Of the Sixth Century. We Recognize, Indeed, a Beginning of It in the Work of Aryabhata, Written in Or Soon After A.D

THE EUPNATH AND SARNATH EDICTS OF ASOKA ]053

•of the sixth century. We recognize, indeed, a beginning of it in the work of Aryabhata, written in or soon after A.D. 499. Verse 1 of the Dasagltikasutra, the introductory part of his work containing his elements and certain other preliminaries, states first the revolutions of the Sun for the exeligmos used by him, the Yuga of 4,320,000 years, and then the revolutions of the Moon. Next, however, it states the rotations of the earth (for which other writers substituted the revolutions of the stars ; stating them, however, after the same detail for Saturn): and then, dealing with the remaining planets, it preserves the astronomical arrangement in the descending order,— Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and Mercury. Thus, what he did stops far short of the practice which we have quoted from astronomical writers who came after him. It is, in fact, only from the time of Varahamihira, who died in A.D. 587, and whose literary activity may be placed from A.D. 550 onwards, that we can, so far, trace the habit as an established one. And in view of the point that he was both an astronomer and an astrologer, we may venture to suggest that it was actually by him that the habit was set going. But, as has been said, the habit must have existed for an appreciable time before it could have such an influence as is seen in the Puranic idea of the universe. And while I write, of course, with reservations, subject to anything that we may learn hereafter from the publication of other astronomical texts which can be referred to the sixth century or before it, I think that we must fix A.D. 600 as the earliest limit for the composition of the passages which present that idea, or of some archetypal passage on which they were based. J. F. FLEET.

THE RUPNATH AND SAKNATH EDICTS OF ASOKA Since the time when Dr. Thomas showed that the Sahasram text of Asoka's short sermon on " zeal " contains

Downloaded from https://www.cambridge.org/core. INSEAD, on 25 May 2018 at 09:21:39, subject to the Cambridge Core terms of use, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0035869X00043616 1054 THE RUPNATH AND SARNATH EDICTS OF ASOKA

the word rdtri, " a night,"1 the much-discussed term vivasa of the Rupnath text has been taken in two slightly different ways. Dr. Thomas and M. Levi2 explain it by "nights spent abroad" and Dr. Fleet by "nights spent in worship ".8 The same difference of opinion prevails in the interpretation of the last clause but one of the Rupnath text, which contains the gerundive vivasetavdya (read vivasetaviye). According to Dr. Thomas (p. 518) the king " requests his officers to start or to make people start on similar tours in their whole jurisdiction ", while Dr. Fleet (p. 1103) translates : " And by this same token, as long as your food lasts you should make vivasa everywhere." M. Levi (p. 125) does not translate this passage, but he renders the similar clause of the Sarnath pillar inscription as follows : " Faites que, dans l'etendue de votre ressort, partout on quitte sa maison conform6ment a ce texte ; et aussi faites que dans tous les pays de protectorat (?) on fasse que Ton quitte sa maison." The Sarnath passage may be expected to contribute to the correct interpretation of the Rupnath one, as it contains all the three crucial words of the second, viz. viyamjana, dhdla, and vivdsayati. I shall now endeavour to ascertain their true meaning by considering the context in which the Sarnath passage occurs. For this purpose it is first of all necessary to define the subject of the Sarnath edict with the help of two other, closely connected; inscriptions, viz. the Safichi pillar edict and the so-called Kosambi edict on the Allahabad pillar. Luckily the main portion of the royal order is preserved in all the three versions. Sarnath edict, 11. 3-5 e chum kho [bhikh]u [va bhikh]uni va saihgham bh[okha]t[i] s[e] odatani dus[an]i [sajiimariidhapayiya anavasasi avasayiye 1 Journal Asiatiqxie, serie 10, tome 15 (1910, part 1), p. 520. 2 Id., tome 17 (1911, part 1), p. 119. 3 This Journal, 1911, p. 1106.

'• But indeed that monk or nun who shall misdirect the Saihgha, should be caused to put on white robes (and) to reside in a non-residence." * Sanchi edict, 11. 4-7 ye samgham bhokhati bhikhu va bhikhu[nl] va odatani dus[an]i sanam[dhapay]itu ana[va]sasi va[sa]petaviy[e] " The monk or nun who shall misdirect the Sariigha, must be caused to put on white robes and to reside in a non-residence." Kosambi edict, 11. 3-4 . . . [samgham bho]khati bhikh[u] v[a] bhikh[u]n[I] va [se pi] cha [o*]dat[a]ni dusani [sajnarhdhapayitu a[nava]sas[i a]v[a]sayiy[e] " And also that monk or nun [who] shall misdirect the Sariigha, should be caused to put on white robes and to reside in a non-residence." This sentence is preceded at Sarnath (1. 3) by the words . . . ye kenapi samghe bhetave, in which, as M. Boyer ingeniously proposes,2 ye is perhaps the remainder of na salciye: "The Sarhgha [cannot] be divided by anyone." In the Sanchi edict (11. 2-4) I read now . . [y]d bhe[ta] . . (restore bhetave) . . [gli\e (restore samghe) .... mage (restore samage) hate \bhi*~\- khuna[m\ cha bhi[khun~\inam ch[a] ti [p]uta-pa[po*]tike cham[da]m[a-su]ri[yi]ke, and translate : "... [cannot] be divided. The Saihgha both of monks and of nuns is made united as long as (my) sons and great-grandsons (shall reign, and) as long as the moon and the sun (shall shine)." 3 The Kosambi edict (1. 2) reads instead: . . .

1 See this Journal, 1911, p. 168, footnotes 1 and 2, and p. 169, foot- note 1. As pointed out by M. Senart (Comptes Sendus des Sianc.es de VAcadimie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, 1907, p. 28), avdsayiye is the optative passive of dvasayati. - Journal Amatique, serie 10, tome 10 (1907, part 2), p. 129. 3 For the reading puta-papotikt chamdama-suriyike see this Journal, 1911, p. 167 f.

[sa]ma[ge ka]t[e] sa[m~]gh[a]si no l[a]hiye, wliich may be translated : " [The Sarhgha] is made united . . . should not be received 1 into the Sarhgha." The first line is preserved only in the Kosambi edict, which begins :— [Devanam*][p]iye anapayati Kosambiyam maham[a]ta "[Devanamjpriya commands(thus). The superintendents at Kosambi . . ." At the beginning of the Sarnath text, only the two first syllables of Asoka's title Devdndmpriya are preserved ; but it may be safely assumed that both this edict and the Safichi one were, like the Kosambi edict, addressed by the king to the local Mahamatras. The object which he had in view is repeated at the end of the Safichi edict (1. 7 f.) : " For my desire is that the Sarhgha may be united 2 (and) of long duration" ; and it was for this purpose that he threatened monks and nuns who would cause divisions with expulsion. The Safichi and Kosambi texts go no farther than this; while the Sarnath text (11. 5-9) adds, the following clauses :— " Thus this edict must be submitted both to the Sarhgha of monks and to the Samgha of nuns. " Thus speaks Devanampriya :— " And let one written 8 copy of this edict4 remain 5

1 Lahiye may be derived from the root labh; cf. the optative passive <7( asayiye in 1. 4 of the Kosambi edict and in 1, 5 of the Sarnath edict. 2 Cf. this Journal, 1911, p. 168, where I have pointed out that the reading of the stone is not sariighasa mage, but sarnghe samage, and see the Patimokkha (id., 1876, p. 75, § 10) : samaggo hi sariigho . . . phdm viharati. J Professor Venis (Journ. and Proc. As. Soc. Bengal, 1907, vol. 3, p. 2) was the first to translate nilcship by "inscribing". That he is right appears from the Raglmvariisa, vii, 65, where Mallinatha explains ni/cshepita by lekhita. * Literally, " one edict of this description." 6 M. Senart (Comptes Rendus, 1907, p. 30) explains huvdti as sub- junctive. Cf. the Mahanishtrl form huvanti in KscheFs Oratnmatik, $ 476.

THE RUPNATH AND SARNATH EDICTS OF ASOKA 1057

with you in (your) office.1 And write ye another copy of this very edict, (to remain) with the lay-worshippers. " And these lay-worshippers may come on every fast-day in order to be inspired with confidence in this very edict. And invariably on every fast-day every superintendent (will) come to the fast-day (service) in order to be inspired with confidence in this very edict and to understand (it)." It will be seen that this longish passage adds nothing new to the king's order, of which two other specimens are preserved at Safichi and Allahabad, but provides merely for the proper circulation of the edict among all the parties concerned. This the king tries to ensure (1) by communicating his edict to the monks and nuns, whom it chiefly concerns, and (2) by ordering that one copy of it should be retained by the Mahamatras and another by the lay-worshippers, to be studied by both of them respectively at the fast-day services. It will now be clear that it is impossible to translate the two last clauses of the Sarnath text in the manner proposed by M. Levi (see p. 1054 above). An abrupt order to the Mahamatras to " make people leave their houses " would be unintelligible in this connexion. What we expect is further provisions for giving a still wider circulation to the king's edict. The preceding paragraphs had arranged for its publicity among the citizens of Pataliputra.2 It is but natural to assume that the word dhdla in 1. 9 refers to the district of Pataliputra, and the kota-vishava in 1. 10 to outlying jungle tracts, which were not fully pacified but were held by means of military posts, such as the " forests " mentioned in the thirteenth rock edict. It follows, further, that the two

1 M. Senart (Comptes Sendus, 1907, p. 30 ff.) is probably right in considering sarhsalana ( = Sanskrit sarhsarana) as the designation of some locality. Professor Venis (Journ. and Proc. As. Soc. Bengal, 1907, vol. 3, p. 2) translates it by "place of assembly". 2 Of this word only the two first syllables are preserved at the beginning of 1. 3. JRAS. 1912. • 68

subjunctives vivdsaydtha and vivdsdpaydthd in 11. 10 and 11, which are addressed to the Mahamatras of Pataliputra, can only mean " go ye on tour " and " cause ye (others) to go on tour"} and that the instrumental etena viyarhjanena must refer to the edict itself. As vyanjana is used in Buddhist literature in the sense of " letter" as opposed to " sense " (attha),2 I propose to render it by " with a literal copy of this (edict) ". In this way I arrive at the following translation of the two last clauses of the Sarnath text, which I am glad to say is nearly identical with the one given by M. Senart in Gomptes Mendus, 1907, p. 35 f. :— Sarnath edict, 11. 9-11 " And as far as your district (extends), go ye on tour everywhere with a literal copy of this (edict). " In the same way cause ye (others) to go on tour with a literal copy of this (edict) in all the territories (surrounding) forts." It remains to apply this, result to the passage of the Rupnath text which was quoted at the beginning of this note, and which I would now translate thus:— Rupnath edict, 1. 5 " And with a literal copy of this (proclamation) 3 (you) must go on tour everywhere, as far as your district (extends)." 1 As Dr. Thomas (p. 517) notes, the usual Pali equivalent of vivasati is vippavanati; see Childers, s.v. Dr. Vogel (Ep. Ind., vol. 8, p. 171) justly remarks that vivdsayati, though a causative in form, can hardly have a causative meaning, as it is followed in the second clause by vivdsdpayati, which can be nothing but a causative of vivdsayati. The form vivaseti at Rupnath (1. 5) may be either a Prakrit variant of vivasati (ef. Pischel's Grarnmatik, § 472) or a clerical mistake for vivaseti. 2 See Childers, Pali Dictionary, s.v. vyanjanarh, and note the antithesis between atha and viyarhjana in 11. 4 and o of the Rupnath text. 1 The word "proclamation" (sdvana) occurs in 11. 3 and 5 of the Rupnath edict. Cf. the Delhi-Siwalik pillar edict vii, 11. 20 and. 22, where AsOka states that he has issued "proclamations on morality" (dharhma-sdvandni).

I trust to have proved, by the comparison and analysis of the Sarnath edict, that this clause of the Rupnath edict has nothing whatever to do with the actual subject of Asoka's proclamation (which, as I believe with Dr. Fleet, is pardkrama or " zeal"), but is intended merely to provide for the circulation of the latter among the inhabitants of the district. For the substantive vivdsa, which may be expected to be derived from the same root as, and therefore ought to be connected in meaning with, vivaseti, see this Journal for 1910, p. 1309. In conclusion I would like to add a few words on that passage of the Rupnath and connected texts in which the king states that, as a result of his zeal (pakama = pardkrama), men in Jambudvlpa had been made associated with the gods. I believe that Dr. Thomas has come very near the actual meaning of it when he says (above, p. 480) : " Are we to understand a conversion of people who previously did not recognize the Brahmanical gods ?" In a slightly modified form, this suggestion finds support in many passages of the rock and pillar edicts, in which Asoka declares that his chief aim was to secure the " attainment of heaven " (svagdradM, Girnar, ix, 1. 9) by his subjects through the practice of morality. I shall only quote the sixth rock edict (Girnar, 11. 11—14):— "And (this is the object of) whatever effort I am making (ya cha kimchi pardkramdmi aham), viz., that I may discharge the debt (which I owe) to living beings, that I may make them happy in this (world), and that they may attain heaven in the other (world). For the following purpose this edict on morality was caused to be written, viz., that it might last long, and that my sons, grandsons, and great-grandsons might conform to this for the welfare of all men. But it is difficult to accomplish this without great zeal (pardkrama)." E. HULTZSCH.