A 403

Known as:	A 403; THT 1037
Cite this page as:	Gerd Carling. "A 403". 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-a403 (accessed 10 May 2026).
Edition
Editor:	Gerd Carling
Provenience
Main find spot:	Sengim
Expedition code:	T II S 19.09
Collection:	Berlin Turfan Collection
Language and Script
Language:	TA
Script:	late
Text contents
Title of the work:	Ṣaḍdanta-Jātaka
Passage:	c
Text genre:	Literary
Text subgenre:	Jātaka/Avadāna
Verse/Prose:	prose; verse
Meter:	543 (4x); 554443 (4x)
Object
Manuscript:	A 399-404
Preceding fragment:	A 88
Following fragment:	A 66
Material:	ink on paper
Form:	Poṭhī
Number of lines:	7

Transliteration

(continues from A 88)

a1	/// s· ne slā¯ ¯nt lā ñci wa ṣ[t]· (– –) lyi tmaṃ nu m· ///
a2	/// ñä kte¯ ¯s kā swo ne yo (– –) tsi : ci ñcr[aṃ] ///
a3	/// cri ā ri – ·r· ka¯ ¯r eṃ – – 1 \|\| tma ṣsā m·· ///
a4	/// ṣ· ñcäṃ \|\| tma¯ ¯s̝ ja [mbu] dvi pṣi ñi wā rts[k]ā¯ ¯ñä lā¯ ¯ñ·ä te ///
a5	/// pa rsa¯ ¯nt p· ka¯ ¯r \|\| śi ni ku r· \|\| kul· ///
a6	/// śki tā (– – – –) : ṣa kka¯ ¯ts ā yi ta¯ ¯m kā swo ne ///
a7	/// nwe nyo pa l[s]·ā (– – – – – –) lte • \|\| wā ///
b1	/// ṣi ṣru¯ ¯m : ku (– – – – – – –) yo plo nt· – – – ·ñu ///
b2	/// [ka] lyme (– – – –) o sā¯ ¯t pyā ppyā syo twa ntaṃ yo ā ///
b3	/// [n]ā si o sā¯ ¯t \|\| a pra ti tu lye naṃ ///
b4	/// ra¯ ¯s̝ ma he ndra [se] ne¯ ¯s lā¯ ¯nt ñu¯ ¯k ckā ca¯ ¯r cm· ///
b5	/// pñe [s]a – r[p]e o pyā¯ ¯cä – – rñi : s̝a¯ ¯k ā ///
b6	/// ma bhā drā o ṅka lmā (– –) la¯ ¯s̝ ā [y]· ///
b7	/// śna ṣiṃ kā pñu ne yo pra (– – –) ¯nt ta(·) k· ///

(continues on A 66)

(continues from A 88)

a1	/// (sās) (nu) (tāpärk) (plāc) (mahendra)s(e)nes lānt lāñci waṣt(aṃ) (kärsnā)lyi tmaṃ nu m· ///
a2

*	tmäṣ sām·· ··
a4	/// ṣ(e)ñc-äṃ ॥ tmäṣ jambudvipṣiñi wārtskāñ lāñ(ś) te(mi)
a5	n1 n2 /// pärsant p(e)kar ॥ śinikur(aṃ) ॥

a7	/// (āleyaṃ) (śa)nwenyo päls(k)ā(t) – – – – (k_uya)lte • ॥ wā ///
b1	/// ṣi ṣrum : ku – – – – – – – yo plont· – – – ·ñu ///
b2	/// kälyme – – – – osāt pyāppyāsyo twantaṃyo ā(pat) ///
b3	n3 /// (ākāl) (ri){n→t}āsi osāt ॥ apratitulyenaṃ ///

1a	25σ
1b	b4 2σ /// (walu)räṣ ; mahendrasenes ; lānt ñuk ckācar ; cm(imār) /// 9σ
1c	16σ b5 /// (kā)pñes{†ä} ; (wä)rpe opyāc ; (päklā)r-ñi :
1d	ṣäk ā(ṅkaräs) /// 21σ

b6	/// (tmäṣ) (sā)m{†ä} bhādrā oṅkälmā(ṣi) (śpa)läṣ āy(äntwā) ///
b7	/// śnaṣiṃ kāpñuneyo pra(kte) (ypa)nt tä·k· ///

(continues on A 66)

(continues from A 88)

a1	... (This conversation now following, however, [must be]) understood [as taking place] in the palace of king Mahendrasena.
a1	There, too, ...
a2	... by the virtue of... god...
a2	Lovely...
a2+	... she held fast the father’s heart.
a3	1.
a3	Thereupon she ...
a3+	... were to/for her.
a4	Thereupon the neighbouring kings of Jampudvīpa her ...
a4+	... letters they wrote.
a5	\|\| In the Ś.-tune: \|\|
a5	You, pearl of women ...
a6	... princes ...
a6	Certainly you may give us (by) [your] virtue ...
a6+	... with [his] chin in the palm of his hand he [= Mahendrasena] thought:
a7	... since:
a7	\|\| In the W.-tune(?): ...
b1+	... she [= Bhadrā] began, with flowers and circumambulation, (to honour(?) the Pratyekabuddha) ...
b2+	... to feel (the wish), she began.
b3	\|\| In the A.-tune: \|\| ...
b3+	... (when I die), may I be [re-]born as king Mahendrasena’s daughter ...
b4+	... the loves I enjoyed.
b5	You shall remember me.
b5	The six tusks ...
b5+	... (Thereupon) Bhadrā, the she-elephant, threw herself (?) from the mountain ...
b6+	... doing penance for the love for the woman ...

(continues on A 66)

*	Transcription and translation are based on Carling et al. 2009.
*	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).

*	The translation is largely based on Sieg 1952: 7-8, and Carling et al. 2009.
n2	The tune has 4x12 syllables, rhythm = 5/7.
n3	The tune has 4x25 syllables, rhythm = 5/5/8/7.

n1	pärsant from pärs 'letter', cf. TB parso, pärso* 'id.' (Couvreur 1954b: 260).