Nanaghat Inscriptions

Naneghat, also referred to as Nanaghat or Nana Ghat (IAST: Nānāghaṭ), is a mountain pass in the Western Ghats range between the Konkan coast and the ancient town of Junnar in the Deccan plateau. The pass is about north of Pune and about east from Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It was a part of an ancient trading route, and is famous for a major cave with Prakrut Language inscriptions in Dhammalipi and Middle Indo-Aryan dialect. These inscriptions have been dated between the 2nd and the 1st century BCE, and attributed to the Satavahana dynasty era.Development Of Modern Numerals And Numeral Systems: The Hindu-Arabic system
Encyclopaedia Britannica, Quote: "The 1, 4, and 6 are found in the Ashoka inscriptions (3rd century bce); the 2, 4, 6, 7, and 9 appear in the Nana Ghat inscriptions about a century later; and the 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 9 in the Nasik caves of the 1st or 2nd century CE — all in forms that have considerable resemblance to today’s, 2 and 3 being well-recognized cursive derivations from the ancient = and ≡."

Location

Nanaghat pass stretches over the Western Ghats, through an ancient stone laid hiking trail to the Nanaghat plateau. The pass was the fastest key passage that linked the Indian west coast seaports of Sopara, Kalyan and Thana with economic centers and human settlements in Nasik, Paithan, Ter and others, according to Archaeological Survey of India.Lenyadri Group of Caves, Junnar
, Archaeological Survey of India Near the top is large, ancient manmade cave. On the cave's back wall are a series of inscriptions, some long and others short. The high point and cave is reachable by road via Highways 60 or 61. The cave archaeological site is about north of Pune and about east from Mumbai. The Naneghat Cave is near other important ancient sites. It is, for example, about from the Lenyadri Group of Theravada Buddhist Caves and some 250 mounds that have been excavated near Junnar, mostly from the 3rd-century BCE and 3rd-century CE period. The closest station to reach Naneghat is Kalyan station which lies on the Central Line.

History

During the reign of the Satavahana (c. 230 BCE – 230 CE), the Naneghat pass was one of the trade routes. It connected the Konkan coast communities with Deccan high plateau through Junnar. Literally, the name ''nane'' means "coin" and ''ghat'' means "pass". The name is given because this path was used as a tollbooth to collect toll from traders crossing the hills. According to Charles Allen, there is a carved stone that from distance looks like a stupa, but is actually a two-piece carved stone container by the roadside to collect tolls.

The scholarship on the Naneghat Cave inscription began after William Sykes found them while hiking during the summer of 1828. Neither an archaeologist nor epigraphist, his training was as a statistician and he presumed that it was a Buddhist cave temple. He visited the site several times and made eye-copy (hand drawings) of the script panel he saw on the left and the right side of the wall. He then read a paper to the Bombay Literary Society in 1833 under the title, ''Inscriptions of the Boodh caves near Joonur'', later co-published with John Malcolm in 1837. Sykes believed that the cave's "Boodh" (Buddhist) inscription showed signs of damage both from the weather elements as well as someone crudely incising to desecrate it. He also thought that the inscription was not created by a skilled artisan, but someone who was in a hurry or not careful. Sykes also noted that he saw stone seats carved along the walls all around the cave, likely because the cave was meant as a rest stop or shelter for those traveling across the Western Ghats through the Naneghat pass.

Sykes proposed that the inscription were ancient Prakrut Language because the statistical prevalence rate of some characters in it was close to the prevalence rate of same characters in then known ancient Prakrut Language inscriptions. This suggestion reached the attention of James Prinsep, whose breakthrough in deciphering Dhammalipi script led ultimately to the inscription's translation.

Georg Bühler published the first version of a complete interpolations and translation in 1883. He was preceded by Bhagvanlal Indraji, who in a paper on numismatics (coins) partially translated it and remarked that the Naneghat and coin inscriptions provide insights into ancient numerals.

Date

The inscriptions are attributed to a queen of the Satavahana dynasty. Her name was either Nayanika or Naganika, likely the wife of king Satakarni. The details suggest that she was likely the queen mother, who sponsored this cave after the death of her husband, as the inscription narrates many details about their life together and her son being the new king.

The Naneghat cave inscriptions have been dated by scholars to the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE. Most scholars date it to the early 1st-century BCE, some to 2nd-century BCE, a few to even earlier. Sircar dated it to the second half of the 1st-century BCE. Upinder Singh and Charles Higham date 1st century BCE.

The Naneghat records have proved very important in establishing the history of the region. Nature Gods like Dharma Indra, Chandra and Surya are mentioned here. The mention of Sankarsana and vasudeva indicate the prevalence of Nature Worshiping tradition of Indian Cumminity in the Satavahana dynasty.

Nanaghat inscriptions

Two long Nanaghat inscriptions are found on the left and right wall, while the back wall has small inscriptions on top above where the eight life-sized missing statues would have been before somebody hacked them off and removed them.

Left wall

Inscription

#sidhaṃ ... no dhaṃmasa namo īdasa namo saṃkaṃsana-vāsudevānaṃ caṃda-sūtānaṃ mahimāvatānaṃ catuṃnaṃ caṃ lokapālānaṃ yama-varuna-kubera-vāsavānaṃ namo kumāravarasa vedisirisa raño
#......vīrasa sūrasa apratihatacakasa dakhināpaṭhapatino raño simukasātavāhanasa sunhāya ......
#mā ..... bālāya mahāraṭhino aṃgiya-kulavadhanasa sagaragirivaravalayāya pathaviya pathamavīrasa vasa ... ya va alaha ......salasu ..ya mahato maha ...
#.... sātakaṇi sirisa bhāriyā devasa putadasa varadasa kāmadasa dhanadasa vedisiri-mātu satino sirimatasa ca mātuya sīma .... pathamaya .....
#variya ....... ānāgavaradayiniya māsopavāsiniya gahaṭāpasāya caritabrahmacariyāya dikhavratayaṃñasuṃḍāya yañāhutādhūpanasugaṃdhāya niya .......
#rāyasa ........ yañehi yiṭhaṃ vano , agādheya-yaṃño dakhinā dinā gāvo bārasa 12 aso ca 1 anārabhaniyo yaṃño dakhinā dhenu .........
#...... dakhināya dinā gāvo 1700 hathī 10 .....
#......... as ..... sasataraya vāsalaṭhi 289 kubhiyo rupāmayiyo 17 bhi ......
#.......... riko yaṃño dakhināyo dinā gāvo 11,000 asā 1,000 pasapako ..............
#............. 12 gamavaro 1 dakhinā kāhāpanā 24,400 pasapako kāhāpanā 6,000 , rājasūya-yaṃño ..... sakaṭaṃ
The missing characters do not match the number of dots; Bühler published a more complete version.

Left wall translation without interpolation

#''Sidham'' to Dharma, adoration to Indra, adoration to Samkarshana and Vāsudeva, the descendants of the Moon ("Chandra") endowed with majesty, and to the four guardians of the world ("Lokapalas"), Yama, Varuna, Kubera and Vāsava

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