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L_0923_0003

Documenta Nepalica

Documents on the History of Religion and Law of Pre-modern Nepal
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A letter from Jagat Śamśera re reported incidents of plundering and abduction in the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā region (VS 1915)

ID: L_0923_0003


Edited and translated by Rajendra Shakya in collaboration with Rabi Acharya and Nadine Plachta
Created: 2018-08-13; Last modified: 2019-04-05
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, 2018. 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 CCby-SA.

Abstract

In response to a petition by Kusau Autārī Lāmā, Jagat Śamśera orders local persons of note to investigate a claim that loads of salt have been plundered and to punish anyone found to have done so.


Diplomatic edition

[1r]

[Seal of Jagat Śamśera]

1[...]­[...]जनरलश्रीजगत्सम्सेरजङ्गकुव़रराणाजीकस्य­पत्रम्‌­
3आगे­∙अठार­सये­षोला­∙लंजुङ्ग­दोसांधका­∙भलामानि
4[...]­[...][...]­[...]­[...]
5धिकारि­∙तिल्‌च्याका­∙ऊमारा­लछिमन­घले­∙दलसिं­घले­∙अरु­भला
6मानिस्‌‌­गैह्रके­येथोचित्‌­∙उप्रान्त­∙अठार­सये­षोलाका­१४­साल
7[...]­द्वार्‍‍याहरुले­[...]पुर्वदेषी­१२­भारि­नुन्‌­[...]
8मा­२८­भारि­नुन्‌­∙लुटी­लीया­∙घोडा­१­पनी­लुटि­लीया­∙कैल्है­प
9नी­∙डंड­नभयाको­∙गुंवामा­पनी­८०­रुपैया­डाडि­लीया­∙अैनको­थि
10ति­पनी­∙पायनौ­हाम्रो­अघिको­थिती­पनी­पायेनौ­∙षवाका­नी
11मा­छपदिन्‌­∙भोटेले­∙धन­पनी­स्वास्नि­पनि­∙लुटीलीया­∙हामिला
12ई­अंन्याय­भयो­∙निसाप­पायेनौ­भनि­∙अठार­सये­षोला­∙[...]
13र्क्याप्‌‌­वस्न्या­कुसौ­∙औतारी­लामाले­चढायाको­अर्जि­लंजुं­वस्न्या­
14अणप्‌‌­सिं­अधिकारि­हस्ते­हाम्रा­हजूर्मा­∙दाषील­∙भै­विस्तार­जाहे
15र­∙भयो­∙तसर्थ­तिमिहरु­सवै­भलाआदमी­∙नीज­लार्क्याप्‌‌­गाउ
16मा­गै­∙नीज­द्वार्‍‍याहरुलाई­∙झीकाई­दोहोरो­∙पुर्पछ­गरि­∙रैति­∙अमा
17ली­∙जस्‌‌ले­∙अंन्याये­गर्‍‍याको­ठहर्छ­अैन­वमोजिम्‌‌को­डंड­जा
18नाव़रि­जरिवाना­∙जो­ठहर्छ­∙गरि­∙जो­भयाको­∙आम्दानी­∙नीज­अन
19प­सिं­अधिकारिका­जिम्मा­∙विहोरावारको­कागज­स्मेत­पठाईदि
20न्या­कां­गर­∙द्वार्‍‍याका­∙ईवि­पछि­लागि­∙कसैले­रैति­∙उठायाको­
21ठहर्‍‍यो­र­∙हाम्रो­ठेक­वमोजिम्‌∙को­दां­विग्रन­गयो­भन्या­∙जस्‌‌ले[?]
22चोला­पार्‍‍याको­ठहर्ला­ऊसैले­वुझाऊनु­पर्ला­∙ईति­सम्वत्‌‌­१९१५­सा
23ल­मिति­वैशाष­शुदि­६­रोज­१­शुभ्म्­

Translation

[1r]

Hail! A letter from [the commanding] general [of the south,] ŚrīJagat Śamśera Jaṅga Kũvara Rāṇā, [a prince born of a prince]1

Āge: To the respected persons (bhalā mānisa), … … … 2 , [A]dhikāri3 , UmarāuLachimana Ghale of Tilcyā4 , [and] Dala Siṃ Ghale, other respected persons and others from the border of Lamjung

Yathocita uprānta: “... [dvāres?] in the year [VS 19]14 plundered 12 loads of salt …5 from the east [and] 28 loads of salt in ….6 [They] also stole one horse. The gumbā, which has never had any fine imposed [on it], was also forced to pay 80 rupees. [We] have got [justice] neither under the Ain nor under our own [customary law] from the past. Nīmā Chapdin Bhoṭe of Khavā7 both plundered the property [belonging to me] and [abducted my] wife. Injustice has been done to us; we have not got justice.”

We came to know of [these events] in detail after an arjī from Kusau Autārī Lāmā, a resident of Lhārkyāp in Aṭhāra Saya Kholā, was delivered to us by hand through Aṇap Siṃ Adhikārī, a resident of Lamjung. Therefore, all of you respected persons, go to said Lārkyāp village, summon the said dvāres and fine [or otherwise] punish8 [them] — whatever is determined as being appropriate — in accordance with the Ain, whoever — whether raitī or amālī — is found to have done wrong after a hearing in the presence of both sides, and undertake the task of sending the revenue that has resulted, along with the documents containing details [of the case], under the care of said Anap Siṃ Adhikārī. If it is determined that someone out of spite (ibi) for the dvāres instigated [lit. raised] persons to [falsely] make the accusation and that this affected [the amount of] money [to be collected] in accordance with our ṭheka, then whoever is found to have [so] caused trouble shall pay [restitution].

Sunday, the 6th of the bright fortnight of Vaiśākha in the [Vikrama] era year 1915 (1858 CE). Auspiciousness.


Commentary

The loss of some text in the original makes fully understanding this document somewhat difficult. Jagat Śamśera, in response to a petition filed by Kusau Autārī Lāmā of Lhārkyāp in Aṭhāra Saya Kholā, orders certain people from the area, including locally respected persons, to look into an accusation that salt has been plundered and to punish the guilty. The text implies that the person who made the charges accused dvāres or amālīs of the theft. Parts of the document that are torn may have contained names of the accused. The document clearly orders that the guilty parties, be they ryots or local revenue-collecting officers, are to be punished appropriately.

The plaintiff also accuses one Nīmā Chapdin Bhoṭe of stealing his property and abducting his wife. The initial section of the document, which was issued in response to the petition, describes the incidents only briefly. Thus it is not clear who this Bhoṭe is, or what the background to the plundering was. The original petition can be expected to have contained exact details of the incidents, though.

Jagat Śamśera, at the end of the document, expresses his concern that revenue owed him may have been affected by the events in question, receivings as he did levies from the salt trade. Hence, he suspects that someone may have instigated the petitioner to file a false claim. If so, that person is to be held to account.

Notes

1. The whole first line is missing, having been torn off. However, the missing line probably reads as what appears within brackets, which is the beginning of the usual praśasti (intitulatio) for the Rāṇā rulers. There are a number of documents from the Aṭhāra Saya Kholā region that are issued in the name of Jagat Śamśera. One of them, Tsum_0001_0016, from 1919 VS (1863 CE) mentions him as the ‘commanding general of the south’. However, as the present document predates it by some four years, his position may have been different at the time of the issuance of this document. It is also noteworthy that most of the documents from this area suggest that Nubri region, the source of the present document, used to be a jāgīra of the ‘commanding general of the east’, a position superior to the commanding general of the south within the Rāṇā hierarchy. [⇑]

2. The text of the fourth line is missing, again for the same reason as mentioned in note 1. The line probably lists a number of posts or names of various government officers stationed in the area. [⇑]

3. The beginning of the last name in this defective line is probably Anap (var. Aṇap) Siṃha A(dhikāri), who features later in the document. At the beginning of the next line, ‘dhikāri’ is clearly legible. [⇑]

4. Tilcyā is likely a variant spelling of Tilce, a village on the way down from Lārke Pass towards Dhārāpānī (situated at the easternmost end of the Manang Valley) – an hour or so walk down from Tilce. The people from Sāmdo (lit. “place where rivers meet” (Rogers 2008: 347)), a village in Nubri from where this document was obtained, had close relations with people from this area and used to move there in wintertime. [⇑]

5. Unclear due to loss of text in the original. [⇑]

6. Unclear due to loss of text in the original. [⇑]

7. Probably the name of a place. [⇑]

8. The meaning of jānāvari is unclear, but the context suggests some kind of punishment.Otherwise, it may simply be a misspelling of jarivānā that was not crossed out. [⇑]