Documenta Nepalica

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

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A copy of a lālamohara from King Gīrvāṇayuddha re the purchase of rams and he-goats for Dasaĩ rituals in Gorkha (VS 1863)

ID: K_0030_0050A

Edited and translated by Astrid Zotter
Created: 2016-09-08; Last modified: 2023-02-10
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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, 2017. 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 lālamohara of which this is a copy addresses the administrators (amālidāras) and the general public between the Naṃḍī and the Mādī rivers. Because special breeds of sheep and goats are required for the Dasaĩ rituals at Gorkha, it orders that they be sold by cattle breeders at prices fixed by the local authorities. Such sales are declared mandatory, and those refusing deemed rebels.

Diplomatic edition

[1r]

1⟪२५८⟫

[Seal of the Jaisīkoṭhā]

[Unknown seal]

1चैत्रसुदी१रोज४मा
2आगेनंडीपछीमादीपुर्वकाअमालीदारप्रतीचारैवर्णछतीसजात
3प्रतीगोर्षाकादसैघरश्री७देवताकापुजागर्दाकाग्‍याभेडापुवारवो
4क्याटुलोचोषोचाहींछनभैहुदैनतसर्थजसलेपाल्याकोछपंचले
5ठहरायाकोवाजवीमोलपाईकननदीन्येरपुजाअडकाउनामाजो
6पसलाअपसरीय़ाहोलाइतीमीतीसडर¯¯¯¯¯¯ ¯¯¯¯¯¯ ¯¯¯¯¯¯

Translation

[1r]

[no.] 258 1

Wednesday, the 1st of the bright fortnight of Caitra [in the Vikrama era year 1863]2

Āge: To the amālidāras west of the Naṃḍī and east of the Mādī [rivers], to the four estates and 36 castes.

When worship is performed for the sevenfold glorious (śrī 7) deity of Gorkha's dasaĩghara, rams of the kāgyā-type (kāge bheḍā) and he-goats of the puvāla-type, big and pure, are needed. Without them [worship] cannot be [performed]. Therefore he who has raised [such animals] and does not give [them], even if he were to receive the appropriate price fixed by the local council (pañca), and who [thereby] becomes entangled in hindering the worship will be [considered] a rebel.

The date is confirmed.

Commentary

This lālamohara concerns the provision of sacrificial animals for the "sevenfold glorious deity of Gorkha's dasaĩghara." It is likely to be related to the sacrifices performed during the Dasaĩ festival at Gorkha Palace. The use of "sevenfold glorious" (śrī 7) in it is remarkable. In other contexts, deities are said to be either "śrī 3" or "śrī 5". An alternative translation would be: "the glorious seven deities of Gorkha's dasaĩgharas." It that case it could refer to the group of seven deities who mark the core territory of the kingdom of Gorkha, there conceived of as Seven Sisters, of which Kālikā of Gorkha Palace is held to be the eldest (see Unbescheid 1996: 104–105)

Notes

1. The document is the 258th of an assemblage of lālamohara texts copied from the Jaisīkoṭhā. The bound material, microfilmed sequentially from K_0028_0032 (front cover and index) up to K_0031_0014, covers the main bodies (i.e. excluding the initial and final formalities) of 303 documents from the period VS 1847–1864. The lālamoharas concern affairs relating to different guṭhīs. [⇑]

2. As this document is found in an assemblage of chronologically arranged copies (see n. 1) the year can be inferred from the documents copied before it and from the index. At that time, the reigning king in whose name the original lālamohara must have been issued was King Gīrvāṇayuddha. [⇑]

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.
amālidāra	var. amālīdāra; see amāli (Pant and Pierce 1989: 93).
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).
dasaĩghara	var. dasaighara; n. lit. "house for dasaĩ;" ritual arena for worshipping the goddess Durgā on the occasion of dasaĩ, either in a room or building exclusively used for this purpose (see K_0625_0039), or temporarily erected within another building.
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).
jaisīkoṭhā	n. an office usually considered to be a branch of the office treating with foreign affairs (Munsīkhānā) dealing with the foreign correspondencies to Tibet (see e.g. Kumar 1967: 166; Parājulī et al. 1995: s.v.). Adhikari, however, argues that the terms Munsīkhānā and Jaisīkoṭhā were used simultaneously to denote the same office (Adhikari 1984: 83-84). He assumes that the former refered to a location within Basantapur Palace while the latter denoted the office operated from there. That the Jaisīkoṭhā did not exclusively handle paper work related to the north is also evinced in a book of copies of 303 lālamoharas documented from K_0028_0032 (front cover and index) up to K_0031_0014B. These royal orders concern affairs of different guṭhīs both within the Kathmandu Valley and outside.
kāge bheḍā	var. kāgya bheḍā; n. the Kage sheep (capra ovis), a breed described by Hodgson under the name "Ovis cagia, the Cago or Cagya" as major sheep of the Newars and major sacrificial sheep; is mainly located in the low to mid hills (Hodgson 1847: 1013–1015).
lālamohara	var. lālmohara, lālamohar, lālmohora; abbreviated mohara; n. royal document bearing the red seal.
pañca	[S.] var. paṃca; n. 1) local council consisiting of five or more members. 2) member of a pañcāyata or local council (cf. M.C. Regmi 1978: 228; Whelpton 2005: 264; Whelpton 1991: 285).
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.

Bibliography

Unbescheid, Günter. 1996. "Dépendance mythologique et liberté rituelle: La celebration de Dasaĩ au temple de Kālikā à Gorkha." In: Célébrer le pouvoir: Dasaĩ, une fête royale au Népal, edited by Gisèle Krauskopff and Marie Lecomte-Tilouine, 103–151. Paris: CNRS.