17. Discovery of Bengali(?) dramas in Nepal. 
By Kumar GANGANANDA Stnwa 
Seven years ago four arama were discovered in manu 
script form in Nepal. These a 
AMAT Ha ets 
2. RMST HI ASAIea 
3. Wai aa carafe and 
4. waufa Bal ATTAAT AAARAAT 
— 
All of these were written in Newari script. They are of 
great importance in more than one way. ‘The exact nature of 
the popular plays in the 17th and the 18th century as revealed 
vy these compositions is worth considering. Here, however, I 
confine mvself to the discussion of the question of the language 
of some of these dramas. The Bangiya Sahitya Parishad has 
baplshed them in Bengali script and the collection is called 
“auTe ager aizH ” (Bengali dramas in Nepal). 
f these, the first two were written under the auspices of 
Bhipatindra Malla, the last but one of the Malla Rajas of 
Bhatgaon. His reign of 34 years, as we know from the His- 
tory of Nepal (written in Parbatiya language by Munshi Shew- 
sanker Singh and Pandit Sri Gunananda and translated by D. 
Wright), included the years 817 Nepal Samvat (1697 A.D.) to 
841 Nepal Samvat (1721 A. Pie nana last two were written in 
the reign of his son, Ranajit 
A careful examination of thede plays will show it beyond 
doubt that the language of ta¥yfta by wae differs from that 
of the other three works. For example, I give the following 
extracts culled at random from the above mentioned books. 
n aIMtaTy wa faaifaam we have (at p. 7)— 
“Vea ue oy af wea wea fra(a)e at 
arm sitte ca atte (eifa) arte Fa Hee ATT” 
In ABTHTEA of HWST we have (p. 43)— 
“aqaq taa tha qa ale (Ata) WA 
WaT STA Ta HT TE TT | 
