The Sasanian Pahlavi Inscription in Kanheri Caves in India

Document Type : .

Author

......................

Abstract

The present article focuses on one of the private and monumental inscriptions in the Sasanian Pahlavi script and language in India. The Buddhist Kanheri Caves have been located at the suburbs of Mumbai. There exist six inscriptions in cursive Pahlavi script that date back to the 11th century A.D. (1009-1021 A.D.). These inscriptions have been written down by a number of Zoroastrian merchants who travelled to India and visited the caves. They are the earliest evidence proving the presence of Zoroastrian merchants in India. The earliest inscription belongs to 378 Yazdgirdi (1009 A.D.) and the second one belongs to the same year but has been written 45 days after the first one. Both inscriptions bear the same names. The third inscription dates back to 390 Yazdgirdi (1021 A.D.) bearing different names and the fourth one also belongs to 390 Yazdgirdi (1021 A.D.) and bear the name of a visitor. The fifth inscription is illegible and the last one bears the proper name “Ābān Āzargušnasb son of Farrox. It has been mentioned in the third inscription that the Zoroastrians

Keywords

References

Asha, R. (2009). Avestan Glossary: a glossary of Avesta words and their Pārsīg equivalents, based on the Zand, the so-called Frahang ī ōim:ēk. Text and Grammatical Notes, Mumbai.
Baily, H. W. (1979). Dictionary of Khotan Saka. Cambridge.
Bartholomae, C. (2004/1383š). Altiranisches Wörterbuch zusammen mit zum Altiranischen worterbuch. Tehran: Asatir.
Basirov, O. (1995). The Evolution of the Zoroastrian Funerary Cult in Western Iran, An Unpublished Thesis, Department of Art and Archaelogy School of Oriental and African Studies University of London.
Blair, S. S. (1992). The Monumental Inscriptions from Early Islamic Iran and Transoxiana. Brill.
Boyce, M. (1975). “On The Zoroastrian Temple cult of Fire”. Journal of American Oriental Society95. 454-465.
Boyce, M. (1987). “Ātaškada”. Encyclopedia Iranica. vol. III, fasc. 1, 9-10, available online: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ataskada-new-persian-house-of-fire-mid, Last Updated: August 17, 2011.
Boyce, M. (1993). “Corpse”. Encyclopedia Iranica, vol. VI, fasc. 3, 279-286, available online: http://www. iranicaonline. org/articles/corpse-disposal-of-in-zoroastrianism, Last Updated: October 31, 2011.
Cantera, A. (2002). "Die Zwischenlagerung der Leiche im Zoroastrismus". Archaologische Mitteilungen aus Iran, und Turan. 34, 415-431.
Cantera, A. (2004). Studiean zur Pahlavi-Ubersetzung des Avesta. Iranica & Wiesbaden.
Cheung, J. (2007). Etymological Dictionary of the Iranian Verb. Leiden-Boston: Brill.
Ciancaglini, C. A. (2008). Iranian Loanwords in Syriac. Wiesbaden.
De Blois, F. (1993). “Middle-Persian Funerary Inscriptions from South-Western Iran". Medioiranica: Proceedings of the International Colloquium Organized by Katholieke Universiteit Leuven from the 21st to the 23rd of May 1990. W. Skalmowski, & A. Van Tongerloo (eds.), Leuven (= Orientalia Lovaniensia Analecta), 29-43.
Durkin-Meisterernst, D. (2004). Dictionary of Manichaean Middle Persian and Parthian. N. sims-Williams (ed.), Part 1, Brepols.
Farjmirad, M. (2013). Mortuary Practice in Ancient Iran from the Achaemenid to the Sasanian Perids (mid sixth c. BC to mid seventh c. AD). Universiteit Gent. Part I. Text, Part II. Catalogue.
Gershevitch, I. (1975). “Sogdians on a Frogplain". Melanges Linguistiques offerts a Emile Benveniste. Paris, 195-211.
Gignoux, P., & A. Tafazzoli (1993). “Anthologie de Zādspram, edition critique du texte Pehlevi traduit et commente". Cahier Studia Iranica 13. Paris.
Gignoux, P. (1975). “Notes d'épigraphie et d'histoire sassanides, IV. Inscription funéraire pehlevie de Bišāpūr". Mélanges linguistiques offerts à Émile Benveniste. Louvain, 221-223.
Grenet, F. (2003) La Geste d’Ardashir fils de Pabag, Kārnāmag ī Ardaxšēr Pābagān, Paris.
Grenet, F. (2015). “Zoroastrianism in Central Asia". Wiley Blackwell Companion to Zoroastrianism. M. Stausberg, & Y. S. D. Vevaina (eds.), with the assistance of A. Tessmann, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 129-146.
Henning, W. B. (1945). “Sogdian Tales". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 11. 465-487(=Selected Paper II, 1977, Acta Iranica 15. 169-192).
Henning, W. B. (1965). “The Choresmian Documents". Asia Major. 166-179 (=Selected Paper II, 1977, Acta Iranica 15, 649-658).
Hintze, A. (2017). “Zoroastrian afterlife beliefs and funerary practices". The Routledge Companion to Death and Dying. C. M. Moreman (ed.), London & New York: Routledge, 86-97.
Hoffmann, K. (1975). Aufsätze zur Indoiranistik. Herausgegeben von Johanna Narten, Band 1, Wiesbaden.
Van der Horst, P. W. (1991). Ancient Jewish epitaphs: an introductory survey of a millennium of Jewishfunerary epigraphy (300 BCE-700 CE). Kok Pharos Publishing House, Kampen, The Netherlands.
Huff, D. (2004). “Archaelogical Evidence of Zoroastrian Funarary Practice". Zoroastrian Ritual in Context. M. Stausberg (ed.), Brill, 593-630.
Hutter, M. (2009). “The Impurity of the Corpse (nasā) and the Future Body (tan ī pasēn): Death and afterlife in Zoroastrianism". The Human Body in Death and Resurrection. Deuterocanonical and Cognate Literature Yearbook, T. Nicklas, et al. (eds.), Berlin/ NewYork, 13-26.
Inostrantsev, K. A. (1923). “On the Ancient Iranian Burial Customs and Building". The K. R. Cama Oriental Institute. translated from Russian L. Bogdanov, no.3, 1-28.
Kapadia, D. D. (1953). Glossary of Pahlavi Vendidad. Bombay.
Kotwal, F. M., & J. W. Boyd (1983). “Worship in a Zoroastrian Fire Temple: The H. B. Wadai Ātaš Bahrām". Indo-Iranian Journal. 26, 293-318.
Kotwal, Firoze M. (1995). “The Parsi Dakhma: its History and Consecration". Au Carrefour des religions, Mélanges offerts á Phlippe Gignoux, Res Orientsles. Vol. VII, 161-170.
Leisten, T. (1998). „Architekturfür Tote: Bestattung in architektonischem Kontext in den Kernländern der islamischen Welt zwischen3. /9. und 6. /12. Jahrhundert”. Materialien zur iranischen Archäologie. Bd. 4, Berlin: Reimer.
MacKenzie, D. N. (1980). “Mani's Šābuhrgān II". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. Vol. 43, No. 2, 288-310.
Modi, J. J. (1892) The Funeral Ceremonies of Parsees, Their Origin and Explanation, Bombay, (second edition 1905, third edition 1923, fourth edition 1928, fifth edition 1934).
Nyberg, H. S. (2003/1381š). A Manual of Pahlavi. Vol. 2, Tehran: Asatir.
Rezai Baghbidi, H. (2011). “New Light on the Middle Persian-Chinese Bilingual Inscription from Xī’ān". The Persian Language in History. M. Maggi, & P. Orsatti (eds.), Wiesbaden, 105-115.
Rusell, J. R. (1989). “Burial, iii. In Zoroastrianism". Encyclopedia Iranica. vol. IV, fasc. 6, 561-563, available online: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/burial-īi, Last Updated: December 15, 198.
Schippmann, K. (1971). Die Iranischen Feuerheiligtum. Berlin & New York.
Shahbazi, A. S. (1975). The Irano-Lycian Monuments: The Principal antiquities of Xanthos and its region as evidence for aspects of Achaemenid Lycia. Institute of Achaemenid Research Publications, Tehran.
Shahbazi, A. S. (1987). “Astōdān". Encyclopedia Iranica. vol. II, fasc. 8, 851-853, available online: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/astodan-ossuary, Last Updated: August 17, 2011.
Shahbazi, A. S. (1986). “Artyphios". Encyclopedia Iranica. vol. I, fasc. 6, 665, available online: http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/artyphios-or-artybios-greek-rendering-of-an-old-persian-name-ardifiya-or-ardufiya-elamite-ir-tap-tup-pi-ya-the-varia, Last Updated: August 15, 2011.
Shaked, S. (1979). Wisdom of the Sasanian sages, a translation of Dēnkard VI by Ādurbād ī Ēmēdān (Persian Heritage Series, 34). Boulder, Colorado, USA.
Shaki, M. (1988). “Pahlavica". Acta Iranica 28 (Asmussen Festschrift). Leiden, 93-95.
Simpson St. J., & T. Molleson (2014). “Old Overturned new Evidence for Funerary Practices from the Sasanian Empie". Regarding the Dead: Human Remains in the British Museum. A. Fletcher, D. Antoine, & JD Hill (eds.), British Museum Research Publication, 197.
Sims-Williams, N. (2000). Bactrian Documents I: Legal and Economic Documents. Studies in the Khalili Xollection III, Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum II, 4: The Nour foundation in Asotiation with Azimuth Editions and Oxford University Press.
Sims-Willliams N., & D. Durkin-Meisterernst (2012). Dictionary of Manichaean Sogdian and Bactrian. Part 2, Vol. II, Brepols, Belgium.
Skjaervo, P. O. (2005). “Poetic and Cosmic weaving in Ancient Iran-Reflection in Avestan Vahma and Yasna 34. 2". Haptačahaptāitiš, Festschrift for Fridrik Thordarson. D. Haug, & E. Welo (eds.), Oslo: Novus, 267-79.
Sundermann, W. (1998). “On a Middle Persian Legal Term and Its Forgotten Origin". Proceedings of the Third European Conference of Iranian Studies, Part 1: Old and Middle Iranian Studies. N. Sims-Williams (ed.), Wiesbaden, 121-130.
Tafazzoli, A., & E. Sheikh-al-Hokamayi (1994). “The Pahlavi Funerary Inscription from Mashtan (Kāzerun III)". Archaeologische Mitteilungenaus Iran. 27, 265-267.
Tafazzoli, A. (1991). “L’inscription funeraire de Kāzerun II (Parīšān)”. Studia Iranica. 20. 2, 97-202.
Tafazzoli, A. (1994-5). “Two Funerary Inscriptions in Cursive Pahlavi from Fars". Orientalia Suecana XLIII-XLIV. 177-182.
Tavernier. J. (2007). Iranica in the Achaemenid Period (ca. 550-330 B. C. ): Lexicon of Old Iranian Proper Names And Loanwords, Attested In Non-Iranian Texts. Leuven.
Tolostov, S. P., & V. A. Livshits (1964). “Decipherment and interpretation of the Khwarezmian inscriptions from Tok Kala". Acta Antiqua Acadaemiae Scientiarum Hungaricae. t. 12, fasc. 1-2. Budapest, 231-251.
Vitalone, M. (1996). The Persian Revāyat Ithoter, Zoroastrian Rituals in the Eighteenth Century. Napoli.
West, E. W. (1880). Pahlavi Texts, Sacred Books of the East 5, Oxford.
Williams, A. V. (1990). The Pahlavi Rivāyat Accompanying the Dādestān ī Dēnīg, Part I: Translitreation, Transcription and Glossary. Part II. Translation, Commentray and Pahlavi Text, Copenhagen.
 
Language and Linguistics
Volume 17, Issue 34
January 2023
Pages 1-30

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics