It is generally accepted that the etymology of the Gāndhārī and Sanskrit official title guśura(ka)- has to be sought within the Iranian sphere, but the details remain debatable. In this article, I... Show moreIt is generally accepted that the etymology of the Gāndhārī and Sanskrit official title guśura(ka)- has to be sought within the Iranian sphere, but the details remain debatable. In this article, I first give an overview of recently discovered evidence for an early sound change of *w- > *γw- in some Iranian dialects from the Indo-Iranian borderlands. On this basis, I then propose to derive guśura(ka)- from a dialect form such as *γwazurg / *γwuzurg / *γuzurg < *wazr̥ka- ‘strong’. Two by-products of this article are a new Bactrian etymology for the Gāndhārī personal name G̱aṇavhryaka and some notes on the etymology of the Gāndhārī title sturaka-*. Show less
In her dissertation Revealing Śiva’s Superiority by Retelling Viṣṇu’s Deeds – Viṣnu’s Manifestation Myths in the Skandapurāṇa, Sanne Dokter-Mersch examines three myths in the Skandapurāṇa, a... Show moreIn her dissertation Revealing Śiva’s Superiority by Retelling Viṣṇu’s Deeds – Viṣnu’s Manifestation Myths in the Skandapurāṇa, Sanne Dokter-Mersch examines three myths in the Skandapurāṇa, a Sanskrit Purāṇa composed in the sixth to seventh century. Although myths about god Śiva and devotion to him are central in the text, it also contains narratives about other gods. This dissertation focusses on those myths in which god Viṣṇu manifests himself as Man-Lion (Narasiṃha), Boar (Varāha) and Dwarf (Vāmana) in order to conquer the enemies of the gods. At the time of composition of the Skandapurāṇa, Śiva and Viṣṇu each had their own religious ideology and devotees, which raises the questions why the composers of this Śaiva Purāṇa dedicated so much attention to Viṣṇu and how these manifestation myths are retold. With the help of different (narratological) methods, Dokter-Mersch addresses these questions by looking at the manifestation myths as part of a literary genre, the Purāṇas. Show less
In the late 1950s, a number of manuscripts were discovered in Odisha. They contained one of the oldest collections of Vedic texts, the Atharvaveda, dating to the late second millenium BC, in a... Show moreIn the late 1950s, a number of manuscripts were discovered in Odisha. They contained one of the oldest collections of Vedic texts, the Atharvaveda, dating to the late second millenium BC, in a recension, the Paippalāda, that was thought to have survived only in a very corrupt Kashmirian manuscript. Given the importance and antiquity of the text, this discovery sparked the enthusiasm of Indologists, historians, anthropologists and linguists eager to dive into the new material. This, however, hinged on the production of a philologically reliable edition of the text. Selva’s dissertation is a further step in this direction: it focuses on the 17th book of the collection, containing a variety of material in both poetry and prose: magical spells to exorcise demons who threaten women and children, curses against enemies, and remedies against nightmares. One section illustrates a ritual observance consisting in the imitation of the behaviour of a bull, a practice that can be traced back to prehistoric Indo-European cultural models and that was re-elaborated by the Pāśupatas, the earliest-known ascetic sect devoted to the god Śiva. The edition is equipped with a critical apparatus, a translation and a commentary that discusess philological problems and attempts at an interpretation. Show less
The aim of the dissertation is to present a critical edition of kāṇḍa 15 of the Paippalādasaṁhitā of the Atharvaveda. The work is divided into two main parts: an Introduction and the critical... Show moreThe aim of the dissertation is to present a critical edition of kāṇḍa 15 of the Paippalādasaṁhitā of the Atharvaveda. The work is divided into two main parts: an Introduction and the critical edition itself. The Introduction deals first with topics related to the transmission of the text. After the description of the manuscripts collated for the edition and the study of their mutual relationships, I address the problem of orthography and spelling in the written sources. Arrangement and content of the hymns are then discussed. The explanation of the way the text is presented and the criteria according to which the critical apparatus has been prepared follow. Finally, the methodology and results of the metrical analysis are investigated. The critical edition follows the same pattern for each of the 23 hymns that constitute the kāṇḍa. Text, translation, a positive critical apparatus, parallel passages, and commentary then follow in that order, arranged stanza by stanza. The comment deals with philological, grammatical, metrical and lexical problems, as well as with the interpretation of the text. At the end of the volume, after a list of abbreviations and the Bibliography, an Index Verborum and an Index Locorum complete the dissertation. Show less
My dissertation consists of three parts. Part I is an introduction to the Old Javanese-Sanskrit Śaiva text forming the main focus of the book, namely the Dharma Patañjala, which has been preserved... Show moreMy dissertation consists of three parts. Part I is an introduction to the Old Javanese-Sanskrit Śaiva text forming the main focus of the book, namely the Dharma Patañjala, which has been preserved on a palm-leaf codex unicus of West Javanese origin dating back to the 15th century AD. Part II presents a diplomatic edition with facsimile reproductions of the manuscript, as well as a critical edition with facing annotated translation. Part III is a systematic study focusing on the interpretation of doctrines taught in the Dharma Pātañjala in comparison with related Sanskrit scriptures from the Indian Subcontinent and Old Javanese texts from the Indonesian Archipelago.The Dharma Pātañjala documents an early tradition of speculative texts (Tattva), which was previously known to us only through two Old Javanese scriptures, namely the Vṛhaspatitattva and the Tattvajñāna. Its author, having adopted a Pātañjala form of yoga instead of the Śaiva variety that is common in other Old Javanese texts, elaborated a syncretic system and followed an hitherto unknown commentarial tradition to the Sanskrit Yogasūtrathat is related to that of the Bhāṣya. The text fills a gap in our knowledge of Śaiva theology in pre-Islamic Indonesia, but also casts light on the origin and development of Śaivism in the Indian Subcontinent. Show less
Grammatical as well as poetological studies of the Rigveda have almost exclusively concentrated on the regular patterns of Vedic Grammar and Poetry. As was to be expected, irregularity of any kind... Show moreGrammatical as well as poetological studies of the Rigveda have almost exclusively concentrated on the regular patterns of Vedic Grammar and Poetry. As was to be expected, irregularity of any kind has always had a very difficult stand with scholars. Against the background of a highly regular prosodic and grammatical system, rare exceptions have been neglected, played down, or simply (dis)qualified as nonce formations, aberrations, abnormities, and even monstrosities. The further a formal excentricity deviates from the norm, the more likely it appears to me that this deviation is intended. And, not only is it to be accepted as intentional, it may convey a Surplus of Meaning that could not have been communicated in a regular way and by normal means of expression. All along the partly published (A. B. C. D.), partly unpublished (E. F.) articles that are united in this dissertation, I have enacted the role of a critically devoted advocate of the Vedic poet, taking sides with him or trying to do justice, in his apparent absence, to certain forms of irregularity. Show less
In Sanskrit discourse, discussions about property and ownership traditionally belonged to two disciplines: hermeneutics (mimamsa) and moral-legal science (dharma-sastra). Scholars of hermeneutics... Show moreIn Sanskrit discourse, discussions about property and ownership traditionally belonged to two disciplines: hermeneutics (mimamsa) and moral-legal science (dharma-sastra). Scholars of hermeneutics tended to ponder the question of what motivated people to acquire and alienate property, and scholars of moral-legal science contemplated exactly how people did acquire, use and alienate property. Beginning in the 16th century, however, a remarkable disciplinary shift occurred. Show less
Anyone who aims to discuss the Sanskrit intellectual tradition of the early modern period is required to preface his exposition with two remarks. The first is the typical caution offered by those... Show moreAnyone who aims to discuss the Sanskrit intellectual tradition of the early modern period is required to preface his exposition with two remarks. The first is the typical caution offered by those in a new field of research, though in this case the caution truly has bite. Sanskrit science and scholarship from the 16th through the 18th centuries has only just begun to attract the attention of scholars. In addition, the vast majority of texts have never been published, and some of these are housed in libraries and archives where access is either difficult or impossible. The second remark concerns a rather atypical language restriction on our problematic. In striking contrast to China or the Middle East, while somewhat comparable to Western Europe, India in the early modern period shows a multiplicity of written languages for the cultivation of science and scholarship. But two of these, Sanskrit and Persian, monopolised the field, and did so in ways that were both parallel and nonintersecting. Each constituted the principal language of science for its associated social-religious sphere, while very few scholars were proficient in both (at least aside from mathematicians and astronomers, and even these were very much in the minority). Sanskrit continued its pervasive, age-old dominance in the Hindu scholarly community, and merits consideration as a completely self-contained intellectual formation. With those two clarifications in mind we can proceed to ask what actually occurred in the world of Sanskrit knowledge during the early modern period, and how a comparative analysis may illuminate the general problem of modernity. Show less
The present dissertation concentrates on the study of construction rituals of the Hindu tradition, with special attention to the prathameshtakaanyaasa (the laying of the first stones), the... Show moreThe present dissertation concentrates on the study of construction rituals of the Hindu tradition, with special attention to the prathameshtakaanyaasa (the laying of the first stones), the garbhanyaasa (the placing of the consecration deposit) and the muurdheshtakaanyaasa (the placing of the crowning bricks). The basis for the study is formed, on the one hand, by Sanskrit texts on architecture and ritual, dating from ca. the 7th to the 15th centuries AD, and, on the other hand, by the archaeological material. The chief textual source is the Kaashyapashilpa, a South Indian treatise on art and architecture and ritual, usually dated 11 – 12th century AD. Three chapters from the Kaashyapashilpa, which deal with the three aforementioned construction rituals, have been critically edited, translated and provided with a commentary. In order to answer the questions whether construction rituals mentioned in the ancient Sanskrit treatises were ever performed and if so, whether they were performed according to the textual prescriptions, the information given by the Sanskrit texts have been compared with the material traces of construction rituals originating from various regions of South and Southeast Asia. Show less
