The Bajaur Collection of Buddhist Kharosthi Manuscripts (DFG)

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  • fragment 01
  • fragment 02
  • fragment 03
  • fragment 04
  • fragment 05
  • fragment 06
  • fragment 07
  • fragment 08
  • fragment 09
  • fragment 10
  • fragment 11
  • fragment 12
  • fragment 13
  • fragment 14
  • fragment 15
  • fragment 16
  • fragment 17
  • fragment 18
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Fragment 5 (Frame 11)

1. General condition: According to the textual evidence the length of the fragment is almost completely preserved with three lines missing in the beginning of recto. Its left margin, however, is nearly completely destroyed. The intact portions are quite legible. Both sides contain a single text.
2. Measurements:    11 cm x  37 cm
                               40 lines on r, 41 lines on v
                               20 a/l
3. Hands: Both sides are written by the same scribe (scribe 6).
4. Contents: Collection of Buddhist verses, arranged according to the Arapacana syllabary.

Content

A collection of Buddhist verses arranged according to the Arapacana alphabet

The verse collection of Fragment 5 is the only hitherto known Gāndhārī text arranged according to the sequence of the Arapacana syllabary. In addition, it is the only Gāndhārī text preserving an almost complete specimen of this alphabet which later on became widely popular in Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna circles.

Our text gives much weight to the convincing study of Richard Salomon according to whom the Arapacana alphabet is of Gāndhārī origin (Salomon 1990).

The scroll is in its length almost entirely preserved ranging from ra to dha on the obverse and from śa to ḍha on its reverse, comprising thereby 41 out of the 42 letters of the complete Arapacana syllabary.

Unfortunately almost one third of its left side is missing. Therefore it is in most cases not possible to reestablish the wording of a whole verse. Since the right side of the scroll is perfectly preserved we can, however, deduce the complete sequence of the Arapacana syllabary in Kharoṣṭhī letters.

If we compare it with the extract of the alphabet known from Niya it becomes obvious that both versions agree entirely with each other supporting thus mutually their authenticity and reliability. Equally reliable is the list given by Salomon according to the literary sources with some significant deviations due to the transmission of the syllabary into a remote writing system and phonology.

Cf. Strauch 2007: 37-40, ch. 4.3.2.