324 



Notes on ancient Inscriptions from the 



[No. 4. 



English. 



Ta-ying Mishmi. 



Mijhu Mishmi, 



"Wind (n.j 



Hzung 



Mba-ong. 



Woman 



Mia 



Kmai. 



Wood 



Barong 



Sang. 



Work (v.) 



Khree-mu-ba-na 



Se-nam-ha chu. 



Tear 



Ka-nung 



Laoma. 



Yes 



Ornam 



La-yim. 



Young 



Msa-bre 



Yong-sa. 



Notes on ancient Inscriptions from the Chusan Archipelago and the 



Hazara Country. — By JBdbu Bajendkalal Mittba, Librarian^ 



Asiatic Society. 



The accompanying plate (XV.) contains facsimiles of three 

 inscriptions lately submitted to the Asiatic Society. The first two 

 are from Putu in the Chusan Archipelago and are interesting as 

 affording traces of Buddhism in the remote isles of the China Sea. 

 Mr. Townsend Harris of the American Consulat at Ningpo, to 

 whom I am indebted for an opportunity of examining facsimiles of 

 these records, informs me that the island, whence they are brought, 

 is covered with the remains of monasteries, temples and hermitages, 

 and held in great veneration by the Chinese. As a place of pilgrim- 

 age its reputation was at one time sufficient to attract the presence 

 of the Emperor Kanghi to its shores, and even to this day, no females 

 are allowed to land on it, lest they should defile it by their pre- 

 sence. The inscriptions were found recorded on granite tablets 

 on the road side, about two hundred yards apart from each other. 



The substance of the first inscription (Plate XY. No. 1) is the 

 well known Buddhist formulary " Om Manipadme hum," written in 

 Sanskrita and Chinese characters. The second (No. 2) includes 

 the same formula along with two other invocations, with the heading 

 "tryam" triplet. The Sanskrita characters of both are of the 7th 

 century of the Christian era, and bear a strong likeness to the 

 modern Tibetan. There seems, however, to be a slight difference in 

 the style and cut of the letters which induces me to think the first 

 inscription to be somewhat older than the second. 



The words of the triplet are : 

 Om Aripachani hrih. 



