Is Pli closest to the western Aokan dialect of Girnr? Levman, Bryan. 2010.

"Is Pli closest to the Western Aokan dialect of Girnr?" Sri Lankan

International Journal of Buddhist Studies (SIJBS). 79-108.

Introduction Indias earliest decipherable writings, the A okan rock inscriptions, are an indispensable primary witness to the state of the Indian polity and language of the third century B.C. Utilizing these inscriptions it has often been observed that Pli (P.) is closet to the western Indian Girnr (Gir.) verion of Aokas Rock Edicts (RE) (e. g. Bloch 1950, 44-45; Lamotte 1988, 565; Salomon 1998, 73f; von Hinber 2001, 39), and this is commonly accepted as a linguistic fact. Sometime after 250 B.C., Mahinda, Aokas son and a Buddhist monk, brought the Buddhist teachings to ri Laka in Pli, where they were memorized, transmitted and eventually written down, in the first century B. C. Indeed there are many similarities between the Pli linguistic form and that of Girnr; however, the differences are just as striking as the similarities. This article will explore the similarities and differences and reevaluate Plis linguistic proximity to the other Aokan dialects of the north (Kls = K.) and north-west (Mnsehr = M. and Shhbzgah =Sh.). The Provenance of Pli Despite Buddhaghoas belief that Pli was in fact Mgadh, the original language of the Buddha (quoted in Norman 1990B, 128-30), we know that it is a mixed language containing mainly western elements with some Eastern features, plus Sanskritizations normalized for ecclesiastical purposes (Lders 1954; Norman 1983, 4; Lamotte 1988, 563; von Hinber 1994,180ff). Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit (BHS) is another Middle-Indic (MI) dialect, believed to stem from the school of the Mahsghikalokottaravdins (von Hinber 2001, 43), which has undergone even more Sanskritizations than Pli. Both dialects appear to have developed side by side at the times of their origin (von Hinber 1994, 192); they flow from the same source, which von Hinber calls Buddhist Middle Indic (von Hinber 2001, 40). The nature of what this source is has occupied researchers for decades. As early as 1916, Geiger surmised that it was a lingua franca containing elements of all dialects but free of the most conspicuous dialectal phenomena (p. 3). He variously termed it a Hoch- und Gebildetensprache (high and scholarly language), a Verkehrssprache (a lingua franca or interlanguage) and a Kunstsprache (artificial language). Helmer Smith called it a Koine Gangtique in 1952 (p. 178). Bechert (1980, 34) wondered if differences in Pli prose and verse pointed to a middle Indic Dichtersprache

(poetic language) which was transregional in use. Przyluski believed that The first canonical

texts were written in the Magadhan dialect. When the Sthavira and Sarvstivdin sects asserted themselves in the regions of Kaumbi and Mathur, each of them drew upon a literary language which was a source of prestige and an instrument of propaganda. Thus, the Scriptures were eagerly translated into Sanskrit at Mathura and into Pli at Kaumbi (quoted in Lamotte, 1988, 584). Differences between Pli and Girnr

The mystery of Plis provenance remains to this day. Lamotte has provided a comprehensive list of the similarities between Pli and Girnr (1988, 565), which list is often cited as evidence of Plis western connection (see below). I list here a few of the principal differences, in no particular order: 1) all the Aokan Prakrits have or va (Gir.) for (Skt.) yvat, yet Pli reverts to yva (as much as, until). 2) For the world self, Gir. has atp < (Skt.) tma, while Pli always has atta. Yet Gir. preserves some absolutives in tp which Pli echoes in tv (e.g. Gir. dasayitp, P.

dassetv, having seen). 1 So, apparently the western version (and certainly the
northwestern version) was tman > atpa > atva. The form atva is well attested in the northwestern dialect of Mnsehr (M.) (RE 12 F2, passim) and although the Shhbzgah (Sh.) RE adopts ata-, Mehendale maintains this is an eastern borrowing and the proper northwestern treatment of tman is > atpa > atva, (1956/57, 167). Nevertheless, in the case of Skt. tman, P. is closest to Sh. and the dialects of Kls (K.), Jaughaa (J.) and Eagui (E) which also have ata. The form atva- survives in the Gndhr version of the Dhp, verse

Although the tv structure apparently did change to tt, as von Hinber has pointed out, and it was Captial letters (F, etc.) refer to location of the text with the rock inscription as per the Hultzsch system of

later re-Sanskritised back to tva to prevent confusion with the nomen agentis (1994 188f.)
2

notation, found in his Inscriptionsof Aoka monograph (1969).

362 (ajtva-rado vs. P. ajjhatta-rato, delighting in ones self). To complicate matters, appa also survives as an ArdhaMgadh (AMg.) or eastern form. 3 3) In some cases Gir. is more phonologically advanced than Pli (e. g. RE 13 O, (Skt.)

samacarya > (Sh. K.) samacariya/samacaliya, > (Gir.) samacaira (spiritual calm),
yet Pli reverts to the (phonologically) older form (samacariy) as used in Sh. and K. 4) Gir. has mahi (RE 9C, Skt. mahil > mahi) showing an l- > -- change, 4 but Pli reverts to Skt. mahil (woman).

The appa- form of tman (P. atta-) is well attested in ArdhaMgadh and Mgadh (Pischel 277). In the

REs, the Brhm script shows a conjunct consonant with a pa- on top of a ta-, which is normally read tpa. Pischel says that it should be read pta- by way of transposition of stops , tma- > *atva- > *tpa- > pta-

atta (P.), based on the rule of consonant assimilation that between equals (-p- and t- being equal;
Woolner 33, Pischel 270) the second prevails. If the reading were tpa as Hultzsch has interpreted it in RE 12 Gir., then the normal derivation is appa, which is only found in AMg. most reflexes (P. and the other REs) are atta- or atva in M. and tpa in Gir.. The change of m- > v- is fairly common in MiddleIndo Aryan (MIA , Pischel 251) but the change v- > -p- is uncommon, it usually being the other way around, as a form of intervocalic lenition (Pischel 199). Munda characteristically has an interchange of

m- and p- (Kuiper 1991, 37). We find a similar change with aspiration, in RE 13 B (K.) tasmt > taspt > tappht > tapph (therefore) and in Separate Edict 2, I, L: (Skt.) asma > *aspe > (Jaughaa = J., Dhauli
= D..) apphe (we, written as aphe) and (Skt.) yuma > yume > *tume > *tupe > tupphe (you pl., written as tuphe). The v- > -p- phenomenon seems to be most prevalent in the west and northwest. See, for example, RE 4 B: (Gir.) dassayitp < (Skt.) darayitv; RE 9 H also attests to this change in Sh. and M. where (Skt.) svmika > (Sh. M.) spamika (master) and RE 6 L shows the same change in (Skt.)

svarga > (Sh. M.) spagra, > (Gir. K. Dh.) svagga (heaven). RE 10 A has (Gir.) tadtpano < (Skt.) *tadtvanam > (K. Dh.) tadatvye, and > (Sh. M.) tadatvaye (present time). In RE 12 F passim, the
Mnsehr edict shows several versions of atva-, while Gir. has tpa-, K Sh. and E ata (self). In the minor rock edicts - MRE 1 G, - several locations, Brhmagiri (Br.), E., Pnguriy (Pn.), RjulaMaagir (Rj.), and Uegoa (Ue.) have mahtpa for (Skt.) mahtm (great soul) which Mehendale sees as a northwest influence on these southern rock edicts (1955, 90); in the same section there is also a (common) p- > -v- change: (Skt.) prptum > (Sahasrm = Sah.) pvatave with other versions showing

ppotave (to achieve).

4

Pillar Edict (PE) 7 SS: (Skt.) dharmalipi > dhamalipi > dhamalibi (religious edict), also > RE I A, et

al. (Sh. M.) dhramadipi, with an unusual l- > d- change which Woolner (1924, 97) says is Iranian in origin. See Pischel 226 (-a- > -a-, but not vice-versa; this only happens in Munda (see Kuiper 1948, 6 which shows equivalence of d/r/l/ in proto-Mundan). For change -- > -, see also PE 5 B where (Skt.) uli > da (Delhi-Topr =Top.), but (Allhbd-Kosam=All.) > du (turtle). PE 5 C also has another example of

5) 6)

Gir. has yrisa < (Skt.)yda (which like), but Pli has ydisa (a NW form). Eastern, southern and Mnsehr forms are dis/dise/adie (RE 4 C). It appears that the normal form of Skt. guru (heavy, teacher) in Gir. is the same, i. e.

guru. In RE 9 G, Gir. and K. have gurna < (Skt.) gurm, while Sh. has garuna; This is
also the case in RE 13 G, where Sh. now shows guru and only K. (a northern dialect) has

galu. Later in the same rock edict Gir. has a single instance of garumat for Skt. gurumat
(serious), while the other REs show gurumat. The normal and oldest form attested in P. is

garu, similar to the northern and northwestern form. Although guru is used in P., it is a
younger form dating from the commentaries. 7) In RE 9 C, Gir. has chuda (< Skt. kudram), M. has khuda, K. has khud and Dh. has

khuda (Sh. putika; but khudra in RE 10 E), yet Pli reverts to khuda (futile). Note also in
RE 13 L where Gir. has chamitave and Sh. has kshamitaviya (dat infinitive, to bear) and Pli does not use the western form, but the northwestern form khanti < Skt. kanti. 8) How does Pli end up with the gerundivium ending tabba? Gir. Sh. and the eastern dialects usually have tavya and -tavya should go to -tavva, by regular assimilation (Geiger 51-3) and v- > -b- is not a normal change (v- > -p-, although unusual, is well-attested as noted above). Kuiper calls the interchange of -v- and b- a well-known crux (1991, 33) and notes the -b- > -v- change was an attempt to Sanskritize a foreign word with a foreign phoneme, b-. The change v- > -b- is inconceivable (for the RigVeda; ibid, 34) and one does not observe it in the Prakrits; however it does happen later in Pli (Geiger 54-6) and von Hinber (2001, 255) notes the use of tavvo in Pli inscriptions and oldest manuscripts. There are also several uses of bb- for vv- in the Dhammapada (Dhp), e. g. verse 53 (P. kattabba vs. PDhp 5 ktavva, to be done) and verse 113 P. udayabbaya vs. PDhp udayavyaya (rising and falling). Sn verse 537 has the word paribbajayitv, which, as Norman points out is a pun on pari + vraj (to wander) and pari + vj (to reject, abandon) which only works in a dialect where bb- changes to vv- (Norman 2006A, 263). However it is still not clear phonologically why v- > -b- unless through the process noted

change -- > --, i. e. (Skt.) eaka > (Top.) eak (ram). Also RE 2 A: (Skt.) kerala > (Sh.) keraa (Proper Name = PN) and RE 9 C: (Skt. mahil > (Gir.) mahi (woman).
5

Patna Dhammapada = PDhp

above (with tman) of v- > -p- > -b- (i. e. tavya > -tavva > -tappa > -tabba ). The latter lenition (-p- > -b-) is very common and the former fortition (-v- > -p-) is well attested, if uncommon, in Gir. (Skt. darayitv > Gir. dassayitp, having seen ), Sh. (Skt. svmika > Sh. spminka, master) and P. (Skt. prvaraa > P. ppurana, cloak; Skt. hvayati > P.

hpeti; to sacrifice, see Woolner 1928, 39-6). So in this case the P. tabba ending
seems to relate both to the western and the north/north-western dialects. 9) in RE 14 E, we find: (Skt.) sakaya > (Gir.) sacchya, > (K.) akheye, > (Sh.) samkhay-, (M.) sakhay-, (E.) sakhyy, but Pli goes back, not to the western, but to the northern version sankhaya (loss as a noun, or having omitted as a gerund). 10) Where the northern form and the eastern form are different, Gir. goes with the northern form, as does Pli: RE 6 F: (Skt.) tyayika, > (K. Dh.) atiyyike, > (Gir.) ccyika, > (Sh.) acayika, (M.) acayike, Pli (accyika; urgent). 11) While Gir. often preserves the -s- conjunct (e. g. RE 4 C: (Skt.) anusiaye > (Gir.)

anusasiy instruction; RE 4 G: (Skt.) reha > (Gir.) sese, best and RE 6 D: (Skt.) sthita > (Gir.) sit, hapax legomenon, standing, being, it is not preserved in Pli
(anusatthiy, seha, hita). In this case P. is the similar to K. Dh. and E. (anusatthiye/anusatthiy, sehe) and to Sh. and M. which, however, retain the r(srehe/sreha). 12) Many consonantal clusters are retained in Gir. ( kr, tr, pr, vy) but few of these are kept in Pli which often adopts the northern/eastern from: e. g. a) RE 1 G: (Skt.) pra > (Gir.) pra > (K. J. E.) pna, (P.) pa (living being); b) RE 1 F: (Skt.) priya > (Gir.) priya, > (K. J. E.) piya, > (Sh.) pria, >(M.) priya, (P.) piya (dear); c) RE 5 I: (Skt) trayodaa > (Gir.) traidasa, > (K. Dh. E.) tedasa, (Sh.) todaa, > (M.)

treaa, > (P.) terasa/telasa ( thirteen). The Pli word shows a d- > -r- change which is
characteristic of Gndhr, the north-western dialect (Brough 1962, 43-b); d) RE 10 C: (Skt.) tika, > (Gir.) trika, > (K. Dh. J.) tika, > (Sh. M.) trika, (P.) tika (threeforld). In the Aokan edicts this word occurs in the compound pra-trika (MW: advantageous in another world or with a view to the next world (Woolner 1924, s. v.). Strangely, the compound does not exist in Pli which uses the northern/eastern form or -tika, not the western; e) RE 4 F: (Skt.) putr > (Gir.) putr > (K. Dh.) put, > (Sh. M.) putra, > (P.) putt (sons)

f) RE 6 B: (Skt.) atikrntam, > (Gir) atikrta, > (Sh. M.) atikrata, > (K. Dh. J) atikata, (P.) atikkanta (passed). Pli follows the northern/eastern form. The same situation exists for the common verb par kram; g) with the common Skt. word brhmaa, P. is closest to the Sh. and M. versions (bramaa), although P. is clearly a back-formation to Skt. Girnr uses the br- form of brhma in two out of 7 cases. 6
6

The different reflexes of the word brhmaa in the Aokan edicts, whether in compound or as a single

word are as follows: Girnr: bmhaa (3D), brmhaa (4A), bramhaa (4C), bmhaa (8E), bamhaa (9G), bmhaa (11C),

bmha (13G),
Kls: babhna (3D), babhna (4A), babhana (4C), babhanibbhesu (5K), babhanna (8E),

babhanna (9G), babhanna (11C), bbhan (13G), bahmane (13J),

Dhauli: babhana (3D), bbhanesu (4A), bbhanesu (4C), bbhanibhiyesu (5K), bbhanna (8E),

bbhanna (9G),
Shhbzgarh: bramaa (3D), bramaana (4A), bramaa (4C), bramaibheu (5K), bramaana (8E),

bramaana (9G), bramaana (11C), bramaa (13G),

Mnsehr: bramaa (3D), bramaana (4A), bamaa (4C), bramaibhyeu (5K), bramaana (8E),

bramaana (9G), bramaana (11C), braane (13J),

Eagui: babhanna (3D) babhan[]na[] (4A), babhanna (4C), babhan[i]bhiyesu (5K),

babhanna (8E), [babha]nana (9G), babhanna[] (11C), b[bha]n (13G), [b]bhane (13J).
Delhi-Topra: bbhanesu (7th Pillar Edict Z), bbhana (7th PE HH) We note the following phonological changes. All locales except Sh. and M. (and five out of seven times in Gir.), change brh- > b/ba. This is a normal MIA conjunct simplification at the beginning of a word (Pischel 268). brhmaa is derived from the Vedic root bh or bh (to grow great or strong, to increase). The h- is usually not retained, but is often progressively assimilated to the initial consonant with the formation of the bilabial aspirated stop bh-, so brh- > bbh-. Sometimes, as in the northwest Sh. and M. it is simply dropped (-h- > ). In the latter case, the second syllable ma- is preserved (brhma- >

bamaa or bramaa); however with the change to bbh-, the second syllable loses its initial m-: brhma- > bbha-, sometimes with an anusvra after the -: brhma- > bbha-, which is presumably a retention
from the Vedic root bh or a metathesis from the second syllable. Peculiar to Girnr is the reversal of

hm- > -mh-, brhma- > b(r)mha-, and there is one case in K 13J where (brhmaa > bahmane)

h) A case where Pli preserves the conjunct vy-, from Gir. is found in RE 5 J: (Skt.) vypta > (Gir.) vypat, >(K. Dh.) viypa, > (Sh.) vapaa, > (M.) vapua > (P.) vyvaa (busy, engaged). Note the change of p- to v- and t- > --. The preservation of vy- does not appear to be invariably the case as in RE 8 B, Gir. has magavy (< Skt. mgavya, hunting), while P. has migav, unless the latter is derived from alt. Skt. word mgay (also meaning hunting) with a changey- > -v-. Other examples where the vy- is not retained is Skt.

vya > P. va (snake) and Skt. vrata > P. vata (religious observance).
13) In RE 4 F (Gir.) uses the term prapotr to mean great-grandson (< Skt. prapautra), with

potr meaning grandson, and putr, son; the other REs use paatika for great-grandson
(< Skt. pranapt) and natle/nataro to mean grandsons (< Skt. naptra, pl. of napt). Pali has the word paputta, but it means grandson, not great-grandson and has no equivalent to Girnrs potra. For great-grandson Pil has panattu (not in PED, but in Buddhadatta, 232) which, once again, corresponds with K. (pantiky), Dh. (panatti), Sh. (pranatika) M. (paatika) E. (pantik), but not Gir. Pli also has the word nattar for grandson which corresponds to all the REs but Gir. What we are witnessing in the above collection is that Pli is not as closely related to the Aokan western dialect as has commonly been believed. In fact, in all but a few cases above, P. is much more closely related to the northern (K.) or northwestern (Sh. M.) dialects.

wherehm- is retained but the preceding vowel nasalized. The normal Prakrit reflex of brhmaa is

bambhaa (Pischel 250 in ArdhaMgadh and Jaina-Mhrr; for other dialects the reflex is bamhaa,
in Mgadh and aurasen, per Pischel 250, 287). The question then arises, since the normal Prakrit form for brhmaa is either ba(m)bhaa (prevalent at Kls in the north central area, Dhauli in the east, Eagui in the south and Delhi in the centre) or bamhaa (used at Girnr in the west) or b(r)amaa (in the two north west sites, Sh. and M.): why did the authors of the Pli recension chose the Sanskrit version, using a form which is closest to the Sh. and M. reflex? This seems to corroborate the composite nature of the Pli language, formed by monks in conscious interference with the natural development of this language (von Hinber 1994, 187).

Similarities between Pli and Girnr. What about the other resemblances between Pli and the western dialect? Let us re-examine Lamottes list of similarities (1988, 565), which are based mainly on morphological rather than lexemic or phonological considerations: 1) P. has a nom. sing. in o for a-stems, as does Gir. But so does Shhbzgah. M. has nom. sing in e (Brough 76) which might also account for such P. forms traditionally thought to be Magadhisms (Lders 1954, 1f). 2) P. has ablative in for a-stems as sometimes does Gir. Sh. has ablative in a (Hultzsch, xc), although whether this was long of short a is impossible to tell, since vowel length was not noted in Karoh script (Salomon 1998, 75). K. has abl. in -. 3) P. has a locative of a-stems in e, -asmi and amhi; Gir. has loc. in amhi and e; Sh. has loc. in aspi and e. As we have seen above, -m- and p- are closely related. 4) P. has the accusative plural in e as does Girnr. Sh. has it in ani. Neuter plurals are the same for Gir. Sh. and P. 5) P. has instr. of an stem form as ra and gen. as rao; in Gir. the instr. is r and the gen. is ro. Sh. has instr. as raa and gen. as rao. 6) In Gir. and P. the demonstrative aya functions as nom. sing. in both masculine and feminine. Sh. has aya for masc. and aya for fem. 7) Gir. and P. has the 3rd. person sing. ending in e and -ey(y)a and the middle opt. in tha. Sh. apparently has no dedicated opt. form except for the verb as (siya and siyati compared to P. siy for 3rd pers. sing). Kls has ey as 3rd opt. 8) P. and Gir. both have the development u- > -a- < Skt. guru. But, as noted above, on two out of three occasions, Gir. retains guru while it is Sh. and K. which have garu.

9) The change of Skt. khalu > kho is noted by Lamotte as an isogloss between P. and Gir., but it is common to all the REs. 10) The replacement of -- by a-, -i-, or u- is, per Lamotte another correspondence between P. and Gir. However this is also common to K. and Sh. Dh. and J. 11) The retention of -- in the stems is common to both P. and Gir., but this is also the case in Sh. and M. (e. g. gaa- in RE 3 E or samaa in RE 4 C or caraa in RE 4 D). 12) Changing bh- > -h- in instrumental plural (common to all REs) and in the verb hoti (common to K. and M.) 13) the collapse of the three sibilants, , and s to one (s). Both K., Sh. and M. retain the differentiation of the sibilants, the latter two following Skt., and the former indiscriminately (Hultzsch, lxxvi). The eastern dialects also collapse the sibilants, although the palatal s > c in the root sak (Separate RE 2 G: Dh.). 14) the shortening of long nasalized vowels esp. in the gen. pl. is done in Gir. and in P. But it is also prevalent in Kls (Hultzsch lxxiv), Sh. and the other REs (e. g. RE 4 A: Skt.

bhtn > Gir., E. bhtna, K. bhutna, Dh. bhtna, Sh. M. bhutana ).

In Summary, considering all 14 points of convergence outlined by Lamotte, there is only one or two points (masc. accus. pl. in e of a stems and the levelling of the sibilants to the dental s) which are peculiar to P. and Gir., with the others being common to the northern and north western dialects, or sometimes to all. Plus there are many points of dissimilarity between the two dialects, leading one to believe, with Norman that there is probably no connection between Pli and the Girnr dialect of the Aokan inscriptions (2006B, 128). Yet there does appear to be a strong connection with the north and northwest.

Conclusions 1) Pli is a composite language, younger and more phonologically evolved than the Aokan Prakrits. It has many and varied correspondences to the dialects, but the strongest by far is to Sh. and K., northwestern and northern. 2) We know that Pli was not written down until the first century B. C. in ri Lanka (Bechert 1992, 45); however writing existed in India from at least Aokan times, and probably

earlier. Scholars are generally agreed that the earliest writing in India was in the Karoh, Aramaic script and was extant from the fourth century or possibly the fifth century (Salomon 1998, 46). Karoh was older than Brhm and quite possibly its precursor and model (ibid, 54). 3) It would not be an unreasonable hypothesis therefore to suggest that the first Buddhist teachings were written down in Karoh in the north west to which Buddhism spread from its earliest times through the existing trade routes; Buddhism had a special appeal to merchants, for the new philosophy validated and encouraged their profession (Thapar 2000, 926). 4) Assuming the Pli teachings had a Karos source or influence, this would account for the significant number of northwestern influences in the Pli dialect. Although the only way to prove this statistically is to translate the entire Aokan corpus into Pli, my intuition, from the little preliminary work done above, is that much more of the lexemic and phonological inventory of Sh. M. and K. will be present in Pli than will the forms from Gir. This in itself does not prove anything more than the fact that Pli is not closest to Gir. as is commonly opined, but closer to the northern and northwestern dialects. It does not of course prove derivation. The morphological correspondences between P. and Gir and P. and Sh./K./M. are equally strong. 5) In this spirit, Appendix 1 shows a comparison of all forms of (randomly chosen) RE 4 which supports this hypothesis of a north/north-western origin of Pli, with 43% of the words in K. Sh. and M. being closest to Pli, while only 19% are closest to Gir. This short compilation treats data on a unitary basis and does not weight for important common words like Pli brhmaa which is closest to the NW form - bramaa, but its change to

brhmaa in Pli may also be a later back-Sanskritization as Norman suggests (2006B,

134). 6) The Pli- Shhbzgah/Mansehr/Kls connection also helps to explain some of the strange phonological anomalies in the edicts, like the use of the common word tman. The eastern and Pli form is atta, but Gir. has atp and M. has atva. Sh., although it preserve elsewhere the m- > v change (e. g. asmin > aspi in loc. sing.) has atta. Yet AMg., also an eastern dialect, preserves the form appa. This leads to the conclusion that atpa/atva is a northwestern form and that the AMg. and Mgadh form appa was borrowed from there, while the other eastern dialects (Dh. J.) chose the atta form. A

derivation from the east to the northwest is precluded by the Dh. J. preservation of the

atta form (since t- never changes to p-). Alternately we are simply witnessing the
confusion noted by Pischel (277) of atman > atpa > appa or by metathesis atman >

apta > atta.

The Pli north/northwest connection also helps to clarify the many lexical ambiguities we encounter in Pli through the use of intervocalic glides which are subject to multiple interpretations: e. g. a compound like P. pacceyabuddha which is traditionally interpreted to derive form Skt. pratyekabuddha (a private Buddha) but probably comes from pratyayabuddha (a Buddha awakened by specific conditions; i. e. not by a Buddhas teachings); 7 or the ambiguity between viraja (free from passion), virata (stopped, ceased) in corresponding versions of the Sabhiyasutta (in Pli Sutta Nipta and BHS Mahvastu) which goes back to an underlying word viraa; 8 there are dozens of these ambiguities in the Pli writings, some of which have been isolated in Levman 2009. As the most advanced of the Aokan dialects, Shhbzgah which is already extensively softening consonants, dropping them or replacing them with glides - could well be the source of, or at least a significant influence on these linguistic anomalies.

Abbreviations

All. = Allhbd-Kosam (Pillar Edict) BHS = Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit

pratyayabuddha (Skt.) > paccayabuddha > *pacceyabuddha > (palatalization a- > -e- in the presence

of [-ANT] cons. cc-), P. paccekabuddha. In this case the y- form encountered by the translator was interpreted as an intervocalic glide replacing a consonant (often represented as a y- with a dot over it,

-, as per Pischel 187), common in the north-west Prakrits, and the missing consonant (thought to be k-) was mistakenly replaced.
8

See Norman 1990B, 151. The consonant -- represents a weakly articulated intervocalic glide which

replaced consonants in intervocalic position, first in Gndhr and then in the other Prakrits.

BHSD = Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary Br.= Brahmagiri Dh. = Dhauli (Rock Edict) Dhp = Dhammapada E. = Eagui (Rock Edict) GDhp. = Gndhr Dhp. (Brough 1962) Gir. = Girnr (Rock Edict) J. = Jaugaa (Rock Edict) K. = Kls M. = Mnsehr (Rock Edict) MIA = Middle Indo-Aryan MW = Monier Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary P. = Pli Pn. = Pnguriy PDhp = Patna Dhammapada PE = Pillar Edicts (capital letter following refers to Hultzschs section designations, 1969) PED = Pali Text Society Pali-English Dictionary PN = Proper Name RE = Rock Edicts (capital letter following refers to Hultzschs section designations, 1969) Sah. = Sahasrm Sh. = Shhbzgah (Rock Edict) Sn. = Sutta Nipta Top. = Delhi-Topr (Pillar Edict) Ue. = Uegoa

Figure One- Map of Ancient India (per Lamotte, 1988). Aokan rock inscription sites circled in red.

Appendix One: Comparison of RE 4 forms with Pli and Sanskrit forms. Note: reconstructions where applicable are as per Hultzsch 1969, Bhler (quoted in Hultzsch) and Sircar 1979.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

atikta atikata atikata atikrata atikrata atikata atikrntam atikkantam

K. Dh. E

atara atala atala atara atara atala antara antara

all

bahni bahuni bahni bahni bahuni bahuni bahni bahni

Gir. Dh. Sh.

vsasatni vasasatni vasasatni vaaatani vaaatani vasasatni vrasatni vassasatni

K. Dh. E

vahito vadhite vahite vahito vadhite vahite vardhita vahito

Gir. Dh. Sh. E

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P.

eva v va vo vo va eva eva, va, vo

prrabho pnlabhe pnlabhe praarambho praarambhe pnlabhe prlambha prabho

vihis vihis vihis vihis vihis vihis vihis vihis

ca ca ca ca ca ca ca ca

bhtna bhutna bhtna bhutana bhutana bhtna bhtn bhtna

Pli closest to 9

all but K.

Sh. M.

Gir.

all

Gir. Dh. E

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

tsu ntin ntisu tina atina ntina jatn tna

Gir. Sh.

asampratipat asapaipati asapaipati asapaipati asapaipati asapaipati asampratipatti asapaipatti

K. Dh. Sh. E.

brmhaasramana samanababhanna samanabbhanesu ramanabramaana ramaabramaana samanababhanna ramaabrhm samanabrhma

for brhmaa Sh. M. for samaa K. Dh. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M.

asampratipat asapaipati asapaipati asapaipati asapaipati

ta se se so se

aja aj aja aja aja

devnapriyasa devnapiyas devnapiyasa devnapriyasa devanapriyasa

Generally, I considered consonantal similarity to be more important than vowel, esp. at an ending.

Therefore, for example, I consider K. piyadassine to be closer to P. piyadassino, than Gir. priyadassino. When the only difference between forms is in a long or short vowel (as in bahni/bahuni) I treat them all as equal.

E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

asapaipati asampratipatti asapaipatti

K. Dh. Sh. E.

se sa so
Sh.

aja adya ajja

all

devnapiyasa devnpriyasya devnapiyassa

K. Dh. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

priyadasino piyadasine piyadasine priyadraisa priyadraine piyadasine priyadarina piyadassino

K. Dh. E.

ro ljine ljine rao rajine lajine rja rao

Gir. Sh.

dhamacaraena dhamacalanen dhamacalanena dhramacaraena dhramacaraena dhamacalanena dharmacaraena dhammacaraena

Gir. K.

bherghoso bhelighose bhelighosa bherighoa bherighoe bhelighose bherghoa bherighosa

Gir.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

aho aho aho aho aho aho

dhamaghoso dhamaghose dhamaghosa dhramaghoa dhamaghoe dhamaghose

vimnadarsa vimanadassan vimnadassana vimana draana vimanadraana vimnadasan

ca hastidassa hatthini hatthni astin astine hathini

Skt. P. Pli closest to

abhavat ahu/ahuv
none

dharmaghoa dhammaghosa
Gir. K. Dh. M. E.

vimnadaranni vimnadassanni
K. Dh. E

hastidaranni hatthidassanni hatthi = K. Dh. E dassanni = Gir.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

ca agikadhni agikadhni agikadhni jotikadhani agikadhani agikadhni agniskandh aggikandh

Gir. K. Dh. M. E.

ca ani anni anni aani aani anni anyni ani

Gir. Sh. M.

ca divyni divyni diviyni divani divani diviyni divyni dibbni/divyni 10

Gir. K. (based on the verse form)

rpni lupni lpni rupani rupani lpni rpni rpni

Gir. Sh. M.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M.

dassayitp dassayitu dassayitu draayitu draeti

jana janassa munisna janasa janasa

yrise dis dise yadia adie

bahhi bahuhi bahhi bahuhi bahuhi

vsasatehi vasasatehi vasasatehi vaaatehi vaaatehi

10

divya is the verse form, dibba, the prose form, per PED.

E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

dasayitp dasayitv dassetv

none

janasa jana/janasya jana/janassa

Gir. K. Sh. M. E.

dise yda ydiso

Sh.

bahuhi bahbhi bahhi

all

vasasatehi varasatai vasasatehi

Gir. K. Dh. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

na bhtapuvve n hutapuluve no htapuluve na bhutapruve na hutapruve no hutapuluve na bhtapurva na bhtapubba

none

trise tdise tdise tadie tadie tdise tda tdiso

K. Dh. E

aja aj aja aja aja aj adya ajja

all

vahite vahite vahite vahite vahite vahite vardhita vahito

all

devnapriyassa devnapiyass devnapiyassa devanapriyassa devanapiyasa devnapiyasa devnpriyasya devnapiyassa

K. Dh. M. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M.

priyadasino piyadasine piyadasine priyadraisa psiyadraine

ro ljine ljine rao rajine

dhamnusasiy dhamanusatthiye dhamnusatthiy dhramanuastiya dhramanuastiya

anrabho anlabhe anlabhe anarabho anarabhe

E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

piyadasine priyadarina piyadassino

K. Dh. E.

lajine rja rao

Gir. Sh.

dhamnusathiy dharmnuaaye dhammnusatthiy

K. Dh. E.

anlabhe anlambha anrabbho

M.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

prna pnna pnna praana praana pnna prn pna K. Dh. E

avihs avihis avihis avihisa avihisa avihis avihis avihis

none

bhtna bhutna bhtna bhutana bhutana bhtna bhtn bhtna

Gir. Dh. E.

tna ntina ntisu tina atina ntina jatn tna

Gir. Sh.

sampatipat sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati sampratipatti sapaipatti

all

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

bramhaasamana babhanasamanna samanabbhanesu bramaaramaana bamaaramaana samanababhanna

sampatipat sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati sapaipati

Skt. P. Pli closest to

brhmaaraman brhmaasamanna brhmaa, Sh. Gir. samanna, Gir. K. Dh.

E.

sampratipatti sapaipatti
all

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P.

mtari pitari mtpitisu mtipitu matapituu matapituu mtpitu mtpitsu mtpitusu

susrus sussus susss

thairasusrus

esa ese

vuhasusss vuhana surua

esa eta ee esa etad eta/etad

surua suss urs susss

vudhrana surua vuha ssus vddhaurs vuhasusss or therasusss

Pli closest to

K. Sh. M.

K. Dh. E.

vuha Dh. Sh. Err.

Sh.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

ae ca c ane ane ca aa ca ae ca ane ca

bahuvidhe bahuvidhe bahuvidhe bahuvidha bahuvidhe bahuvidhe

dhamacarae dhamacalane dhamacalane dhramacaraa dhramacarae dhamacalane

vahite vadhite vahite vahita vadhrite vahite

Skt. P. Pli closest to

anya ca aa ca
Gir. Sh. M.

bahuvidha bahuvidha
all

dharmacaraa dhammacaraa
Gir.

vardhita vahita
Gir. Dh. Sh. E

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

vahayisati vadhiyissati vahayisati vahiati vadhrayiati vahayisati vardhayiyati vahessati

Sh.

ceva cev ceva ca yo yeva yeva eva or caiva ceva, yeva

for ceva: Gir. K. Dh. , for yeva, M. E.

devnapriyo devnapiye devnapiye devanapriyasa devanapriye devnapiye devnpriya devnapiyo

K. Dh. E.

priyadasi piyadasi piyadas priyadraisa priyadrai piyadasi priyadar piyadassi

K. Dh. E

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

rj lja lj rao raja lja

dhamacaraa dhamacalana dhamacalana dhramacaraa dhamacaraa dhamacalana

ida ima ima ima ima ima

putr put put putra putra put

ca ca pi cu pi ca pi ca ca

Skt. P. Pli closest to

rj rj
Gir. M.

dharmacaraa dhammacaraa
Gir. M.

ida ima/ida
all

putr putt
K. Dh. E

api ca pi ca
all but Dh.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

potr ka nattle natti ka nataro ka natare ka natale naptara/pautr nattro Sh. M

prapotr pantiky panatti pranatika paatika pantik pranaptara panattu K. Dh. M. E

devnapriyasa devnapiyas devnapiyasa devnapriyasa devanapriyasa devnapiyasa devnpriyasya devnapiyassa

K. Dh. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt.

priyadasino piyadasine piyadasine priyadraisa psiyadraine piyadasine priyadarina

ro ljine ljine rao rajine lajine rja

pravadhayisati pavahayisati pavahayisati pravadheati pavahayiati vahayisati pravardhayiyanti

ida ceva yeva yo yo yeva ida/ya/caiva

P.

piyadassino

rao

pavahessanti

ida/ya/ceva/ yeva

Pli closest to

K. Dh. E.

Gir. Sh.

Sh.

all

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

dhamnussana dhamnussana dhamnussan dhramanuaana dhramanuaana dhamnussan dharmnusana

dhammnussana

dhamacarae dhamacalane dhamacalane dhramacaraa dhramacarae dhamacalana dharmacaraa dhammacaraa

Gir.

pi na pi c no pi cu no pi ca na pi ca na pi ca no api ca na pi ca na Gir. Sh. M.

bhavati hoti hoti bhoti hoti hoti bhavati bhavati/hoti

all but Sh.

Gir. K. Dh. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P.

aslasa asilas aslasa ailasa ailasa aslasa alasya aslassa

ta imamhi se imas se imasa so imisa se imasa se imasa s s

attamhi atthas ahasa athrasa athrasa athasa arthasya atthassa

vadh vadhi vah vahi vadhri vahi vddhi vuhi/vahi

ahni ca ahini c ahni ca ahini ca ahini ca ahini ca ahna ca ahna ca

imasa/imamhi
Pli closest to

all

all but Sh. for

Gir. K. E.

Dh. Sh.

none

imasa/imamh;
none for s

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

sdhu sdhu sdh sadhu sadhu sdhu sdhu sdhu

all

etya etye etye etaye etaye etye etasmai etya

Gir.

athya athye ahye ahaye athraye ahye arthrya atthya

Gir.

ida iya iya ima iya iya iya ida

Gr.

lekhpita likhite likhite nipista likhite likhite likhita/likhpita likhita/likhpita

K. Dh. M. E.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

imasa imas imas imisa etasa imasa

athasa athas ahasa ahasa athrasa ahasa

vadhi vadhi vah vahi vadhri vahi

yujatu yujatu yujat yujatu yujatu yujatu

Skt. P. Pli closest to

asya/etasya imasa/etasa
all but Sh.

arthasya atthassa
Gir. K.

vddhim vahim
Dh. Sh. E.

yujantu yujantu
all

Gir. K. Dh.

hni hini hni

ca no ca m ca m

locetavy alocayisu alocayis

dbdasavsabhisitena duvasavabhisitena duvdasa vasni abhisitasa

Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

hini hini hni hna hna

none

ca ma ca ma ca m ca m ca m
Gir. K. Dh. E.

loceu alocayisu alocayisu

badayavaabhisitena duvadaavaabhisitena duvasavasbhisiten

locayitavya/alociu? dvdaavarbhisiktena locetavy/locesu?

? (Gir. Sh.)

dvdasavassbhisittena
Gir.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E.

devnapriyena devnapiyen devnapiyasa devnapriyena devanapriyena devnapiyen

priyadasin piyadasin piyadasine priyadraina psiyadraina piyadasina

r ljin ljine raa rajina ljina

ida

ya ana iya iya

idha hida

Skt. P. Pli closest to

devnpriyena devnapiyena/assa
K. Dh. E.

priyadarin piyadassin
K. Dh. E.

rj ra
Gir. Sh.

ida/jna iha ida/a

Gir. Dh. Sh. Dh.

Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Skt. P. Pli closest to

lekhpitam lekhit lekhite nipesitam likhapite likhite lekhita/likhpita lekhita/likhpita

K. Dh. M.

Total correspondence with Pli lexical forms by RE and percent 11 Gir. K. Dh. Sh. M. E. Total 40 40 42 31 19 39 211 19% 19% 20% 15% 9% 18%

Total correspondence with Pli lexical forms by area. West (Gir.) North and northwest (K. Sh. M.) East (Dh.) South (E.) 42 39 20% 18% 40 90 19% 43%

11

percentages total more than 100% because of multiple answers (Pli is similar to more than one rock

edict form). All and None were omitted from count.

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