Nepal - Remarks on Newari Painting of Svayambhunath

8/9/2019 Nepal - Remarks on Newari Painting of Svayambhunath

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Some Preliminary Remarks on a Newari Painting of Svayambhnth

Author(s): Theodore Riccardi, Jr.Source: Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 93, No. 3 (Jul. - Sep., 1973), pp. 335340Published by: American Oriental SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/599466

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BRIEF COMMUNICATIONSSome preliminary remarks on a Newari painting of Svayambhiinath1

Rarely does Newari painting take as its subject an historical event. A recently dis-covered painting on cloth is an interesting exception: it depicts the repairs to the caitya ofSvayambhuinath at the close of the sixteenth century and the participation of the people ofNepal in that event. The painting also provides an early schematic map of the NepalValley and an important inscription. This article is a preliminary study of the paintingand its historical significance. In the introduction, the author briefly describes the caityaand its place in Newari Buddhism. He then discusses the history of repairs to the caitya.A description of the painting is then given followed by a discussion of its contents and thesignificance of the inscription.

I. INTRODUCTIONThe most sacred shrine of Nepalese Buddhism, thecaitya of Svayambhiunath, rests on the summit of a

small hill which rises some three hundred feet about amile and a half west of the city of Kathmandu.2 Thecaitya is traditionally reached by a stone stairway onthe east side of the hill. At the summit, one finds morethan just the great caitya, for around the central shrinea jumble of smaller caityas, stone sculpture, small pa-goda shrines, and all the symbols of later Buddhism,has grown up over the centuries. The religious area isbounded in part by a number of houses built in thetraditional Newar style, inhabited today by membersof the Newar, Tamang, and Tibetan communities.3The style of the caitya is in considerable advance ofearlier examples found in India and Nepal. The lowerpart of the shrine is, as in the classic stupa, a semi-globefinished in white. The upper portions, however, are quitedifferent. The traditional harmika of the early stipasis in this case transformed into a large four sided struc-ture decorated with the eyes of Adi Buddha. The um-brellas of the early stipa here are increased in numberto thirteen and are transformed into large rings that

1 This paper was presented in somewhat differentform at the 180th annual meeting of the American Ori-ental Society, held at Baltimore, Maryland, April 14-16,1970.2 The hill is called Padma and is an extension of theso-called Bhimdhunga hill. The area at the top of thehillock is about 1000 yards, accorcing to D. R. Regmi,Ancient Nepal (Calcutta: Firma K. L. Mukhopadhyay,1960) p. 44.3 During festivals, many of these houses are sometimesrented to wealthy Newars who bring their families forthe ceremonies, some of which last several days.

form a kind of steeple atop which are a crescent moonand a solar disc.4The age of the caitya is unknown.5 The Newars be-lieve it to be the original site of Buddhism in the valley4 For other descriptions see Sylvain Levi, Le Nepal:Histoire d'une Royaume Hindoue (Paris: Musee Guimet,Vols. 17-19, 1904) Vol. II pp. 306, and David Snellgrove,Buddhist Himalaya (Oxford: Bruno Cassirer, 1957) pp. 95-97. Percy Brown, in Indian Architecture (Bombay: D. B.Taraporevala Sons & Co. Private Ltd. 5th ed. 1965)p. 163 also gives a brief description. To my knowledge,no one has as yet taken accurate measurements of the

caitya. A fully detailed description of the shrine and thesurrounding sacred areas is beyond the scope of thispaper. A full study of Svayambhiunath, of both theshrine complex and its place in the life of Newari Bud-dhism, is a desideratum of Nepalese religion.5 Snellgrove, op. cit., p. 94. Cecil Bendall, in A Journeyof Literary and Archaeological Research in Nepal andNorthern India (Cambridge: The University Press, 18886)p. 5. reasoned that because he had found at the site afragment of an inscription which resembled typical in-scriptions of the fourth and fifth centuries A.D. that"we may fairly infer that the shrine has an antiquityof some 1400 or 1500 years . . ." As Snellgrove remarks,however, without archaeological investigation, specula-tion as to its exact age is useless (op. cit. p. 95). Levi(Le Nepal, II, p. 6) notes that extensive damage wasdone by a storm in 1816 and that "L'importance dudesastre imposait une restauration complete: on duteventrer l'hemisphere du caitya, ouvrir la chambre cen-trale pour en arracher les debris de l'axe brise. L'occa-sion etait unique pour un archaeologue: l'inspection desmenus objets renfermes dans le reliquaire aurait fixela date de la construction primitive. Personne ne serecontra qui sit en profiter."

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 93.3 (1973)and its oldest monument. In support of this belief,David Snellgrove has cited an interesting custom: "Asan act of merit a Newar Buddhist will sometimes under-take to visit ceremoniously all the monasteries eitherin Patan or Kathmandu (depending on where he lives)and always he must begin his course at Svayambhi-nath."6 To be sure, the caitya is very old, but, as Snell-grove points out, it most certainly is later in its presentform than the plain unadorned stupas of Patan whichare in the ASokan style. No archaeological investigationhas been undertaken nor is there likely to be any whilethe site is a living shrine. Evidence from literary sourcessuch as the indigenous vamsdvalis and the various re-censions of the Svayambhupurdna, the most importantreligious text associated with the site, is meagre. Inany case, these are all late texts.7 Connections withIndia and Tibet are known from medieval times. Atisais said to have visited the shrine.8 Dharmasvamin, whoentered Nepal between 1226 and 1230 A.D., spent eightyears at Svayambhinath.9 Tibetan connections with theshrine continue into this century.10

6 Snegrollve, op. cit. p. 96.7 For the origin story in the native chronicle, see

Daniel Wright, History of Nepal. Translated from theParbatiya by Munshi Shew Shunker Singh and PanditShri Gunanand (Cambridge: University Press, 1877)pp. 79 ff. L6vi has summarized the story (op. cit. I,p. 213). The Svayambhfi-Purana, as L6vi remarks (ibid.p. 209) is not a purdna at all, for it contains none of theelements common to the purdnas. It is rather a mahatmyain style. There are five recensions, none of which isdatable: "La date de chacune des recensions n'est pasconnue et il est difficile de fixer autrement que par desraisons de goft leur ordre chronologique. Le nom duroi Yaksa malla paratt aussi bien a la fin du Svayambhuvaque du Vrat? dans une prophetie prononcee par le Boud-dha; Yaksa malla Btant mort vers 1460, nos r6dactionsne peuvent gubre etre ant6rieures au xvie siecle, si lamention de ce roi n'est pas due a une interpolation,toujours facile dans une proph6tie et surtout a la find'un ouvrage. Les autres rois nomm6s et glorifi6s dansle poeme, Gunakama deva et les deux Narendra deva,datent d'une 6poque bien plus lointaine.... Voila

lesseuls reperes qu'on puisse tirer des recensions du Svayam-bhf Purana" (L6vi, op. cit. I, pp. 210-12). For thelegend,see ibid, p. 213. The Bhadrakalpdvaddna, also mentionedby L6vi, refers to the shrine also. The last story (xxxviii)states that the Buddha himself went to Nepal to visitthe shrine (Levi, III, p. 192).8 Snellgrove, op. cit. p. 288, n. 24.9 G. Roerich, Biography of Dharmasvamin (Chag lo-

II. THE REPAIR OF THE CAITYAWhile evidence concerning the date of origin of the

caitya is lacking, we find mention in various Nepalesehistorical documents of repairs to its central timbers.11The earliest mention of these repairs is in a well-knownstone inscription at Svayambhfinath dated N.S. 725.12This inscription, done at the order of the king givaSimha Deva of Kathmandu, states that the repairsbegan in N.S. 715 (A.D. 1595) and ended ten years laterin N.S. 725 (1605 A.D.). The inscription also describesgiva Simha as the conqueror of the city of Patan, apoint to which I shall refer later on.The parbatiya vamgdvali, or Nepali chronicle, mentionsseveral instances of repairs to the caitya: the first is inN.S. 714 (1594 A.D.), a date which agrees with the in-scription of King Siva Simha Deva.13 Other repairs arementioned in N.S. 760 (1640 A.D.), in the period N.S.871-78 (A.D. 1751-58), and, finally during the reign ofRajendra Bikram Shah, around the year 1820 A.D.14Repairs have been carried out at various times duringthis century.

tsa-ba Chos-rje-dpal) A Tibetan Monk Pilgrim (Patna:K. P. Jayaswal Research Institute, 1959) p. 53.10 The Tibetans "have placed," writes Snellgrove,"their most characteristic mark on the main Svayambhii-stfipa itself, for it is now completely ringed with a frame-work of wrought metal, in which are set revolving prayerwheels." Snellgrove, op. cit., p. 99. Landon, writingin 1928, remarked that this was a recent addition (Per-ceval Landon, Nepal (London: Constable & Co. 2 vols.,1928) Vol. II, p. 213.11 Earlier inscriptions do not mention specific repairsto the central timbers. The earliest inscription mention-ing repairs is a stone inscription at Svayambhiunthdated N.S. 492 which commemorates the restoration ofthe caitya after it had been burned by Sultan Shamsud-din. The destruction took place in the year N.S.467 (1346 A.D.) See L. Petech, Mediaeval History ofNepal (Roma: Istituto Italiano Per II Medio Ed Estre-mo Oriente, 1958) p. 119. Another early inscription isthat of Jyotir Malla (1408-1428) dated N.s. 533 (1413 A.D.).This was first published in Bhagvanlal Indraji, Twenty-three Inscriptions From Nepal (Bombay: Education So-ciety's Press, 1885), pp. 22-23. See also Lvi, op. cit.p. 237, and Petech, op. cit. pp. 154-60.12 The inscription is published in D. R. Regmi MedievalNepal (Patna: Published by the author, 1966) IV, pp. 46-51. The Nepal Samvat (N.S.) begins in 879-880 A.D.13 Wright, op. cit. p. 210.14 Ibid. p. 215, pp. 228-9, and p. 266.

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RICCARDI:Preliminary Remarks on a Newarl PaintingThe vamsdvali never describes the actual repairs, butin three cases, in N.s. 760, 871, and 1820 A.D., it is saidthat lamas from Tibet were summoned to supervise thework. For example, the account of the repairs of 1751reads in part:The great Swayambhu Chaitya . . . having been ren-dered uninhabitable by the sin of the Kali Yuga,requires to be repaired. To repair it, Karmapa Lama,the most talented, the jewel of men of arts and sci-ences, having a mind as clear and enlightened as thesun and moon, came from the north, in order to givehappiness to the king, kajis, and people and in NepalSambat 871 (A.D. 1751) in the year of the Jupiter-cyclenamed Prajapati, by the Bhotiyas Keda, and by theChinese Simu-u, he commenced the work, on an aus-picious day...15The account goes on to say that Jaya Prakia, kingof Kathmandu, promised to carry out the repairs and

that Prthivi Narayan, the king of Gorkhb, promised tohave the necessary beam dragged to its place. Theoriginal lama returned to Tibet, but the repairs werecompleted under the direction of one of his Tibetandisciples in 1758.16III. THE PAINTING.17

The painting discussed here depicts the final stagesof repairs to the caitya and the activity of the valleypeople participating in the events. The time is the turnof the seventeenth century.The painting measures 2 ft. 9.4 in. in width and 3 ft.4.45 in. in length and is on cloth. The coarse canvasborder around it and the small painting of the donorsat the bottom are later additions. Overall the paintingis in poor to fair condition. Portions of the left sideand the bottom are torn and worn away.1815 Ibid., p. 229.16 Ibid. p. 230. The place of the lamas in the super-vision and planning of the repairs is central. One memberof the Tuladhar caste of Newar Buddhists recounted tome his memories of those lamas present for repairs around1920. As soon as the determination was made by themto replace the timbers, the heads of the Newar com-

munity were notified and arrangements begun. Thewood always comes from the same sal forest near thecity of Bhatgaon and is very carefully selected. Whilethe money is provided by the rich, nearly every one inthe Buddhist community participates in some capacity.17 The painting was brought to me by a curio dealerin the autumn of 1968. He permitted me to study itfor a few days during which photographs were taken andpreliminary examinations made.18 After this paper was delivered, I learned that the

The painting gives an overall view of the Nepal Valleyfrom the Buddhist point of view (see plate 1). The upperhalf of the painting, with red background, includes thereligious area of Svayambhu and nearby shrines. Thelower half shows towns, villages, and shrines in otherparts of the valley.19 The main rivers and paths areshown winding between the various towns. People areengaged in a variety of religious activities. Some areworking on the shrine, some are engaged in prayer, whileothers are playing musical instruments. On the stairsleading up to the caitya workers can be seen carryingbuilding supplies by means of the traditional Newarshoulder pole. At the base of the caitya, there is a rowpainting is now in a private collection in the United Statesand that restoration work has been done on it. I myselfhave not seen it since 1968.19 This half of the painting is a kind of primitive mapof the valley and in this regard it is interesting to noteLevi's remarks about the possibility of cartography beingan indigenous development in the Himalayan area. Hementions (I, p. 73) that in 648 A.D., the king of Ka-marupa, an eastern neighbor of Nepal, presented to theEmperor of China, through Wang Huien-ts'e, "une cartede pays." He also reproduced an indigenous map ac-quired by Minayeff (I. p. 72) and continues:Cette carte pose le probleme, interessant, mais obscur,des origines de la cartographie indigene. Wilford de-crit dans les Asiatic Researches (j'emprunte cette ci-tation a l'excellent ouvrage de M. Pulle: Disegnodella cartografia antica dell'India, Firenze, 1901; p. 13)

une carte du royaume de "Napal" qui avait ete pre-sentee a Hastings (donc entre 1772 et 1785). "C'est, dit-il, la meilleure carte d'origine hindoue que j'aie jamaisvue; ces cartes ont pour caracteres communs qu'ellesnegligent latitude et longitude, et qu'elles n'emploientpas d'echelle reguliere; les c6tes, les rivieres, les mon-tagnes sont representees en general par des lignesetroites. La carte du "Napal" avait A peu prbs 4pieds du long sur 2 et demi de large, en carton; lesmontagnes faisaient un relief d'un pouce environ, avecdes arbres peints tout autour. Les routes 6taient re-prbsent6es par une ligne rouge et les rivibres par uneligne bleue. Les diverses chaines 6taient nettementdistinctes, avec les passes 6troites qui les traversent;il n'y manquait que l'6chelle. La vallee de Napaletait soigneusement trac6e; mais vers les bords dela carte tout etait embarrasse et confus." Hamilton,pendant son s6jour a Kathmandou (1802-1803) s'6taitprocur6 cinq cartes indigenes du N6pal et du Sikkimqu'il deposa plus tard a la bibliotheque de l'EastIndia Company. Malheureusement, elles se sont per-dues.

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 93.3 (1973)of figures, the first six of whom are musicians and theothers perhaps monks. One figure, dressed in a uniquecostume, seems to be a messenger. Men at either sideof the caitya are turning winches in an effort to raisethe final umbrella to its position at the top. Workersare all dressed similarly and appear to be local Newars.Monks may be distinguished by their robes and theirdevotional or advisory attitudes.In the lower half, many places in the valley are de-picted and named. In some cases the labels appearto have been rewritten over the original titles. In severalinstances, the names are illegible. The following occur(see Fig. 1):1. illegible (probably labeled initially but not rela-beled ); 2. sri (pa) desa; 3. sri dhaba; 4. sri thasi; 5. srijambhala desa; 6. sri ( ? ) desa; 7. sri khapa desa;208. illegible; 9. illegible; 10. illegible; 11. sri manigalyamla desa;21 12. sri yampi desa; 13. sri thami;22 14. sriotva desa;23 15. sri khasva caitya;24 16. sri yarpgal desa;25

20 This can be identified with the modern city ofBhatgaon, also called Bhaktapur, Bhaktagrima, Dhar-mapattana, in Sanskrit, and Khopa, Khopva, andKhrmrprin in Newari. Levi also cites kuipo given byGeorgi in His Alphbetanum Tibeticum (Levi, I, 65) butthis probably refers to the city of Kirtipur which isknown as Kipu in Newari. Kirkpatrick in his Accountof the Kingdom of Nepal (London: William Miller, 1811)p. 163 gives Khdpo daise.

21 This contains two names. gri manigal refers to theroyal palace in the center of Patan. It is also writtenManigal and Manigal and is probably derived fromMdngrha. The modern name for the area is MangalBajar. Yamla desa is a Newari name for the city ofPatan (Sanskrit Lalitapura, Lalitapattana, Lalitakrama,)the modern Newari name for which is Yela or Yala.(I, p. 61) gives the following variants: from the epitaphof Orazio della Penna reproduced by Georgi: Ela desa;Georgi (Latin): Hela desa: and the Latin translation:in civitate Patanae; Kirkpatrick: Yelloo daisi; Wright:Yellon-desi; Bhagavan Lal Indraji: Tinya-la; Tibetan:Ye-ran; Chinese: Ye-ling.22 Also Themi or Thimi.23 Possibly ilva desa. The identification is not clear.24 This is the other famous caitya of the Valley, Bodh-nath. Levi (p. 8) gives Khdsacaitya and Snellgrove(op. cit.) Khdsticaitya.

25 Yambu daise refers to Kathmandu. (Sanskrit Kds-thamandapa, Kdntipur). The modern Newari name isYemn. Levi (p. 53) gives the following variants: Kirk-patrick: Yin(-daise); Bhagwanlal Indraji: Tinya: Tibe-tan (after Georgi): Jang-bu, from of course Yambu andJa-he, which could be derived from Yem or some form

17. sri yambu desa;26 18. sri thamba hity; 19. illegible;20. sri vikesvari 21. Arisukha gamthi.Extending along the bottom of the painting is an

inscription of two lines. The language is Newari mixedwith Sanskrit. The script is Newari (sometimes calledthe pracalit lipi) which has been in use since the Mallaperiod. Large sections of the inscription, mainly on theright side, are illegible. The readings which I presenthere are therefore tentative.27 A date is given and Ibelieve it to be N.S. 715 (A.D. 1594) or possibly N.s. 725(A.D. 1604).28 The day is Sunday, the tenth of the monthof Asadh. The names syamgu and svayambhi are clear,syamngu being the Newari variant of svayambhi. Thenames of two, possibly three, rulers are given. The twonames which can be read clearly are udhava sirmhadevaand pulandala simha deva, both called thakula, the Newarivariant of Sanskrit thakura. Several palm leaf land grantinscriptions dating from the end of the seventeenthcentury list three brothers ruling in the city of Patan:Nara Simha, Purandara Simha, and Uddhava Simha.29of it. For the name Kathmandu and its variants seeibid. p. 53.26 Yamgal refers to part of Kathmandu also, but oftenis a name of Patan.

27 Parts of the inscription (possibly all of it) appearto have been re-written at a later time over the originalletters, just as were some of the titles on the variouslocalities in the painting proper. Pandits and scholarsin Kathmandu confirmed my readings, but providedconflicting opinions for the rest of the inscription. Belowis a complete reading with possible readings in parenthesesand illegible portions between brackets. The dashesindicate an estimation of aksaras.Line 1:

sreyo'stu// samvat 715 A (sadh) 10 disi dditavdra thvadina kinhu srimat sri sri syamrgu svayambhu -[tya]pratistha samparna ydna(va) thua dina kinhu - - - --- - - - - - - - -ri ri jaha - simLine 2:

ha deva sri jaya pulandala simnhadeva sri jaya udhauasimha deva (prabhaya or ubhaya?) thdkulasa (prabhuya)yale manigrha pirvi-sa ----- bhavatu.

28 The middle digit is unclear. Other readings arehistorically impossible for they contradict other inscrip-tional material. The date is defective, for it gives onlythe year, the month, and the day.29 See gafikarman Rajvarp.i, "Siddhinarsimha Malla-bhanda Agadika Pata ank5 gSaakharuka Kehi Tadpatra"(Paurnimd, B.S. 2023 Magh-Samkranti, 3 Varsa, 4 Afika)pp. 17-22. For other inscriptions see Dhanavajra Vaj-racarya (ed.) Itihds-Sarnmodhanko Pramdn-Prameya (Pa-hilo Bhag) (Lalitpur, Nepal: Jagadamba PrakaSan, B.S.

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Plate 1


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RICCARDI: Preliminary Remarks on a Newarz Painting

Figure 1

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Journal of the American Oriental Society 93.3 (1973)ournal of the American Oriental Society 93.3 (1973)The last two correspond to the names in our inscription.Documents from the reign of these three men are scarce.Uddhava Simha is mentioned in four other inscriptions.30For Purandara there is more documentation. Inscriptionsrange in date from N.S. 686 to 717.31 Since his brothersare not mentioned in inscriptions after N.s. 710, it hasgenerally been supposed that Purandara ruled alone inPatan from that date until his defeat at the hands ofSiva Simha of Kathmandu, the ruler of the stone in-scription of N.S. 725 mentioned above. Our inscriptionwould indicate that Uddhava Simha ruled with Purandara

The last two correspond to the names in our inscription.Documents from the reign of these three men are scarce.Uddhava Simha is mentioned in four other inscriptions.30For Purandara there is more documentation. Inscriptionsrange in date from N.S. 686 to 717.31 Since his brothersare not mentioned in inscriptions after N.s. 710, it hasgenerally been supposed that Purandara ruled alone inPatan from that date until his defeat at the hands ofSiva Simha of Kathmandu, the ruler of the stone in-scription of N.S. 725 mentioned above. Our inscriptionwould indicate that Uddhava Simha ruled with Purandara

2019). Also, D. R. Regmi, Medieval Nepal (Calcutta:Firma K. L. Mukhopadyay, 1966) Part II, p. 263.30 Rajvamsi, op. cit. pp. 19-20 and D. R. Regmi,op. cit. pp. 263-68.31 Ibid. pp. 265-68.

2019). Also, D. R. Regmi, Medieval Nepal (Calcutta:Firma K. L. Mukhopadyay, 1966) Part II, p. 263.30 Rajvamsi, op. cit. pp. 19-20 and D. R. Regmi,op. cit. pp. 263-68.31 Ibid. pp. 265-68.

until at least N.S. 715. Sometime between N.S. 717 and725 Purandara was defeated by Siva Simha and Patanwas incorporated into the kingdom of Kathmandu. TheNepali writer, Dilli Raman Regmi, for some unstatedreason, puts this event between N.S. 720 and 724.32

The period of history in question is of great interestin the history of the Nepal valley. The three brothersruled at the end of a rather obscure period in the historyof Patan. Patan's rightful kings, descendants of YaksaMalla, are ignored for a period of about one hundred yearsand their power usurped by a group of aristocrats fromthe family of Jaya Simha Deva. These pradhdnapatras,as they are called, rule for about a century. The threebrothers are the last of the pradhdnapatras.

THEODORE RICCARDI, JR.COLUMBIAUNIVERSITY32 Ibid. p. 268.

until at least N.S. 715. Sometime between N.S. 717 and725 Purandara was defeated by Siva Simha and Patanwas incorporated into the kingdom of Kathmandu. TheNepali writer, Dilli Raman Regmi, for some unstatedreason, puts this event between N.S. 720 and 724.32

The period of history in question is of great interestin the history of the Nepal valley. The three brothersruled at the end of a rather obscure period in the historyof Patan. Patan's rightful kings, descendants of YaksaMalla, are ignored for a period of about one hundred yearsand their power usurped by a group of aristocrats fromthe family of Jaya Simha Deva. These pradhdnapatras,as they are called, rule for about a century. The threebrothers are the last of the pradhdnapatras.

THEODORE RICCARDI, JR.COLUMBIAUNIVERSITY32 Ibid. p. 268.

The word 'Hindu' in Gaudiya Vaisnava texts*A survey of three Sanskrit and ten Bengali hagiographic texts from early sixteenth tolate eighteenth centuries discloses nearly fifty passages (all in the Bengali texts) in whichthe word 'Hindu' appears. Most occurences are in episodes of strained relationships be-tween Hindus and Yavanas or Mlecchas, as the Muslims are called. The strains are usuallyresolved satisfactorily. The word 'Hindu' never appears in a purely intra-communal Hinducontext and has no significance in the central religious concerns of the texts, the expositionsof bhakti. Most frequently 'Hindu' indicates a person or persons. 'Hindu dharma' occursseven times, four of the occurences being in the earliest of the Bengali texts surveyed. Ineach case 'Hindu dharma' seems to indicate certain actions of a customary and ritual sortwhich are the right of Hindus and only Hindus to perform. But there is to be found noexplicit discussion of what 'Hindu' or 'Hindu dharma' means in any of the texts surveyed.

The word 'Hindu' in Gaudiya Vaisnava texts*A survey of three Sanskrit and ten Bengali hagiographic texts from early sixteenth tolate eighteenth centuries discloses nearly fifty passages (all in the Bengali texts) in whichthe word 'Hindu' appears. Most occurences are in episodes of strained relationships be-tween Hindus and Yavanas or Mlecchas, as the Muslims are called. The strains are usuallyresolved satisfactorily. The word 'Hindu' never appears in a purely intra-communal Hinducontext and has no significance in the central religious concerns of the texts, the expositionsof bhakti. Most frequently 'Hindu' indicates a person or persons. 'Hindu dharma' occursseven times, four of the occurences being in the earliest of the Bengali texts surveyed. Ineach case 'Hindu dharma' seems to indicate certain actions of a customary and ritual sortwhich are the right of Hindus and only Hindus to perform. But there is to be found noexplicit discussion of what 'Hindu' or 'Hindu dharma' means in any of the texts surveyed.

My interest in the word 'Hindu' is that of an historianof Indian religious life, especially of the devotionalmovement that welled up in Bengal around the ecstaticfigure of Krishna-caitanya at the beginning of the six-teenth century and that has persisted into the presentcentury. While attempting to assess the impact of thisBengali, or Gaudlya, Vaisnava movement upon the socialand cultural integration-such as there was of integra-tion-of Bengal from the time of Krishna-caitanya (A.D.1486-1533) to the end of Muslim domination of Bengalin mid-eighteenth century, I inquired into the Vaisnavas'view of the relationships prevailing between the rulingMuslim minority and the Hindu majority.1 Having been

* Paper read to the meeting of the American OrientalSociety, April 8, 1971.1 Joseph T. O'Connell, "Social Implications of theGaudlya Vaisnava Movement" (Ph.D. diss., Harvard,1970), pp. 70-119.

My interest in the word 'Hindu' is that of an historianof Indian religious life, especially of the devotionalmovement that welled up in Bengal around the ecstaticfigure of Krishna-caitanya at the beginning of the six-teenth century and that has persisted into the presentcentury. While attempting to assess the impact of thisBengali, or Gaudlya, Vaisnava movement upon the socialand cultural integration-such as there was of integra-tion-of Bengal from the time of Krishna-caitanya (A.D.1486-1533) to the end of Muslim domination of Bengalin mid-eighteenth century, I inquired into the Vaisnavas'view of the relationships prevailing between the rulingMuslim minority and the Hindu majority.1 Having been

* Paper read to the meeting of the American OrientalSociety, April 8, 1971.1 Joseph T. O'Connell, "Social Implications of theGaudlya Vaisnava Movement" (Ph.D. diss., Harvard,1970), pp. 70-119.

cautioned, especially by Wilfred Cantwell Smith,2 thatone cannot assume that such a word as 'Hindu' meantfor its users in the sixteenth century what it means inthe twentieth, nor indeed that it was even in use among"the Hindus" of that day, I gathered whatever referencesto 'Hindu', 'Musulman', 'Yavana', 'Mleccha', etc.,came my way while reading in the literature of theGaudiya Vaisnavas from the sixteenth to the eighteenthcenturies. The observations that follow are based on aselection of thirteen hagiographic documents, three inSanskrit and ten in Bengali, ranging chronologically fromthe first half of the sixteenth to the second half of theeighteenth century.3 The collection of forty-eight exam-ples of the word 'Hindu' constituted a complete set of

2 Wilfred Cantwell Smith, The Meaning and End ofReligion (New York: Macmillan, 1963), pp. 63-66.

3 See appended chart for list of texts and examples.

cautioned, especially by Wilfred Cantwell Smith,2 thatone cannot assume that such a word as 'Hindu' meantfor its users in the sixteenth century what it means inthe twentieth, nor indeed that it was even in use among"the Hindus" of that day, I gathered whatever referencesto 'Hindu', 'Musulman', 'Yavana', 'Mleccha', etc.,came my way while reading in the literature of theGaudiya Vaisnavas from the sixteenth to the eighteenthcenturies. The observations that follow are based on aselection of thirteen hagiographic documents, three inSanskrit and ten in Bengali, ranging chronologically fromthe first half of the sixteenth to the second half of theeighteenth century.3 The collection of forty-eight exam-ples of the word 'Hindu' constituted a complete set of

2 Wilfred Cantwell Smith, The Meaning and End ofReligion (New York: Macmillan, 1963), pp. 63-66.

3 See appended chart for list of texts and examples.

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Nepal - Remarks on Newari Painting of Svayambhunath

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Transcript of Nepal - Remarks on Newari Painting of Svayambhunath