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Documenta Nepalica

Documents on the History of Religion and Law of Pre-modern Nepal
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An inscription recording the construction of a Śākyamuni Buddha shrine by Dhaṃcā Thakuṃ and her family (NS 1024)

ID: NHDP_0001_0050


Edited by Rajan Khatiwoda, Rajendra Shakya and Ravi Shakya in collaboration with Simon Cubelic
Created: 2020-10-13; Last modified: 2021-09-06
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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, 2021. The image(s) on which this edition is based on is/are published under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (CC BY-SA 4.0) and the copyright lies with NHDP. 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

The inscription records that Dhaṃcā Thakuṃ, widow of one Govinda, along with her grandson and the rest of the family, established a stone shrine for Śākyamuni Buddha and prayed for the salvation of all beings, both living and deceased.


Diplomatic edition

[1r]

1श्री­गणेशाय­नम:­ ॥✿॥ ॐ­नमो­
2बुद्धाय­॥श्रेयोऽस्तु­॥संम्वत्­१००२४­
3फाल्गुनमासे­शुक्लपक्षे­पुर्निमास्यन्ति
4थौ­॥पुर्व्वफाल्गुनीनक्षत्र­॥धृतीयोगे­
5बुधवासरे­॥थ्वषुन्हु­नकबहि­थ्याका
6या­श्री­साकेवस­दिवंगत­गोविन्दस­भा
7र्य्या­धचा­थकु­:पौत्र­हर्षरत्नस­भार्य्या­
8हर्ष­थकु­थ्वते­परिवार­सकलया­धर्म्म
9चित्त­:उत्पत्ती­जुस्य­सकल­संसार­स्वक
10न­पित्यलोक­उद्धार­जुयमाल­धका­
11श्री­साक्यमुनी­बुद्ध­लोहया­देवल­दयकं­
12स्थापना­दिन­दुन्ता­:महालक्ष्मी­भुग्रसी­
13स्याम­सूध­ज्यय­।      शुभ­।

Synopsis

On the full moon day of the bright fortnight of Phālguna in NS 1024 (1904 CE), a stone temple for Śākyamuni Buddha was constructed and donated by Dhaṃcā Thakuṃ (text: Dhacā Thaku), the widow of one Govinda of the Śākya clan, and her grandson Harṣa Ratna and his wife Harṣa Thakuṃ (text: Thaku) along with the rest of the family from Naka Bahī in Thyākā. The donation was made for the sake of all beings in this world and the world of the ancestors.


Commentary

It appears that the inscription was engraved by an amateur, as its letters are unevenly placed throughout the text and the date is erroneously given as "10024" instead of "1024". Unlike most other inscriptions, the topmost part is left blank and does not bear any emblem or image of the deity to which its content relates.

The name of the main donor, the widow of one Govinda, is Dhaṃcā Thakuṃ. However, the inscription from a caitya in the same courtyard, dated NS 983 (1863 CE), refers to her as Vidyā Lakṣmī. They appear to be the same person, Vidyā Lakṣmī being her formal name, and Dhaṃcā Thakuṃ the name used in family contexts. Thakuṃ is a term used for a female member of a respectable family, and thakuṃju an honorific used for a queen or a female member of the royal family.

Notes