the Guṭhī Kharca Aḍḍā under [Śrī 3 Sarkāra]4 .

Uprānta: Since in the year [19]67 27 mohararupaiyā̃s (text: moharrū) have been allocated [for] feeding suhārī, mālapuvā, sweets and yoghurt for observing Baḍādasaĩ [with a feast] for the poor people who take their meals (lit. "cooked rice") at the kitchen (pākaśālā) of [Śrī Purṇeśvara]5 , in order to observe the Baḍādasai of the current year [19]69 27, [in words] twenty-seven, morus, are granted, in accord with what is usual, for suhārī, mālapuvā, [and] sweets together with yoghurt, for the poor people who take their meals at the kitchen of [Śrī Purṇeśvara]6 . Record the expenditures in the account book (syāhā) of the guṭhī of [Śrī Jaṅganandaprakāseśvara]7 and carry out the task of delivering [the money] into the hands of Pṛthīmaṃgala, the assistant (nāyaba) rāīṭara of the kitchen of [Śrī Purṇeśvara]8 . It will be deducted when accounts are cleared according to the account book and receipt that bear the signature and seal of the said nāyaba rāīṭara.

Saturday, the 20th solar day (gate) of Āśvina in the [Vikrama] era year 1969 (1912 CE). Auspiciousness.

Commentary

The present purjī belongs to a series of similar instructions from the period VS 1955 to VS 1970, that pertain to festive meals at the Pūrṇeśvarapākaśālā during the autumnal Dasaĩ festival (see K_0614_0041, K_0608_0055, K_0660_0052, K_0664_0017, K_0667_0036, K_0488_0009, K_0488_0012, K_0382_0029, K_0395_0041, K_0395_0049).

Notes

1. This number was added by a later hand using Arabic numerals. It refers to the position of the document in the bundle (pokā) number 13 of the Guṭhī Bandobasta Aḍḍā, microfilmed from K_0384_0005 (no. 1) up to K_0385_0054 (no. 143) (cf. registration number on the catalogue card). There is another series of documents with the same registration number (Po. no. 13 Gu. Bam.) with 141 counted documents microfilmed from K_0381_0064 (no. 1) up to K_0383_0024 (no. 141). The documents of both series, scribed by different hands, are copies of instructions given by the commander-in-chief general to different offices. Many of these concern affairs of institutions operating under the Jaṅgānandaprakāśeśvaraguṭhī. The documents of the present batch were all issued in the year VS 1969. [⇑]

2. The signature cannot be deciphered. [⇑]

3. The bestowal of the title of "Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order" upon Bhīma Śamśera was announced on 24 December 1911 by King George V during the latter's hunting trip to the Nepalese Tarai, the same day he bestowed upon Bhīma Śamśera's elder brother Candra Śamśera, the ruling Śrī 3 Mahārāja, the insignia of a "Knight Grand Commander" (GCVO), the first class of the same order (Anonymous 1914: 231) [⇑]

4. Inserted from the space numbered 1 above. [⇑]

5. Inserted from the space numbered 2 above. [⇑]

6. Inserted from the space numbered 2 above. [⇑]

7. Inserted from the space numbered 3 above. [⇑]

8. Inserted from the space numbered 2 above. [⇑]

Glossary

Word	Notes
baḍā dasaĩ	var. baḍā dasai; also mahā dasaĩ; n. festival to worship the goddess Durgā as slayer of the buffalo demon, held over the bright half of the autumn month of Āśvina. Cf. dasaĩ / daśaĩ.
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).
GCVO	title of a member of the first class (Knight Grand Cross) of the "Royal Victorian Order", founded in 1896 by Queen Victoria; another class is: KCVO. The title was bestowed on Candra Śamśera Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā (24 December 1911).
guṭha / guṭhi / guṭhī	[fr. S. goṣṭhī] var. guṭh, guthi; n. 1) a socio-religious organization that manages and finances religious and charitable functions, a trust. 2) “endowed lands or other sources of revenue for financing religious and charitable functions“ (M.R. Pant 2002: 132; cf. M.C. Regmi 1988: 267).
Guṭhī Bandobasta Aḍḍā	var. Guṭhī Bandobasta Aḍā; n. "Guthi Administration Office", office responsible for the management of guṭhīs; established under Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā in 1852-1853 as replacement of the former Guṭhī Kacaharī. Its foundation marks the change from the guṭhīyāri system of the guṭhī management to the contractor based system; remained the central office to coordinate all offices subsequently established for handling different aspects of guṭhī management, including the Guṭhī Kharca Aḍḍā and others. Separate Guṭhī Bandobasta Aḍḍās managed the śrī 5 sarkāra guṭhīs and the śrī 3 sarkāra guṭhīs (cf. M.C. Regmi 1978: 713-715).
Guṭhī Kharca Aḍḍā	n. office responsible for managing the expenses of the guṭhīs working under the head of the Guṭhī Bandobasta Aḍḍā; two separate Guṭhī Kharca Aḍḍās managed the śrī 5 sarkāra guṭhīs and the śrī 3 sarkāra guṭhīs.
KCVO	title of a member of the second class (Knight Commander) of the "Royal Victorian Order", founded in 1896 by Queen Victoria; another class is: GCVO. The title was bestowed on Bhīma Śamśera Jaṅga Bahādura Rāṇā (24 December 1911).
kharadāra / kharidāra	[fr. P.] var. kharīdāra, ṣaridāra; n. secretary, official scribe, office superintendent (cf. Kumar 1967: 166).
lekhanadāsa	[S.] n. person or officer who scribes documents for private or official transactions.
mālapuvā	n. small, sweet, thick fritters made of wheat flour, sugar and spices or of bananas, milk, sugar and spices; prepared on festive occasions in Nepal and Northern India (Pathak 2007: 341; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malpua).
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.
nāyaba	[fr. A.] var. nāeva, nāaiva; adj. deputy, assistant.
pākaśālā	[S.] var. pākasālā; n. 1) kitchen. 2) public kitchen set up to feed the poor and needy (K_0351_0071).
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.
rāiṭara	[fr. E.] var. rāīṭara; n. administrative officer higher than the bahidāra, but lower than the mukhiyā.
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.
śrī 3 mahārājā	var. māhārāja, mahārāja. lit. "thrice venerable great king"; title referring to the Rāṇā prime minister. On August 6 1856, King Surendra, through a lālamohara, conferred upon Jaṅga Bahādura the title of mahārāja of Kaski and Lamjung (cf. Agrawal 1976: 10). The title was subsequently passed on to all Rāṇā prime ministers.
śrī 3 sarkāra	lit. "three-times venerable ruler"; title used by the Rāṇā prime ministers (cp. Whelpton 2005: 266).
suhārī / svārī	[S. su-āhārī] var. svāhārī; n. very thin, soft, fried bread made of wheat flour, folded in half or into a triangle; prepared on festive occasions and sold in sweet shops (Pathak 2007: 105).
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.

Bibliography

Anonymous. 1914. The Historical Record of the Imperial Visit to India 1911. London: John Murray.