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A copy of a royal order authorizing Kīrtimāna Sĩṃ Bhaḍela to manage the guṭhī of Patan’s Matsyendranātha for six years (VS 1893)

ID: K_0017_0002A

Edited and translated by Manik Bajracharya and Rajendra Shakya
Created: 2022-01-22; Last modified: 2023-09-08
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, 2023. 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 royal order of which this is a copy appoints Kīrtimāna Siṃ Bhaḍela to the post of biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā for six years in service to Buṅgadyaḥ. It assigns him the tasks of, among other things, collecting rent, managing expenses for the regular worship and reassigning contracts.

Diplomatic edition

[69]

1पो१८पा७२सी२४६

1पाटनमछींद्रको
2गुठी¯¯¯¯¯¯

1नं९४

1हे.ना.रा.वीश्णु
2भंनौ.हर्ष

1प्रसस्ती

1आगेकीर्तीमानसींभडेलकेसहर∙पाटनरवुग्मतीकाश्रीमछीन्द्रनाथ
2काटवहालमावसी∙वीसेट्‌दीठ्ठाभैकामचलाउन्या∙गुठीरधुपौरागुठीका
3जगाजीमीषेतका∙वालीघ्यूषानी∙परापुर्वदेषीआजसम्मचलीआय़ा
4कोदैदस्तुरमामुलीजोछसोलीअघी∙परापुर्वदेषी∙चलीआय़ाकोप
5र्वपर्वकोमामुलीपुजार∙कर्मगैह्रकोषर्चगरी९३सालकावालीदेषी
6९८सालकावालीसम्म∙वर्ष६कोवाकीरह्याकोआम्दानी∙हाम्राहजुरमा
7वींन्तीगरी∙वुग्मतीकादेव़लकोउत्तरदीसाकोमुलधोका१माचादीका
8पाताकोढोकावनाउनु∙धुपौरागुठीकाषेतकोवालीजसलेवढदछत
9सलाईदी∙पजनीगर्नुभंन्यावंदेजवाधी∙६वर्षसम्मषोसमोसनास्तीगरी
10तलाईवक्स्यौंतपसीलवमोजींकामानीसलाईआफुलेअघीदेषीषाई∙
11आय़ाकोदैदस्तुरलेष्यावमोजींका[?]दीषाईहाम्रानीमक्‌कोसोझो

[Unknown seal]

[First half of the unknown seal]

[70]

[Second half of the unknown seal]

1७०नं

12चीताईगुठीजानीभोग्यगर¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
13तपसील

[table]

1	वीसेट्‌डीठ्ठा¯¯¯¯¯¯१के	जैसी¯¯¯¯¯¯१के
2	अरूवीसेट्‌¯¯¯¯¯¯१०के	तहवीलदार¯¯¯¯¯¯१के

16ईतीसम्वत१८९३सालकार्तीकसुदी१रोज४शु¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯

Translation

[69]

Bundle (po[kā]) 18 pā 72 sī 2461

The guṭhī of Matsyendranātha (text: Machīṃdra), Patan

No. 942

The one who watched [was] the nā. rā.Vīśṇu 3

The one who said [was] the nau[sindā]Harṣa 4

Praśasti 5

Āge: To Kīrtimāna Siṃ Bhaḍela (text: Kīrtīmāna Sīṃ Bhaḍela).

As the biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā [posted] at Taḥ Bāhāḥ (text: Ṭabahāla) [in service] to the glorious Matsyendranātha (text: Machīndranātha) of the city of Patan and Buṅgamatī (text: Bugmatī), collect the harvest, the ghiu khāne (text: ghyū ṣānī) levy and the prescribed customary taxes (daidastura māmulī) that have been exacted since earlier times on the land and paddy fields belonging to the guṭhī which manages the affairs [of the deity] and [the same sources of revenue belonging to] the dhupaurā guṭhī6 . [From this revenue], expend the amount required for regular worship (māmulī pujā) and [other religious] activities (karma) performed customarily during the various [annual] festivals, inform us about the surplus of revenue from harvests of the years [VS 18]93 to [18]98, [and] produce 1 silver-plated door for the main entrance on the northern side of the Buṅgamatī temple. Regarding the paddy fields belonging to the dhupaurā guṭhī, grant the contract for them to whoever [promises to] provide the largest harvest.

Having fixed these regulations, we have granted you [the post of biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā] for a period of six years such that it cannot be annulled [by anyone else]. With the revenue from the customary tax (daidastura), provide the persons listed [below] including yourself with salaries (khānagī) in the manner prescribed since earlier times. Enjoy [the income], knowing [management of] the guṭhīs, [and] remaining true to our salt.

[70]

No. 707

Particulars (tapasila)

[table]

1	Biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā – 1	Jaisī – 1
2	Other biseṭs8 – 10	Tahabiladāra – 1

Wednesday, the 1st of the bright fortnight of Kārtika in the [Vikrama] era year 1893 (1836 CE). Auspiciousness.

Commentary

This copy of a lālamohara issued by King Rājendra Vikrama Śāha appoints Kīrtimāna Sīṃ Bhaḍela to the post of biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā of Matsyendranātha for a period of six years. Biseṭs were responsible for overseeing the financial affairs and other managerial tasks relating to Buṅgadyaḥ. Traditionally, they came from certain families from localities such as Nyākhācuka, Ikhālakhu, Kvālakhu and Taujhyāla in Patan. It seems that the traditional biseṭs were replaced by the state-appointed ḍiṭṭhās during the early Śāha period. The documents show that the state sometimes appointed traditional biseṭs to the post but thermed the latter variously, as either ḍiṭṭhā (K_0341_0018, 1805 CE), ḍiṭṭhā biseṭ (RRC_0005_0159, 1806 CE) or, as in current document, biseṭ ḍiṭṭhā.

The document sets out some activities for the newly appointed Kīrtimāna, including:
- Collecting harvests and other forms of revenues such as the ghiu khāne and customary taxes from the land belonging to the Matsyendranātha Guṭhī and dhupaurā guṭhī
- Overseeing expenditures for regular worship and other activities, such as annual festivals celebrating the deity
- Making a silver door for the temple of Buṅgadyaḥ at Buṅgamatī using the funds from the annual revenue
- Granting tenure contracts on land belonging to the dhupaurā guṭhī and
- Providing salaries to other servants of Buṅgadyaḥ including an astrologer (jaisī), ten subordinate biseṭs and a tahabiladāra.

The document was copied on two folios joined by strings. One of the two seals is stamped across adjoining margins of the two folios.

Notes

1. This set of letters and numbers probably refers to the archival location of the original document. [⇑]

2. This is the serial number of the document within the bundle, assigned at the Guṭhī Saṃsthāna. [⇑]

3. The abbreviation he stands for herne ("one who watches"), referring to the clerk who rechecks the copied document for errors while another person reads out the original. The other abbreviation, nā. rā. probably stands for nāyaba rāitara ("deputy writer"). [⇑]

4. The abbreviation bhaṃ stands for bhaṃne ("the one who reads out"), and nau. for nausindā, a low-ranking clerk in offices. It may thus be understood that this person reads out the original while another person checks the copy for errors as he goes along. [⇑]

5. This indicates that the original document has, at this place, set praise for the king. That king, given the date of the document, would have been Rājendra Vikrama Śāha (r. 1816–1847). [⇑]

6. A sub guthi for managing incense and its containers. [⇑]

7. This is the page number within the bundle containing this document. [⇑]

8. These might be the assisting biseṭs named as kacā biseṭ in document K_0341_0018. [⇑]

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.
biseṭa	var. biseṭ, viseṭ, viseṭa, besata; n. 1) a temple steward (cf. M.C. Regmi 1978: 855) or a person responsible for administering a religious institution. 2) an official responsible for accountancy of temple trusts, as e.g. of the Paśupatinātha Bhaṇḍāra (Michaels 1994: 158-161). Michaels renders the term as "viśeṣ" and relates the different spellings attested to Skt. viśeṣa (ibd.: 160 n. 138). As the earliest reference quoted goes back to the Malla period (NS 794) and renders the term as beseta (G. Vajrācārya 1966: 23) it seems more likely that the term comes from Newari and is a variant of New. besata/byaṣṭa, "messenger" (cp. Malla et al. 2000: s.v.).
daidastura	n. a customary fee. See also dastura.
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).
ghiukhānī	var. ghyūkhāni, ghyukhāne, ghyūkhāne, ghiukhāne; n. "a cash levy paid on rice-fields in the hill region" (M.C. Regmi 1978: 162).
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 Saṃsthāna	n. a public corporation established in 1964 (VS 2021) overseeing the management of rājaguṭhīs.
jaisī	[fr S. jyotiṣa] var. jaisi; n. 1) astrologer; 2) Brahman accorded lower status than upādhyāya, said to be the offspring of an upādhyāya Brahmin, and a married woman, widow or girl of a Brahmin or Jaisī caste without formal alliance. There were several categories of jaisī according to the caste of the woman, the father in all cases being an Upadhyaya man (cf. Regmi 2002: 300; Regmi 1972: 227). 3) a Newar caste (cf. Regmi 1978: 859).
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).
lālamohara	var. lālmohara, lālamohar, lālmohora; abbreviated mohara; n. royal document bearing the red seal.
māmulī	var. māmalī, māmuli; 1) adj. ordinary, usual, customary. 2) n. usual remuneration or provision, usually non-monetary. 3) n. a customary levy related to religious functions (see e.g. Regmi 1979: 158); cf. koṭa māmulī, Dasaĩ māmulī.
praśasti	[S.] n. poetic eulogy, often functions as intitulatio in documents.
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).
tapasila	[fr. A.] var. tapasīl, tapasīlā, tapsīl; n. particulars, details; can be a self-sustained document, but is more often appended as a list after the narratio of documents.