Work in progress

A 16

Known as:A 16; THT 649
Cite this page as:Gerd Carling. "A 16". In A Comprehensive Edition of Tocharian Manuscripts (CEToM). Created and maintained by Melanie Malzahn, Martin Braun, Hannes A. Fellner, and Bernhard Koller. https://cetom.univie.ac.at/?m-a16 (accessed 09 Jun. 2026).

Edition

Editor:Gerd Carling

Provenience

Main find spot:Shorchuk
Specific find spot:Stadthöhle
Expedition code:T III Š 72.16
Collection:Berlin Turfan Collection

Language and Script

Language:TA
Script:classical

Text contents

Title of the work:Puṇyavantajātaka
Passage:p
Text genre:Literary
Text subgenre:Jātaka/Avadāna
Verse/Prose:prose; verse
Meter:4343 (4x)

Object

Manuscript:A 1-54
Preceding fragment:A 15
Following fragment:A 17
Material: ink on paper
Form:Poṭhī
Number of lines:6

Transliteration

(continues from A 15)

a1[c]ta mpe pñiṃ twā śśi tmā ka llāṃ tra tā ne su¯ ¯k : ske nmāṃ pe nu kā wä lte knā nmāṃ tsra ṣi a mo ka¯ ¯ts mā ca –
a2lpā¯ ¯nt yā tlu ne ku cne ka lpā¯ ¯t pñi ste ske : ta myo kro pnulaṃ ska¯ ¯m pñi ntu ke ne ku lypa¯ ¯l yā tlu ne : – –
a3– ¯s̝ ā lyä kyāṃ pra ṣtaṃ ce¯ ¯s śtwa rma śki tā śśi ta mne wä knā lā¯ ¯nt wä tkā s̝a¯ ¯l wra¯ ¯m kā tka[¯] [¯m] –
a4[po](·)¯ ¯śä lā nta¯ ¯cä ka kmu ṣlā¯ ¯nt pa lko ra¯ ¯s̝ lā ñci wa ṣti syo kmaṃ klyā¯ ¯nt || tma¯ ¯s̝ pu ṇya –
a5– – – ·ā· ā syo wo rpu ā rki nāṃ wtsi la pā spā rtwä smāṃ ā rkya¯ ¯nt śa ñi nā syo paṃ ypa māṃ spa ktāṃ wä –
a6– – – – – – śu krā syo ne¯ ¯s̝ wra [sa]¯ ¯s ṣkā rā ypa māṃ a śi ṣma ṅka lṣi nā¯ ¯s ra ke ntu yo na – –
b1– – – – – r· p· yo tri ska smāṃ no ki ·u kka lym· yu lā ñci wa s̝ta¯ ¯s̝ la ntu pa lkā tce sa¯ ¯m śtwa¯ ¯r –
b2– [p]ra – – ·l· pra ski o ki ṣo ma ka lyme ka lymāṃ smi māṃ a kma lyo pñi ntwā śśi ta mpe pā kra śi ypa māṃ ·l·[o]
b3– ṅka¯ ¯s̝ || tu ṣi ta bha vnaṃ || lkā tsi kā swe ru pa vāṃ a mo kyo pśi śi lpa vāṃ : knā nmāṃ ka –
lf70-1
b4[pra] jña vāṃ tsra ṣi wä rs̝a¯ ¯lts vi rya vāṃ : pu kce¯ ¯s̝ pñi ntu yā mu ntā¯ ¯p pu ṇya vā ni pa rno nt· –
b5: yo kmaṃ klyaṃ ta rki ṅka re¯ ¯ñä pa lkā¯ ¯cä ta mpe pñi ntwā śśi : 1 || ptā ñka tka ṣṣi tra ṅka¯ ¯s̝ pa lkā cṣā mnā¯ ¯ñä ku –
b6tā mpra ṣṭaṃ vi rya vāṃ ṣe s̝sa¯ ¯m tā pa¯ ¯rk śra va ṇa ko ṭi vi ṅśe ka rsnā¯ ¯l ku sne ru pa vāṃ ṣe s̝sa¯ ¯m na [nd]e –

(continues on A 17)

Transcription

(continues from A 15)

lf(80) 70-1
1a(pälkā)a1c tampe ; pñiṃtwāśśi ; tmā källāṃträ ; tā ne suk :
1bskenmāṃ penu ; kāwälte ; knānmāṃ tsraṣi ; amokäts {:}
1cmā ca(m) (kä)a2lpānt ; yātlune ; kuc ne kälpāt ; pñi s{t→n}e ske :
1dtämyo kropnulaṃ ; skam pñintu ; ke ne kulypal ; yātlune : (1) (॥)
a3(tmä)ṣ ālyäkyāṃ praṣtaṃ ces śtwar mäśkitāśśi tämne wäknā lānt wätkāṣäl wram kātka-m –
a4n1 po(ṃ)ś lāntac kakmuṣ lānt pälkoräṣ lāñci waṣtis yokmaṃ klyānt ॥ tmäṣ puṇya –
a5– – (ām)ā(ś)āsyo worpu ārkināṃ wtsi lapā spārtwäsmāṃ ārkyant śañināsyo paṃ ypamāṃ spaktāṃ wä –
a6– – – – – – śukrāsyo neṣ wrasas ṣkārā ypamāṃ aśiṣ maṅkalṣinās rakentuyo na – –
b1– – – – – r(a)p(e)yo triskäsmāṃn oki (p)uk kälym(e)yu lāñci waṣtäṣ lantu pälkāt cesäm śtwar –
b2– pra – – ·l· praski oki ṣoma-kälyme kälymāṃ smimāṃ akmalyo pñintwāśśi tampe pākraśi ypamāṃ (ṣ)l(y)o¬
b3¬(k)n2 (trä)ṅkäṣ ॥ tuṣitabhavnaṃ ॥
1alkātsi kāswe ; rupavāṃ ; amoky= opśi ; śilpavāṃ :
1bknānmāṃ kä(lymāṃ) ; b4 prajñavāṃ ; tsraṣi wärṣälts ; viryavāṃ :
1cpuk ceṣ pñintu ; yāmuntāp ; puṇyavāni ; parnont(āp) b5 :
1dyokmaṃ klyaṃtär ; kiṅkareñ ; pälkāc tampe ; pñintwāśśi : 1 ॥
*ptāñkät käṣṣi träṅkäṣ pälkāc ṣāmnāñ ku(s) (ne)
b6tām praṣṭaṃ viryavāṃ ṣeṣ säm tāpärk śravaṇakoṭiviṅśe kärsnāl kus ne rupavāṃ ṣeṣ säm nande (kä)¬
*¬(rsnāl)

(continues on A 17)

Translation

(continues from A 15)

a1the power of virtues,
a1thus they are led to a place where there is joy.
a1Even if the beautiful one, the wise one, the energetic one, the artisan strive, they do not reach the perfection that virtue achieved without effort.
a2Therefore he who longs for perfection shall always gather merit.
a3Thereupon at another time a decision of the thus king of these four princes emerged.
a3+(Thereupon) all came to the king and facing the king they stood in the gate of the royal palace.
a4+There upon (king) Puṇyavān surrounded by [his] ministers, turning a white parasol above [his] head, fanned by white fans, (accepting) the service (from his retainers), who with sticks are pushing back the people in front, with words of blessing and good luck and with ... music making all corners of heaven resound, as it were, stepped out from the royal palace and saw (his) four brothers, as if in fear, standing to the side.
b2+And with a smiling face announcing the power of virtue, this verse he speaks:
b3|| In the T.-tune: ||
b3Rūpavān is handsome to look at,
b3skilled in his craft is Śilpavān;
b3+wise and prudent is Prajñāvān,
b4energetic and strong is Vīrjavān.
b4+But they are all standing at the gate of splendid Puṇyavān, who has practiced virtue, as servants:
b5behold the power of the virtues!
b5The Buddha, the master, speaks:
b5See ye, oh monks,
b5+the one who at that time was Vīryavān is now to be known as Śravaṇakoṭiviṃśa.
b6He who was Rūpavān is now to be known as Nanda;

(continues on A 17)

Other

a1+Wenn sich auch der Schöne, der Kluge, der Energische, der Kunstfertige bemühten, [so] erlangten sie [doch] nicht die Vollkommenheit, welche die Tugendhaftigkeit ohne mühe erreichte. (Schmidt 1974: 197)
a4(Darauf) kamen (alle) zum König, und angesichts des Königs standen sie an der Pforte des königlichen Palastes. (Schmidt 1974: 270)

Commentary

Remarks

*Transcription and references have been transferred from the "Text and Reference Database of the Tocharian A Language" (Gerd Carling Lund University) (funded by the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation and SCAS).
*Transcription and translation are based on Carling et al. 2009.
*The leaf number on the margin has been lost, but a number 71 (sic!) is written inside the string hole of the verso side by a different hand. Since this leaf stands in a continuous series, it actually ought to have the leaf number 80. The combination of lost margin and deviating string-hole numbering starts in A 15 and continues until A 24.

Philological commentary

*The translation is largely based on Sieg 1944: 19-20, and Carling et al. 2009.
n1po(ṃ)ś: reading based on Sieg 1944: 19
n2The tune has 4x14 syllables, rhythm 7/7.

References

Online access

IDP: THT 649; TITUS: THT 649

Edition

Sieg and Siegling 1921: 13-14; Sieg and Siegling 1921 p. 13, p. 14

Translations

Carling 2000: a4 (166, 235), a4 a5 (195, 335), b4 b5 (166); Hackstein 1995: b1 (101f); Schmidt 1974: a1 a2 (197), a4 (270); Sieg 1944: a1 a2 a3 a4 a5 a6 b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 (19); Thomas 1952: a2 (17), a2 (61); Thomas 1954: b3 (740); Thomas 1957: a1 a2 (224), b5 b6 A 17 a1 A 17 a2 (76); Thomas 1968: b1 (213); Thomas 1970b: b3 (286)