JOURNAL
OF THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL.
— • —
VOL. LIX.
PART I. (History. Antiquities, &c.)
(Nos. I t< 9 plates.)
Jhe Honorary Philological Secretary.
“ It will flourish, if naturalists, chemists, antiquaries, philologers, and men of science
in different parts of Asia, will commit their observations to writing, and send them to
the Asiatic Society at Calcutta. It will languish, if such communications shall be long
intermitted ; and it will die away, if they shall entirely cease.” Silt \Vm. Jones.
CALCUTTA:
FEINTED AT THE BAPTIST MISSION PRESS,
AND PUBLISHED BY THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY, 57, PARK STREET.
1891.
T
CONTENTS
JOURNAL, ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL, Vol. LIX, Part I
for 1890.
No. I.
Page
A Grammar of the Dialect of Chhattisgarh in the Central Provinces.
Written in Hindi by Mr. Hf rXi.Al Kavyopa'dhyAya, Head-
master of the Anglo-Vernacular School in Dliamtari, District
Paipur, Central Provinces ; translated and edited by George
A. Grierson, Esq., C. S. ... ... ... l
Notes on a Buddhist Monastery at Bho{ Bdgan (Howrah), on two
rare and valuable Tibetan MSS. discovered there, and. on Puran
Gir Gosain, the celebrated Indian Acharya and Government
Emissary at the Court of the Tashi Lama, Tibet, in the last
century. (With two plates). — By Gage Das Bysack ... 50
No. II.
A Grammar of the Dialect of Chhattisgarh in the Central Provinces.
Written in Hindi by Mr. HirAlai, KA yyopadhyaya, Headmaster
of the Anglo-Vernacular School in Dliamtari, District Raipur,
Central Provinces, translated and edited by George A. Grier-
son, Esq., C. S. ... ... ... ... ioi
On the Copper Coins of the Sun Dynasty. (With three plates ). —
By Dr. A. F. Rudolf Hoernle ... ... ... 154
Notes on certain Indo-Sassanian Coins found in Mdrwdrd. (With
a plate). — By Dr. A. F. Rudolf Hoernle ... ... 168
On some new or rare Hindi and Muhammadan Goins. No. II.
(With two plates) . — By Dr. A. F. Rudolf Hoernle ... 169
Nos. Ill & IV.
Notes on some of the symbols found on the punch-marTced coins of
Hindustdn, and on their relationship to the archaic symbolism
of other races and distant lands. (With four plates). — By W.
Theobald, M. R. A. S. ... ... ... ... igi
Chhattisgar : notes on its tribes, sects and castes. — By P. N. Bose,
B. Sc., (Lond.) F. G. S., Deputy Superintend ant, Geological
Survey of India.
269
LIST OF PLATES
IN
JOURNAL, ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL, Vol. LIX, Paht I,
fob 1890.
Plate I (pp. 50, 51). Buddhist Monastery at Bhot Bagan, Howrah.
Plate II (pp. 87, 99). Facsimile of Tibetan passport, granted to Pviran
Gir.
Plates III — Y (p. 154ff). Copper coins of the Suri Dynasty.
Plate V (p. 168). Indo-Sassanian Silver Coins (of Toramana ?).
Plates VI and VII (p. 16901). Some new or rare Hindi and Muham-
madan Coins.
Plates VIII — XI. (pp. 181, 196). Symbols on Punch-marked Coins of
Hindustan.
JOURNAL
OF THE
ASIATIC SOCIETY OF BENGAL.
Part I.— HISTORY, LITERATURE, See.
No. I.— 1890.
A Grammar of the Dialect of Chhattisgarh in the Central Provinces.
Written in Hindi by Mb. Hf raTal KavyopadhyAa, Headmaster of
the Anglo-Vernacular School in Dhamtari, District Eaipur, Central
Provinces, translated and edited by George A. Grierson, Esq., C. S.
Introduction.
1. Chhattisgarh (the thirty-six forts) is the name of the most
eastern of the divisions of the Central Provinces. It is bounded on the
north by Chutiya Nagpur, on the east by Orissa, and on the south and
west by other portions of the Central Provinces.
2. The language spoken in this tract belongs clearly to tlio Eastern
Gaudian Family. It may be classed as a dialect of BiliAri. Its verbal
forms are most closely connected with those of Baiswari, while its
system of declension more closely resembles that of Bhoj’pnri. Iu one
important point, the formation of the plural, it shows a close connexion
with Uriya.
3. The present grammar has been written by Mr. Hiralal
KAvyopAdhyaya, Headmaster of the Anglo-Vernacular school at 1 ) ham-
tari, District Raipur, Central Provinces. It was written in the Hindi
language, and it has fallen to my lot to tianslate it, and to rearrange a
portion of it, according to the custom of European grammars. Here and
there I have added a few philological notes.
A
2 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and Q. A. Grierson — [No, 1,
4. We are all indebted to Mr. Hiralal Kavyopadbyaya for his very
careful and interesting work, and I gladly welcome him as an accession
to the small band of those who are attempting to throw light on the
dark byways of Indian vernaculars. It is only by enlisting the
assistance of gontlemen like him, who take an intelligent interest in the
subject, and who are willing and able to put in writing that knowledge
of facts which can only be attained by local experience, that we can
hope to be able to finally map out the true relationship between the
various languages of India.
G. A. G.
PART I.
Chapter I. Orthography.
5. The nasals W, and at, when standing alone are all equally
pronounced like the dental «f, thus TH ‘ battle ’ is pronounced T*f.
6. A Tatsama W: is pronounced like H Thus, ittff, ‘ cold ’ is pro-
nounced A Tatsama V is pronounced like m. Thus, «m, ‘ langu-
age ’ is pronounced «mT, and frv, ‘ a fault ’ is pronounced
7. Exception, — In the word ' tho serpent of eternity,’ if is pro-
nouncod like ij, — tlras,
8. The remaining letters are pronounced as in Hindi.
9. In the following grammar, words will be spelled as they are
pronounced. So that wo shall spell TJf and not Tit, €trf and not Y^?f,
WT’sIT and not WTT, tT* 3 and not and not WI-stTff.
10. Note by translator. The above are very few of the letter changes in this
dialect. This is, however, of little importance, as all will bo found in Dr Hoemle’s
Gaudian Grammar.
One very important change may be noticed here,— the shortening of an
antepenultimate vowel. When, in a tadbhava word, a long vowel, owing to
inflexion, conjugation, or other cause, finds itself in tho antepenultimate or other
earlier syllable of a word, that vowel is shortened. Thus, tho long form of
‘ a mango ’ is and of tfTTT ‘ a horse,’ tftTT^T. For further particulars on this
point, and also for particulars regarding Long and Redundant forms, the
reader is referred to the Gaudian Grammar, and to the Introduction to A Comparative
Dictionary of the Bihari Language by A. F. R. Hoernlo and G. A. Grierson.
The short vowels (like ci’iri hallo), JJ e (like e in met), and 0 (the short
of ^T,1 6) s the imporfeot or neutral vowel “ (as in ghor’wd ) ; and the
peculiar long d (pronounced like a in fall), whioh occurs in the root will all
be found in this dialect, and the reader is referred to the preface of the Bihari
Dictionary, above reforred to, for further information concerning them.
1890.]
A Grammar of the Ohhattisgarhi dialect.
3
PART II. NOUNS.
Chapter II. Formation of Nouns.
( Secondary and other nominal suffixes.)
11. Secondary suffixes form nouns from other nouns, as distinct
from primary suffixes which form them from roots.
12. The following secondary suffixes are those given by the author.
The translator has added references to Dr. Hoornle’s Gaudian Grammar
which will be found useful. Primary suffixes will be found discussed in
chapter X.
13. Some of the so-called suffixes given by the author are not
tadbhavas, being either tatsamas or of foreign derivation. These the
translator has put at the end after the others.
14. NT, feminine 'it, signifies a person connected with anything, or a
vessel for containing anything.
Example, —
‘ a traveller ’ from ‘ a road.’
tftTUT ‘ a rider ’ from HUT ‘ a horse,’
HaTTT^T or I ‘ a marketer,’ ‘ a petty shopkeeper,’
fom. ) from «tT5TTT, ‘ a market.’
‘ an oil- vessel ’ ‘ oil.’
fHHUT ‘ a gM-vessel ’ ffa ‘ ghi.’
‘ a milk- vessel ’ ‘ milk.’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 206, 207.
15 . ^ added to nouns forms nouns of agency.
Example, —
‘ illusion ’ ‘ one who causes illusion.’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 209, 1, b and 210.
16. or added to adjectives forms abstract nouns.
Examples, —
‘ acrid.’
‘ beautiful.’
1 sour.’
17. VT or tfvr
‘ acridity.’
or ‘ beauty.’
‘ sourness.’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 220, 221.
added to adjectives forms abstract nouns.
Examples, —
H3TT < 0 i d > 1 old age.’
W ‘ sour ’ ‘ sourness ’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 228, 229.
18. Diminutives are formed by using the feminine termination i.
4
Hiral&l Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
Sometimes the masculine long form in «TT is used and more often the
feminine long form in ^T.
Examples, —
a ‘ palanquin.’
‘ a basket.’
1 a son.’
^flST ‘ a water- vessel.’
#T®T ‘ a pestle.’
‘ a petty palanquin.’
‘ a little basket.’
«)27^T ‘ a little son.’
‘ a little water- vessel.’
^rrfir’SfT ‘ a small pestle.’
19.
See Gd. Gr. §§ 256, 257, 195, 199, 201.
added to adjectives forms abstract nouns.
Examples, —
‘sweet.’ ‘sweetness.’
Cf. Gd. Gr. §§ 281, 282.
20. fern. added to nouns forms nouns signifying posses-
sion.
Examples, —
‘ wealth.’ fern. V'T-TT'lt, ‘a wealthy
person.’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 293, 294, Cf. §§ 315 and ff.
21. 'STT, or ^TTT, feminine ^TfT»T or ^TCfa*T, signifies an agent.
E. If., ^:fc?TVr, fem. ^^nfr^ifxsr or wrf^Wfsrsr, ‘a woodman ’
from ‘ wood.’
This is probably the same as ^TTT, through confusion of the suffixes
and
See'Gd. Gr. §§ 293—296, 315—321.
22. JJ added to substantives forms adjectives.
Example, —
1 hunger.’ v;»§ ‘ hungry.’
These are connected with the Biliari termination forming the
past participle. Of. Gd. Gr. §§ 302 and if.
23. < 31 , or added to a substantive, forms adjectives of relation.
Example, —
‘ a house.’ or rreWT ‘ of ’ or ‘ belonging to a
house.’
See Gd. Gr. §§ 330, 331, where however 'a; is given only as a
primary suffix.
24. ^ is used to form adjectives from substantives; e. gr.
aT*ft ‘ possessing qualities,’ ‘ wise ’ from Jf«T ‘ quality.’
This is not a tadbhava termination. It is the Sanskrit termination
t (W ). and is only found in tatsamas.
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect. 5
25. 1 possessing ’ is added to substantives to form adjectives.
Example, —
‘ beauty.’ ’Sh.sii, ‘ possessing beauty,’ ‘ beauti-
ful.’
This is not a tadbhava suffix at all. The word is borrowed direct
from the Sanskrit, ready compounded as a tatsama.
26. Jl?f added to numerals, signifies multiplication.
Example, —
#fsr 1 three fvfJlsf 1 three-fold.’
This is not properly a suffix at all, but is derived from a compound
already formed in Sanskrit.
27. $ added to adjectives makes substantives.
Example, —
aprisr ‘young.’ ‘youth.’
This is the Persian suffix <_y.
28. signifies possession, e. g. ‘ a land holder,’ from
1 land.’
This is the Persian suffix ;l^.
CHAPTER III.
Gender.
29. There are two genders, — Masculine and Feminine. The gender
of names of living things follows their nature, males being masculine
and females being feminine. Of things without life, those names which
are identical or nearly identical with Hindi names generally follow the
Hindi usage. The following rules will be found useful.
30. Words ending in and in a silent consonant which is not W,
are generally masculine, and those in t; and rf are generally feminine.
Examples.
Chattisgarhi.
Masculine.
Hindi.
English.
‘ a doorway.’
ft*!
‘ rice.’
VT5TI
VIST
‘betel.’
«T ST
‘ sackcloth.’
*Ttf7*TT
'fthfTSTT
‘ clothes.’
«PB7»n
1 a stone.’
OUTSIT
1 bedding.’
Feminine.
mit
* earth.’
—
‘ wood ashes.’
6
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson-
[No. 1,
suit
*uit
‘ a stick.’
331$
‘ a mat.’
3T3
3T3
‘ a word.’
XTrT
Tiff
‘ night.’
Exceptions.
Masculine.
^fft
Trft
‘ an elephant.’
33$
3T3
‘ a village.’
snit
ff^T
‘ a black-ant.’
3T3
‘ boiled rice. ’
Feminine.
‘ pulse.’
‘ a shield.’
—
‘ a neck-ring.’
xfrvir
‘ a kind of veil.’
and others as described below.
31. Abstract nouns
in 3, 33 ,
33, 'WT, XT3, 3T, 113,
masculine.
Those in $, ft, 33T$, xf
. 3JT3, ft, are feminine.
Examples,—
Masculine.
Feminine.
fb*I3, 1 meeting.’
5l3lTft, ‘ ripeness.’
f33(3, ‘ drinking.’
3Jllft, ‘ cheating.’
35IT33, ‘ decking.’
ffXTt- ‘ giving to drink.
3JIT33, ‘ cheating.’
3iT3$ ‘acidity.’
®3IT, 1 touching.’
f«3T3, 1 sweetness.’
ff 5IT3, ‘ union.’
U37Xrft, * confusion.’
‘ sourness.’
32. Feminines are formed from masculines as follows :
(1) Masculines in form their feminines in $ ; Thus, —
Masculine. Feminine.
ZTT, * a hoy.’ ‘ a girl’.
3t*RT or t^fT, ‘ a master.’ ®t€t or «ft, ‘ a mistress.’
(2) Long forms in 73T form their feminines in ; thus, —
ffV73T, ‘ a horse.’ ntf^T, ‘ a mare.’
33731, ‘ an old man.’ «ff33T, ‘an old woman.’
so also
gfxXT ‘ a hullalo bull-calf.’ ^fx^TT ‘ a bufEalo heifer.’
(3) Sometimes in the last case TfsR is substituted for T*n ; thus, —
3373T, 1 a tiger.’ «jU7f33, ‘ a tigress.’
1890.]
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
This 7fsr«r is sometimes applied differently ; thus, —
(4) Masculines containing a long vowel, shorten it before :fasr,
thus, —
WT®, ‘ a hard.’ ‘ his wife.’
qss, ‘ a camel,’ '3ZTf«f«t, ‘ a she-camel.’
(5) Masculines in $, and its long form T^T, take Tfasr regularly ;
thus, —
‘ an elephant.’ * a cow-elephant.’
Tpft, ‘ a shop-keeper.’ or ^f^rsr, ‘ his wife.’
suit, 1 a daughter’s son.’ ‘a daughter’s
daughter.’
stfspjT, ‘a shop-keeper.’ W'nf'fpT, ‘his wife.
ufq>7T ‘ a grass-cutter.’ U37fsr*T his wife.
(6) So also words in a silent consonant, *UT, and t, signifying persons
of a certain trade or profession ; thus, —
‘ a washerman.’ 3^3.f*r«T, ‘ his wife.
«T^TT, ‘ a smith.’ ^TCrf*PT, ‘ his wife.’
^f^Tf 1 a cowherd. 1 his wife.’
‘ an oilman.’ ‘ his wife.’
Sometimes the Hindi custom is followed; thus, — ^tf3*r,
&c.
(7) Names of Brahman tribes take :f3«T ", thus, —
^w:fvr*T
fWlT:p33, or
^Tfsrvr .
(8) Some nouns are irregular ; thus, —
‘ a father.’ <ii ‘ a mother.’
‘ a brother.’ , ‘ a sister.’
‘ a he-goat.’ or wFc??T, ‘ a she-goat.’
CHAPTER IV.
N CFMBER.
33. There are two numbers, Singular and Plural.
34. (1) The Plural is formed from the Singular by adding tho
suffix ««r ; thus, —
Singular. FluraL
nst^sT, masc., ‘ a man.’
^aiT, masc. ‘ a bullock.’ ^
masc. ‘ a potter’s wheel.’
8
[No. 1,
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
^^ 5 , mase , ‘a cup.’
HVITH, maso., ‘a man.
BTWl, maso , ‘a sister’s husband.’
fsff^TO, fem., ‘goods and chattels.’
Sfrr^T, fem., a neck-ring.’
fem., 1 a she-goat.’
■Rrft, fem., ‘ a daughter-in-law.’
wsr*i-HST.
VTrr-wsr.
fsrf*ra-W*r.
Qf^TUT H»T.
'ph-ah.
35. (2) ««f is sometimes omitted, especially in the nominative
plural, and in the case of things without life; thus, HiHsr, ‘a man,’ or
• men ’; ‘ a bullock,’ or ‘ bullocks ’; Wtt ‘ a she-goat ’ or ‘ she-
goats,’ and so on.
36. (3) An old form of the plural, which is now very rarely
used, is formed by adding sr to the singular. If the word ends with a
long vowel, that vowel is shortened ; thus ‘ a bullock ’; nom.
plur. acc. plur.
37. Affinity. With the plural suffix fl*T, compare tho old Hindi H«n£, ‘ men,’
and the Uriya plural suffix The old form in «f is the regular Bihari plural
oblique termination,
38. (4) Sometimes the plural is formed by prefixing the words
^w, w, B“Tt, *nrr, or 3i»jrr ; thus, —
Singular. Plural.
SJT«IT, STBT or m»HT
HTt #Tt, tft, 5TBT or 5UUT
39. (5) Sometimes with &c., is also used at the same time,
thus, —
Singular tTHT.
Plural WT-Tf*f, 5IBT WT-BH, or i5J*m
tJrfl-BH
This last form is very common.
CHAPTER Y.
Inflexion.
40. The cases are formed with the following postpositions, which
are added to the noun direct. In the plural, they follow the suffix iT*f.
Nominative
Accusative
Instrumental
Dative
Ablative
Genitive
Locative
Vocative
— or
JfiT or ^IT.
s»rr, <3T or «rc.
AT.
1890.] A Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect. 9
41. The postposition YY of the nominative does not correspond io
the Hindi It is used to give the idea of definiteness. Thus BY,
4 a neck,’ but BY-YY ‘ the neck.’ In the plural it is rarely used with
the suffix BB, thus BY-YY, rarely BY-UB-YY, ‘ the necks.’
42. In the Accusative and Dative, YT is more used by the polite,
and Y1T more by rustics. In the Dative, rustics sometimes use YrrfBY or
WHY, with or without the Genitive postposition # prefixed, — thus,
BY-YITfHY, BY-YTHY. BY-#-®TfRY BY-^-®TRY.
43. The typical vocative interjections are Y and Yft, which are
sometimes written %, and ifr .
44. Affinities . — Except YY, all these postpositions are the same as those in
use in Bihari and other Eastern Gaudian languages, or, at most, are but slightly
changed. Regarding YY, I do not know of any closely related word in other Gaudian
languages. In Bihari, the pleonastio long form termination BT is used in a similar
sense. This tends to point to tho probability of the origin of YY being the Prakrit
pleonastio termination® or (Hem. 1Y, 429.) [Thus BYR, BYIYY, BYYJY
or, with euphonio Y. BYYY. G. A. G.
45. The following is an example of the declension of a masculine
noun ending in a silent consonant.
BY, ‘ a neck.’
Singular.
Nom.
ITT. BY-YY
4 a neck,’ 1 the neck.'
Acc.
BY-YT BY-Y1T
‘ a neck.’
Instr.
BY-YT
‘ by a neck.’
Dat.
BY-YiT, BY-YN, BY-BY
‘ to ’ or ‘ for a neck.’
Abl.
JIT-#
4 from a neck.’
Gen.
JIT-®
4 of a neck.’
Loc.
by-bI
‘ in a neck.’
Voo.
Y BY
4 0 neck.’
Plural.
Nom.
JfY, BY-BB, BY-YY,
(rare) BY-RB-YY,
4 necks,’ 4 the necks ’.
Acc.
by-bb-yt, ry-rb-yit
4 necks.’
Instr.
BY-RB-#
4 by necks.’
Dat.
BY-RB-YT, BY-BB-YtT,
BY-RB-BY
4 to ’ or 4 for necks.’
Abl.
BY-RB-#,
4 from necks.’
Gen.
BY-RB-Y,
4 of necks.’
Loc.
jit-bb-bt
4 in necks.
Voc.
Y BY-RB
4 0 necks.’
The old,
rare, form of the plural is BYB,
BYB-YT.
Similarly are declined, YiY, ‘ fruit,’ ftYY, ‘ ficus religiosa,’ BY®,
‘ a man,’ fwrY, ‘ flour,’ 1 a dog,’ &c.
B
10
H initial Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
46. The following is an example of the declension of a masculine
noun, ending in long ^t.
‘ a boy.’
Singular.
Nom. ^fT^T-NT
Acc. iraTHHIT
Instr, and Abl.
Dat. -<*rr ; -«IT
Gen.
Eoc.
Voc. t
Plural.
-^IT
^T^T-S)SI-^T,-^T,-^T
^T'<ut-usr-uT
The old, rare, form of the plural is ^tT3f*T-3\L &o.
Similarly are declined,
^RIT ‘a bullock,’ tftTTST ‘ahorse,’
fw^T ‘ a whelp,’ ^ftersn « clothes,’
®3>^T ‘ a basket,’ ‘ a moustache.’
3WTT ‘ a calf,’ &c.
47. All nouns are declined in the same way, and it is hence need-
less to give further paradigms. The following are examples of nouns
of every possible termination.
48. (3) Masculine in short X,.
There are no nouns ending in short X- Sanskrit words ending in X,
when adopted as tatsamas into this dialect, (a) sometimes drop the
final vowel, and are declined like nouns ending in a silent consonant, and
(fc) sometimes lengthen it, and are declined like nouns in i;.
Thus, fa) Ufa 1 a gem,’ becomes H«r, and (6) ‘ an offering ’
becomes and ^fr ‘ Vishnu,’ ^Tt.
49. (4) Masculines in long
Examples ; ‘ an elephant,’ ‘ a black ant,’ gT'Nft ‘ a
neighbour,’ ‘ a potter’s wheel,’ uut ‘a village.’
50. (3) Masculines in short < 3 .
There aro no nouns ending in short '3. Sanskrit words ending in
'3, when adopted as tatsamas into this dialect, (a) sometimes drop the
final vowel, and are declined like nouns ending in a silent consonant,
and ( b ) sometimes lengthen it, and aro declined like nouns in 'at.
Thus (a) inj ‘ a brute,’ becomes w, and (6) 1 a saint,’ becomes
qn*.
C\
51. (6) Masculines in long 'at.
Examples ; ^ ‘ a cup,’ JIJ? ‘ wheat.’
1890.] -<4 Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect. 11
52. (7) Masculine in JJ.
Examples ; *r«r*8 ‘ a man,’ ‘ a man,’ ‘ the last day.’
53. ( 8) Masculines in sat.
Examples ; «T?T ‘ a sister’s husband ’ ; ^rft (Skr. 1 news.’
54. (9) No masculine nouns end in v or in
55. (10) Feminines in a silent consonant.
Examples ; fstfsre * goods and chattels,’ Wrf ‘ mind,’ ‘ wisdom,’
jft3 1 conversation,’ * ink.’
56. (11) Feminines in long ^t.
Examples ; 5JTrfT ‘ a mill-stone,’ ‘ a neck-ring,’ ‘ a
small basket,’ ififwr 1 a kind of veil.’
57. (12) Feminines in short T. See masculines in short X., No. 3.
58. (13) Feminines in long\%
Examples : ‘ a she-goat,’ JHh) ‘ gravel.’
‘ earth,’ xjt ‘ mother,’ XfxX ‘ sister,’ ‘ ink-stand,”
‘ a washer.’
59. ( 14) Feminines in short ^3. See masculines in <3, No. 5.
60 (15) Feminines in
Examples : Wt ‘ a daughter-in-law,’ RVTWt ‘ a test.’
61. (16) There are no feminine nouns in V or in
CHAPTER VI.
Adjectives.
62. The following is a list of common adjectives, with their
Hindi and English equivalents.
Ghhattisgarhi.
Hindi.
English.
•nr?
good.
snij, srr 5 ?,
SIPt,
big.
<f[3T
small.
^TT
long.
wide.
tt^T, fMVTT,
yellow.
#t^rr
dark blue.
mn, ^rfTVT,
^T^IT
black.
%TT, vtxr, §th.
white.
^TT
green.
red.
12
[No. 1,
Hiraliil Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
sjfvmv, VJrfH,
1 intelligent.’
1W*, *ISW, 'Rsft,
vfrv. vftf, vfTfns, fqfasir,
«is?r
‘ many.’
vfTfT
‘ few.’
63. Tadbhava adjectives in form their feminines in $ ; thus, —
c*rT?f, Tf ; but this rule is often neglected, and the
genders are mixed up ; thus, wTZTcirt TPT, or 1 a little gentle-
man ’ ; wreT^T sfNt, or *fT#t ‘ a little girl.’
64. To give the meaning of likeness or resemblance, the follow-
ing suffixes are used, — equivalent to tho Hindi UT.
With nouns or with the genitive cases of pronouns, w,
With adjectives, *1*, fW, thus,—
(JhhatUsgarhi.
Hindi.
English.
or
Jlfa-m
‘ like a village.’
'q^r-^iuvr, vp^r-'wvr,
oi'
'qT^-^T
‘ like the moon.’
vftT-’sra*T, flK-'W. or
Rftr-w
iVT-^T
‘ like me.’
^TT-V^fvr, -WT^fT-
‘ like that.’
‘ biggish. ’
wter-^rsr,
‘ littleish.
Numerals.
65. The Cardinals are the same as in Hindi. The syllable ^ft
added to a cardinal makes it definite; thus, — WT 1 the one,’ ‘ the
two,’ ‘ both,’ ??Wt ‘the three,’ fhft ‘ the hundred.’
66. Indefiniteness is given by adding rj^vr or thus UT^-
pqrvr ‘ about five,’ 1 about two,’ ‘ about a score,’
15 -^51 ‘ about a hundred.’
67. Exactness is given by adding the syllables at, faa, or ;
thus, — 9^-favf, ‘ exactly one.’ ‘exactly
two.’
68. Multiplication is denoted by adding the syllables M*r, H *T,
or sK, before the first of which a long vowel is usually shortened ;
13
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarln dialect.
thus,— *£-JpT ‘twice,’ ‘thrice,’ ^TT-JT«T ‘four
times,’ v«* u '<7 ‘ once,’ ^u"<T ‘ twice,’ wt*T ‘ thrice,’ qpf ‘ four
times,’ qT’q f?: ‘ five times,’ ‘ five times,’ ‘ seven times,’
# . ^ 'J
^3-Jl»T ‘ eight times.
69. Fractional numbers ; — the following may be noted.
‘ a quarter.’
‘ a half.’
‘ three quarters.’
‘ one and a half.’
‘ two and a half.’
‘ three and a half.’
70. Ordinals ; — the following may be noted.
First,
Second, ^JJT, ^flTTTJUT, ^TTT^E.
Third, frfSTrp?<T, frTqTTT*.
Fourth, ’•(W**.
The words in and may optionally have anunasik on
either of the last two syllables ; thus, ^^TTT^rf, or or
and so on.
Adjectives used as Substantives.
71. When adjectives are used as substantives, they ai’e treated as
such.
Thus vy ‘ a big ’ is thus declined as a substantive.
Singular. Plural.
Nom. ^f, ?f^c
Acc. *tf-*T<T-3>T,-WT
and so on.
CHAPTER VII.
Pronouns.
72. The declension of pronouns is somewhat peculiar. Each pro-
noun has in each number three forms, — a direct, an oblique, and a
genitive. The direct form is that used with the nominative, the oblique
is that used in the accusative and sometimes in the dative, the genitive
is that used in the other cases, and sometimes in the dative. In other
words the oblique form is used in the accusative, with the postpositions
^iT and ^!T, and it is also used in the dative with the same postpositions.
The genitive form is used by itself for the genitive, and with the usual
postpositions for the other cases. Moreover it is used with the post-
or
14 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
position MX and ^ifffT'or *s(TTO of the dative. We thus get the follow-
ing scheme.
Nom.
Direct form.
Acc.
Oblique form with 3fT or ^JT.
Instr.
Genitive with #.
Dat.
Oblique form with 3TT or and Genitive with TO, ^TffTT,
or *rrTO
Abl.
Genitive with
Gen.
Genitive form.
Loc.
Genitivo with AT.
73. In
the plural, there are moreover two forms, a simple,
declined as above, and a periphrastic formed by adding to the simple
plural form. This periphrastic form is declined regularly like a sub-
stantive.
74. In some places the instrumental and ablative are used with
the oblique and not with the genitive form, but this custom is dying
out.
75.
follows.-
used.
Personal Pronouns.
The Personal Pronouns of the first snd second persons are as
-For the third person, the Remote Demonstrative Pronoun is
/ Direct
J Oblique
l Genitive
/■ Direct
Simple | Oblique
( Genitive
. Periphrastic
The forms H and <T
educated
First person.
I’
Singular
Plural
are
-v*
Borfl
ift
*fK
TO.
TO,
to -to
used by
Second person.
<T or ‘ thou.’
‘ me
‘ my ’
‘we’
‘us’
‘ our ’
‘we’
rft
TO,
TO-to
‘ thee.’
‘thy.’
‘ye.’
‘ you.’
‘ your.’
‘ye.’
the vulgar, IT and by the
sometimes or is used instead of «T , to express respect.
76. if or
O' ‘ I ’ is declined as follows :
Singular,
Nom.
iii 5Va>
or fl
‘I.’
Acc.
‘ me.’
Instr.
‘ by me.
Dat.
wi-to, aIt-to, ntT-
*aTfTO, TOC-^TTO, ‘ to ’ or ‘ for me.
Abl.
‘ from me.’
Gen,
‘ my.’
Loc.
‘ in me.’
15
1890.] A Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect.
Plural.
Simple.
Periphrastic.
Nom.
^*t-*?*T
‘ we.’
Ace.
<j!T, ^?-W*T-3rr,-^TT
‘us.’
Iustr.
'fw
‘ by us.’
Dat.
*HPC-»TC
&c.
^T-flST-JRT, -<jrT,- 5TC,
&c.
‘ to ’ or ‘for us.’
Abl.
‘from us.’
Gen.
‘ our.’
Loc.
‘ in us. ’
77. ^
or ?T* ‘ thou’ is
similarly declined ; thus, —
Singular.
Nom.
-^■41
(T or ?f
‘ thou.’
Aeo.
m ^rr, rtT-<*rr
‘ thee.’
Instr.
TTTT-#
‘ by thee.’
Dat.
m-^vT -^T; rfK-^T,-^Tfrrv,
-*3TrtK,
‘ to’ or * for thee.’
Abl.
‘from thee.’
Gen.
ATT
‘thy.’
Loc.
‘ in thee.’
Plural.
Simple.
Periphrastic.
Nom.
jpt-WJT
‘ye.’
Acc.
g*5-^T,-^rr
7pi-fliT-<ST,-<jrT
‘ you.’
Instr.
‘ by you.’
Dat.
&c.
‘ to ’ or ‘ for you.’
Abl.
(P?TC-%
‘from you.’
Gen.
‘of you.’
Loc.
g^rc-^f
jjfl -ft *T-flT
‘in you.’
In the oblique plural form, jjr? is sometimes written for ?p?.
When
<3i or is used to express respoct, the forms are as follows : —
Singular.
Simple Plural. Periphrastic Plural.
Direct
3i°r
wanting
Oblique 7JVT
wanting
Genitive
TfSTT-fisr
This respectful form is rarely used, and appears to be dying out.
16
Hir&lal K&vyopadhy&ya and G. A. Grierson —
[No. 1,
78. As already explained, the instrumental and ablative of these
pronouns in some places are used with the oblique instead of with the
genitive forms ; thus — iff-#, 7ft-# and gn-#, instead of ifft-#,
^TTTT-#, and g*?K-#.
79. The periphrastic plural is formed, it will be seen, by adding
I?»T to the simple nominative plural. Sometimes, however, it is added to
the simple genitive plural, thus
&c.
Reflexive Pronoun
80. The
Reflexive Pronoun
^q*T 4 self ’ is declined regularly in
the singular like a substantive, except that the genitive takes no termi-
nation ; thus-
Nom.
•SPT7T,
‘self.’
Acc.
'snuvr-«*T,-*n
‘ self.’
Instr.
4 by self.’
Dat.
‘ to’ or * for self.’
Abl.
‘ from self.’
Gen.
WVW
4 own.’
Loc.
‘ in self.’
The plural is formed by repeating the word thus Nom.
‘ selves,’ Acc. ^iqir-^T, and so on.
This pronoun is frequently compounded with personal pronouns ;
thus, —
A«S»
Acc.
4 myself.’
Acc.
VjqiT-9ST
4 thyself.’
Acc.
‘ himself.’
Acc.
1 ourselves.,
Acc.
gU-H5I
4 yourselves.’
Acc.
4 themselves.’
The Mutual Reflexive Pronoun.
81. The
mutual reflexive pronoun or ^ns€t occurs only in the
Genitive and Locative of both numbers ; thus, —
Singular.
Gen.
4 of each other.’
Loc.
4 in each other.’
Plural.
Gen. WTqut # ‘ of each other.’
Loc. ^iTgu ^Tgw-flT, ‘ in each other.’
The vulgar sometimes make a plural with ; thus, — ^rrgq-U*r ^
&c.
1890.]
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
17
Demonstrative Pronouns.
82. The proximate Demonstrative Pronoun v, sometimes spelt §
‘ this ’ and the Remote Demonstrative Pronoun Vt ‘ he,’ ‘ she ’ ‘ it,’
‘ that,’ are declined exactly like the personal pronouns.
The principal forms are as follows :
Singular
^ X -f X
X
XWX
T*J, XV -T*
’T-fliT or ^ JTSI
r Direct
< Oblique
h Genitive
! r Direct
Simple Oblique
v (lenitive
Periphrastic
The accusative frequently drops its postposition thus V 1 see
this,’ instead of v <rt ; ^sff * see that,’ instead of ^Tt-ert VR.
In the genitive case singular, the forms V JR ’3ft-«R are sometimes
used. So also, in the genitive case plural, the forms and * 3 ^ ^ are
sometimes used.
Instead of and and '3»r are sometimes used.
It is unnecessary to decline these in full.
W\, VT-Tt
*f[
^-wx
The Correlative Pronouns.
83. These include the Relative Pronoun S[ ‘ who,’ and its Correla-
tive % ‘he (who).’ They are declined exactly like tho Demonstrative
pronouns, except that the nominative has three pairs of forms, founded
on the three sets, 5r, sfpr and ong«f, and it, rf and respectively.
The principal parts are as follows :
Singular
"Direct
Oblique
Genitive
Plural <
( Direct
Simple \ Oblique
(. Genitive
Periphrastic
si, ; sfw, sf:VT-^T ;
or 5T^35f,
"5f[Vf or 3T~3*I
fsisr,
sr-fl^r, ^ftsf-nvr, «vr
or faTnJ-n*!
W. ; rfisr,
; or
ft=3Sr, rT35f ^x
ffw or rf^Sf
fh*f,
fd 5 ?
fa's
?t «*r, <ftsr-«sT,
rT3«f-r}»T, or
The accusative frequently drops the postposition ; thus %’S
‘ (He) whom yon see ’ ; <3 <T «PfT^ ‘ show that about which
you speak.’
In the genitive case singular and plural *R is sometimes substituted
C
18
Hiralal Kavyopddhyaya and G. A. Grierson' — • [No. 1,
for sfiT ; thus ; it-Sfi, <fi, instead of #l ^T.
f?P5 sst, &c.
Instead of and fH 5 ?, fsjsr and ffr^T are sometimes used.
It is not necessary to decline these pronouns in full.
Interrogative Pronouns.
84. The Masculine and Feminine Interrogative Pronoun
3ft»T or is declined like the Correlatives. The only difference is
that there is no direct form % as might he expected, and that there is
an additional singular oblique form <RT.
Principal Parts.
or «fravf,
/ Direct
J Oblique
' Genitivf
Oblique 3ST«T, 3P3*T or 3iT
Genitive 5RT
Singular
The genitive singular is also 3T3«r-^ or qn sr
To signify ‘ which of many,’ this pronoun is frequently repeated,
and is then thus declined in the plural.
Norn, qnsr qftiT (-%X) ; (y^K) ;
sRt*T ; or sRHif or ^T3*r-??»r.
Acc. *ritt ^T3sr-^T,-^rr ;
qft*r ®Ri»r w-3SV^rr ; jr^vt !Rg»r-n«r-<RT,-'srr ;
^T-^IT 3rt-^T ; or 5RT-?Rr ^fT-SST.
And so on : when the obliquo form qsr is used, the postposition is
repeated aftor each member of the compound, while with other forms,
it is only used after the second member.
85. The Neuter Interrogative Pronoun m ‘ what,’ is one of the
few survivals of the neuter gender in the dialect.
It has an oblique form ^iT^, but in other respects is declined in the
singular regularly like a substantive, thus, —
Nom. SB? ; Aco. sfiT%-3lT,-*rr ; Instr, and so on.
Sometimes <RT is used instead of ; thus, ^fiT ^r.-^T, 3rr-^f, and so
on.
The plural is formed by doubling the pronoun ; thus —
Nom. srt*RT; Acc. *RT% ^TT ; Instr. and so on.
1890.]
A Grammar of the Ghattisgarhi dialect.
19
Indefinite Pronouns.
86. Tho Indefinite Pronoun or qnasfr ‘ any one,’ ‘ some one,’
is declined regularly in the singular like a substantive ; thus, —
Nom. JRtsft, SRI??! ; or eR^ft-^T
Aeo. sRT^rt «RT,-^T ; or sR^sfr-sRVvlT, and so on.
The plural is formed by reduplication, — thus,
Nom. qfisfl <*rsft ^Tsft ;
or ^rasft SR'asr’l, afT^3*ft
Ace. ^[sfT sRWrt-sRV^rr ; &c.
and so on.
The vulgar sometimes add n«T thus, — Ace. s RI»ft-n«r-'RT, and
so on. Somotimes an oblique form is used ; thus, Acc. qrr-^rCt-
effr, and so on.
87. ‘anything ’, ‘ something ’ is declined similarly ; thus, —
sing. Nom. Acc. and so on.
Plur. Nom. Aec. or «jr?-<Rr,-^T and so on,
the vulgar adding fl«T as above.
88. Other Indefinite Pronouns are ijaR ‘a,’ ‘a certain ^JTC,
^T*f, ‘ another,’ ^p3T, ‘ other ’ : ^?ff, ‘ both ’ ; gsf, ^=Tl
‘ all ’ ; eRffT^st ‘some,’ ‘ several.’
These are all declined like fi^, above.
89. When two pronouns are used together, or when a pronoun
and a noun are used together, the case postpositions are added to the
latter of the two ; thus,
VSR ^T-SRT
3p3»t
(acc.) ‘ one or other ’
‘ from whosoever ’
‘ for what bullock ’
* each to a different man ’
‘ each by different men ’
and so on.
90. The following are Pronominal Adjectives.
A. Quantity.
Proximate De-
monstrative jjrP^fT,
01’ ’STfPiRT, S 3'T^,
or (vulgar) ^fT^ST,
or
> ‘ this much ’
‘pfttf, 7^,
J
20
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
[No. ],
Remote De-
monstrative
or
or (vulgar)
or
Relative
or
or (vulgar)
or
Correlative
or
or (vulgar)
or
Interrogative
or
or (vulgar)
or
Sometimes
much ?’
1
J _ _
5f<r«!, SirT^i, Ac.
3T?I7=BT 5T<T3i, &C.
fsjrjTsn, , Ac.
TfrfT^I, Ac.
flrTSST, rtrf^r, Ac.
ffTrPSI, Ac.
fT^>
^W3fT, &C.
^ffTcfiT, &C,
f &C.
J- ‘ that much.’
■
j
^ ‘ what much.’
^ ‘ that much.’
how much.’
J
\J
®f is used to mean ‘ what much,’ and % to mean ‘ how
B. Quality.
Proximate Demonstrative V¥*r, V^tsi, ‘in this way,’ ‘this.’
Remote Demonstrative §*J«r, 3 *37^r, («r*j is not used), ‘ in that
way.’
5T3»r, 5jgT«r, 5i*l, ‘ in what way.
cT^TST, <T* 3 , («re rare) ‘in that way.’
«ra7^, sfi€, =RT} ‘ in what way.’
Relative
Correlative
InteiTogative
1890.]
A Grammar of the OhhattisgarM dialect.
21
PART III. THE VERB.
Chapter VIII.
Introductory.
91. There are two numbers, — Singular and Plural.
92. There are three persons, first, second, and third.
93. There is no distinction of gender.
94. In the present tense of the defective auxiliary verb in the
future tense indicative of all verbs, and in tenses derived from them,
the polite and the vulgar use different forms for each person. These
will be made clear in tho paradigms.
95. Every verb has a root, from which every other form is derived.
The root may be found by taking tho infinitive in «T and discarding that
letter. The remainder is the root. Thus ‘ to move,’ Root
‘ move ’ or it may be found by taking tho third singular present con-
junctive, and discarding the termination Thus ‘ (If) he move,’
Root The 2nd singular Imperative is always the same as the root.
96. There are two auxiliary verbs in use;— (1) the Defective
auxiliary verb, (2) the Complete auxiliary verb.
The Defective auxiliary verb uses up two roots in its conjuga-
tion, viz., v/ 4? ‘be,’ and the VZ ‘remain.’
The Complete auxiliary verb is formed from the */ ^"i ‘ become,’
and is conjugated regularly throughout ; oxcept that its preterite is
irregular. Its preterite is never used as an auxiliary, but only as a verb
substantive.
CHAPTER IX,
Formation of Moods and Tenses.
97. There are three moods, the Indicative, the Conjunctive or
Conditional, and the Imperative.
The moods have the following tenses :
Indicative, — Preterite.
Future.
Present Definite.
Imperfect.
Future Durative.
22
Hiralal Kavyop.iphyaya and G. A. Grierson —
[No. 1,
Perfect.
Pluperfect.
Future Exact.
Conjunctive, — Present.
Preterite.
Future.
Present Durative.
Future Exact.
2nd Preterite.
Imperative, — Present.
The Imperative has also an Honorific form.
Tenses may be also divided into simple (or Radical and Participial),
and Periphrastic. The former are formed by taking the Root or a
Participle, and adding the personal terminations direct. The latter are
formed with the aid of auxiliary verbs subjoined to the present or
past participle. Classifying them according to this system we got
Simple, — Indicative, — Preterite and Future ; Conjunctive, — Present
and Preterite ; Imperative, — Present and Honorific.
Periphrastic, — Indicative, — Present Definite, Imperfect, Durative
Future, Perfect, Pluperfect, and Future Exact ; Conjunctive, — Future,
Durative Present, Future Exact and 2nd Preterite.
In the following Paradigms, the tenses will be classed according to
this last system. First the Simple and then the Periphrastic tenses, in
order.
The tenses are formed in the following way :
A. Simple Tenses.
98. The Preterite Indicative is formed by adding the following
terminations to the root :
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1st
&
wu
2nd
?r or JW
Wr
3rd
XU
XU
99. The Future indicative is formed by adding the following
terminations to the root. This tense has two forms, one used by the
polite and the other by the vulgar.
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect. 23
Singular.
Plural.
Person.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1
*
7a?
or
7ft or 7ft*r
2
7t
Tt
71?
3
or t
7ft
Tff
When the root ends in a vowel, these terminations are liable to
slight changes.
100. The Present Conjunctive (Conditional) is formed by add-
ing the following terminations to the root.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1
fit
2
■SB*!
*rt
3
When the root ends in a vowel, the of and is sometimes
elided.
101. The Preterite Conjunctive (Conditional) is formed by add-
ing the terminations of the Preterite Indicative to the Present Partici-
ple.
102. The Present Imperative is the same as the Present Con-
junctive, except that the termination '3f*J is dropped in the second person
singular.
The Honorific Imperative is formed by adding t to. the root.
B. Periphrastic Tenses.
103. The Definite Present is formed by adding the persons of the
Present tense of the Defective Auxiliary Verb, to the Present Parti-
ciple ; thus,— *T UR?r-%T, or (vulgar) ‘ I am moving.’
With negative particles, irrogular forms like *ft stt 5n<T-v 1 he is
not going,’ ft «n»T-'«»r 1 1 am not going,’ occur.
104. The Imperfect Indicative is formed by adding the persons
of the Preterite tense of the Defective Auxiliary Verb to the Present
Participle; thus, 1 1 was moving.’
24 Hiyalal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
Somotimes the Perfect of the Defective Auxiliary Verb is used
instead ; thus, * I was moving.’
105. The Durative Future Indicative is formed by adding the
porsons of the Future Indicative of the Completo Auxiliary Verb to the
Present Participle; thus,— ft"’ ‘ I shall be moving.’
106. The Perfect Indicative is formed by adding the following
terminations to the root. It will be seen that the latter half of the
terminations is the Present of the Defective Auxiliary Verb.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
V ulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1.
JS-*T
S*.
9-^T
2.
3.
T*r~'S
If the root ends in a vowel, i} is used instead of pt
107. The Pluperfect Indicative is formed by adding the persons
of the Preterite tense of the Defective Auxiliary Verb to the Past
Participle ; thus, « ‘ I had removed.’
Sometimes the perfect of the Defective Auxiliary Verb is used
instead ; thus —
Wf-%T 1 1 liad moved.’
Vj
108. The Future Exact is formed by adding the persons of the
Futuro Indicative of the Complete Auxiliary Vorb to the Past Parti-
ciple ; thus, — ‘ I shall have moved,’ ‘I may have moved.’
In the third porson, somotimes, instead of adding JF to the root, the
third person of the preterite is used. This gives the idea of greater
uncertainty. Thus, means ‘he will almost certainly have
moved,’ but *ft 4 he will probably have moved.’ ^rsj sjT^T
‘ to-day Bal Makund will almost certainly have
gone to school.’ This would be said if he always went regularly, and
never missed attendance ; but if every now and then he missed, and his
attendance to-day would not be so certain, the phrase used would be
109. The Future Conjunctive is formed by adding the persons
of the Present Conjunctive of the Complete Auxiliary Verb to the Pre-
sent Participle : thus, — 1 (If) I be moving,’
25
1890.] A Grammar of the OhJiattisgarhi dialect.
110. The Durative Present Conjunctive is formed by adding the
persons of the Preterite Conjunctive of the Complete Auxiliary Y erb to
the Present Participle ; thus, — ‘ (If) I were moving.’
111. The Future Exact Conjunctive is formed by adding the
persons of the Present Conjunctive of the Complete Auxiliary Verb, to
the Past Participle ; thus, — f VrilT ‘ (If) I have moved.’
112. The Second Preterite Conjunctive is formed by adding
the persons of the Preterite Conjunctive of the Complete Auxiliary Verb,
to the Past Participle ; thus, — ‘(If) I had moved.’
113. The Conjunctive Participle is formed by adding the
participle ^ to tho first infinitive ; thus, — ‘ having moved ’ ;
‘ having been.’
CHAPTER X.
Other Verbal Derivatives (Primary Suffixes).
114. The formation of verbal nouns and adjectives, including
infinitives and participles will now be described. In the paradigms
only the Present and Past Participles and the three Infinitives will be
given.
115. The following terminations make nouns of Agency.
W, e. g.
added to
ftW ‘ speak,’
forms ‘ a speaker.’
11
11
ft ‘ drink,’
11
ffv*rt ‘ a drinker.’
11
11
v / 1 labour,’
11
siithjT 1 a labourer.’
tNn
11
a/ ffal ‘ speak,’
11
‘ a speaker.’
11
v' ‘ eat,’
11
‘ an eater.’
11
^ ft ‘ drink,’
11
ft^Njl 1 a drinker.’
11
eJTHT ‘ labour,’
11
qiflTihjT ‘ a labourer.’
11
*/ TPa ‘ keep,’
11
1 a keeper.’
^T, fern, t
11
v/ fjlalK ‘ laugh,’
11
fjIoTlT fem. filar?)
‘ a laugher.’
^T, fern, ft
11
v/ filWT ‘ laugh,’
11
fhsiKT^T, fem. fiiaiyrft
‘ a laugher.’
11
</ 5)1 ‘ cheat.’
11
3JIT?T, fem. 5Ji:ft ‘a
cheater.’
•rr^T, fem. •frft
11
v/ ‘ gabble,’
11
fem. ^5T:ft
‘ a gabbler.’
11
■v/ tt 1 weep,’
91
TTsnTT, fem. tYsiT^t
‘ a weeper.’
11
v/ 1 labour,’
11
JRUl 1 ® ‘ industrious.’
D
26
[No. 1
Hiralal Kavyopadhydya and G. A. Grierson —
116. The following terminations form abstract verbal nouns
or nouns expressing the act of the root. The first three are usually
treated as infinitives.
— ,* oblique 9 (first </ ‘ speak,’ ffa, obi. ft# ‘ the act of speak-
infinitive)
✓ T* ‘ move,’
*/ NT ‘ be,’
mg.
‘ the act of moving ;’
dat. v# ^IT * for moving.’
ffa, ‘ the act of being ;’ obi.
V 5TT ‘ go,’
*r ( 2 nd infinitive) v/ t ‘ give,’
y/ fha ‘ speak,’
'3N, *rv,t TN (3rd y/ ftST ‘ speak,’
infinitive)
v/ 1 meet,’
v/ ft ‘ drink,’
Ntf .
5iT*l ‘ the act of going,’ abla-
tive sil*}# ‘ from going.’
tN, ‘ the act of giving,’ ‘ to
give.’
ft^l«r ‘ the act of speaking,’
* to speak.’
ft^W ‘ the act of speaking,’
‘ to speak,’
‘ the act of meeting,’
‘ union,’ ‘ to meet.’
or ft^N ‘ the act of
drinking,’ ‘ to drink.’
v/ 5J5JT ‘ array,’
y/ 1 to cheat,’
y/ ^tt ‘come,’
V' >TT ‘ sing,’
y/ 1 be amaz-
ed,’
or ^rajm ‘ the act of
arraying,’ ‘to array.’
or aJIT'T'f ‘ the act of
cheating,’ ‘ to cheat.’
^F3«t ‘ the act of coming,’ ‘ to
come.’
Jrrasr ‘ the act of singing,’
‘ to sing.’
‘ the act of being
amazed,’ ‘ to be amazed.’
* I, e., the root is used without termination in the nominative, hut takes the
termination Jf in the oblique form. Sometimes V is added to the direct form of
verbs ending in vowels.
+ ^3”? is used when the root is causal, and ends in a long ^|T ; also with the
roots ‘come’ and Jtt’sing’. T'T is used with other verbs in ^T. maybe
used whenever the root ends in a vowel.
27
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
^ift
«t> ^Tt*
✓
*/
\/
V
V
s/
V
V
v/
f^ri‘ be visible,’
4 show,’
*sTT ‘ eat,’
4 unite,’
ft ‘ drink,’
U«lTTj 4 be amaz-
ed.’
^ ‘ touch,’
<N_
^1 ‘ cut,’
ft ‘ drink,’
‘come,’
f^rSTf 4 the act of being
visible,’ 4 to be visible.’
^*sir 3 «r * the act of showing,’
‘ to show.’
‘ eating,’ 4 to eat.’
fil^rPT ‘ union.’
ftpSTPS ‘ the act of drinking.’
BRlTTTft ‘ amazement.’
4 a touch.’
‘ cutting.’
ftps} it; 4 drinking.’
^TT ‘ arrival.’
117.
*rr
ft
t
The following terminations form
</ ‘ cover,’
v/ W ‘ bind,’
fsi 1 to spread out,’
v/ ‘ swing,’
■S ^ ‘ dig,’
*/ fr?K ‘ sweep,’
nouns of instrument :
'f'TfTVU ‘ clothes.’
f ' tr*IT ‘ bonds.’
f^lTSTT ‘ a rolling pin.’
‘ a swing,’ ‘ a cradle.’
1 a hoe.’
fNtft or «rf%ft ‘ a broom.’
118. Participles are formed with the following terminations :
Present, rf, or f ; e. g. ^5T ‘ do,’
</ >511 ‘ go.’
Past . 9 (der. &obl.); 9 T ‘do,’
Tr? 4 remain,’
ATT ‘ beat,’
J ‘ move,’
v \J
y VT 4 seize,’
S ‘ go,’
pres, past 3 \T<T or 4 doing.’
„ Sim or silf 4 going.’
past past. 9T 4 done.’
„ Tf 4 remained.’
„ WTC 4 beaten.’
„ 4 moved.’
\J
,, tf? 4 seized.’
„ snf or Jif 4 gone.’
Examples of the adjectival use of participles.
5 UH ijvr’S-^IT 4 for a going man,’ 4 for a man who is going.’
9 TfT ^TW-^iT Tift 4 do not stop a work in progress.’
^ * f° r the she-goat that has removed behind.’
* 3 PC is used only with causal roots in % and with the roots '*81 ‘come,’ and
*!T 4 sing.’
28
[No. 1,
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
CHAPTER XI. Auxiliary Verbs.
119. As already stated, there are two auxiliary verbs, one Defec-
tive, and the other Complete.
The Defective auxiliary verb is quite irregular, and is not bound
by the foregoing rules.
Tho Complete auxiliary verb is only sometimes slightly irregular
in the Past Participle and the tenses connected with it.
DEFECTIVE AUXILIARY VERB.
1 be,’ X^ ‘ remain.’
120. There are only three tenses, the present, the preterite and
the perfect ; the rest is borrowed from the complete verb y/ "Ct 1 become.’
The present is formed from the and the preterite from the
•v/ X'*.
121. Present, ‘lam’ fyc.
Pro-
noun.
Singular.
Pro-
noun.
Plural.
Polite form.
Vulgar form.
Polite form.
Vulgar form.
5*0
$
s
w
?T
3*
vt
*tPl
5*
4%
t±<a
V
4r
The final vowel of the second person plural is often not clearly
pronounced, so that it is difficult to say whether it is ssff or ^j.
122. Preterite, ‘ I was’ Sfc.
Singular.
Plural.
— >««
n vvsu
X^if
*T X% X^W, or X^
Xf%*T
1890.] A Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect. 29
123. Perfect, ‘ I have been ’ 8fc.
Pro-
noun.
Singular.
Pro-
noun.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
T^-%T
Note. In future paradigms the Personal Pronouns will be omitted
and only the numbers of the persons will be specified.
COMPLETE AUXILIARY VERB.
V 1 ‘ be ’ 1 become.’
A. SIMPLE TENSES.
INDICATIVE MOOD.
124. Preterite Indicative, ‘ I became ’ Sfc.
(Irregular)
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
wf*
2.
3.
Sometimes this tense is conjugated regularly ; — thus, &e.
This tense is never used as an auxiliary but always as a verb sub-
stantive.
125. Future Indicative, ‘ I shall be,’ 8rc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
V ulgar.
1.
Tttf
'Cr#
Tpfr
2.
'fit
vrt
viw
3.
VT?, or sftt;
vtft
■frff
30 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
CONJUNCTIVE (CONDITIONAL) MOOD.
126. Present, ‘ I may be,’ ‘ (If ) I be ’ fye.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
TTOT
NT«I
2.
NTO
3.
Ntv
-s
TPC
127. Preterite, ‘ (If) I bad been been,’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
Tt<T*r
3.
NtffTN
SSlfa*
IMPERATIVE
MOOD.
128. Present, ‘ Let
me be ’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
■?i$T
2.
Nt
NlitT
3.
Ntv
Ntv
Honorific Imperative,
‘ Please to be.’
2nd Person ^"it.
B. PERIPHRASTIC TENSES.
129. Present Participle (in Composition)
Past Participle or
1890.]
A Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect.
31
INDICATIVE MOOD.
130. Present Definite, ‘ I am becoming,’ &c.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
V ulgar.
1.
2.
3.
^1<T It
■sftlT-ltf
%T?T-4t
^TrT-lt
- $
^‘Trr-^ut
131. Imperfect, ‘ I was being ’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
3.
or
TtrT^fiT
TlfT-TS*
NTfr-Tf%5r
Sometimes the Perfect of the Defective Auxiliary verb is used and
the forms are or and so on.
132. Future Durative, ‘ I shall be being ’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1.
2.
3.
■CuT-TtlT
vrw-'Cw
■VfJT-VT^
■Ctst-vtH
Nfa-VT*
32 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No 1,
133. Perfect, ‘ I have been,’ Sj'a.
Singular.
Plural.
Person.
Polite,
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1.
•
wr-^rsr
2.
3.
Sometimes &c. are used instead of vtij-’lT, &c.
134. Pluperfect, ‘ I had been ’ 8fC.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
U§-K% or
3.
Sometimes &o. are used instead of
Sometimes the Perfect of the Defective Auxiliary verb is used, and
we get wtj-^rVvr or and so on.
135. Future Exact, ‘ I shall have been,’ ‘ I may have been? Ufa.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1.
2.
W-Tt3?
3.
— ' «v
we-vr?
uu-'Ctfl
Sometimes &c. are used instead of &c. If doubt
is to be clearly expressed, the third person would be
and ; or TtVS-Tlft, and
Ttif, See § 108.
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect. 33
CONJUNCTIVE (CONDITIONAL) MOOD.
136. Future. ‘ (If) I be being,’ &c.
Person
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
^TTT-TI^T
3.
'Cl«T-Tt^
137. Present Durative. ‘ (If) I were being,’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
Tra-vinV
%[rr-%IWH
2.
3.
^ra-^TffTir
138. Future Exact. ‘ (If) I have been,’ Sj-c.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1 .
2.
3.
Sometimes &c. are used instead of &c.
139. 2nd. Preterite. ‘ (If) I had been,’ 8fc.
Person
Singular.
Plural.
1.
WJ-%T#*r
2.
3.
Sometimes &c. are used instead of ifce.
E
34 HiraMl Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
140. PARTICIPLES.
Adjectival.
Present. %T?T or ‘ being.’
Past «^or%re, ‘been.’
Conjunctive.
or ‘ having been.’
141. INFINITIVES.
1 .
2 .
3.
%T or obi.
the act of being, ’ ‘ to be.’
The first is declined like a noun, — thus
Nom. or %t
Acc. S[ra-qfT
lustr. %th-^
Dat.
Abl.
Gen.
Loc.
[No. 1,
CHAPTER XII. The Regular Verb.
142. There is only one conjugation of all verbs, if we except
a few irregular ones to be noted further on. Active and Neuter Verbs
are conjugated in the same way. Verbs whose roots end in vowels
exhibit slight variations, which will be explained at the proper place.
Example of a Neuter Verb.
‘to move’ (*/ ‘move’).
A SIMPLE TENSES.
INDICATIVE MOOD.
143. (a) Preterite : ‘ I moved,’ fyc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1 .
2.
3.
V*
1890.] A Grammar of tlce Chhattisgarhi dialect. 35
144. Future : ‘ I shall move,' Ifc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
Polite.
Vulgar.
Polite.
Vulgar.
1.
ufcRT
or
^ vj
2.
ysrt
3.
SnI or tHfi
VJ Vj
VJ
CONJUNCTIVE (CONDITIONAL) MOOD.
145. Present : ‘ I may move' ‘ (If) I move,’ Sfc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
3.
Urf
' J «w
U’S*
146. Preterite : ‘ (If) I had seen,’ Sfc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
V*
2.
3.
u^rfu«r
IMPERATIVE MOOD.
147. Present : 1 Let me move,’ 8fc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
2.
UTf
3.
Honorific form, Second Person ; ‘ be good enough to move.’
36
Hirdlal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
[No. 1,
B. PERIPHRASTIC TENSES.
148. As these are conjugated fully in tlio case of the sj %T, it will
suffice to give here the first person singular of each tense.
149. Present Participle (in composition)
Past Do.
INDICATIVE MOOD.
1 50. Present Definite : ‘I am moving.’
|f, vulgar V
151. Imperfect : ‘ I was moving.’
vi
152. Future Durative : ‘ I shall he moving.’
A vulgar «
153. Perfect : ‘ I have moved.’
vulgar *r 4^T.
vi vi
154. Pluperfect : ‘ I had moved.’
155. Future Fxuct : * I shall have moved \ 1 1 may have moved, 9
vulgar «
CONJUNCTIVE MOOD.
156. Future, ‘ (If) I he moving.’
*5,0 ^
j
157. Durative Present, ‘ (If) I were moving .’
*5,0 «S ^O
vi
158. Future Exact, 1 (If) I have moved.’
*%>o — ^O
sf
159. Second Preterite, ‘ (If) I had moved.’
*5,o — -v
vi
160. PARTICIPLES.
Adjectival.
Present, or ‘ moving ’
Past, ‘ moved.’
7 Vi 7
Conjunctive.
, ‘ having moved.’
1890.]
37
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
161.
( 1 .)
( 2 .)
INFINITIVES OR VERBAL NOUNS
WWW
J
oblique WW ~
Acc WW-3TT
Instr. and so on V
sj
1 The act of
‘ to move.'
(3.) UWW
moving,’
162. Similarly is conjugated tbe 'ftww ‘ to come out ’ (
‘come out’), ‘separate.’ As this root contains a long vowel, it is
shortened when it falls in the antepenultimate.
The four simple tenses are as follows :
Indicative ; Preterite : IT ■ftz'V, ‘ I came out.’
Future : w* 1 1 shall come out,’ w^ ‘ thou
wilt come out,’ and so on.
Conjunctive Present: w* ‘ (If) I come out.’
Preterite : *T fawrww, ‘ (If) I had come out.’
The Periphrastic tenses are quite easy ; thus, Indicative, Present,
‘I am coming out,’ and so on.
163. Transitive verbs are conjugated in the same way. An
example is wlgw 1 to cover ’ rfig, ‘ cover ’). Thus : —
164. Indicative ; Preterite : ‘ I covered,' Sfc.
Person.
Singular.
Plural.
1.
wm
WTUW
2.
Wit or WTVW
wtvw
3.
wifqw
WtfijW
165. Future : W* WtfirsY, ‘ I shall cover ; ’ w" Wtqit, 1 thou wilt
cover,’ and so on.
166. Conjunctive ; Present : w^wIrt, ‘ (If) I cover.’
167. Preterite : W ! 'w s f'?TWW, * (If) I had covered.’ and so on.
CHAPTER XIII, Vocalic Roots.
168. When a root ends in a vowel, the conjugation is slightly
different, owing to the fact that, when the termination commences with
a vowel, an euphonic w or W is usually inserted. In the future, however,
the terminations , &c., which commence with lose that vowel.
The following examples will make the matter clear.
38
[No. 1,
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
169. ‘ to place,’ (V ii^T, ‘ place.’)
Indicative ; Preterite : ‘ I placed ’ w" 1 " or
‘ tliou placedst,’ vfT WTHTJ, ‘ he placed,’ and so on.
170. Future : Wfnrf, ‘ I shall place,’ Jr* *TfTt, ‘ thou wilt
place,’ and so on.
171. Conjunctive; Present: or ‘ (If) I place,’
or ‘ (If) thou place,’ or TTfT%, ‘ (If) he place,’
flfPI or ‘ If) we place,’ jjn or ‘ (If) ye place,’
^3«T or ‘ (If) they place.’
172. Preterite : *T ‘ (If) I had placed,’ and so on.
173. Present Participle : ‘ placing,’
Past „ ‘placed.’
Conjunctive „ *r?PT-tK, ‘ having placed.’
174. Infinitives: (1) n^rv, obi. 'i
(2) «^T*|, > 1 to place.’
(3) or J
175. >»niY*T ‘ to fill up’ (.*/ ‘ to fill up.’)
Indicative ; Preterite : «* wq'wr, ‘ I filled up,’ f or wfpre,
‘ thou filledst up,’ ^Tt ‘ he filled up.’
176. Future : ‘ I shall fill up,’ writ,. ‘ thou wilt fill
up,’ and so on.
177. Conjunctive ; Present : ‘ (If) I fill up,’ wfpj
‘ (If) thou fill up,’ ^q'TV, 1 (If) he fill up,’ *ffqt»r, ‘ (If) we fill up,’
(J*T ‘ (If) you fill up,’ WVTv, < (If) they fill up.’
178. Preterite: w'^trqti'V, ‘ (If) I had filled up,’ and so on.
179. Present Participle : wvta ‘ filling up.’
Past „ wfre ‘ filled up.’
Conjunctive „ wfr-^, wfiv-# 1 having filled up.’
180. 1st Infinitive : Wft or vrvlv, obi. ‘ to fill.’
CHAPTER XIV. Irregular Verbs.
181. The verbs ^1, ‘ become,’ v/ an, ‘ go,’ v / qrt, ‘ do, ’ ‘ make,’
x/ t, ‘ give,’ *y ‘ take,’ are irregular in the formation of the past
participle, and its derived tenses. The conjugation sff has already
been given in full. The irregular past participles are as follows :
Past participle.
^ or V®.
»I§.
SSK, faii, or
( v/ 5 3“t), * to become,’
(^/sn), ‘to go,’
(■*/*»*:), ‘to do,’
1890.]
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialed.
39
Past participle.
t* ‘to give,’ f^S, or
#«r(^/$), ‘ to take,’ or f%^.
Examples. S'* wV or IT SsYuV ‘ I became,’ JinW ‘ I went,’ ■^Y
JTTH ‘he went,’ Hffru, *sY f%T* ^'Y ‘he did,’ f<vi or H*
‘ I gave,’ <Y ‘ he took.’
CHAPTER XV. The use of Negatives.
182. The following examples will show the use of negatives used
emphatically.
if «tt simf . w“ ^Y «h^t,
«T sit 5ST9, fl 3ITH
?r sit ww, 3TTTO
and so on
. ^ ‘ I certainly will not go.’
} ‘ thou shalt not go.’
Note also irregular optional forms like
^*Y sit 5ITsr-t, for 'flY srtf snsr-%, f he is not going.’
#Y 3i;si-^sr, for srff aitsr-^si, ‘ we are not going.’
CHAPTER XVI. The Passive Voice.
383. The Passive voice of any verb is formed by conjugating
the y/ an with the past participle of the verb : thus, —
./ . ‘ stop,’ ‘ prevent,’ ‘ stand across the way.’
Passive Indicative, —
Preterite :
Future :
Present :
Preterite :
- — <*
I*
S'" Wcfi-^nllT,
«*• -
SI ^-51 <W,
‘ I was stopped.’
‘ I shall be stopped.’
‘ (If) I be stopped.’
‘ (If) I had been stopped.’
And so on.
CHAPTER XVII. Causal Verbs.
184. A Causal verb is regularly formed by adding ^tl to the root
of the simple verb, and a double causal by adding The stems thus
formed are conjugated exactly like verbs whose roots end in See
§ 169.
185. Thus take the simple verb v / V~3K, ‘ run.’ The first future
indicative of its causal would be *T ‘ I shall cause to ruu,’
and of the double causal, if vVv^WT, ‘ I shall cause to cause to run.’
40
Hiralal Kavyop&dhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
186. The following are examples of the regular formation of
eausals and double causals.
Simple Verb.
Causal.
Double Causal.
v/ V3T, (Hindi
‘ run,’
33X1, ‘ cause to run,’
33X73T, ‘ cause to cause
to run.’
y/ 33 (Hindi 3<)) ‘as-
33T ‘ lift,’
3 3737, f cause to lift.’
cend,’
v/ 33, ‘ befit,’
3T3I, ‘ fit,’
3T3737, ‘ cause to fit.’
y/ £3, ‘ be moved,’
337, ‘ move,’
33737, ‘ get moved.’
y/ 33 (Hindi 33)
33T ‘ raise,’
33737, ‘ cause to raise.’
‘ rise,’
187. If the simple root contains a long VOWel, it is shortened in
the causal and double causal ; thus, —
■v/ 3^, ‘ split,’
f3TT, ‘ cause to split,’
f3X737, ‘ cause to cause
split.’
■v/ 31? , ‘ let go,’
W?T, ‘ get set free,’
<?737 ‘cause to get set
free.’
y/ ?t, ‘ drink,’
f33T, ‘ give to drink,’
f33T, ‘cause to give to
drink.’
y/ ‘ draw,’
f«TXr, ‘ cause to draw,’
f3X737, ‘ cause to cause to
draw.’
y/ ‘ give,’
<3T, ‘ cause to give,’
<37, ‘ cause to cause to
give.’
y/ ‘ take,’
3T, ‘ cause to take,’
€.31, ‘cause to cause to
take.’
y/ ‘ press,’
3X7, ‘ cause to press,’
3X737, ‘ cause to cause to
press.’
y/ 1 wash,’
3t3T, ‘ cause to wash,’
tft37, ‘ cause to cause to
wash.’
y/ <t3, ‘ cherish,’
3t37, ‘ cause to che-
rish,’
3)3737, ‘ cause to cause to
cherish.’
188. Some causals are formed by adding 3ft Thus, —
-v/ 3iW, ‘ be wet,’ fwt, ‘ moisten,’ fuv3T3T, ‘ cause to mois-
ten,’
y/ WT, ‘ dry ’ (neuter), wff, ‘ dry’ (active), WTTUT, ‘ cause to dry.’
y/ ‘ripen’ (neu- ‘ ripen ’ (active), ^37731, ‘ cause to ripen.’
ter),
y/ 3T3, ‘ solidify ’ (neu- ‘ solidify ’
ter), tive),
•v/H*. ‘ be watered,’ 33T, ‘ irrigate,'
(ac- ST373T, ‘ cause to solidify.’
32T3T, ‘ cause to irrigate.’
41
1890.] A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
189. Some primitive neuture verbs, having a monosyllabic
root enclosing a short vowel, form the first causal by simply leng-
thening that vowel. The double causal is formed either like a regular
causal or in the usual way ; thus —
\/ or xjt ‘fall, vrfor^TC ‘throw down,’ xj^TT or VTT or or
VX.T?! ‘ cause to throw
down.’
■x/fv® ‘be beaten,’ ft® ‘beat,’ fv^T or fq®73T ‘cause to
beat.’
V ‘ be open,’ ‘ be ‘ open,’ ‘ unlock,’ fs^TT or ‘ cause
let go,’ to open,' &c.
V PqT ‘ be split,’ ‘ split,’ f^TT or ‘ cause to
split.’
190. The following are irregular.
\/ XR® or mi® ‘ burst,’
‘ remain,’
v' ^IT ‘go,’
■x/ ‘ come,’
\/ ft ‘ be,’
‘ come out,’
V f^a or f^xai * be visi-
ble,’
x&TC ‘burst,’
TPsf ‘ place,’
‘send,’
**IT*T or 1 bring,’
^rx; ‘ make,’
‘ take out,’
tx$i ‘see,’
WTt or xrxtt^t ‘cause to
burst.’
or x;x37xfr ‘cause to
place.’
V®T or qaT^T ‘ cause to
send.’
RffaT ‘ cause to bring.’
qrx:T or 3 TC^T, ‘ cause to
make.’
^Tl or xjx;:q[ ‘ cause to
take out.’
i^xsfT or ^xgrq ‘ show.’
CHAPTER XVIII. Compound Verbs.
191. Compound verbs are either formed from a verb and a
noun, or from the union of two verbs. The first are called nominal
Verbs ; and examples are, Qtj q>T, ‘ to do remembering,’ ‘ to remember,’
^*T, ‘ to give attention,’ ‘ to attend,’ and so on.
192. The second class consists of compound verbs proper.
The compound consists of cither a verbal noun or a participle prefixed
to some other verb. The latter alone is conjugated.
(1) Those formed with a verbal noun are —
(а) Intensives,
(б) Potentials,
(c) Completives,
( d ) Frequentatives,
( e) Desideratives,
(/) Incoptives,
(<j) Pel-missives,
(h) Acquisitives.
(2) Those formed with participle are —
(a) Continuatives, | (6) Staticals.
F
42 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — [No. 1,
Class I.— COMPOUNDS FORMED WITH THE VERBAL
NOUN.
193. There are many varieties of the verbal noun, but only two
are used in compound verbs ; viz.,
(а) Those ending in (silent) with an oblique form in tj ;
thus ‘ the act of moving,’ oblique n*#.
This obliquo form should be carefully distinguished from the simi-
larly formed Past Participle.
(б) Those ending in «r ; thus ‘ the act of moving.’
194. With the direct form of the first variety are formed —
(1) Intensivos, (2) Potentials, (3) Completives.
With the oblique form of the first variety are formed
(1) Frequentatives, (2) Desideratives, (3) Inceptives, and
sometimes (4) Permissives, (5) Acquisitives.
With the second form are sometimes formed —
(1) Permissives, (2) Acquisitives.
195. Intensive Compounds intensify or otherwise modify the
meaning of the verb whose root stands first in the compound. They are
formed by adding, to the direct form of the first variety of the verbal
noun, one of certain other verbs, which latter verb, in conjunction with
the verbal noun, is then conjugated as usual. This second conjugated
member does not, however, retain its separate character and significance,
but only modifies, in accordance with the general idea which it embodies,
the meaning of the unconjugated verbal noun to which it is attached.
Examples are —
‘ to place,’
mw ‘ to eat,’
VT?f ‘ to place,’
‘ to drink,’
‘ to put down.’
‘ to sit down and eat,’ ‘ to eat up.’
V’C ‘ to put down.’
pj 1 to drink up.’
*3[iT ‘to eat,’
"5gT«T ‘ to come,’
‘ to go,’
1 to look at,’
‘ to eat up.’
*8T 1 to arrive.’
‘ to set out.’
^»T 1 to inspect.’
196.
The auxiliary verbs
usually employed
to form intensives
are —
‘ 1° give,’ implying intensity.
^ i ‘ to throw,’ violence.
*ir*r 1 to come,’ 1
‘ to go,’ 5
or ‘ to fall,’
completion.
chance.
1890.]
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarlu dialect.
43
‘to rise,’ suddenness.
‘ to take,’ reflexiveness.
197. Potentials are formed by adding to the same form of the
verbal noun of any verb, the verb ‘ to be able,’ which may then be
conjugated throughout. Examples are mx. VJ^»T 1 to be able to do,’ stj
‘ to be able to go,’ <T *P3T ^TrT-% ‘ he can go.’
198. Completives are formed by adding to the same form of the
verbal noun, the verb ‘ to finish,’ which may then be conjugated
throughout. The compound denotes the completion of the act denoted
by the primary member of the compound. Examples are —
’sfT ‘ he has done eating.’
sm ‘ when he shall have eaten.’
sTt <ft sit ‘ he is indeed already gone.’
199. FrequentativeS are formed by adding, to the oblique form
of the first variety of the verbal noun, the verb ^*T 1 to do,’ which may
then be used in any tense. Examples are —
*rra
<T° *tit wra m *,
sira (not Jra) 3PC«r,
‘ be good enough to come often.’
‘ always obey my words.’
1 to keep digging.’
‘ to go often.’
200. Desideratives are formed with the same form of the verbal
noun, substituting 1 to wish,’ for straff. The compound denotes
primarily desire to do action expressed by the principal member, and
secondarily, the immediate futurity of the action. Examples are —
fri vrrsTi-%, ‘ be wishes to go.’
Sira (not Jra) ‘ be was wishing to go.’
«(TSf ^T^rf-%, ‘ the clock is on the point of
striking.’
Tfy ^rari-%, ‘ lie is at the point of death.’
The desiderative compound in the precative form with is idio-
matically used to express obligation or duty. Examples are ■
V ‘ one ought to read this book.’
<fr-^T 3T1F ’FTft, ‘ you ought to go there.’
201. Inceptives are formed by using the oblique form of the fii’st
44 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson — (No. 1,
variety of the verbal noun with the verb WJH ‘ to begin ; ’ and denotes
the action of the verbal noun as beginning . Examples are —
MTUIH, ‘ he began to say.’
‘ the tiger began to eat.’
202. Permissives are formed by combining the same form of the
verbal noun with the verb 1 to give,’ and express permission to do
the act denoted by the verbal noun. Examples are —
sn§ ' let me go,’
<*Tt *31 h 1 he allowed him to eat.’
203. Acquisitive S are the exact converse of the preceding ; and
are formed in the same way, substituting tn»r ‘ to get,’ for ‘ to give.’
Examples are —
«T »JI*| «rf; tnv, ‘ thou wilt not obtain permission to go there.’
hd «li; ‘ I was not allowed to sit.’
Sometimes Permissives and Acqusitives are formed with the second
variety of the verbal noun sf : thus ^«r 1 to allow to do ; ’
WST ‘ he allowed him to go ; ’ ^t-^r asr qre ‘ we shall
be allowed to place it.’
Class II — COMPOUNDS FORMED WITH THE PARTICIPLES.
204. Continuatives are formed by combining the present parti-
ciples of any verb with the verbs ojm ‘ to go,’ or ‘ to remain.’ The
compound with 5TFT implies steady progression, and that with the
continuance of a complete action. Examples —
‘ he is going on writing.’
‘ he went on walking.’
1 those girls were going on reading.’
‘ the water keeps flowing away.’
1 the stream of the river keeps flow-
ing on.’
205. Staticals denote motion in a state of doing anything. They
are formed by combining a verb of motion with a present participle.
Examples are, —
VfV?t ^iri %, ‘ he comes weeping.’
Wf Jinr ‘ a woman was coining singing.’
1890 .]
A Grammar of the Chhattisgarhi dialect.
45
206 .
207 .
PART IV. INDECLINABLES.
CHAPTER XIX.
ADVERBS.
Adverbs of Time
‘ now.’
5T3, ‘ when.’
‘ then.’
‘ when ? ’
^rrsi, * to-day.’
‘ to-morrow,’ ‘ yesterday.’
'ITT, ‘the day after to-morrow,’ ‘the day before
yesterday.’
sfri, ‘ the fourth day hence ’or ‘to come,’ (three
days intervening),
to-morrow morning.’
Tnswr, *n»Ii ‘ at evening.’
fsrw.
‘ at midday.’
‘ continually.’
‘ quickly.’
‘ again.’
{JTTIT, ‘ at
once.’
Adverbs of Place.
V3T,
‘ here.’
^T,
‘ there.’
si^T or fsifT,
‘ where.’
Tl^f or frf^T,
‘ there,’ (correlative).
or
‘ where ? ’
vw or *;#)■,
‘ hither.’
'H'Trft or ^3#t,
‘ thither.’
5T<T or fsm't.
‘ whither.’
or ffl#).
‘thither,’ (correlative)
%#t, or
‘ whither ? ’
‘ far off.’
or 5&JJ7TT,
‘ near.’
^TJT^or
‘ before.’
mw or tnffa,
‘ behind.’
‘ elsewhere.’
LNo. 1,
46 Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson—
* or V Jpffl),
or "ft SRtft
# or 5f gftft,
% or
% asm or % sstft,
M*
v *K,
m) «v,
$ vx,
-V v
f *K,
*K,
‘ on this side.’
‘ on that side.’
‘ on what side.’
‘ on that side,’ (correlative).
‘ on what side ? ’
‘ here.’
‘ there.’
‘ where.’
‘there,’ (correlative).
‘ where ? ’
208.
209.
Adverbs of Manner.
v»m, vsm, vf,
t*m, wm, If,
‘ in this way,’ ‘ thus.’
‘ in that way.’
‘ in what way,’ ‘ how.’
<TW, <T*3Tf ff, (rare) <T*J, 1 in that way,’ (correlative).
%‘f, ‘ in w'hat way ? ’ ‘ how ? ’
Iff) wWt,
*T, ST t, f % ft
Mm, ffm.
‘ gratis.’
‘ not.’
‘do not,’ (prohibitive, with im-
perative.)
W5, MW, wirf^T, wrfajMT 1 at once.’
fMM*, MtMT, ‘ entirely.’
‘ certainly,’ ‘ truly.’
Adverbs of Quality.
MIfW, qf, ^?r% ‘this much,’ ‘so much.’
MfrrmT, Vtf^,^rtrf 7 % ‘ that much,’ ‘ so much.’
sirlT^t, SHT^T, virT% ‘ how much.’
MfW, Krrmr, «TrP*1’, MW a», <T<TT%, ‘ so much,’ (correlative).
Miiffa, ^><1 •'ti i, <*«.%, ‘ how much ? ’
For other forms see § 90.
^HTTW, asfl or *tfc2*.M. ‘ very,’ ‘ much.’
PtffcW, farflrflm,
vVfam. KfTf f, ‘ little.’
210. or M, or or vf added to an adverb give Emphasis.
Examples —
‘ at this very time.’
‘ at even any place.
1890.]
A Grammar of the ChhattisgarM dialect.
47
‘ even a little,’ * very slightly.’
‘ even much,’ ‘very much.’
fiT^ZT^o', ‘ absolutely and entirely.’
‘ even this much.’
211.
By inserting *r
between two advorbs, indefiniteness is ex-
pressed.
Examples-—
‘ in some place or other.’
‘ even at some time or other.’
VJF5T VJ
‘ now-a-days.’
212.
Adverbs are sometimes compounded. Thus —
‘ continually.’
sift
‘ never.’
‘ twice each.’
213.
They are capable of being declined, like substantives ; e. g.
‘from now,’ sfiV-ig
1 from when ’ ? ‘ of here ; ’ but they or
adjectives
used adverbially do not change for gender : e. g. Vf!
‘ she walks well.’
CHAPTER XX.
Prepositions.
214.
‘ before.’
VI®, V#1?T,
‘ behind.’
fwvrPt
‘ within,’
‘ outside.”
’sin.
‘ in front of.’
‘ beneath.’
*rr,
‘ near,’ ‘ by the side of.’
‘ on a level with.’
‘ together with.’
These are added either to the noun or pronoun direct, or to its geni-
tive. Examples —
®lt VfTJ^or ^TJI^
‘ before the mother.’
® r sl Zft or <Trt,
‘ beneath the tree.’
*flT vtt??.
‘ behind me.’
vit VTT^f or
‘ beneath it.’
Sometimes the nominal postpositions are added to prepositions.
Examples —
flTC VUtS-fif
‘ under the fig-tree.’
‘ from by me.’
48
Hiralal Kavyopadhyaya and G. A. Grierson —
CHAPTER XXI.
Con junctions.
[No..],
215. Examples —
S(T3 or
?ft,
5*h
^T%,
sri^f sfr,
(Hindi *tfvs).
‘ and.’
‘then’ (illatively).
‘ on the other hand.’
‘ whether,’ 1 or.’
‘ otherwise.’
‘ nay rather.’
‘ that.’
CHAPTER XXII.
Interjections.
216. Examples are —
Interjections of sorrow ; ^T*J, ^r?,
,, ^Tt.
„ of astonishment ; ^ wr-t,
„ of joy ; tit, ^i^r, ^i, to-st, w^tr, &c.
„ of disgust ; wt, 1 fie.’
CHAPTER XXIII.
Particles of emphasis.
‘ alas.’
1 ah Mother,’ &c.
‘ O Father !
2J7. These are and which mean ‘ even ’ and ’ift,
7?, which mean ‘also.’
Examples —
‘ even to the me
‘ even mine.’
‘ his also.’
‘ I also.’
TfTK,
‘ even thy.’
‘ thy also.’
CHAPTER XXIV.
Prefixes.
218. These are the same as in Hindi. Examples —
signifying ‘ deficiency,’ e. g. ‘ a fault, ‘ untimely.’
‘connexion,’ e. g. ‘a companion,’ ‘ a fellow.’
1890.]
A Grammar of the Ghhattisgarhi dialect.
49
35, fi, ‘ inferiority,’ e. g. ‘ a bad son,’ or ‘ a bad-tempered fellow,
‘a bad sign.’
% ‘ excellence,’ e. g. Htf H, ‘ a good son,’ or ‘ a good-tempered fellow,’
‘ a good sign.’
'fix, ‘ circuity,’ e. g. gfrqpCURI, ‘ circumambulation.’
‘ subsidiariness,’ e. g. ‘benefit.’
‘ badness,’ e. g. ‘ difificnlt of accomplisbment.’
% ‘ negation,’ e. g. ’SJJIH, ‘ inaccessible.’
PART V.
Chapter XXV. Syntax and Compound words.
219. Tbe rules of syntax are the same as those in Hindi
The following notes on Compound Words may be useful.
(o)
( 6 )
(ej
Compound words.
220. These may be classified as in Sanskrit. Examples are —
Tatpurusha, ‘the eating of flesh;’ ‘a kicking;’
‘ staying at home ;’ ‘ a work-
thief,’ i.e. ‘a lazy servant.’
DvigU, ffTTT^Pfaf, ‘the three worlds;’ (fem. -‘ft)
‘ one with three heads.’
Karmadhdraya ) ‘ great- father,’ ‘ a father’s
elder brother;’ TO-^rt (*rf +^Tt) ‘great-mother,’
‘ a father’s elder brother’s wife;’ ^T*?«T-f*nTT, ‘a
Brahmanical god,’ i.e., ‘a Brahman equal toagod;’
«Tt-^I ‘a fraternal father,’ i.e., ‘an elder brother.’
‘ he who sees everything,’ ‘ God UTT-
‘ ho who crosses one over (the sea of exis-
tence),’ ‘ God.’
Hlt-lw or Hlf-ft'sH, ‘ mother and children ;’ sjht-
‘ capital and stock ;’ nRlf-fwi, ‘ giving to
eat and giving to drink,’ also ‘eatingand drinking.’
(f) AvyayibMva, ‘ in a bad fashion;’ ‘ in a good way.’
(To be continued.)
[Mr. Grierson wishes to explain, that he has put the sign on on his own
responsibility, on the analogy of the pronunciation of the word in neighbouring dia-
lects. He has not been able to satisfy himself on the oorrect pronunciation of this
root in Chhattisgarh, and tho sign is inserted subjeot to subsequent correction. The
Weaning of the sign is that is pronounced something like the English word “ haw,”
while the ^ in ^ without the 5 would be pronounced like the hu in “ hurry.” The
sign will be omitted, as doubtful, in the selections to be subsequently published. Ed.]
( d ) Bahuvrihi,
(e) Dvandva,
a
50
Gaur Dae Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
Notes on a Buddhist Monastery at Bhot Bag&n {Howrah), on two rare
and valuable Tibetan MSS. discovered there, and on Puran Gir
Gosaiin, the celebrated Indian A'chdrya and Government Hmissary
at the Court of the Tashi Lama, Tibet, in the last century. — By
Gaur Das Bysack.
( With two Plates.)
Opposite to Calcutta, on the right bank of the river, is the village
of Ghusari. 1 Ascending the flight of steps of a ghat at this place, a
visitor is struck at the sight of a range of temples, behind which is a
building of a peculiar structure, exhibiting marks of old construction
■with subsequent additions. It is a two-storied house of worship with
a boundary wall, having in its centre a gateway facing the river, and
affording a passage into the main quadrangle within the enclosure.
Tho special feature in the construction is the absence of arches, and its
partaking of a Tibetan character. A garden is attached to it, and the
lands which formed part of the demesnes are let out to tenants on per-
manent leases ; on one of the holdings, stands the “ Goosery Cotton Mill.”
The following is a detailed description of tho building for which I am
indebted to the kindness of Mr. W. B. Gwyther, A. R. I., B. A., of
the Public Works Department, who very readily complied with my
request to visit the place and examine the structure. (See Plate I.)
“ The structure, in the main, consists of the principal courtyard
“ for religious, and a back-yard, for domestic purposes. The former is
“ towai’ds and entered from the riverside by the gateway which forms
“ the subject of one of the sketches. A casual visitor arriving at the
“ ghat would, on glancing at this face of the structure, find his atten-
“ tion first drawn to the portion over the entrance where the primitive
“ trabeated form of construction is now seen in its original character,
“ despoiled of courso to a great extent by the hand of time.”
“ Without speculating upon the details and forms in any minute
“ degree, it must be expected, from the history and associations of the
“ Tibetan visitors who established this place of worship, that a feeling
1 Ghumrir (ydml- sqm sometimos spelled ghusurir, Ed.), ‘the
turning jut of Ghusari,’ and the Vishdla/eshmir* daha or Visdldleshir f daha 'the
whirlpool of disastrous water’ or 'whirlpool of the broad eyed (Durga),’ are
the Soylla and Charybdis of the Hnghli river between Calcutta and Barrackpnr,
the maelstrom being near Titaghar. The dangers in doubling the tydmk are illus-
trated in the familiar song of the East Bengal boatmen. They are now not so much
dreaded as in former days.
* Visha ‘ water,* alakshmi f misfortune.’
t Yiiala , large,’ akshi ‘ eye.’
51
1890.] at Bho( Bdgan in Howrali.
1 1 and peculiarity common to their own architectural instincts must have
“ been imported : but there is nothing at present known which can
“show how much was originally built, and when and by whom subse-
“ quent additions were made. It cannot, however, be questioned
“ that the portion closest to the river presents those peculiarities
“ which might bo looked for in a structure built under Tibetan in-
“ fluence. A plain wall, pierced here and there with small openings,
“ forms the outer boundary, in the centre of which is the doorway.
“ Over this doorway is a sort of gallery which overlooks the river
“ °n one side and the principal court on the other. Just within the
“ enclosure wall is a double-storied construction : the ground floor,
1 about a foot high, extends from that wall to the edge of the court ;
“ about a yard back, a row of massive square pillars, about 7 feet high,
‘ stand carrying a wooden architrave which forms the outer support to
“ the beams, resting on the wall at one end and cantilevered forward at
“ the other to form a projecting verandah.”
“ The same construction is r-epeated on the upper story. The
“ projecting ends of the beams are in some cases moulded ogee or double-
“ ogee fashion and protected by means of an eaves-board, the lower edge
“ of which is ornamented with a tooth or savv profile. The moulded
“ beams and particularly the eaves-boards have como down to us from
“ the original structure. The saw-edges are those which merely have
“ triangular pieces cut out so as to leave a row of consecutive triangular
“ points. In the tooth form, the face of the projecting points is dressed
* back towards the apex and a line or groove cut longitudinally where
‘ the teeth spring from.”
“The construction of the roof over the gallery appears to be a
“ feature of no small significance. The strictly trabeated arrangement,
“ to the exclusion of the arch, the use of which is suggested by the
circumstances of the case, and the manner of obtaining height and
prominence to this central portion by stilting the roof, are decidedly
“ classic in idea. That classio influence extended to Kashmir and
North Western India is well-known, and it is quite as possiblo as not
that a careful examination of existing buildings in Tibet would
reveal traces of sovoral features associated with kuropean architecture.
“ The windows which pierce the enclosure wall already mentioned,
and others* which look out into the quadranglo, are peculiar iu their
construction, and must havo been put up in the first instance, being
“ made up on the lines given to the builders by Tibetan architects.
“ The outer frame is cross-braced by means of a vertical and a transom
“ bar, which divide the opening into four equal spaces. In some oases
ordinary square bars are interspersed vertically for tho sake of socurity.
52 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
“ The two leaves of the window, which open inwards, close np against
" the stouter bars.”
The locality goes by the name of Bhot Bagdn, y the structure is
called Bhot Mandir or Ma(h, the priest in charge of it is styled Bhot-
Gosairfi or Bhof-Mahant , s and the ghat passes under the designation
of Bhot-Mahant’s Ghat.
Inside the Math ai-e to be seen a lot of idols of the Hindu and
mostly of the Tibeto-Buddhist mythology. Among the former may
be mentioned those of Yishpu, Durga, Yindhyavasini, Ganowi, Copula,
S'alagratna, and S'iva-lingas of various sorts, including the rare oviform
ones of three different colours, also S'iva’s bull ; and among the latter
those of Arya Tara, Mah&kala Bhairava, Sambhara Ohalcra, Samaja
Guhya, Vajra Bhrukuti and Pad timpani. 4 There are also a stamp of
Kapila Muni’s foot, and a pair of hharams or wooden sandals. A
description of the first five Tibetan divinities, by my friend Baku Sarat
Chandra Das, is given below. Such a room full of images is
designated Lha-khang 6 in Tibet. On the ground immediately be-
* Bhot Bagdn, lit., 1 Tibet garden.’ Bhot or Bhod is the name by which the
Tibetans call their country ; bdgdn is the Bengali form of the plural of the Persian
b agh, 1 garden.’
a Bhof Oosain, lit, Tibet Gosain. Oosain (properly gosdhn J is the ver-
nacular form of Goswami, which has sevoral literal significations such as master
or possessor of lcine, controller of the organs of the senses, the comprehendor of
the OdyatH, the lord of the earth or of the heaven. In these latter significations the
term implies a holy man, a religious teacher or a saint. Among the S'aivas, or fol-
lowers of S'iva, the Udasts, or non-householders, prevail more than in any other
sect, and they pass under the designation of Sannydsis or Oomiimn, though the latter
appellation is appropriated in Bengal by the Vaixhnava gurus, specially the follow-
ers of Ohaitanya, the descendants of Adwaita and Nityitnanda. In the Upper Pro-
vinces the torm Sddhu is applied to tho Vaishnava Udasis, and Gosain to tho S'aiva
Sannyasis. The people of the two persuasions are easily distinguished by their tilalcas
or lines paintod on the forehead.
8 Bhof Mahanta, lit. a mahanta or chief or superior of a Tibetan monastery.
The torm Mahanta generally signifies the head of a religious establishment of the
mendicant orders.
4 This is tho name of the Boddhisatva who incarnated himself as Gednn-tubpa,
a reformer, who received the spirit of the previous reformer Tsong-khapa in 1419, and
built the monastery of Tashi Lbunpo in 1445 and repeatedly appeared as a Tashi Lama.
* Lha-Khang (%('[* 5') Lha is the Tibetan for gods and spirits who, by transmi-
gration into other bodies in blissful regions, reap the rewards of their meritorious
deeds. They are invoked and revered. There are six places for the transmigration
of the soul of every living being.
53
1890.] at Bho( Bagdn in Howrah.
hind the Math is a low roofed small house, which may be charac-
terised as a temple. Within it is a cubiform samddhistambha d ro
tomb, which the Tibetans would call a Dungten or relic repository. It
is surmounted by the usual lingam or phallus of Siva or Mahadeva.
The services performed in the Matha consist of a mixture of Hindu and
Tibetan rituals.
No. I. TARA.
“ The principal deity is A'rya Tara. She is identified by the
Nepalese Buddhists with Prajna Paramita or transcendental wisdom
a nd is universally believed to be the mother of all the past Tatha-
gatas, or Buddhas, in Tibet. According to the esoteric doctrine
of the Tantric school of the Northern Buddhists, she is the wife
of all the present, past and future Buddhas, in which case she
resembles the female energy or S'akti of the Indian Tantrics. The
Tibetan name of Tara is Grolma. Her image is made of copper, gilt
■with Chinese gold. It was evidently brought from China (Peking) by
Piiran Gir who accompanied the Tashi Lama to Peking.
“ During my stay at Peking I paid a visit to the imago manu-
factories near Hwangs-se or the yellow temple, which is situated
at a distanco of three li to the north of the Antaman gate, where
I saw images resembling this (image) in construction. The goddess
Tara holds a mendicant’s bowl filled with gems in her left hand. With
her right hand she holds a lotus. She wears a crown with five spires
all of which are studded with rubies and turquoises. Her locks are
coiled, in the Indian Buddhist fashion, at the crown of her head, at
the top of which there is a beautiful gem, called Norbu-mimbar. Her
dress is different from that of the Tibetan image of Tara. Sho wears
a Chinese petticoat with broad and loose sleeves, and a pair of Chinese
embroidered shoes like a Manchu lady. The image is about two feet
high. The daughter of the Emperor Tai-tsung of the great Tang
dynasty was married to the first Tibetan king in 630 A. D. Sk®
1 Samddhi-stambha. Its familiar meaning is a tomb, with a stambha or monu-
mental column erected on a samadhi-kshetra or burial ground. But this term samd-
in its esoteric signification, is the absorption of the jivdtmd or vital principle
m the jparamdtmd or supremo soul of the universe, as stated in the verse
^ RTJUg I ^ II Though the burning of
the dead is now the principal custom among the Hindus, yet among most Akhard-
dhdr{ Vairagis and S'aiva Sanydsix, burial or throwing the corpse into the river is the
unvarying custom. In Benaros, Mirzapur and other districts in the North-West,
the dead body is often put into a stone ooffin before depositing it into the earth.
54
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
was an acknowledged incarnation of Tara. Tlie image probably repre-
sents her figure.” 1
No. II.
“ The most ingeniously constructed image is that of Mahalcala Bhai-
rava. It represents him in a hideous mood, with his Salcti in his embrace.
His nine heads on all four sides, with a central one on the top, his thirty-
six arms and eighteen legs, his weapons, and the string of skulls hanging
down his neck to the extremity of his belly, give him a truly horrible
appearance. He is the principal guardian of the Tibetan Lamas, parti-
cularly of the Tashi Lama.”
No. III.
“ Sambhara Oliakra is the chief of the Tantric deities of Tibet. He
has ten arms, but one head. He also has the S'alcti in his clasp. He
stands on the breast of a vanquished demon, probably the devil Mara.
He is painted with yellow. The image is of copper gilt, about nine
inches high.”
No. IV.
“ Samaja Guhya is another Tantric deity, with three faces and six
arms. He clasps his consort S'akti who also has three faces and six
arms.”
No. V.
“ Another form of Tara is called Vajra Bhrukuti. The figure of it,
evidently cast in Nepal, represents the second wife of king Srongtsan
gampa. She was the daughter of king Prabhavarma of Nepal, who
reigned between 630 and 640 A. D. There is a saint’s glory round hor
head.”
There is an inscription on the door top of the tomb in the Bengali
language and character. It states, in very ungrammatical and corrupt
language, that the principal M ukhtiydrhir 2 and chela (or disciple) Daljit
Gir Mahant placed the symbol of Maliadeva on the samddhi of the late
Piiran Gir Mahant, and enjoins that all people should honour and wor-
ship this shrine and the Mahadeva ; a Hindu not doing so would incur
the sin of brahmanicide, and a Musalman and others, for the like
offence, would go to dozaih (hell), as affected with guilt at the seat of
* On the pedestal of the statue is inscribed in Bengali the name S'rf Khas
Kaniini ( or female energy and A. chief, favourite ), and the date, perhaps
of the consecration, Samvat 1852, 15th of the light half of the month of Margasira
(November). Then follows the name Bhola Giri of Lhasa in the country of Bhota-
kshetra.
* Mvkhtiydrkdr is the Ar. M “ a superintendent."
55
1890.] at Bhot Bagan in Howrah.
Khodd-ta’dln or the most high God. The date of the consecration is
given as Saipvat 1852, S'akabda 1717, Bangabda 1202, 1 * * 23rd Vaisakha,
Sunday, within 12 dandas 8 of the Piimima. This date corresponds with
the 3rd May 1795.
This cursory examination of the place, and its important objects
suggest most important enquiries such as these : what is the history and
origin of the Buddhistic temple on the river side so near to Calcutta,
established in the early days of the British power in India P How
comes it that images of Hindu gods and goddesses are mixed up with
those of Tibet and receive due worship ? Who was Puran Gir Gosain
Mahant, claiming worship and honour from Hindus, Musalmans and
other religionists ?
My request to the present head of the establishment Umrao Gir
Gosain Mahant for any papers and documents in his custody that may
throw light on these questions, was very readily and kindly complied
with. His presentation to the Society, at my suggestion, of two rare and
valuable Tibetan manuscripts was noticed at the January meoting.
He produced four Persian sanads or grants and a passport in Tibetan,
°f which I have taken copies ; and these, with translations, in the
annexures appear, I believe, for the first time before the public.
Nos. I and 2 show that the former grants, free of rent, 100 bighas
a nd 8 biswas 8 of land on the river side, made up of one portion
situated in Mauza Barbakpur, Parganali Boro, and of another portion
situated in Mauza Ghusari, Parganah Paikan, uuto Puran Gir Gosain, 4 * * *
1 [The Bangabda or B. S. (Bangali Samvat) is the same as what is commonly
known as the “ Fazli year.” See the Tables in General Sir A. Cunningham’s Book of
Indian Eras, p. 196, Ed.]
8 Banda, one-sixtieth of a day and night ; hence equal to 24 minutes.
8 Biswd, lit. a twentieth part of a higha. Hence it is equivalent to a kaftha.
* Tiiran Gir Gosain. In tho sanads, Puran is written bnt in the Bengali
inscription ijjj-fe) Puran. I think these are vulgar readings of the Sanskrit tjur
Pimw. Gir, of course, is the vernacular of Giri, indicating that the Gosain belonged
to the Giri seot of the Dafandmfs, and that ho was initiated at the Jyosi Ma(h in
the BadariknSrama, a faot which is confirmed by tho statement of the present
Mahanta of the Bhot Bagan. It is said that tho great philosopher S'anlcaracharya,
towards the end of the 8th century, tried to introduce reforms based on the
doctrines of the Vedantie sohool, and for tho purpose of spreading his teachings,
founded four ma(has in four different placeB s viz. S'nnga Giri Matha near Tunga-
bhadra where Vyasa is said to have had his monastery, Sdrada Matha in Dwdrika
in Gujarat, Govardhana Matha in Jagannathapurf, and Jyosf Matha in the Badarika-
Srama, situated near the sources of the Ganges. S'ankarachdrya had at first
four disciples and each of them had several others : 1, Padmapada who had
two followers who received the titles of Tirtha and KSrama : 2, Hastdmalaka who had
56
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
the most sage and wise and the head of all the seekers of truth, in
consideration of his virtue and piety that he may erect a temple there-
on and plant a garden. The latter grants to the same individual in
the same terms, 50 bighas of land on the same sito in Mauza Bar.
bakpur, consisting of three portions situated within the properties
of Maharaja Nab Kishan. 1 Raj Chand Rai, and Raja Rdm Lochan. 2
also two with the titles of Vann and Aranya : 3, Mandana who had three designat-
ed Oiri, Parvata and Sdgara : Totaka who had likewise three with tho appellations
of SaraswaU, lihdratC and Puri. Dnsandmi (having ten names) is the name of these
four disciples and their followers collectively. The first two founded a school of
teaching in the Sarada Matha ; tho second two in tho Govardhana Matha ; the next
three, including Giri, in the Jyosi Matha ; and tho last three in tho S'ringagiri Matha.
Tho common characteristic of all the Daianamfs is their regarding S'iva as another
name of Brahma, and their faith mainly accepts the teachings of the Vedantio philo-
sophy according to the interpretation of S'ankara’s commentary. The S'iva Sarjihit a
teacheB the contemplation of S'iva as nirakdra (having no form), the aehintya or in-
conceivable, the an ant a or infinite, the amara or immortal, tho one, the all-pervading
&c. Among the DaSan&mis were celebrated characters of great scholarship and ascetic
lives, authors and commentators : tho name of Ananda Giri is well-known as
the writer of the S'ankara Digvijaya and of the glosses on the commentaries of
the Vedanta Sutra and of the Upanishats ; Ramasrama was a commentator of tho
Veda, Mfidhavdohdrya had the title of Vidyaranya Svami. There were also, amongst
this class of ascetics, men who were possessed of indomitable courage and of extra-
ordinary powers of endurance, who were great travellers in India or in tho most
distant countries beyond it, as seekers of knowledge and experience, or as enter-
prising merchants. Our Purna Giri Gosain and Puryn Puri are the names of two
most unique characters reflecting the highest oredit on the DasanSmfs as enter-
prising spirits, combining the qualities of active benevolence and philanthropy with
knowledge of philosophy, piety, devotion, and in the case of the latter, of a travel-
ling tapasioi practising the most astounding austerities. The life of the former
appears in the text, and that of Purna Puri has appeared in tho Researches of the
Society and in other books. Captain Turner saw him and heard much of him from
the Regent at Tashi Lliunpo, and he gives some notices of him in his report. [See
Jonathan Duncan’s acoount in the Asiatic Researches Vol. V, p. 37/, VI, p. 103.
With regard to S'ankarachtirya and the Dasanamfs, see II. H. Wilson’s acoount, ibid.,
vol. XVII, p- 178-182. According to him, the Giris, Parvatas and Sdgaras are
disciples of Totaka. En.]
1 Nab Kishan, corruption of Navakrishna. The sanad has only ^££6 Nab Kish.
The well-known Maharaja’s estate still holds lands in Barbakpdr, on the other Bide of
the river opposite to Calcutta.
8 Raja. Rdm Lochan and Raj Chand Rai. Theso persons were the sons of Rama-
charan Rai, who was the Dewfin of Governor Vansittart and General Smith. He
acquired a large fortune and lived in Pathuriy&ghatta in Calcutta, his descendants
removed to Andul, and were known as Andul Rajas. One of their scions, Raja Raja-
narkyana, attempted to establish the identity of his caste (Kayastha) with the
Iishatriya, and is said to have put on the sacrificial thread, but his caste-men
repudiated the prentension, or dared not follow his example. Ho was also vain
enough to introduce a new era in his family, styled tho A'ndulabda !
57
1890.] at Bhot Bdtjdn in Howrah.
Both these sanads are as usual addressed to Mutasaddis,’ Chau-
dharis, 2 Qanungos, Ta’aluqdars, &c., their jurisdiction being described as
that of Dari BArbakpur, Parganah Boro, in Sarkar SAtgAon, 8 appertain-
ing to Chaklah Hugli in Subah Jannatu-l-bildd 4 Bangalah. Both
1 Mv.tasaddi haB various meanings, such as clerk, accountant, &c., but in the last
century it was used to signify superior officers in the fiscal department.
* Chaudharl is used both in Hindi and Bengali to mean the headman of
a caste or profession, also as an honorific title. Mr. Bogle speaks of a “ chaudri ”
who came to visit him while he was in Tibet j and Markham, p. 172, on the autho-
rity of Hamilton, explains in a note that " chauduri” or ‘desali’ in Nepal is a sub-
ordinate revenne officer under the FanzdAr, and ho identifies the word with chautariya
(minister), an officer next in rank among the Kerantis in Nepal whoso title and office
were hereditary. Hamilton also describes a chauduri as a zammdar acting as a minis-
ter to a chief among the Korantis, and says c hauiarUja is the title of the collaterals
of the royal Gorkha family who sometimes became ministers. In Bengal the titular
affix chaudharl is common to names of persons belonging to the highest as well as
to the lowest castes. In the latter case it bears the sense of headmau of a guild or
profession, and in the former it is an honorific epithet, which is borno out by tracing
•t to the Sanskrit chaturadhurina “sagacious chief or manager of affairs” or to
ahaturdhurtifa “chief of four (departments).” In the Upper Provinces the term is
applied, I believe, only to the headman of a trade or guild. In early days, in Bengal,
it was a titlo of landholders superior to taluqdars. There aro many families whose
ancestors, from one reason or other, had this title, and among them it has become,
bko Majumdars, SarkArs, &o., hereditary.
* Sarkar Sdtgdon. The Muhammadan empire in the time of Akbar was at first
divided into twelve largo sections, called subahs or viceroyalties, which were subse-
quently increased to fifteen. Each of these was subdivided for flsoal purposes into
sarlcdrs or provinces, each sarkar comprehending a number of par g an aha or mahals.
Aggregates of soveral parganahs again were formed into groups which in the reign
of ShAh JahAn wore designated chaklahs. In the tablos of the taqs-tm jam V in the
A’ln-i-Akbari ftibah Bangdlah is divided into 24 sarkdrs, one of which is Sdtgdon
( Sanskrit saptagrdma), a group of seven villages. In its relation to chaklah Hugh", as
described in the sanads to the Tashi Lama and Puran Gir, it must, with the latter dis-
trict, have formed part of the dominions of the ancient kings of TAmralipti (Tamlnk)
which had beou visited by Fabian. It was formerly of immense sizo, the residence of
kings, and had a famous plaoe of worship in it. A reference to the tablos of the fiscal
divisions of tho Mughal empire in the Ain-i- Akbari, will show that Sarkar Sdtgdon, in
which the sanads speak of tho place being comprehended, contain mahals, two of which
are named BArbakpur. One stands by itsolf, and the other is linked to Kalkattd and
to another place BakuA. No doubt the placo opposite to KalkattA (Calcutta) derived
rts name from the one at the Calcutta side. Whether tho namos Bdrbakpur and Bakua
were the old designations of the place, now known as SntAnutf and Govindpur,
which together with KalkattA, formed old Calcutta, is a point worthy of research.
As to the Mahal BArbakpur in the ’Aiu, Blochmann indicates in a note to the
Persian text that another reading gives BArikpur. So has BakuA many other
readings, as MaijnmA &o. Our KalkattA is variously named Kaltas, KalnA and TalpA.
4 Jannatu-l-bildd, the paradise of civilized nations. This epithet was applied
H
58 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1»
of them also bear on the top two square seals. 1 The date of No. 1
is 12th June 1778, 1st Ashadha 1185 B. S., 16th Jumada-l-awal of the
20th year of the imperial reign ; and that of No. 2 is 11th February
1782, 2nd Falgun 1189 B. S.
The two other sanads, marked No. 3 and No. 4, bear the same dates
as, and grant the same quantities of land as those mentioned in Nos. 1
and 2 respectively. In fact the two former appear to be duplicates
of the latter two, with this very material difference that, in Nos. 3
and 4, in place of the grantee’s name being Puran Gir, it is Teshl
Ldmah Panchan Ardani Bahdeo Panchan , 2 and tho attributes of the
latter are exactly those of the former. The seals also are different :
on Nos. 3 and 4 they are those of tho East India Company as dewan and
servant of SMh ’Xlam Badshah. No. 3, moroover, bears two seals, one
at the top, the other on the right margin. Both sanads bear the signa-
ture of Warren Hastings almost obliterated.
The simple facts now disclosed are, that in the years 1778 and 1782,
a Hindu ascetic, named Puran Gir Gosain, and a Buddhist Pontiff
conjointly, but by two sets of grants, one in the name of each, received a
certain quantity of land on the river side, which aggregated 150 biglias
and constituted the area of If hot Bagan, and that the former died in 1795,
and was buried as a saint near his Mafli there, by his chela or disciple
Daljit Gir Gosain.
This information, though by itself it does not satisfy but rather
magnifies the curiosity already raised, affords a clue to tho line of
historical investigation which would carry us to the goal. The inquiry,
however, leading, as it does, into the most eventful period of British
Indian history, proves almost unfractuous. Vain is the search for
such apparently trifling incidents as the foundation of the Bhot Mandir
or tho career of merely a Hindu mendicant, in the annals of the
to Bengal by Aurangsdb, and in tho last century it wub customary to describe Bengal
in public records and formal documents with this title. Humaydn called Gaur
Jannatdbad, ‘ a paradise settlement,’ though when the plague was raging there,
which depopulated it and led to its desertion, the pun came into vogue as Gaur
la gor, “ from Gaur to the grave.”
1 One seal has an inscription in Nagari characters. See footnote on p. 95.
! TesM ( u&A so spelled in the sanads. The Tibetan is tkrasis Mama, pro-
nonnoed Tashi Lama. The full name of tho Lama was Panohhen Nagwad Lossan
Paldan YeBlie. Tho first element, Bpelled panchan ( ) in the sanads is a
compound of Pan ‘ a panilita ’ or ‘learned man* anil chan ‘great’ or ‘conspicuous.*
Ardani is a corruption of Erteni, a gem. The Gem opithet, though not exclusively
applied to a Tashi Lama, indicates, in his ease, perfection and the efficacy of his
adoration. The terms erteni and the Sanskrit ratna seem to bo congeners. Bahdeo
is the Sanskrit Vdkyadeva, equivalent to the Tibetan Naywan,
59
1890.]
at Bhot Bdgan in Howrah.
statesmen who wero laying the basis of the British Power in India.
In practice, “ History,” says Arnold, “ has been beguiled, so to speak,
from its proper business, and has ceased to describe the life of a Common-
wealth,” much more so in respect of the history of this country under
its peculiar circumstances. It is, therefore, from the bye-ways of history,
personal narratives, accounts of travellers, published correspondence,
and official reports, and authentic traditions, from materials in fact out
of which history is constructed, that throads have been gathered and
woven into the following story. The story itself, apart from many
°f its interesting features and almost romantic character, has important
bearings upon questions of the greatest moment which occupied the
attention of the infant British Indian Government, and which still
perplex its Council in its imperial growth.
The first part of the retrospective inquiry leads to the time when
the great Ghhiyattara Manwantara, 1 as the great famine of 1176 B. S.
is called by the people of Bengal, was raging in its fiercest fury in the
country, and decimating its people by thousands, when the streets of
Calcutta were strewn with bodies of the dying and the dead, and when
Governor Cartier was feeding daily 1 5000 people in the city. A little
earlior than this catastrophe on the plains, a cruel and destructive war
had broken out on the mountain heights and valleys on the frontier.
The aggressive incursions of the ambitious Prithvi N arayan, chief
of the Gorkhas, into the valley of Nepal, led to that great revolution
m this State which subverted its tripartite rule, 2 and brought it under
1 Ohhiydttara Manwantara the famine of 1176 B. 8. or 1770 A. D. Preoeded
by three years of scarcity, and followod by threo years of plenty, it was strictly
a one-year’s famine, but it was the most appalling and disastrous calamity that ever
visited Bengal, or perhaps any other part of the world. It exhibited, in its course
ft nd its Beqnel, Bnch harrowing and extensive scenes of dreadful suffering, pain, misery,
disease and death, as to have obtained in our country the singular name of a man-
wantara, which litorally means a poriod equal to 4,320,000 years, implying thereby
that it was such a visitation as rocurs only at intervals of ceons, the ordinary names
of famine durbhikaha (‘when alms are not obtainable’) and akala ‘bad time’ not
e mg thought of sufficient significance. In fact, no Sanskrit dictionaries that I have
consulted attach to Manwantara famine as its synonym. Some information on
18 6 r eat famine will bo found in Sir W. Hunter’s Rural Bengal and in the letters
0 Mr. Bogle (see Markham, p. cxxxix) who was himself an eye-witness of the cala-
'O'ty , as well as in sundry notices and poems.
Tripartite rule of Nepal. Bofore the Gorkha conquest of Nepal proper,
d Was occupied by an agricultural and commercial race called Nowars, who had
orrowed their arts and civilization from Tibet, and who encouraged trade between
met and India by allowing it to be carried on through the Nepal passes. Their
chiefs had the title of Mall (Sanskrit malla.) Since the death of the sixth king
0 this dynasty, his dominions according to his directions, wero divided into three
60 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
the subjection of that warlike tribe. It is said that unhoard of cruelties
wero perpetrated in this war, which were witnessed by two members of
the Roman Catholic Mission. This warfare, brought on by internecine
dissensions, led one of the Nopalese old dynasties to entreat for aid
from the English in India, with the result of the despatch, in 1769,
perhaps for the first time, of a forco undor Captain Kinloch to the
frontiers, though it proved unfructuous. Following close upon the
Gorkha conquest of Nepal, Depa Shidar, 1 the chief of Bhutan, urged by
purely hostile propensities, pounced upon Sikkim, retained possession of
it, for a short while, and subsequently in 1772, when Warren Hastings
had just assumed the rule of Bengal, invaded the Kuch Behar Raj.*
This Raj, in its distress, sought the aid of that keen-sighted statesman,
who lost no time to send a battalion of native infantry against the
invaders. 3 The Bhutanese, after a desperate resistance, were utterly
routed, pursued into their fastnesses, and forced to sue for peace. Depa
Shidar entreatod the Tashi Lama who was then Regent of Tibot and
principalities governed by three branches who had their respective capitals in
Kathmandu, Lalita Pattan and Bhatgaon. These were snbvertod by the Gorkha
chief. Their roligion was Buddhist, but they recognised caste. Their descendants,
now obsoure, still follow the Buddhist faith. The dissensions of tho kings of the
three principalities led to tho chief of Bha(g£on to sock the aid of the Gorkha
Ppithvi Narayan who, after subduing the enemies of his ally, turned his arms againBt
the latter, and after long years of fighting made himself completely master of the
whole country.
1 JDepa Shidar ’ also called De-tar-yag or De-tar-ya, the “Dell
Terria” of Turner.
s Knoh Behar, a state on the north-east frontier of British India. It lies
betwcon Bengal and Assam, and is divided from Bhutan by tho Dudre. In olden
times it was very extensive, and formed the western division of the anoient Kamrup
Kaj. Tho name of tho place is a museum of mythic history. According to a certain
Tantra (the Yogini) Hipa Devi was a great devotee of S'iva who incarnated himself
and lived in Kuchintpdrd, a settlement of the Kuch or Konch tribe, and tho fruit of
his amour with her was a chief who beeamo a great Raja, and as the Raj was the result
of S'iva’s vihdra {cor. Behar) or ‘ dalliance,’ the State received the appellation of
Kuch Vihdr. Kamrup is the mine of the Tantras, and hence these works spread on
both sides, to the hills and the plains. Wilson, in a note in his translation of the
Vi B hnn Purina, includes Kuch Bohar in the Matsya De(a.
a Hastings in his two letters to Sir George Colebrooko and John Purling
dated, respectively, 15th January and 81st March 1773, writes of the famine and of
this war. Among other things, ho says, “ I shall over oppose remoto projects of con-
quests, yet I Bhall sedulously promote every undertaking which can complete the
line of our possessions or add to its security.” The Bhutanese “ are a resolute and
daring poople. They mado a desporato defence of the fort of Behar.” (Oooch
Behar.) “ Many of them meeting death at the muzzle of the sepoys’ pieces.” (See
Gleig’s Memoirs of Warren Hastings, I. pp. 278 and 295.)
G1
1890.] at BJiot Bagan in Howrah.
the guardian of the minor Dalai Lama of Lhasa, to intercede in his
behalf, and the Lama accordingly sent a deputation to Calcutta, with
a letter to Warren Hastings in 1773. This letter of mediation was
received by Warren Hastings on the 29th March J774, when it was laid
before the Board. It is a remarkable document, and is given in Captain
Turner’s Account of an Embassy to the Court of the Tashi Lama in
Tibet.
“ The affairs of this quarter in every respect flourish : I am night
“ and day employed in prayers for the increase of your happiness and
“ prosperity. Having been informed, by travellers from your country,
“ of your exalted fame and reputation, my heart, like the blossoms of
“ spring, abounds with satisfaction, gladness, and joy. Praise be to
“ God that the star of your fortune is in its ascension. Praise be to
“ him that happiness and ease are the surrounding attendants of myself
“ and family. Neither to molest, nor persecute, is my aim : it is even
“ the characteristic of my sect, to deprive ourselves of the necessary
“ refreshment of sleep, should an injury be done to a single individual ;
“ but in justice and humanity, I am informed, you far surpass us. May
you ever adorn the seat of justice and power, that mankind may, in
“ the shadow of your bosom, enjoy tho blessings of peace and affluence.
“ By your favour I am the Raja and Lama of this country, and rule
over a number of subjects, a circumstance with which you have no
doubt been made acquainted, by travellers from these parts. I have
1 been repeatedly informed, that you have been engaged in hostilities
“against the Deh Terria (De-tar-ya), to which, it is said, the Deh’s
own criminal conduct in committing ravages and other outrages on
your frontiers, gave rise. As he is of a rude and ignorant race, past
times aro not destitute of instances of the like misconduct, which
his own avarice tempted him to commit. It is not unlikely that he
‘ has now renewed those instances : and the ravages and plunder which
he may have committed on the skirts of the provinces of Bengal
and Behar, 1 have given you provocation to send your avenging army
against him. Nevertheless his party has been defeated, many of
his people havo been killed, three forts have been taken from him,
auc l he has mot with the punishment he deserved. It is as evident
as the sun that your army has been victorious ; and that, if you
had been desirous of it, you might, in the space of two days, have
entirely extirpated him ; for he had not power to resist your efforts.
But I now take upon me to be his mediator ; and to represent to you,
that, as the said Deh Terria (Deb Raja) 8 is dependent upon the Dalai
Kuch Behar.
The person who performs all administrative functions in Bhutan is called
Ganr Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1 ,
“ Lama, who rules in this country with unlimited sway, though, on
“account of his being yet in his minority, the charge and administration
“ fc h e country, for the present, is committed to me ; should you persist
“ in offering further molestation to the Deh Terria’s country, it will
“ irritate both the Lama and all his subjects against you. Therefore,
“ from a regard to our religion and customs, I request you will cease
“ from all hostilities against him ; and in doing this, you will confer
“ the greatest favour and friendship upon mo. I have reprimanded the
“ Deh for his past conduct ; and I have admonished him to desist from
“ his evil practices in future, and to be submissive to you in all things.
“ I am persuaded that he will conform to the advice which I have
“given him; and it will be necessary that you treat him with com-
“ passion and clemency. As to my part, I am but a Fakeer ; and it is
“ the custom of my sect, with the rosary in our hands, to pray for the
“ welfare of mankind, and for the peace and happiness of the inhabi-
“ tants of this country ; and I do now, with my head uncovered,
“ entreat that you will cease from all hostilities against the Deh in
“ future. It would be needless to add to the length of this lettor, as
“ the bearer of it, who is a Gosein, 1 will represent to you all particulars ;
“ and it is hoped that you will comply therewith. In this country the
“ worship of the Almighty is the profession of all. We poor creatures
“ are in nothing equal to you. Having, however, a few things in
“ hand I send them to you as tokens of remembrance and hope for your
“acceptance of them.” 8
It will be seen from the letter that the Tashi Lama alludes therein to
a Gosain who headed the deputation, and Turner thus speaks of him :
“ Of the persons deputed on this occasion by the Lama, two only
“ ventured to encounter the burning atmosphere of Bengal ; one a
“native of Tibet, named Paima; the other a pilgrim from Hindostan
“ whose namo I have already mentioned, Poorungheer Gosein.” 8
The roquest of the Lama was very favourably received. Warren
Hastings became eager to know more intimately the writer of this
letter, which was conceived in a very friendly spirit and founded on
Deb Raja, also Kusho Depa, while the spiritual head is called Lama Rinpoche or
Dharma Raja. “ But the real power has long been in the hands of the military
governors, or Penlos of east and west Bhutan, whose capitals are respectively at
Tong-sar and Paro.” Markham, Narrative of the Mission of George Bogle to Tibet, etc.,
Introd., p. lv.
1 This is Puran Gir.
s Turner’s Account of an Embassy to the Court of Teshoo Lama in Tibet, Introd.,
pp. ix — xii.
* Turner, ibid,, Introd., p. xiii.
at Bho( Bdgan in Howrah.
63
1890. 1
good sense, which evinced high sentiments and self-respect and, at the
same time, conveyed a gentle menace, couched in the most humble
language. He perceived in it also the best opportunity to carry out
his cherished view for the extension of British intercourse with the
terra incognita on the Himalayan heights.
A treaty of peace was accordingly entored into and ratified between
the Governments of Bengal and Bhutan, on the 25th of April, 1774. By
the different articles of this treaty it was, among other things, agreed
that the English would relinquish the Deb Raja’s possessions acquired by
conquest; that they would deliver up the Kuch Bohar Raja Dwijendra
Narayan and his brother Devan Deo who had been taken away as
prisoners of war ; that the Bhutanese Mahants shall have their former
privilege of duty-free trade, and allowed to visit Rangpur annually ;
that the Bhutanese shall not cause incursions into the country, nor
molest the rayats (or subjects) of the Company ; whatever Sannyasis are
considered by the English as enemies, the Deb Raja shall not allow to
take shelter in any part of the districts now given up, nor permit them
to enter into the Honourable Company’s territories or through any part
of his. 1
This treaty having been concluded in the interest of Kuch Behar
and the Company on the one hand, and in that of Bhutan on the other,
whereby the Lama’s intercession was completely respected, Warren
Hastings mind was turned upou commercial schemes, which were not
a little matured at the sight of the presents which the Lama had sent
by his deputation. He conceived the idea of sending a mission to the
Lama in Tibet, and accordingly framed a letter to him, proposing, among
other things, a t re a t y of amity and commerce between the Bengal and
Tibetan states, and entrusted it to a deputation composed of Mr. George
Bogle, servant of the Company, and Dr. Hamilton, with Puran Gir
Gosain, as their sincere and faithful friend.
This is the first of a series of missions which Hastings successively
sent to the cis- and tmus-nivean Btates on the frontier heights, and it is from
among the incidents of this initial deputation that the main facts which
led to the grant of the sanads, the foundation of the Bhot Mandir, and
the consecration of the motley group of idols there, are to be gleaned.
In this mission as well as in the second attempted embassy to Tibet
under Mr. Bogle in 1779, in the third, under Captain Turner in 1783,
and in the last, under Puran Gir Gosain himself, just at the closing
period of tbe same statesman’s career in 1785, are to be sought all the
important services that the great Gosain has rendered to the British
Government, and the conspicuous traits of his remarkable chai'acter, and
1 Captain R. Boileau Pemberton’s Report on Bhutan, App., p. 178.
64 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
some portions of the concluding history of the Bhot Bagan down to the
period of the chivalrous Gosuin’s tragic end. A rapid sketch therefore
follows, of the broad features of these missions, bearing upon the present
subject, basod mainly upon the records left by Mr. Boglo, which form
the narrative of Mr. Markham, and upon Turner’s report.
It was moreover from the proceedings of these missions that the
first adminstrator of India obtainod a thorough knowledge of the
wondei’ful politico-religious influence which, emanating from Tibet,
operated, with more or less effect on China and Mongolia, and on its
then protected state of Sikkim, and the semi-independent principality
of Bhutan as well as on Nepal.
Tho communication of the Lama stirred the fertile brain of Warren
Hastings, to conceive a consummate policy of peace and friendship with
the hierarchical chief, believed to be an incarnation of Buddha himself,
seated in his snow-clad mountain home. By this policy he aimed at the
commercial prosperity of Bengal. Through two successive missions
to Tibet, and four to Bhutan, he succeeded, in some respect, to re-estab-
lish the old trade routes and re-open, in a partial way, that active com-
mercial intercourse which had subsisted and prevailed, from before the
Muhammadan rule, between the plateau of Tibet and the plains of
Bengal through the passes of Nepal, Bhutan and other channels, but
which were sadly interrupted and checked by diverse causes.
The first mission under Mr. Bogle started from Calcutta in 1774,
and, after proceeding to the hills, called Nagarkof in Bengal and Bod la 1 *
in Tibet, which form the common boundary of these two countries in the
north, Bogle says, the only scanty information about the roads, the
climate and the people which he there received, was from the Sannyasis.
Proceeding, stage after stage, Mr. Bogle, with his party, arrived at
Tashi Chhoijong, 3 the capital of Bhutan, and met the Deb Raja, 3 who gave
him a good reception, but great obstacles having been raised in respect
1 Boif (native name of Thibet) + la ‘ a pass’ = ‘The pass into Thibet’
Markham, ibid., p. 15.
1 Tashi Chhoijong is the modom capital of Bhutan, 100 miles from the town
of Kuch Behar. There is in it a palace and a citadel. Tho latter is a lofty stone
building of Beven stories, in the fourth of which tho Deb Raja of Bhutan resides.
» Dob Kaja. According to Sir Ashley Eden, the country, now called Bhutan, was
formerly occupied by a people from Kuch Bohar, who were, throe centnries ago, driven
away by an invading army of Tibetans over whom a Luma of the Red sect named
Dugwang Sabdung acquired paramount influence as “ Lama Binpoohe or Dharma
“ Rdja. On his death Sabdung became incarnate in a little child at Lhasa who
“ was conveyed to Bhutan. When this child grew up, he confined himself to spiritual
“ concerns and appointed a Regent called the Deb Raja.” lie is now elected by a
council of six for three years.
65
1890.] o< Bhot Bogan in Howrah.
of his intended visit to Tibet by a concatenation of influences ultimately
emanating from China, they were finally removed by the zealous, per-
severing and masterly services of Puran Gir Gosain. The party accord-
ingly left that capital, on the 13th October, and came to a place called
Phai’i-jong, 1 where were observed the boundary-marks that separate
Bhutan from Tibet. Thence they rode up, on the 8th November, to the
gate of Tashi Rabgya,® the palace of the Tashi Lama. After several
interviews with him, and residence there for some time, they, at his
desire, accompanied him to his nest palace and monastery, Tashi
Lhunpo. Here, during a sojourn of five months, Mr. Bogle picked
up some knowledge of the Tibetan language, acquainted himself with
the religious tenets and practices of the people, studied their character,
habits and manners, noted their unique marriage customs, penetrated
into the mystery of their peculiar hierarchical government, threaded
his way into the mysterious labyrinth of their politics, and, with cautious
or rather furtive observation, acquired a partial knowledge of the pro-
ductive resources and the trade routes of the country, old and new, but
could carry out the object of his mission in only a limited way. And
the little that he was able to do in this last respect, was due to his
frankness and ability to understand the people and above all to conform
to their ways that were innocent. He himsolf says, “ The Lama used
“ daily to send a priest to me in the early morning, with some bread and
“tea or some boiled rice and chopped mutton, of which last, as I always
“ like to do at Rome as they do at Rome, I used to eat very heartily.”
He used even to put on “ a Tibetan dress consisting of a purple satin
“ tunic lined ” with “ Siberian furskins, a yellow satin cap, faced round
“ with sable, and crossed with a red silk tape and a pair of red silk Bulgar
“ hide boots.” He followed the Lama’s example and gave alms to the
Sannyasis and Faqirs. He was not only admitted into the churches where
he saw the idols, and tho nature of the holy service, but introduced to
the ladies of tho Lama’s household ; and thus there grow up between
Mr. Bogle and the good Lama a real personal friendship. Puran Gir
Gosain, who enjoyed the esteem and confidence of both these persons,
contributed in a great measure to bring about this desirable state of
things. The deputation left Tashi Lhunpo, in April 1775, and returned
in June following. Warren Hastings, in order to keep up an inter-
course with the Himalayan states, so auspiciously opened, sent Dr.
1 Phari-jong is a pass at the head o£ the Chmribi valley which was need both by
Boglo and Turner. Near it is the city of Paro which Mr. Bogle selected as a trade
mart for the merchandise of Bengal and Tibet.
8 Tashi Eabgya is a small plaoe in which the Tashi Lama temporarily resided,
when small-pox broke out at Tashi Lhunpo.
I
66 Gatir Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
Hamilton, who had accompanied Mr. Bogle to Tibet, to Bhutan on two
successive missions, one in November 1775, and the other in July 1777.
With theso the px - esent theme has no concern.
Mr. Bogle was again appointed an envoy to Tibet in April 1779,
and Puran Gir Gosain, who had returned with him, was also to have
accompanied the mission as before, but it was postponed on account of
the arrival of the news that the Taslii Lama was, at the invitation of
the old Chinese Emperor Kiinglung, about to start for Peking. During
this delay Mr. Bogle, with all the persevering zeal he possessed in the
cause of the Government, made the grand project of presenting himself
before the Chinese Court, through the influence of the Lama, that he
might thereby explain matters in a proper way, in the hope of removing
Chinophobia from the Tibetan authorities in the matter of dealings with
foreigners. And in this affair also, as on other important occasions,
Puran Gir, the trusted and favourite agent of the Lama and the Bengal
Government, was desired previously to join the Lama before he left
Tibet. This the Gosain accordingly did, when the Lama had already
started on his journey, and accompanied the Lama to the Chinese capital
where his most important services will be described further on. There
was the greatest probability of the success of Mr. Bogle’s most wisely
conceived scheme, which was founded upon the previous assurances ho
had received from the Lama while at Tashi Lhunpo, and which, as
the sequel will show on the evidence of Puran Gir, the good honest
Lama had almost brought about, but the death of the Lama in November
1780 from small-pox at Peking, and of Mr. Bogle at Caloutta in April
1781, prevented the realisation of this great object. 1
According to the politico-religious theory which regulates the elec-
tive hierarchical Government of Tibet, and of its dependencies, and of
the territories which acknowledge a theocratic sway, a grand Lama
revivifies himself after his death in some infant form which is discover-
ed by some signs, and the child becomes the succeeding Lama. There
are two principal Lamas in Tibet : one the Tashi Lama, at Tashi
Lhunpo, the other the Dalai Lama at Lhasa, with equal authority, but
the latter, on account of the residence of Chinese officials and troops
at his capital, is assumed to be the superior.
At the time of Bogle’s mission in 1774, the Dalai Lama was a minor,
and the Tashi Lama was his Regent, and on account of his learning,
piety and great virtue, was deservedly esteemed and rovored through-
out Buddhadom. On his death, his brother Chanjo Kusho was ruling
at Tashi Lhunpo, as Regent during the interregnum.
This Regent communicated to Warren Hastings the sad intelligence
1 Markham, Hid.., Introd., p. lxx.
at Bliot Hagan in Howrah.
67
1890.]
of the death of the Tashi Lama at Poking by a letter which was received
on the 12th February 1782. In this letter, among other things, the
Regent spoke of his fervent hope in the return of the hour “ of trans-
“ migration, that the bodies may be speedily exchanged, and our depart-
“ ed Lama again be restored to our sight.” 1
The happy news of the discovery of the spirit of the Tashi Lama,
incarnated in an infant in the valley of Painom, 2 was soon received by
Hastings, and he determined to seize the opportunity of communicating
to the Regent his congratulations on this auspicious event, as the best
occasion for sending another mission to Tibet. He accordingly selected
Captain Samuel Turner for this purpose, who, with Lieut. Samuel
Davis and Dr. Robert Saunders and the inevitable Puran Gir Gosain
as their guido and adviser, left Calcutta on the 9th January 1783.
Captain Turner followed the previous route of Mr. Roglo, and on
arriving at Tashi Chhoijong transacted such affairs relating to Bhutan as
he had been instructed to attend to, and after a stay of three months
at this capital, proceeded to his destination. Early in the morning of
the 22nd Septeinbei', dazed at the sight of the resplendent beams of
the rising sun reflected from the gilt tops of the monasteries, and
regaled with “ the deep tone of many sonorous instruments which were
“ summoning the religious to their morning orisons,” the party found
themselves ushered into the very splendid apartments of the Tashi
Lhunpo palace. 8 The Regent gave the Governor-General’s envoy a
hearty and respectful reception, assured him of the identity of the Lama
who, in his previous existence, had been a great friend of Hastings’, and
informed him of his regeneration having been acknowledged by the
Emperor of China. The mission had indeed arrived in Tibet at one
of its most important eras ; it was at a time when the nation was prepar-
ing by a grand demonstration to announce their acknowledgment of the
regenerated Lama who was then being removed into the Tharpa Ling
monastery for that customary training and education, for which the
Chinese Emperor had issued strict injunctions. The Captain witness-
ed here most interesting objects and scenes, and collected materials by his
intelligent observation and inquiry, whereby he confirmed and widened
the knowledge regarding the country which had been laid open by his
predecessor. When the time came to leave the place, ho was introduced
to the infant Lama, then only a child oighteen months old, and he gives
the most surprising and most romantic account of this audience, and of the
manner in which this little Avatar comported himself. Throughout the
whole period of the sojourn of the mission our Puran Gir was most
* Turner, ibid., p. 450. “ Turner, ibid., 230.
1 Turner, ibid., p. 240.
68 Gain’ Das By sack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
actively engaged in all suck departments of business in whick ke could
prove kimself useful. At lengtk on tke 2nd of December tke mission
departed from Taski Lliunpo on tke return journey to Bengal, wliere
tkey reacked Patna in March 1784, and there tke Captain submitted
to Mr. Hastings bis official report detailing an account of tke result
of his mission. 1
At the commencement of 1785 Warron Hastings contemplated
appointing Puran Gir Gosain as a diplomatic agent at tke Tibetan court,
and delivered to him despatches for the new or lather regenerated Taski
Lama and tke Regent. On tke 8th of February 1785, ke resigned his
Governor-Generalship and embarked for England. Captain Turner
introduced the Gosain to tke officiating Governor-General John Mac-
pkerson, and ke was allowed to proceed on his mission whick started
in March of the same yoar. Passing through Bhutan and transacting
business there, the Gosain arrived at Taslii Lhunpo. He too had come
hero on a momentous occasion, he saw the removal of the child Lama
from the Tliarpa Ling monastery, and his installation on the throne of
liis predecessors, who in fact wero beliovod to have boon different cor-
poreal forms of his own spirit. He had frequent interviews with the
Regent and various Tibetan authorities, during which he did his best
to confirm the friendship between the Bengal Government and the
Tashi Lhunpo Court, under the shadow of which be remained for five
months, and then returned to Calcutta with letters from the Lama and
the Regent, which together with his own report he delivered to the
above statesman*
Thus ends a brief summary of the salient points of the missions
to Tibet under Warren Hastings’ rule ; and in fact Puran Gin’s diplo-
matic agency is the last of the missions which the British Government
has, up to this moment, been able to send to that land of mystery.
The Bhot Bagan originated from the incidents of the first mission
in the following way. Mr. Bogle in relating the conversations he had
with the Tashi Lama at Tashi Rabgya says, that on one occasion the
Lama assured him that “ his heart was open, and well disposed towards
“ the English, and that ho gave no credit to the representations which
“ had been made to their disadvantage.”
“ ‘ I wish to have a place on the banles of the Ganges to which I
‘ might send my people to pray. I intend to write to the Governor on
‘ this subject, and wish you would second my application.’ ” “ I replied
“ that as I knew how desirous the Governor was to cultivate his friend-
“ ship, I was persuaded on this or on any other occasion he would find
“ him very ready to gratify him as far as in his power.” 3
1 Turner, ibid., pp. 826—358. 8 Markham, ibid., p. 138.
s Turner, ibid,, p. 419.
1890.] af Shof Tldfjdn in Howrah. 69
Mr. Bogle in In’s letter to Mr. Hastings of tlie 5th December, -which
perhaps he wrote from the above place, alludes to the Lama’s desire of
founding a religions house on the banks of the Ganges, and adds what he
had heard from the Lama. “ About seven or eight hundred years ago,
“ the Tibetan Pontiffs had many monasteries in Bengal, and their priests
“ used to travel to that country in order to study the religion and lan-
“ guages of the Brahmans and to visit the holy places in Hindustan. The
“ Musulmans, upon conquering Bengal, plundered and destroyed their
“ temples, and drove them out of the country. Since then there has
“ been little intercourse between the two kingdoms. The Lama is
“ sensible that it will throw great lustre on his pontificate, and serve to
“ extend his fame and character, if he can, after so long an interval, obtain
“ a religious establishment in Bengal, and he is very solicitous about
“ this point. He proposes, also, to send some of his Gylongs, during the
“ cold season, to wait upon you at Calcutta, and afterwards to go on
“ pilgrimage to Gaya and other places, and has written to Chedzum
“ Tamba, 1 at Peking, who has great interest with the Emperor, inform-
ing him that the English aro now masters of Bengal; that jou, their
“ chief, have shown him great favour ; that tho English allow every one
“ to follow his own religion unmolested ; and advising him to send some
“ persons to wait upon you, and to visit the principal temples in Bengal.
“ I own I encouraged all this, in the view of strengthening the inter-
“ course and connection with Tibet, and thinking it would be of advan-
“ tage to the Company to open any channel of communication with the
“ Court of China ; and although I am not so sanguine as the Lama
“ about the success of his endeavours, however sincere, to obtain leave
“ for you to send a person to the Emperor, I do not altogether despair,
“ by your favour, of one day or other getting a sight of Peking.” 3
Again, in the course of the first visit which Mr. Bogle paid to the
Tashi Lama, on his return to Tashi Lhunpo, the latter referred to his
previous proposal in respect of forming a religious house on the Ganges,
and on receiving the reiterated assurance of the former, as to its compli-
ance, the Lama spoke of the Chankya Lama, 8 the high priest at 1 eking,
and of his great influence at the Chinese Court, and of his intention to
‘ Properly Jetsun Dampa, identified with the Taranfith Lama. He is the third
Pontiff of the Gelugpa or yellow cap sect, and resides north of Tibet among the
Khalka tribes of outer Mongolia near TJrga.
! Markham, ibid., p. 134. . . .
3 The Tashi Lama always spoke to Mr. Bogle of this high priest of China
with o-reat respect, and described him as having great influence over the Chinese
emperor. Through his mediation an attempt was made for resort of Chinese
trading pilgrims to Hindustan.
70
Gain- Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
write to this personage, to the effect that the Feringis 1 * were masters of
Bengal, and had shown him great favour, and added that he thought
it probable that the priest would send some of his peoplo to visit the
principal religious places, and expected, in the event of his doing so, that
the Governor would give them a good reception.* At another interview,
the Lama desired that Mr. Hastings should send an embassy to the Dalai
Lama, when he would come of age, and that, in the event of his obtaining
a grant of land on the banks of the Ganges, he would place Puran Gir
Gosain there, and if he should stand in noed of any small matter, he
trusted the Governor would supply him. 3 4 *
On Mr. Bogle’s inquiry as to what site ho would prefer, the Lama
said, he would like some place in the neighbourhood of Calcutta, that the
people to be sent down might have opportunities of seeing the Governor,
to whom and to the Pandits he would leave the matter; the only thing he
would press for, was that it might be near the Ganges. He further
explained his idea on the subject of building a house there, and said, “ I
“ propose that Puran Gir who was then down in Calcutta should settle
“ it. I do not wish it to be a large house, and let it be built in the
“ fashion of Bengal.” He intimated, that he would give the necessary in-
structions to Piiran, who, he said, “ has served me well, and I have
“ not found him guilty of so many lies as most other fakirs, and I hope
“ the Governor will show him favour.” He here mentioned the name
of another old Gosain ‘ Sukh Deb ’ who, he said, “ has also asked me
“ leave to go down to Calcutta, he will accompany you ; and I have
also “ written to the Governor about him, and I hope he will favour
him.”*
On another occassion the Lama showed Mr. Bogle the images with
their dress which he intended to send down to Bengal, through Puran Gir,
to be put up in the proposed temple, and inquired particularly about the
situation of a town called S'ambhal. 6 The reason assigned by the
1 Feringis, a term usually applied in most parts of Asia to Europeans. It is
said to have been derived from Frank. A stranger is generally called Peling,
* Markham, ibid., p. 146.
• Markham, ibid., p. 1G4.
4 Markham, ibid., p. 165.
® Markham, ibid., p. 1G8. S’ambhal is a fabulous city, the Utopia of the Northern
Buddhists, on which Bilbu S. C. Das has supplied the following information. The
Tashi Lama wrote a book called Shambalai Lamyig, i. e., a journey to Shambala.
According to the Tibetan work “ Selki-melon,” the name S'nmbhala is derived
from that of king S'ambhaka of the S'akya race. Literally it moans “ one who
makes happy,” and S'ambha is the name of Tswara. According to the Tibetans,
the position of the oountry of S’ambliala is as follows. It is a vast plain of
the shape of a lotas of eight petals, entirely surrounded by a wall of snowy
71
1890,] at Bho( Bagdn in Howrah.
Lama for his fondness for Bengel was that “ although in the different
“ periods of his reviviscence he had chosen many regions for the places of
“ his birth, yet Bengal was the only country in which he had been born
“ twice; for which reason,” he said, “ he had a predelection for it beyond
“ any other, and was desirous of making it a place of his abode, ap-
“ parently esteeming the sanctity of the Ganges, as a consideration of
“ inferior importance.” 1
The religious prejudices which endear Bengal to the Tibetans, are
again thus explained by Turner, who bases his information upon what he
had heard from the Regent and Sopon Chenpo : 2 — “ But Bengal is ren-
“ dered peculiarly dear to them by the powerful influence of religious
“ prejudice. The regeneration of their Lama is said to have taken
“ place, in times of remote antiquity, near the site of the ancient and
“ ruined city of Gowr, and all those places held in veneration by the
“ Hindoos, as Gya, Benares, Mahow and Allahabad, are equally ob-
“jects of superstitious zeal, with a votary of the Tibet faith, who
“ thinks himself blessed above his fellow disciples, if he can but pei’form
“ a pilgrimage to these hallowed spots.” 3
After Mr. Bogle’s return to Calcutta, the Lama, as he had proposed
in his first conversation with him on the subject of his proposed temple,
wrote to Mr. Hastings on the subject, 4 and Mr. Bogle in his general
report, speaking of the apprehension of Tibet merchants, in respect of
the heat and unhealthiness of Bengal, urged that “ prejudices of this
“ kind are to be cured only by habit, and your compliance with the
“ Teshu Lama’s desire of founding a monastery and temple on the banks
mountains, and conveniently intersected by many great rivers. At the centre
of this great country stands as the filament of a lotus, its capital, the city
of Kalapa, with extensive gardens and parks round it, which are protected by a
ciroular wall of very lofty snowy mountains with four gates. Four rivers issuing
from the snowy barriers, water the city and its garden, and then flow into two
lakes, called Upasogara and Pundarika, which adorn the earthly paradise of Kalapa.
At the southern extremity of the city stands the garden of Malaya, with the palace
of the Ohakravarti Baja Chandra Bhadra. The mansions of the 25 Kulika emper-
ors, who followed the line of the seven Dharma Bajas, stand on the bank of the river
and line the lotus. The first Chakravarti emperor of S'ambhala was Suryaprabha.
In each of the eight petal-like divisions of S'ambhala there are 12,000,000 cities,
in consequeuco of which 90,000,000 of cities cover the entire empire. The Euro-
pean scholars of Northern Buddhism are inclined to identify S'ambhala with Europe,
making London (tho Western) Kalapa.
1 Turner, ibid., p. xv.
8 Sopon Chenpo was cup-bearer and minister to the Tashi Lama ; he was dur-
ing the Begency of Chan jo Kusho second in rank at the court of Tashi Lhunpo.
a Turner, ibid., p. 208.
4 Markham, ibid., p. 138, note.
72 Gaur Das B y sac k — No t es on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
“ of the Gauges will probably tend to remove these strong prepossessions
“ against the climate of Bengal, and to produce an intercourse with the
“northern nations. The safe return of the people whom the Lama
“proposes to send next winter to visit the holy places in Bengal will
“ serve to inspire their countrymen with confidence ; the fondness to
“ the Tibetans for every thing strange or curious, strengthened by reli-
“ gion, will probably lead many others to undertake so meritorious
“a journey; and these pilgrimages, like the Hajj at Mckkah, may in
“ time open a considerable mart for the commodities of Bengal.” 1
Warren Hastings, apprised of the Lama’s wish by his direct com-
munication, and urged by Mr. Bogle as to the paramount necessity of
complying with it, issued the necessary orders under which a piece of
land was purchased and given to the Tashi Lama, and the con-
struction of a Buddhist temple was commenced under the direction
of Mr. Bogle, who had been previously trusted by the Lama with a
considerable remittance in money. As soon as it was completed, Has-
tings wrote thus on the subject to the Lama, who had previously sent
images to bo deposited in it — “ By the blessing of God it will be the
“ means of making your name known in this country, and of streng-
“ thening the friendship which is between us, and you will consider it as
“ a mark of the confidence and regard which I bear to you”. 3
Mr. Markham discovered a note on the manuscript of Mr. Bogle
which he supposes to be in the handwriting of A. Dalrymple, Esq. It
records some of the above facts, and adds that “ people from Tibot and
“ Bhutan constantly resorted to it “ (Bhot Mandir) ” during the time for
which my knowledge reaches.” 3
The connection of the British Government in India with the Bhot
Bagan is now so far revealed as to make it clear that Warren Hastings
at the earnest and repeated solicitations of one of the Grand Lamas
of Tibet designated the Tashi Lama, and wishing to cultivate his friend-
ship in the interest of Tibeto-Bengal trade, made choice, at his direc-
tion, of a little upwards of a hundred bighas of land (either originally
rent-free or subsequently made such), purchased it, and in 1778 by
the sanad No. 3 gave it to him formally, and actually to Puran Gir
Gosain as their protege and deserved favourite. It does not appear in
the history of the missions how the 50 bighas of land, mentioned in the
sanads Nos. 2 and 4, came to be granted to them in 1783, 1 but from
1 Markham, ibid., p 108.
8 Markham, ibid., note 1, p. 138, note 1, p. 146, and Turner, ibid., Introd., p. xv.
3 Markham, ibid., note 1, page 138.
* It should be noted here that tho Sanad No. 4 for 50 bighas was exeouted in
favour of a Lama in 1783, but his name is identical with that of the then deceased
Lama, who had, while living in 1778, received a grant of 100 bighas by sanad No.
1890.]
at Bhot Bagan in Hoivrah.
73
an episode relating to the Bhot Bagan, which will be noticed here-
after, it will be soon that Captain Turner refers to these 50 biglnis, when
he says in one of his communications to the Governor-General (John
Macpherson) in 1786, that it “is a part of the land situated on the
“ western bank of the river, opposite to Calcutta, which was formerly
“ granted, under a sunnud of this government, to Teshoo Lama, for the
“ foundation of a place of worship, and as a resort for those pilgrims
“ of his nation, who might occasionally make visits to the consecrated
“ Ganges.’’ 1 He also in the same paper describes the whole as Piiran
“ Gir’s little territory.”
History then corroborates the statements in the sanads that the
total area of the Bhot Bagan is a trifle upwards of 150 bighas, and
shows that the object of the grant was fully carried out by the liberality
of the Lama, the amount of whose remittance, received bj' Mr. Bogle
for the construction of the temple and dwelling, though not traceable
now, is stated to have been ‘ considerable,’ and hence the structures
were no doubt originally commensurate with the large expenditure that
had been incurred on account of them. There were also guest-houses,
(as the traditions of the place confirm), in which people from Tibet,
some of whom wero important enough to have been introduced to
Warren Hastings, wore lodged. The building that is now seen, with
partial reconstruction of some ruined portions, must be the remains of
what was once of much larger dimension and extent. 2
Of the grantees whose names tho sanads montion, ono is tho Lama,
the other Piiran Gir Gosain. The title of the former, as given in the
Persian, and as already set forth, is Tcshi Larnah Panchan Ardani Bdk-
deo Panchan, which I think would bo correctly Tashi Lama Panchan
Erteni Vdkya Deva, meaning “ the Tashi Lama Pandita, the gem of great
Panditas, Vakyadeva (lord of speech.)” It was thus for the first and
last time in the annals of Tibet and Buddhadom and of British India,
that an Avatdr, the living divinity, who from his palace on the highest
regions where man can dwell, exercises his hierarchical sway over the
largest extent of territories in the world, condescended to accept sanads
from the representative of the British Power in India and to become his
Jagirdar a hundrod and twenty years ago ! The personage who gave tho
kindest reception to Mr. Bogle and formed with him a real friendship,
2. This anomaly may bo explained by the fact that it xs^not tho name of a person,
but the official designation that is mentioned in both the sanads.
1 Turner, ibid., p. 432.
s The Bhot Hagan or rather Bhot Mandir in faot was constituted a math in
which character it is perhaps the only one besides that of the celebrated Tarkeswar,
in Bengal.
K
74 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
and who was in fact the formal assignee of the Bhot Bdg&n land, is de-
scribed by the latter as having been forty years of age, and of low stature,
fairer than an ordinary Tibetan with jet-black hair, and eyes small and
black. Ho could speak Hindustani tolerably. His disposition was open,
candid, and generous, and merry and entertaining in his conversation.
Says Mr. Bogle, “ I endeavoured to find out, in his character, those
“ defects which are inseparable from humanity, but he is so universally
“ beloved that I had no success, and not a man could find in his heart to
“ Speak ill of him.” 1 * * * * * * He remarks elsewhere, that the Lama’s thirst for
knowledge was insatiable. The other assignee's name in the sanads
appears in Persian as Puran Gir, and in the Bengali inscription on tho
tomb-house door-top in the Bhot Bagan as Puran Giri Mahanta.
The next point of inquiry is, how under the influence of Buddhism,
a religion so woll-lcnown to be antagonistic in its main tenets to Hinduism
as derived from the Vedas and Puranas — representatives of Hindu and
Buddhist mythology aro found mixed up in the Bhot Mandir ?
In the sixth century before the Christian ora Buddhism was
foundod in India ; three centuries later it became the state religion of the
country, and in tho early part of the fourth century before the same era,
it was introduced into Ceylon where it is believed to have been pre-
served in its purest state, but as missionaries bogan to spread it in
different countrios out of India, great departures from the original
institution began to take place. It was accepted in China, at the com-
mencement of the era, and it reached Tibet, 8 in the beginning of the
seventh century through the influence of a Chinese princess. It came
from China and India in two mixed streams ; from the former country
flowing through successive beds of old religions and indigenous philoso-
phy, and from the latter, as from its main source, it came in continuous
currents through translations and retranslations of its liagiology, and
through Puranic and Tantric literature under the teachings of the
Brahmans, and from both weighted with exhaustless legends since the
days of S'akyamuni. Among the holy books imported into Tibet from
India are mentioned the Tatitras in twenty-two volumes. According
to the commentary on the Kalachakra Tantra, after Buddha’s death
“ the compilers writing in three books the three vehicles (or works on
1 Markham, ibid., p. 84.
’ “ It is said that a native king established the seat of Government at Lhasa
“in 617 A. D. ; that he married a Chineso princess of the Buddhist persuasion,
“and that he sont his minister to India, who returned with the great body of truth
“ contained in tho Buddhist canonical Scriptnros, framed the Tibetan alphabet from
“ the Devanagari of India, and commenced tho translation of the canon from Sans-
“ krit into the language of the country. Markham, ibid., pp. xlv, xlvi.
75
1890.] at Bhot Bagan in Howrah.
‘‘ three fold principles), they expressed all the three true repositories of
“ Sutra, of Tathagata, in his language. The Prajnya-paramita and the
“ Mantras in Sanscrit ; the several sorts of Tantras in several languages,
“ Sanscrit, Pracrit, Apabhransha, in that of the mountaineers, and all
“ sorts of mlechchhas. Accordingly all the three Vehicles (yanam) in
“ Tibet were written in the Tibetan language.” 1 * * 4 Csoma Korosi describes
four different systems of Buddhism derived from India.
Mahamaya®, a revered name in Hindu mythology, and specially in
the S'akti doctrine, is also the name of the mother of Buddha, and as
such, around it have accumulated legendary accretions, which, in Tibet,
have greatly predominated. The incarnation of the Grand Lamas,
though it may at first appear, in its temporal aspect, peculiar to Tibet,
is in its essence the widely accepted doctrine of motempsychosis in
Hindu mythology and philosophy.
Besides the circumstance of the import of Hindu S'astras of different
periods into Tibet, its very situation in the midst of mountains and lofty
peaks, sources of great rivers and springs, and lakes held equally sacred
by the Hindus and Buddhists, has, from the remotest times, rendered
it the common meeting ground of pilgrims of both faiths, not to mention
the frequency of such meetings between the mountaineers and the
people of the plains bent upon mercantile errands, whereby a blending
of the two religions became inevitable.
The history of the missions, moreover, brings out striking proofs
of such blending. The very first thing, at every stage of their journeys
from the dudrs & of Bhutan up to the mountain terraces, to Tashi Lhunpo,
which the two envoys Bogle and Turner marked, was the very great
respect paid by the people and the chiefs to the Gosaius and Sannyasis,
the Gelongs,* and even Paqirs. 5 They both saw in the palace of the
Lama, in the temples and monasteries, and in other places, idols and
church services, to confirm them in the belief that Tibetan Buddhism
was intimately connected with many important phases of medioaval and
modern Hinduism. Says Bogle “ The religion of the Lamas is some-
“ how connected with that of the Hindus, and many of their deities are
“ the same, the Shaster is translated into their language ; and they hold
1 Hardy’s Eastern Monachism, pp. 188-189.
a MahamSya. In one of the Jatakas there is a legend that king Sanja became
Snddhodana, the father of Gotama Buddha ; the queen Phnsati became Mahamaya
Devi, his mother. Hardy’s Manual of Buddhism, p. 118, 133.
8 Duars from Sanskrit dvdra, door, gate.
4 Gelong, i. e., dGe-slong, a monk.
4 Faqtra. Though applied to Muhammadan mendicants, the term is loosely
applied to mendioanta of all religions.
76
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
“ in veneration the holy places of Hindustan.” In the gallery of the Tashi
Lhunpo palace he saw, among others, the image of the god of war ; pro-
bably it was that of Kartikcya. In speaking to him on one occasion
on the subject of trade, the Tashi Lama said that “ the Lama had temples
“ in Benares, Gaya, somewhere in Purneah and at several other plaoes ;
“ that their priests used to travel there to study the Sliaster and the
“ religion of the Brahmans j and after remaining there ten, twenty, or
“ thirty years, returned to Tibet communicating their knowledge to
“ their countrymon, and thereby gaining great reputation ; that about
“ eight hundred years ago Bengal was invaded and conquered by the
“ Mussulmans, who destroyed and pillaged the temples and plundered
“ the people, so that such as escaped returned to their mountains along
“ with some Brahmans who fled from the persecutions ; since which
“ time the inhabitants of Tibet have had little connection with Bengal
“ or the southern countries.” In a conversation turning specially on
religion, the Lama pointod out the connection between his faith and
that of the Brahman, said, the Tibetans worshipped the three Hindu
gods Brahmii, Vishnu and S'iva, but not their inferior deities. 1 These
three names symbolically express the three attributes of the deity as
comprehended in the Vedic holy syllable Om, but the three emblems
Om Han Hoong which Bogle saw on three round brass plates on the front
of the Tashi Rabgya palace, are said to refer to Buddha, Dharma and
Sangha.
Turner, when speaking of the places of pilgrimago in India which
Tibetans frequented, says “ Gungasaugor (Ganga sagara) an uninhabited
“ island situated at the confluence of the Ganges with the sea, and the
“pagoda of Juggernath (Jagannatha) on the coast of Orissa, are also
“ deemed of equal sanctity.” He notices also the practice of pilgrimage by
proxy — he had heard tho late Tashi Lama having by his agents pilgrimiz-
ed to Kasi, Prayilga, Ganga Sfigar, and Jaggaunath Puri. Among the
assemblage of gods he saw in Tibet, he mentions the Hindii deities,
Durgd and Kali, Ganesa and Kartikeya. He refers elsowkere to a
Bhutanese Durga Puja. Thus cumulative proof is found to justify
Tiboto-Buddlusm, allowing Buddhistic and Hindu idols to be worshipped
in the same temple, as it is seen in tho Bhot Mandir.
The public services of Piiran Gir commenced, so far as records
show, when as a young Sannyasi, not more than perhaps twenty-five years
old, he received from tho Tashi Lama, the famous letter of mediation on
behalf of Depa Shidar of Bhutan, and with a single Tibetan companion
of the name of Paima, came down the mountain heights, and “ ventured
“ to encounter the burning atmosphere of Bengal ” towards the end
of March 1774.
1 Markham, ibid., pp, 72, 142.
1890.]
at Bhot Bdgdn in Howrah.
77
We see in our mind’s eye this personage in his ascetic garb with
danda and kamandalu in his hands, and with his tiger skin flung on his
shoulders, ushered into the saloon of our Government House, and intro-
duced to the first Governor- General as the holy envoy from the Grand
Lama. He presents his credentials to him, and lays before him the Lama’s
presents, which included “talents of gold and silver, bulsos of gold dust,
and bags of “ genuine musk.” Long and searching were the inquiries
which were made by the inquisitive Mr. Hastings, and tho answers he
received were most satisfactory and suggestive, and led to tho mission of
Mr. Bogle. When Puran Gir accompanied Mr. Bogle on this mission, his
services were found of immense value, and almost indispensable at every
important stage of the journey. At Tasbi Chhoijang, while the mission
waited to receive the Lama’s permission to proceed to Tibet, Chinese
intrigue and jealousy at Lhasa, operating at the Tashi Llmnpo Court,
threatened to cut short the progress of the deputation. The Tashi Lama
had written letters to Mr. Hastings, to Mr. Bogle, and to Puran Gir, which
were recoivod by the Deb Raja. In tho two former, the addressees were
informed that “ his (the Lama’s) country being subject to the Emper-
“ or of China, whose order it is that he shall admit no Moghul, Hindu-
“ stani, Patan or Fringy, he is without remedy, and China being at the
“ distance of a year’s journey, prevents his writing to the Emperor, for
“ permission, and desires me therefore to return to Calcutta.” 1 The com-
munication to Puran Gir again informed him that he (the Lama) wished
to postpone Mr. Bogle’s visit to Tibet on account of small-pox breaking
out there. Suspecting these to be mere pretences to cover some real
cause of aversion on the part of the Lama to see him, Mr. Bogle now al-
most in despair turned towards our Gosain Puran, and says he, “ In this
“ situation all my hopes of seeing Teshu Lama were chiefly founded on
“ the Gosain. As my journey had been undertaken upon his assurances,
“ he was engaged in honour to see it accomplished, and I endeavoured
“ to strengthen this principle by powerful motives. While he remained
“ at Tassisudon (Tashi Chhoijang), he could be of no service, and I
“ readily consented to his proceeding to tho Lama.” 8
Tho noble Gosain was keenly alive to a true senso of honour ; he
was much trusted by the Lama, and his words carried weight. He ex-
plained to him the true state of things, and disabused his mind of wrong
impressions against the English, and at his suggestion the Tashi Lama
wrote to tho Dalai Lama’s Minister, drawing his attention to the courtesy
and higli-mindedness of the Feringis in their dealings with the defeated
Depa Shidar in compliance with his request, and warning him of the
consequence of rofusing permission to the admittance of the mission.
* Markham, ibid., p. 45. 8 Markham, ibid,, p. 46.
78 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
The permission was granted and forwarded to Mr. Bogle through the
Deb Baja. Not content with being instrumental in obtaining passports,
he came down to meet the mission in their journey up, and joining them
at Giausu, conducted them at once to the Latna’s Tashi Rabgya palace.
During the whole period of Mr. Bogle’s sojourn in Tibet, Puran
Gir was not only his cicerone, interpreter, and adviser, but he was
unremitting in his endeavours to establish a friendly disposition in the
mind of the Tashi Lama towards the British Government, and to bring
about that intimacy which grew up between these personages. He was
the constant referee of both on various matters of importance, and often
cited by them as a witness in respect of the personal dealings of each
relating to tho mission on any points in the administrations of Tibet
and Bengal. Bogle asking him to say how tolerant of religions matters,
and how successful in promoting security of life and property was the
Government of Hastings, and the Lama inviting him to testify how
peace-loving and quiet were his people, and how grateful wore his senti-
ments towards Mr. Hastings for his ready compliance with his request,
of whom he said “ he (Mr. Hastings) has made him very happy, and
“ has done a very pious action. My servants (among whom was
“ Puran Gir) who went to Calcutta were only little men, and the kind
“ reception they had from the Governor I consider as another mark of
“ his friendship.” 1
It has been already stated that the contemplated second mission to
Tibet under Mr. Bogle in 1779 was prevented by the departure of the
Tashi Lama at the time to Peking, and by the death of Bogle himself
in 1781, and that Puran Gir Gosaiu had, at the instance of the Govern-
ment of Bengal, accompanied the Lama to China.
He showed his powei’S of observation by taking notes of every
important event in the journey of the Lama, of his interview with the
Emperor and of his reception. He actually wrote out a graphic account
of all this. Who translated it is not known, but a translation was with
Mr. Hastings from whom, through various channels, Mr. A. Dalrymple
obtained it, and published it in the Oriental Repertory. It is most in-
teresting and of special value in connection with tho present subject, it,
or rather its original, being the literary production of our versatile
Gosain, Among many facts contained in it, those that should be noted
here are : — the extraordinary veneration and esteem which tho Chinese
Emperor exhibited towards the Lama in his repoated entreaties, whereby
he pressed him to come to China on his having at first declined to go
there ; in the grand and expensive preparations that were made through-
out the entire course of a long and slow journey, and in the assiduous
1 Markham, ibid,, p. 136.
at Bhot Bdgdn in Howrah.
79
1890.]
and respectful attentions shown him during his sojourn in Peking,
where, on his arrival, he was seated on the highest cushion on the
imperial throne on the right side of the Emperor ; the proceedings
of the spiritual initiation through the Lama’s whispering of the
mantra or sacred text into the Emperor’s ear after the Hindu fashion
in the presence of Changya guru ; l and the particular interview in
which the good Tashi Lama, true to his word, informed the Emperor
that “ in the country of Hindustan, which lies on the borders of my
“ country, there resides a great prince or ruler for whom I have the
“greatest friendship. I wish you should now regard him also, and if
“ you will write him a letter of friendship and receive his in return, it
“ will afford me great pleasure, as I wish you should be known to each
“ other, and that a friendly communication should, in future, subsist
“ between you.”
The Emperor, on hearing this roquest from the much venerated
Lama, replied that it was a very small one indeed, “ but that this or any
“ thing else he desired, should be complied with. He continued to
“ inquire of the Lama what that Prince or Governor’s name was, the
“ extent of the country he ruled over and the number of forces &c.”
At this stage the Lama sent for his confidential Puran Gir, presented
him before his Celestial Majesty, and desired him to answer the inqui-
ries of the Emperor regarding the Governor of Hindustan “ as (he)
the writer 8 had often been in his country. The writer “ then informed
“ him that the Governor of Hindustan was called Mr. Hastings, that
“ the extent of the country he governed was not near equal to that
“ of China, but superior to any other he knew, and that the troops of
“ that country were upwards of three lacks of horsemen .” 3
On another occasion the Lama in the presence of Puran Gir remind-
ed the Emperor that “ he had somo time before mentioned to him a
“ prince or governor of Hindustan, called Mr. Hastings, with whom
“ he (the Lama) held strict friendship, and repeated his wish that the
“ Emperor should know him and hold friendly intercourse with him also
“ by writing to him and receiving his friendly answers. Much more
“ was said by the Lama on this subject, to all of which the Emperor
“ replied, that he could only assure the Lama, he joined most heartily
“ with him in what he wished, as it would give him much pleasure to
“ know and correspond with the Governor of Hindustan, his friend ; and
“ to convince him of his sincerity, he would, if the Lama desired it,
“ cause a letter immediately to be written to the Governor in such
1 The Chinese high priest.
s Puran does not speak of himself in the first person but as ‘ the writer.’
8 Oriental Repertory, VII, pp. 145 — 164.
80 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1>
“ terms as the Lama should dictate, or if the Lama thought, it would
“ be more effectual towards establishing the friendship, he wished that
“ the letter should be in readiness when the Lama took his departure
“from China, and that he should take it with him, and have the care
“ of forwarding it, in such manner as ho thought best, to the Governor
“ of Hindustan. The latter mode the Lama made choice of, and expres-
“ sed much satisfaction.”
It was destined, however, that all this friendly endeavour on the
very eve of bearing fruit should be frustrated, for the Lama was seized,
as elsewhere statod, with small-pox, about which he had forebodings
before he left Taslii Lhunpo, and in fact had written to the Emperor as
one of his apprehensions which disinclined him to go to China. Of this
disoase the Lama died on the evening of the 12th November 1780 as he
sat at prayer. Puran Gir, whom the Lama in his dying hour had sent for
and conversed with, describes his death “ to have been remarkably
tranquil.”
The Emperor who, on receipt of the sad nows, had come to see the
dead body still remaining in a sitting posture through the help of
pillows, was moved to tears. 1 In that position it was put into a coffin,
then into a largo temple-shaped receptaclo of pure gold, with an outer
covering of copper, and was sent in great procession to Tashi Lhunpo,
under the charge of the departed Lama’s brother, to whom the Emperor
said that “ he trusted to the Almighty soon to hear of his arrival there,
“ but above all other things he would impatiently long to hear of the
“ Lama' 8 regenerat ion," which it was his special request strictly to in-
form him of.
Puran Gir accompanied this procession, and saw the gold cased
earthly tenement of the Lama deposited in a mausoleum in Tashi
Lhunpo, while the Buddha world in the north remained expectant for the
appearance of an infant, vivified by the departed spirit of the Tashi
Lama to be elected his successor.
The Chinese Emperor Kuen-lung’s proceedings with reference to
the Lama closed with a letter which he addressed to the Dalai Lama,
informing him of his death, and touchingly alluding to the foreboding
which had at first disinclined him to visit China.*
1 The affecting scene described by Puran Gir, when the Chinese Emperor was
shedding tears at the bedside of the dying Tashi Lama, bears some resemblance
to the great Akbar repairing with his Hakim to the house of his favourite Faizi
the celebrated poet and scholar, when he found him breathing his last, throwing
away his head gear as a mark of great sorrow and bitterly uttering an extemporised
mourning verse.
8 A translation of this letter by M. Amiot, a missionary, is also published in
the Or. Hep. vii, p. 273. Mr. Amiot had previously communicated information to
1890.]
at Blot Bagan in Howrah.
81
The Regent 1 above named as well as tbe minister to the late Lama
Soipon Chenpo, in two very curious letters, conveyed to Warren Has-
tings the melancholy intelligence of the death of the Lama at Peking,
expressing at the same time a hope for the speedy incarnation of his soul.
In both these letters our Pdran Gir is often and often mentioned with
expressions of great confidence in his character and ability. The Soi-
pon Chenpo writes — “ From the relation of Puran Gir inform your-
“ self of those things which are past, and of those which are present, and
“ of those things which are to come to pass,” and the Regent after
giving a brief account of the late Tashi Lama’s visit to China and
his melancholy fate and funeral, says, “ Poorungheer Gosein arrived
“ here in the year 1193, after the departure of the Lama towards China
“ and two letters, and nine strings of pearls, &c. &c. arrived safe ” * *
“ I have communicated other matters, and other things, to the faithful
“ Poorungheer by whom you will be informed of them. In compliance
“ with your wishes, you will permit him to romain under the shadow
“of your protection, and favour him with such marks of your kindness,
“ as may enable him to pass his days in returning thanks for your good-
“ ness.*
There is, in the last letter, allusion in two places to some “ village
of the Raja ” in respect of which Hastings had shown the Lama some
favour and likewise with reference to “ the certain portion of land and
“ the mahsool thereon and in settling the disputes appertaining thereto.”
It is obvious that the allusions refer to the encroachment on the Bhot
Bagan to be noticed further on. The Regent also applies for the grant
of “ a lot of land 8 in the noble city of Calcutta, on the bank of the
river. ” Concerning this affair says he, “ I have spoken fully and
“ particularly to the Gosein Poorungheer, and he will make known to you
“ the whole thereof, and you will comply with my request.”
Puran Gir, when he accompanied Captain Turner to Tibet, rendered
services in promoting the object of the mission as valuable as in the
case of Mr. Bogle, and the Regent reposed in him the same confidence
as had been done by the deceased Tashi Lama ; and though the Captain
does not, in his report and narrative, refer to him as often as his prede-
a Paris Journal of the imperial preparation for the celebration of a ceremony on the
seventeenth birthday of the Emperor, to which the Pan-tchan Erteni, as he calls him,
was invited. The Emperor writes in the above letter, “ Although I am well aware
that to come and to go are but as the same thing to the Panchan Erteni, yot when I
reflect &c.”
1 The Regent’s letter has already been incidentally noticed.
8 Turner, ibid., Ap., pp. 449 — 456.
8 This seems to have been a fresh request for land within the city of Calentta.
It is not known how it was dealt with.
h
82
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
cessor did, he always speaks of him with great appreciation, calls him
a Hindu Gosain, a kind of roligious hermit or pilgrim, and says, “Motives
“ of religious duty, which, among the order of Goseins more specially,
“ attaches peculiar respect to every kind and degree of penance, having
“ occasionally led Poorungheer among the different tribes of Tartars, ho
“had acquired, during his residence amongst them, a very competent
“ knowledge of their manners, and of their language, which he spoke
“ with apparent ease ; and by the exemplary regularity of conduct he
“ had uniformly preserved in his intercourse with the inhabitants of
“ these regions, I fouud that he had strongly recommonded himself to their
“ notice, and obtained the favour of all their chiefs.” 1 And again that
he as well as the Tibetan Pauima “ were men of acute understanding
“ and ready information, and from them much knowledge was collected
“ both of the country from which they came, and of the way which led
“ to it.”
It was a grand and momentous occasion when the Bengal Mission
arrived in Tibet. It was the celebration of a festival on the Tashi
Lama’s (a Boddhisatwa) having sacrificed his Buddhahood for the
behoof of his devotees and reappeared in the flesh. There was a mighty
stir and flutter throughout the Buddha domains, extending on the
one hand to China and Tartary, and on the othor to Bhutan, Sikkim
and Nepal. Magnificent preparations, calculated to produce a specta-
cular effect, were made to remove the infant Lama from his house in the
Painon valley to the monastery of Tharpaling for his training. Turner
sought, through the mediation of Puran Gir, to obtain for him admittance
into the arena of the imposing ceremony, but the assiduous Gosain failed
in his endeavour. Chinoso jealousy of strangers was apprehended, and the
Regent’s and Soipon Chenpo’s conversation on a former occasion ex-
plained this, when they cited Puran Gir as witness to “ the anxiety they
“ had laboured under, in contriving to conduct ” the Captain to Tashi
Lhunpo. Captain Turner was perfectly satisfied as to the genuineness
of this dread of Chinese influence, though this nation deify the Lama.
He says in the recital of their embarrassments, “ though they are averse
“ to own any immediate dependance upon the Chinese, I could plainly
“ trace the greatest awe of the Emperor of China, of his officers
“ stationed at the court of Lassa styled Umbas, as well as of the Jasoos,
“ and the Raja of that place, Gesub Rimbochay 2 who had usurped even,
1 Turner ; ibid., p. 38, note.
‘ Properly Gyetshab Rinpochhe (also called Sadag for which Turner finds no exact
English equivalent, bnt supposes it to mean Prime minister and something more,
ibid., p. 245} is a temporal sovereign who, during the minority of the Dalai Lama
at Lhasa, presides as the Rogont. As this minority is of frequent occurrence, the
1890.] at Bhot Bdgdn in Howrah. 83
“ from the hands of the Dalai Lama, the greatest portion of his tem-
“ poral power.”
The Regent and the minister, however, soon after the retirement of
the Chinese troops and officers, who had been sent by the Emperor to escort
the infant Lama to the monastery, allowed Captain Turner to obtain,
through the Gosain’s endeavour, a ready compliance with such requests
as he made from time to time. He was admitted into the monasteries,
and allowod to enter the mausoleum of the late Tashi Lama, the structure,
adornments, and riches of which, and the ceremonies in which, he des-
cribes with groat circumstantiality. Ho saw depicted, upon the pedestal,
the imperial Chinese dragon — a conspicuous indication of the suzerainty
of this nation. Uudor the portico of the mausoleum, sat a priest reading
a book 1 with the greatest attention, indifferent to what was going around ;
there were others to relieve him, it being their duty to pray perpetually
upon the same spot, and keep alive the sacred fire 2 that burns before
the shrine. The departed Tashi Lama, whose corpse cased in gold was
deposited at the base of the pyramidal tomb, in an upi’ight sitting
devotional attitude, was represented on the top in an effigy of gold.
Puran Gir Gosain and others “ prostrated themselves nine times with
devout humility.” The Captain saw also every religious edifice adorned
with the head of the lion evincing the Tibetan veneration for the
animal.
Towards tho commencement of December, when, on the return
journey, the deputation came to the foot of the hill on which was
situated the Tharpaling monastery already noticed, in which the infant
Lama, then eighteen mouths old had been lodged for education, Captain
Turner was allowed to visit this Lama, whom he found seated in great
form upon his throne with his parents on each side. The child turned
towards a crowd of visitors that came to worship him, “ and received
them all with a cheorful look of complacency.” The father, among
other things said, that the Lama rose earlier than usual, “ because the
English gentlemen were arrived, and he could not sleep.” “ During
the time we were in the room,” says the Captain, “ I observed that
“ the Lama’s eyes were scarcely ever turned from ns, and when our
“ cups were empty of tea, he appeared uneasy, * * * until
“ they were filled again. He took some burnt sugar out of a golden cup,
Gosab in fact is cousiderod as tho real sovereign, the Dalai on coming to years of
maturity often tries to shake oil the control of the ambitions Gesabs, but the latter
succeed by foul means to retain power.
1 Like the reading of the Gliandi in the Hindu shrines ; but the Tibetan practioe
of unremitting reoitation is unique.
s The preservation of the sacred fire is another old Hindu religious practice
adopted by tho Tibetans.
84
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
“ containing some confectionary, and, stretching out his arm, made a
“ motion to his attendant, to give them to me. * * * *
“ I found myself, though visiting an infant, under the necessity of
“ saying something ; for it was hinted to me, that notwithstanding
“he is unable to reply, it is not to be inferred that he cannot un-
“ derstand.” He, the Captain, then made a brief speech, beginning
with an allusion to his (the Lama’s) death in China and happy regenera-
tion, and to the joy of the Govomor-General at this last auspicious
event, and ending with a request for an extensive communication between
his votaries and the dependants of the British Nation. “ The little
creature turned,” writes Captain Turner, “ looking stedfastly towards
“ me, with the appearance of much attention while I spoke, and nodded
“ with repeated but slow movements of the head, as though he under-
“ stood and approved every word, but could not utter a reply. * *
“ His whole attention was directed to us ; he was silent and sedate,
“ never once looking towards his parents ; * * * his be-
“ havionr, on this occasion, appeared perfectly natural and spontaneous,
“ and not directed by any external action, or sign of authority. * *
“ Ho made the most expressive signs, and conducted himself with asto-
“ nishing dignity and decorum. * * He had an animated expres-
“ sion of countenance ; altogether, I thought him one of the handsomest
“ children I had ever seen.” When a watch on another visit was
presented to him, “ he admired it, but with gravity and without any
“ childish emotion.” 1
The work performed by Piiran Gir, when he himself as envoy of
the Governor-General presented himself before the Regent of the minor
Tashi Lama, has already been briefly noticed. In his journey through
Bhutan, he received from the subjects of the Deb Raja the most ample
and voluntary assistance to the frontier of his territory, and experienced
upon the borders of Tibet such an unusually inclement weather by a
heavy fall of snow as to leave him no doubt of his falling a victim to it,
but an early change taking place, the party were enabled to advance.
The mission reached Tashi Lhunpo on the 8th May, and Piiran Gir
immediately presented himself at the Durbar of the Chanjo Kusho,
Panchhen Ertini Nomankhan, and explained the object of his mission
which was the same as the previous ones. The Gosain received a most
favourable reception, as due to one in whom the late Lama, the Regent
himself and the Governor- General of India reposed the utmost con-
fidence and whom the people of Tibet and Bhutan venerated. Ho was
introduced into the garden, where the young Lama 2 was then taking
1 Turner, ibid., p. 334-36.
* Then within his fourth year.
at Blwt Bagan in Howrah:
85
1890.]
his recreation, attended by the Regent, his parents and others. Here
he made his prostration, and showed other marks of veneration. The
despatches were broken open by the Lama, who examined every article
of the present brought to him, and regarded the Gosain with a very
kind and significant look, talked to him in the Tibetan language, and
gave his dismissal by laying his hand upon his head which he had
previously uncovered for the purpose.
Puran Gir witnessed one of the grandest and most imposing cere-
monies in Tibet, which was the removal of the child Lama from the
Tharpaling monastery to that of Taslii Lhunpo, and his installation there
on the throne of his predecessors. Here he saw ambassadors from
China, the Dalai Lama himself from Lhasa, and deputies from many
other countries, accompanied by numerous trains of attendants and
officers, swelled by an unprecedented crowd of people whose devotion
or the pleasure of sight-seeing had drawn thither, and he beheld with
wonderment arrangements which were conducive to pomp and parade,
grandeur and magnificence.
The Gosain had frequent interviews with the Regent and the
Tibetan authorities at Tashi Lhunpo, who all assured him of their desire
to encourage the commercial intercourse established under the auspices
of the late Governor-General, and of the respect they entertained for
the integrity of the character of the English nation, of which they
had been convinced by intercourse with the agents of Warren Hastings,
specially as the Regent said that “the views of the English tended to
“ no scheme of ambition, but were confined merely to objects of utility
“ and curiosity.”
With Puran Gir’s mission in 1785 ended the statesmanly and most
wisely concerted proceedings of the first Governor- General of India,
to open friendly and commercial relations between the Tibetan, Bhutan-
ese and other Himalayan states and Central Asian regions on the one
side, and the British Government and its subjects on the other — relations
which received a rude shock undor the Government of Lord Cornwallis,
when he failed to realise the importance of promptitude of action in
protecting the Tashi Lama’s realm from the unprovoked and wanton
invasion by the Gurkhfili dynasty of Nepal, in 1792. The tardy
measures which led to “the despatch of Captain Kirkpatrick, followed
too late after the Chinese General Sund Po had vindicated the honour of
the Tashi Lama, and curbed the ambitious chief of Nepal by a crushing
defeat of his army.”
It will now be seen that while the establishment of Bhot Bagan
and the despatch of the Tibet missions owe their origin remotely to the
Gurkha invasion of Sikkim, followed by the Bhutanese invasion of
86 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
Kuch Behar, in 1769, and the masterly and conciliatory policy of
Warren Hastings ; and proxiraately to the mysterious doctrine of Lama
metempsychosis and the zealous and faithful service of a Sivite Sanny&si ;
the most audacious Gurkhali invasion above alludod to, culminating
in the sack of Tashi Lhunpo and the flight to Lhasa of the same Tashi
Lama who as an infant had received the Turner and the Gosain
missions, as well as the foresightless and the masterly inactive policy
of the Cornwallis rule, are to bo regarded as immediate causes of the
final closure of the gates for British officials to the Ois- and Trans-nivean
states. It was also within a shoi-t while subsequent to those events
that in the Bhot Bagan the brave Gosain met his death at the hands
of robbers, as the sequel of the narrative will show. The Gurkha inva-
sions, therefore, of 1769 and 1792, should be remembered as the two
mile-stones of very important occurrences in the history of British
India.
The important features of the extraordinary character of Puran
Gir, the co-assignee of the Tashi Lama, have been gleaned from the
history of the missions to Tibet. He possessed remarkable intelligence
and wisdom, a fund of inexhaustible energy, a mastery of many lan-
guages including Tibetan and Mongolian, a wide range of experience
acquired by travel in and out of India, a practical insight into all the
commercial relations of Asia of which Tibet formed the heart, and enjoyed
and deserved a reputation for piety and integrity which made him the
trusted agent of the Tashi Lhunpo authorities and the Bengal Government
Of the personal history of this remarkable and extraordinary,
Sannyasi, unfortunately there exists no record ; whatever was known
of him, has, like that of most of our illustrious countrymen, passed into
oblivion. It is a happy thing that so many particulars aud incidents
connected with his public life and such abundant testimony to his
character, capacity and comprehensive knowledge of the important
affairs of the time, have been preserved in the pages of Markham’s
“ Narrative of the Mission of George Bogle to Tibet ” — a narrative the
materials of which were traced by the author in the possession of
private individuals, and were not found in the public records of Govern-
ment ; and in the Reports of Captain Turner as well as of the Gosain
himself. The statement of the Gosain was taken down by Turner and
submitted to the Governor-General Macphorson, and this forms an
annexure of the Report. But even such information as is here given
from these works is of a meagre character, and is so promiscuously
scattered rather as digressive matter that it had to be collected with
great circumspection.
Among the papers which were kindly delivered to me by Umrao
1890.]
at TJi of Sagan in Howrah.
87
Gir, the present Mahantaof Bhot Bagan, is, as already stated, a passport. 1
in Tibetan, which had been given to Puran Gir by the Tashi Lama for his
pilgrimage to the celebrated sacred Lake of Mana Sarovara, the source
of the Sutlej, 800 miles from Lhasa. This document shows what great
regard and respect the Lama had for our Gosain, for whose comfort
and convenience most minute injunctions were given in it. A facsimile
of the text (see Plate II) with a translation by Babu Sarat Chandra Das
is annexed.
Some particulars about the Gosain have been gathered from the
statements of the said Mahanta. According to him Puran was a Brali-
mana by caste, though as a Sandi * he had cast off his sacrificial thread.
His title Gir (or Giri) shows he was a follower of S'ankardcharya’s teach-
ings and one of the Damnamt dandis, and must have been initiated at the
Jyosi math. In the passport the Tashi Lama describes him as an
Acharya. He was a young man when he went to Tibet as a pilgrim, he
had fair features, and was tall, strong and sinewy. His usual dress consist-
ed of the Sannyasi’s kaupina, with a short red ochre-dyed piece of cloth
wrapped round his loins, and a tiger skin thrown over his shoulders, but
on certain public occasions he wore a kind of toga, and covered his head
with a turban. He was also a good rider, as testified to by Messrs.
Bogle and Turner, with whom he rode races on the Himalayan plateau.
His habits were simple and his heart pure, he took a single spare meal,
and cooked his own food consisting of rice and vegetables only. He
never ate before feeding his guests. Pious men of all sects frequented
his monastery, and many of them lodged there, lie used to bo entrusted
with valuable commodities, chiefly gold, for sale in Bengal, and he had
a concern of his own also, but he never amassed any fortune, which ho
could easily have done, but he bestowed what he gained in large and
open-handed charities. It was the special wish of the Lama that in the
1 The passport granted to Puran Gir by the Tashi Lama, from Tashi Lhnnpo, may
be compared with the one granted by the Dalai Lama, from Lhasa, to an Armenian
in 1688, published with a translation by Osoma de Korcis in the 2nd volume of this
Journal. Though indeed they are for different purposes. It may be here stated
in passing that the seal attached to Puran Gir’s passport is the oval signet seal of the
Tashi Lama, and that on the Armenian’s passport is a squaro soal of the Dalai Lama.
If the engraving in the latter had been shown, there would have been an opportunity
of comparing it with the seals on the Persian sanads given to Puran Gir. Puran
Gir is described in the passport as an A churya.
! DaniU, lit. one who carries a danda in his hand. Though this term applies
generally to' a mendicant oarrying a staff, it is the peculiar appellation of a mendi-
cant of that particular order which follows the teachings of S'ankaracharya.
“ Kaupina is a strip of cloth worn crosswise between the thighs to cover the
privities.
88 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No 1,
Bhot. Bagan monastery Tibetans, who resorted to places of pilgrimage
in Bengal and its neighbourhood, should meet with Puran Gir’s hospi-
tability. Captain Turner himself gives an instance of a tall, emaciated
Sannyasi pilgrim from Tibet, whom he met in the streets of Calcutta,
introduced to the Governor-General, and made over to Puran Gir to be
lodged in the Bhot Bagan during the period of his sojourn in Bengal.
Mr. Dalrymple also, as alluded to elsewhere, testifies to such facts by
his personal knowledge.
In speaking of Puran Gir’s last mission it has already been stated
that he returned to Bengal after its successful prosecution. Captain
Turner, in his most valuable memorandum of information, which he
gathei’ed from the Gosain and which he submitted to Mr. Macplierson
on the 6th February 1786, draws among other things, the attention of
the Governor-General to the important facts which he ascertained with
infinite satisfaction from the Gosain and says “ I learn from the reports
“ of Pooruugheer, the flourishing state of the lately projected scheme of
“ trade ; to promote which, he assures me, not anything has been want-
“ ing in facility of intercourse ; that the adventurers, who had invested
“ their property, had experienced perfect security in conducting their
“ commerce, had carried their articles to an exceeding good market, and
“ found the rate of exchange materially in their favour.” 1
When Puran Gir was away in Tibet on the Government service, he
had left the Bhot Bagan in charge of his cheld or disciple Dal jit Gir,
but when he returned with despatches from the Tashi Lama, he found
to his mortification that a portion of his, or the Lama’s, property on the
banks of the river had been invaded and taken possession of by a
zamindar. On the subject of this encroachment, tlio good Captain
Turner thus put in a paragraph in the memorandum alluded to : — “ the
“ little territory his adopted chela was left in charge of, having during
“ his absence been violently invaded by Raaj Chund, a neighbouring
(< zemeendar, and to the amount of 60 begas forcibly taken out of his
« i lan ds. Prevailed on by his earnest and repeated solicitation, I am
“ induced to say for him, that in your justice and favour are his only
“ hopes of relief from his embarassmouts, and he humbly asks your pro-
« tec t ion in restoring and securing him in the possession of his invaded
“ rights. The liberty of this intercession, I am confident to think, would
« he forgiven, were it not in favour of one who has rendered various
“ useful services to this Government ; but though of trivial importance,
« it affords also an authentic instance, of the encroaching disposition of
“ inferior zemeendars. Yet another circumstance, it may not be improper
“ to point out ; that the ground alluded to, is a part of the land situated
1 Turner, ibid., p. 433.
at Bliot Bdgan in Howrah.
89
1890.]
“ on the western bank of the river, opposite to Calcutta, which was
“ formerly granted, under a sunnud of this Government to Teshoo Lama,
“ for the foundation of a plaoe of worship, and as a resort for those
“ pilgrims of his nation, who might occasionally make visits to the
“ consecratad Ganges.” 1
It will be remembered that in one of the sanads already described,
dated 11th February 1783, a portion of the 50 bighas of land, thereby
granted to Puran Gir or the Lama, is stated to be situated within the
property of Rajchand Rai. Now in the absence of Puran from his math,
this Rajchand, believing perhaps he was dead and not recognising the
title of his chela to the property, seized not only the portion of land
which no doubt had been purchased of him or his brother Ramlochan,
but the other portions which, together with it, made up the 50 bighas
mentioned in the sanad. It does not appear what was the result of
Captain Turner’s mediation for the restoration of the land ; probably
Piiran regained possession of it .
Our Puran Gir Gosain, now between 1785 and 1786, settled down
for good in his demesne, which, in his time, it is said, was exclusively
and rigidly devoted to tho purposes intended by the Lama. They were
both religious and secular, that is, the encouragement of the Tibeto-
Buddhist religion and the promotion of the interests of the Tibeto- Bengal
trade. His little territory had numerous cottages all around for the
accommodation of pilgrims and traders from Tibet, and he divided his
time between devotion and the carrying out of mercantile projects,
which latter, so far as he was concerned, he advanced to enable him
to perform those acts of piety and charity, in which the Lama, his patron,
and he took supreme pleasure.
Ho is said to have understood the esoteric principles of the S' dicta
Tantras as well as those which, perhaps in a modified form, found their
way into Tibet or were of indigenous origin there, and he adopted the
ideas of the Veddnta philosophy, as represented in S'aivaism by S'anka-
rae harya, to the Qiri branch of whose school he belonged. He,
moreover, was constituted an agent to conduct mercantile transac-
tions in which regular traders as well as pilgrims from Tibet and
Bhutan participated. With reference to the latter it is stated by Mr.
Bogle and Turner, that Sannydsis used to be entrusted with “articles
of great value but of little bulk and weight.” His principal agency
business was directed to help tho traders or their people in disposing
of their wares and making purchases. The principal commodities,
1 Turner, ibid., pp. 431, 432.
90 Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1»
which people from the various regions used to bring, were gold dust 1
in bambti barrels, musk, &c. ; and the goods they carried back to their
countries consisted chiefly of cotton, Maldah cloth, broad-cloth, spices,
sandalwood, indigo, amber, and various miscellaneous articles, such as
knives, snuff boxes, &c
For about a decade since his final return from Tibet, Puran Gir
Gosain lived happily, piously and usefully in the Bhot Bagan, enjoying
the pious veneration of all people who came into contact with him, and
the high esteem and regard of the Bengal Government. The Governor-
General, it is said, used to visit him at times in his math.
But a terrible catastrophe soon happened which cut short his ex-
traordinary career and the happy and useful life he was enjoying under
almost the very shadow of the Government House. The fame of Bhot
Bagan, as a store-house of the richest gold, had spread far and wide.
Dakoities, which in their terrible aspect, formed the sequel of the great
famine known to our countrymen as the mawwantara of ’76, were then
the order of the day. The ranks of the dakoits 8 were also swelled by
roving bands of saunyasis, who in the guise of mendicants traversed dif-
ferent countries, and lost no opportunities of ravaging and plundering
them. The official correspondence of the time is rife with statements
regarding them, and projects for their suppression. It will be remem-
bered that, in the treaty with the Deb Raja alroady noticed, there is
an extradition clause regarding these sannyasis.
On an unlucky night a gang of dakoits, whether dakoits or hypo-
crite sannyasis who had perhaps experienced the hospitality of the
Bhot Bagan, it is not known, burst within its precincts and sacrilegi-
ously entered the math with the intention of plundering it ; but our
valiant Gosain, it is said, snatched a sword, kept the robbers at bay
by its dexterous use, fought for a short while, and at last was over-
powered and fell senseless, pierced with the thrust of a sarlcl or bambti
spear. The robbers took no further notice of him, and swept clean
the temple and dwelling of whatever valuables could be found therein,
and decamped as quickly as possible. The news of this calamity was
promptly conveyed to the Governor-General, who lost no time to send
a surgeon to help the poor Gosain, and if possible to bring him round,
but all the arts of the physician were of no avail, and the viotim of
violence and perhaps treachery and ingratitude, after lingoring for
about thirty-soven hours, breathed his last, unfavourably commenting
no doubt on his own statement to the Tashi Lama and Regent as
1 It is said a maund of gold dust used to come from Tibet every year. This
quantity at the rate of 16 Rs. a told would be worth 61,200 Rs.
! Dacoits, properly ddkait, i. e., robbers.
at Bhot Bag an in Howrah.
91
1890.]
to the undisturbed security of life and property under the British raj
at that time. This occurred most probably in the early part of 1795, the
date of the consecration of the tomb being the 23rd Vaisakha of 1202,
3rd May 1795. At this time his age is said to have been not less
than fifty years, a statement which harmonises with the fact, which
Mr. Bogle has incidentally noticed in his narrative, that Puran Gir, when
he first saw him, that is in 1774, was a young man.
Thus ended the life of the great Puran Gir Gosain, the Bhot Bagan
mahant, the linguist, traveller, religionist, and merchant, the first and the
only ambassador of the Tashi Lama sent to Bengal, the guide and material
helper of the British missions to Tibet, the companion of the Lama in his
journey to China, where in the court of Peking he stood before the Em-
peror, and perhaps in Chinese described to him the grandeur of the Raj
of Hindustan ruled by a great king of the name of Hastings Sahib who
was solicitous to open a friendly and commercial intercourse between
Bengal and Tibet and his empire, and lastly, the man who exhibited
such strong and repeated instances of his ability, intelligence, intrepe-
dity and faithfulness as to be appointed, by that keen-sighted statesman
Warren Hastings, the sole envoy accredited to the court of Tashi
Lhunpo in 1785.
One may be excused in indulging a hope that had this Gosain’s
life been prolonged, he would no doubt have succeeded, with officers
of the style of Bogle, Turner and Hodgson, to open that desirable com-
mercial intercourse between the Himalayan states generally, and spe-
cially the commerce-promoting, peace-loving and peace and knowledge-
seeking Tibet, on the one hand, and the Indian provinces on the other,
and saved that trouble, expense, and waste of energy which our Govern-
ment, under one policy or other, is, up to this time, undergoing to attain
that great object
Daljit Gir Gosain mahant, the chela and successor of Pdran Gir,
formally reported the melancholy news of his death to the Government.
Sharp was the enquiry and quick the vindication of justice that follow-
e d : — four dakoits expiated their guilt on the gallows, erected in the
Bhot Bagan itself.
The pious Daljit lost no time in performing the funeral rites of
his guru or spiritual teacher, whose corpse was laid in a coffin in a sitting
posture, as was the case with the Tashi Lama’s dead body, and interred
in a place behind the main portion of the math. A samddhi stambha
or tomb was raised over the grave with the already mentioned inscrip-
tion in the Bengali language and character, and the structure was
crowned at the top with the phallus emblem of Mahadeva, into whose
spirit, as the inscription describes, that of Puran Gir was absorbed. In
92
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
order to carry the account of Bhot Bagan and Puran Gir Bhot makanta,
down to the present time, I should say in passing, that the Lama, or
rather the Regent, had requested Captain Turner to take with him to
Bengal the old Suk Deo (Sukha Deva) Gosain, who was afraid to
travel through Bhutan with his wealth accumulated by his forty years’
mercantile journeys over various distant countries reaching to Siberia
on the north. This old Gosain is said to have lived for a short time in
the Bhot Bagfin monastery.
After Puran Gir’s death, his successor Daljit Gir continued to be
the head of the math for nearly forty-three years, as his death is
recorded on the said tomb to have happened on the 6th Mdgha 1243
B. S. His place was taken by Kali Gir Mahanta, who built one of the
S'iva temples in the vicinity of the math previously noticed, on the 15th
Adwiria 1254 B. S., and died on the 2nd Vaisakha 1264 B. S. One of
the two present 1 Mahantas, Bilas Gir Gosain, having consecrated the
said temple in the month of Vaisakha 1265 B. S., was installed on the
gaddi of the math. There was some litigation between him and another
Gosain, named Umrao Gir, who, having established his claim, has be-
como an associate Mahanta with equal rights and privileges.
The Bhot Bagan has gradually lost its primitive character; for
a long time since the murder of Puran Gir, and the plunder of the math ,
the place became notorious as a nest of robbers and wicked people ;
guest houses fell into ruins, and hospitality and charity died away, a
mere mummery of unmeaning puja has been kept up, the lands have
been leased away piecemeal in maurusi and muqarrari tenure, and
nothing brrt the math now remains, enshrining grotesque and even
obscene figures of Hindu and Tibeto-Buddhistic mythology, a solitary
monument of the genius and policy of the first Governor- General of
India, of the piety of the Tashi Lama, and of the Tibeto-Bengal trade
which flourished centuries ago, and was restored, though in a stifled
form, a century ago.
Before concluding this paper I am tempted to point to certain facts
and make some observations, which the account of Bhot Bagan and the
story of Piiran Gir Gosain suggest. In the first place, the history of
the missions connected with these accounts unfolds the fact that Tibet,
from time immemorial, has been the resort of merchants.
Tibet, in the days of Warren Hastings, was little known except to
readers of the raro works containing accounts of the travellers and
Capuchin Missionaries, whom curiosity, love of knowledge, or religious
1 Bilnsa Gir Mahanta, who had been suffering from a lingering disease for
some time, expired on the 28th February 1889, and was duly buried by his associate
Umrao Gir Gosain, who has now become the solo mahanta of the ma(h.
at Blwt Bagdn in Howrah.
93
1890.]
zeal impelled to visit that place, and it is said by his faithful Boswell,
Gleig, that he prepared himself by a study of some of these boohs to
give proper instructions to the first mission under Mr. Bogle, ns to how
he should proceed, and what he should do. With an eagle’s glance he
ascertained what wealth the bleak regions on the summits of the lofty
Himalaya could yield, and through his missions completed his know-
ledge of the trade and commerce, and of the most curious hierarchical
form of government existing in the world that, with the aid of religion,
minimises the dangers of an elective monarchy. His grand policy was
to tap, by a really sincere and friendly method, the vast productive
resources of that region, to link the trade of Bengal with those com-
mercial arteries, which from Tibet as their heart, ramify down the
Himalayan slopes, and extend to China and Scythia, and confines of
Siberia ; and well did he, with his reputed sagacity for selection, choose
his officers, not despising the mendicant Gosain Puran Gir to make one of
his ambassadors. He moved stop by step, understood the difficulties of
his friend, the Tashi Lama, inspired though the latter was with a natural
and sincere desire to promote Tibeto-Bengal trade, in the face of Chinese
opposition. He understood the peoplo he was dealing with, an un-
ambitious, peace-loving, peace-seeking race, bent upon promoting com-
mercial prosperity, and in spite of repeated attempts by interested
monopolisers and prejudiced Chinese, embracing Europeans with open
arms, who by their learning, sincerity and ways of dealing captivated
their hearts.
Great and most powerful are the ties which bind Tibet to Bengal ;
the religious associations, the traditions and remembrance of ancient
commercial intei’course should attract the Tibetans to our country. If
the policy of the first administrator of India had been only continuous,
our Government could, by this time, have enjoyed its best results.
A sensitive peoplo like the Tibetans, where a disturbing object is
rightly or wrongly apprehonded, shrinks from contact, as the tortoise
draws in its limbs under a similar instinctivo fear. A statesmanship
with tact, caution, delicacy and foresight, and guided by a knowledge
of the political history, religion and customs of the country, cannot but
serve to restore the old policy of the last century. Nor at times
should native agency, about which Bogle and Hodgson say much, be
despised. Even if sannyasi agency be sought, there would be no difficulty
perhaps to find men who, though not equal to Puran Gir and Puran
Puri , 1 may be their not undeserving followers. We lately saw sannyasis,
1 Puran Puri. Turner saw him in 1783 in the streets of Calcutta riding upon a
Tangan horso from Bhutan. He was then forty years of age. Two Gosains attended
him and assisted him in mounting and alighting from his horse, for his hands were
94
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
learned in the S'astras, with an unqnenching thirst for knowledge, in
their mendicant dress, and with matted hair, orating cleverly in English
in the midst of a large audience at the Town Hall, and at other places.
And cannot Bhot Bagan or any other place be utilised to draw
the affections of the Lama towards Bengal ?
I cannot resist the temptation of quoting hero a kind of peroration
and prayer of Sir. Bogle.
“ Farewell ye honest and simple people ! May ye long enjoy that
happiness which is denied to more polished nations, and while they
are ongaged in the endless pursuits of avarice and ambition, defended
by your barren mountains, may ye continue to live in peace and content-
ment, and know no want but those of nature.” And who would not
say Amen !
Appendix.
Sanad, No. I. 1
Square
red
Seal.
Square
black
Seal.
bUjj j JbseLwij Jla.
<xn t— ^ .c b ^ ^
tl.y i , ^a! ,
immovably fixed over his head with the fingers looked into each other. “ The cir-
“ culation of blood seemed to have forsaken his arms, they were withered, void of
“ sensation and inflexible,” but ho assured the Captain that he would recover thoir
use in the following year when his ponanoe would end. He is said to have been a
Panjabi of the Kshatriya caste, he started “ by crossing the Peninsula of India,
“ through Guzerat ; ho then passed by Surat to Bnssora, and thenoe to Constnnti-
“ nople, from Turkey he went to Ispahan ; and sojourned so long among the different
“ Persian tribes, as to obtain a considerable knowledge of their language, in which
“ he conversed with tolerable ease. In his passage thence towards Russia, he fell in
“ with the Kussaucs (hordes of Cossacks] upon the borders of the Caspian Sea,
“ where he narrowly escaped being condemned to perpetual slavery : at lougth ho
“ was suffered to pass on, and reached Moscow ; ho then travelled along the nor-
“ them boundary of the Russian empire, and through Siberia arrived at Pekin in
“ China, from whence he came through Tibot, by the way of Teshoo Loomboo
“ and Nipal, down to Caloutta.” Turner, ibid., p. 271.
1 Of the two square seals on Sanads I and II, the red seal is larger than the
black one. The former, which is the Grand Lama’s seal, contains a legend, in three
ft iff
perpendicular lines, in Lantshan (Nagari) characters, the exterior ones beings a (man-
w
95
1890.] at Bhot Bdgan in Hoivrah.
^JLs'*' 10 AS" j a/aj AXJtAo aJI&j ok
j va»«~«
°~" 4 A&.J jl^.a. J j y,y iS^ Jl A&J U*“-“
£“y° jl *y~J
J Ls^lri <3^ y 1 yk* c ~“‘l C?Ij ja '-^ ^ u&! v aI^j (^AlwyS’
_ylLo i_^JyJj (3^ J i^lA £♦■?■ *' 15M? (Je-
L5^ <3^ CjJlLf
<_|AAj| (^yc cplib j Ai»oo ,£j|i>.a.| ylij Aaj JA c.’Jt £?
OA^e ^(a. A? Aiii gJu j aILIA _j A*o£j ^ jlsf & I I A« *»•“
8Ay»j <£)liW Upbib )
j ^j'*^c ]j £ 3A. lyT A? Ajb Av«b Key i_j^*- , ° ,j
i^yo j iaajI.*u w f ^.j|<a£IIx a.A| Ai«~j|i ^»lali o
&X<A> I>J }
y*)^ #lc «xUf ^ t>j^/o *4^ 4Xullo>
(3*3^° aI&J | I Ad Au»! 85lw| A A bo Jy J^jUixi | VVA A 1 -"
Jj5/I tjAUj-yy
• A-i ^Jj' J/|_j f ♦ Abv.
No. 2.
Square
red
Seal.
Square
black
Seal.
_, ^bykyli _, vyl ) JbSL«f ) Jla- *>y> ^bcA-aio
3 3
^lia. <Xal*I/c ,»l£iU> j!^yj j^y iby Al*£ jy t-Sbjb ^jA cjb-jly' 0
o(a£UC *A*
C a 3 x jA A&J Isls^A ^jJIys aJo|a.J aJ&J ^lU) &y*e
yj i£bjb
AJj OanJJ j jJ^Sbi Ay tjt^/C &U>U y OSA A&J Aj W T ^i*s A,e Aa
&U*3 ^ a&j
At*1j j*3 A^lj ^fll*i jA iSy-J ^AVyA Ay; J<y. '-J _j A Ay.
gala), the medial, an illegible monogram. The latter is the Court seal of the Tashi
Lama, containing an illegible legend in two perpendicular lines, in the square form
of the ancient Mongolian character, called the Yngar, used in Mongolia in the 11th
and 12th centuries A. D. In the upper margin of the red seal is inserted the sign of
the lingam, in that of the black seal the mark (J.
96 Gaur Das By sack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1,
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Government.
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9
1890.] at Bho( Bdgan in Howrah.
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[N. B. This sen] hears the autograph signature of Warren Hasting
on the left of the seal.]
No. 4.
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93
Gaur Das Bysack — Notes on a Buddhist Monastery [No. 1
Translation of Sanad I.
Know ye, the Mutasadd is of affairs, for the present and future times,
Chaudharis, Qanuugos, Ta’nluqdars, tenants and cultivators of Dari
Barbakpur, etc., in parganah Boro etc., sarkar Satgaon, appertaining to
chaklah Hughli, in the subah of Bengal, the Paradise of countries, '[that
100 bigahs and 8 bis walls of cultivated land, out of which 66 bigahs are
situated in mauza’ Dari Barbakpur, parganah Boro, and 34 bigahs and
8 biswahs in nmuza’ Ghusari, parganah Paikan,] and all collectively
situated on the bank of the Ganges, are rent-free granted to *[Pdrangir
Gosain], the store of wisdom and prudence, the head of the unpretending
seekers of truth, and the source of perfect righteousness, in consideration
of his righteousness and devotion to truth, for the purpose of erecting a
temple and planting a gai'don, from the beginning of the Bengali year
3 [1185]. It is desired that in erecting a temple and planting a garden
on the laud, he should possess and enjoy the same. You must know the
said land to be free of rent ; you shall not receive the rent thereof, shall
not in any way interfere, and shall not demand any new sanad. You are
to know that in this matter strict observance is required.
8 [ Dated the 12th June 1778 English, corresponding to the 1st
Asarh 1185 Bangali and 16th of the lunar month Jamadi-l-Awal of the
20th year of the reign].
Sanad II is identical with Sanad I in every respect, excepting the
two portions, marked 1 and 3 in brackets, which run as follows :
![that 50 bigahs of cultivated laud in the said mauza’ Barbakpiir,
out of which 9 bigahs and 7 biswahs are on the property of Maharajah
Nabkish, 29 bigahs in that of Rajah Rai Chand Rai, and 11 bigahs and
13 biswahs in that of Rajah Ram Lochan].
3 [Dated the 11th 17 ... English, corresponding to the 2nd
of Falgun 1189 Bangali] .
Sanad III is identical with Sanad I in every respect, excepting the
portion marked 3 in brackets, which runs as follows :
3 [to Tesla Lamah Panchau Ardani Bakdeo Panclian],
Sanad IV is identical with Sanad II, but contains the portion,
marked 3 in brackets, as given in Sanad III. The date, which is muti-
lated in Sanad II, is perfect in this Sanad, and runs as follows :
*[ Dated the 11th February 1783 English, corresponding to the 2nd
of Falgun 1189 Bangali].
1890.]
at Bhot Bagan in Howrah.
99
Literal translation of the Lam-yig or passport from Tashi Lhunpo.
To — the districts of Narthan, Gya-chhun, No-dson, Phuft-tshog-lift,
Lhar-tse, Namrin and the Lama of Nerin. Take notice — that one of
the servants of this (Government) A'charya Punagiri with three atten-
dants proceeds to make ablution in the lake Mapham (Mansarawara)
and to walk round it. In the above mentioned places, (the party)
should be provided with fuels, earthen ware, &c , cooking utensils,
ponies, cook servants, &c., other necessaries when required, during morn-
ing and night halts.
Four ponies and seven strong beasts of burden will be required.
The relay of ponies should be arranged from here to Phun-tshog-liu,
from Phun-tshog-lin to Lhar-tse, from Lhar-tse to ftamrin, from Nam rift
to Sagaft-wa. The chief grooms in charge of the pasture lands in the
different districts and sub-divisions, should, as directed by the letter
preceding this, arrange for relaying strong ponies of the above named
number and also send pony returners quickly and render (the party)
all possible help (in the journey). The relay of the beasts of burden
should be arranged from the town of Shiga-tse to Plmn-tshog-lin, from
Phun-tshog-lift to Namrin through, from framrift to Nerin and from
Nerift to Sagah-wa at once. The party should be furnished at every
stage with returners of the conveyance animals and an experienced and
intelligent guide to accompany them (in their journey). All possible
help should be rendered to (the party). Similar arrangements to
the above effect should be made during the return journey. This is
important — dated year Earth-Dog, 1778 A. D.