Work in progress

A 5

Known as:A 5; THT 638
Cite this page as:Gerd Carling. "A 5". 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-a5 (accessed 10 May 2026).

Edition

Editor:Gerd Carling

Provenience

Main find spot:Shorchuk
Specific find spot:Stadthöhle
Expedition code:T III Š 72.05
Collection:Berlin Turfan Collection

Language and Script

Language:TA
Script:classical

Text contents

Title of the work:Puṇyavantajātaka
Passage:e
Text genre:Literary
Text subgenre:Jātaka/Avadāna
Verse/Prose:prose; verse
Meter:543 (4x)

Object

Manuscript:A 1-54
Preceding fragment:A 4
Following fragment:A 6
Material: ink on paper
Form:Poṭhī
Number of lines:6

Transliteration

(continues from A 4)

a1kro śa va ti tā tra stā ṣtā mpra ṣṭaṃ pu kkā rya paṃ twā śśi nka lu ne ma ska ta¯ ¯r pu kpa rko wä ntwā śśi śkaṃ sa tkā –
a2ne ma ska ta¯ ¯r ta myo knā nmu ne wra sa śśi pukaṃ pru cca mo pu kkā swo ne nwā śśi tsmā rnāṃ tsu || tā ṣpe nu –
a3so¯ ¯m a ra mpā tyo ka knu lkā tsi kā swe knā nmu ne a¯ ¯ts mā tā s̝aṃ ta preṃ a¯ ¯ts pa lka s̝·aṃ (–)
a4tse ke ṣi pe ke ṣi pa¯ ¯t a ra mpā ttā ṣtu ṅkā pñu ne a ra ssi cä mpa s̝pa rko ya tsi nu mā –
a5– ¯s̝ : maṃ tne ā lyä kyāṃ pra ṣṭaṃ ā la ksaṃ pe ka¯ ¯nt yaṃ trā cā re¯ ¯s wa ṣṭā lo ki tye¯ ¯s̝ tma s̝sa¯ ¯m yaṃ trā –
a6– – ka ntāṃ pu kwä knā yä rkā yā mu ra¯ ¯s̝ o ṣe ñi pka nta kwa ṣtaṃ la ke ra ksāṃ ku ñci nṣiṃ s̝a – –
lf60 9
b1– – ·[ṣāṃ] ya nta rṣi nāṃ śo mi nāṃ śkaṃ la ma¯ ¯s̝ lya lymāṃ sā¯ ¯m ca mi śla wä kta su rñe o ki kā wä lt· – –
b2– yā ma lyo tsa raṃ eṃ tsu spaṃ ypāṃ ta mnu ma¯ ¯nt wä knā || ṣā mne rnaṃ || pro ṣmiṃ no ki sā¯ ¯m tsru s̝a¯ ¯t lkā –
b3śā ri lyā¯ ¯k : ma tsra tsi o ki mā plā ccra ṅka¯ ¯s mā ka ryā : śla tu ṅko ki nu ra sñā po ke –
b4ypa māṃ : po ntsāṃ ka pśi ññä¯ ¯s̝ o mlyi wi kṣā pe ka ntā¯ ¯p : 1 || tma s̝sa¯ ¯m pe ka¯ ¯nt ā kntsu –
b5yo tā¯ ¯m o rṣi nāṃ śo mi nā naṃ yne śśo miṃ ṣiṃ i me ka lpo ā ñma śla kka¯ ¯ts pa ltsa ṅkā¯ ¯s̝ o – –
b6preṃ kā wä ltu ne o te ta preṃ kule ñciṃ ma sra tsu ne yo pro ṣmu ne || so ktaṃ || mā ṣo kyo lkā¯ ¯s̝ kā – –

(continues on A 6)

Transcription

(continues from A 4)

lf60-9
a1krośavati tāträ{sku}s tāṣ tām praṣṭaṃ puk kāryapäṃtwāśśi nkalune mäskatär puk pärkowäntwāśśi śkaṃ sätkā(lu)¬
a2¬ne mäskatär tämyo knānmune wrasaśśi pukaṃ pruccamo puk kāswonen{t}wāśśi tsmār nāṃtsu ॥ tāṣ penu (wra)¬
a3¬som arämpātyo kaknu lkātsi kāswe knānmune ats mā tāṣ-äṃ täpreṃ ats pälkäṣ (m)äṃ(t) (ne)
a4tsekeṣi pekeṣi pat arämpāt tāṣ tuṅ= kāpñune arässi cämpäṣ pärko yatsi nu mā (cä)¬
a5¬(mpä)ṣ : mäṃt ne ālyäkyāṃ praṣṭaṃ ālak saṃ pekant yaṃtrācāres waṣṭā lokit yeṣ tmäṣ säm yaṃtrā(cā)¬
a6¬(re) (pe)käntāṃ puk wäknā yärkā yāmuräṣ oṣeñi pkänt-äk waṣtaṃ lake raksā-ṃ kuñci{n→t}ṣiṃ ṣä(lyp)¬
b1¬(aśśäl) (orṣ)ṣāṃ yantärṣināṃ śomināṃ śkaṃ la{m→p}äṣ lyalymā-ṃ sām cami śla wäktasurñe oki kāwält(une) (yä)¬
b2¬(rkā)n1 yāmäl yo tsaraṃ eṃtsus paṃ ypā-ṃ täm nu mänt wäknā ॥ ṣāmnernaṃ ॥
1aproṣmiṃn oki sām ; tsru ṣät lkā(māṃ) ; b3n1 śāri-lyāk :
1bmätsratsi oki ; mā plāc craṅkäs ; mā karyā :
1cśla tuṅk oki nu ; räsñā poke ; (paṃ) b4 ypamāṃ :
1dpontsāṃ kapśiññäṣ ; omlyi wikṣā ; pekäntāp : 1 ॥
*tmäṣ säm pekant ākntsu(ne)¬
b5¬yo tām orṣināṃ śominānaṃ yneś śomiṃṣiṃ ime kälpo āñmaśl-äkk ats pältsäṅkāṣ o(te) (tä)¬
b6¬preṃn2 kāwältune ote täpreṃ kuleñciṃ mäsratsuneyo proṣmune ॥ soktaṃ ॥
1amā ṣokyo lkāṣ ; kā(ckeya) (c)

(continues on A 6)

Translation

(continues from A 4)

a1(Well, if the foolishness) Krośavatī is bitten through (by the wisdom Vajramukha), at that moment the ruin of all harms is there,
a1+and the spread of all advantages.
a2Therefore human wisdom is superior to all, since it is the root of all excellent qualities.
a2+Even if a being is provided with a [beautiful] figure [and] lovely to look at, [but] it has no wisdom, then it looks exactly as if it were a fashioned or painted figure.
a4+It can inspire love, but it cannot create advantages.
a5Just like at another time some other painter went as a guest to the house of a mechanic.
a5+The mechanic then treated the painter in every way with reverence, he covered a bed for him in a separate place in his house, (gave) him sesame oil
b1and set an artificial girl at the head [of his bed].
b1+She, that with his [the mechanic’s] reverence held in her hand, as it were, beauty and reverence, attended to him.
b2But how so?
b2|| In the S.-tune:||
b2+Like one ashamed casting her glance to the ground a little, she looked lovely;
b3as if ashamed she did not say a word
b3and she did not laugh,
b3+but as with love she stretched her arm as she attended [to him].
b4She drove away the burning from the entire body of the painter.
b4+And the painter, who because of his ignorance took the wooden girl for a real one, thinks only to himself:
b5+ah, such beauty,
b6ah, such bashfulness caused by female shyness!
b6|| In the S.-tune: ||
b6Does she not very much look like a Kāminī,

(continues on A 6)

Other

a2+Even if a being is provided with a [beautiful] figure [and] lovely to look at, [but] it has no wisdom, then it looks exactly as if it were a fashioned or painted figure. (cf 8) (Peyrot 2013b: 263)
a2+Ist auch ein Mensch mit Schönheit versehen [und] lieblich anzusehen, nur die Klugheit ist ihm nicht, [so] sieht er genau so [schön] aus, als ob er eine geformte oder gemalte Gestalt wäre. (Schmidt 1974: 187)
b4+Darauf denkt der Maler, der infolge [seiner] Dummheit das hölzerne Mädchen für ein wirkliches Mädchen hielt, eben bei sich: "Ach diese Schönheit, ach diese Verschämtheit durch weibliche Schüchternheit! ..." (Schmidt 1974: 179)

Commentary

Remarks

*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).

Philological commentary

*The translation is largely based on Sieg 1944: 8-9, and Carling et al. 2009.
n1The metre of the following tune is 4x12 syllables, rhythm 5/7.
n2The metre of this tune is 4x14 syllables, rhythm 7/7.

References

Miscellaneous

Online access

IDP: THT 638; TITUS: THT 638

Edition

Sieg and Siegling 1921: 5-6; Sieg and Siegling 1921 p. 5, p. 6

Translations

Carling 2000: a1 a2 (287), a5 (8, 56, 147), a6 (56, 147); Hackstein 1995: a6 (118); TEB II: b5 (20), b5 b6 (20), b6 A 6 a1 (20); Lane 1947: a1 a2 a3 a4 a5 a6 b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 (33ff); Peyrot 2013b: a1 a2 (278), a2 a3 a4 (263); Schmidt 1974: a2 a3 (187), a2 a3 a4 (187), b4 b5 (179), b4 b5 b6 (179); Sieg 1944: a1 a2 a3 a4 a5 a6 b1 b2 b3 b4 b5 b6 (8); Thomas 1952: b2 (57); Thomas 1954: a2 a3 a4 (740), a4 (722); Thomas 1957: a5 a6 b1 (50), b1 b2 b3 b4 (50), b4 b5 (51); Thomas 1958a: a2 (154); Thomas 1968: a3 a4 (226), a5 (229), b2 (201), b3 (201), b3 (207); Thomas 1969c: a5 a6 (202); Thomas 1970b: a2 a3 (286); Thomas 1979d: b3 (150); Thomas 1983: a5 (25); Thomas 1997: a1 a2 (141), b4 (73)