Sanskrit Translation!

[Viper6924]

Hi guys!

 

Me and Piers are currently trying to get our heads around a couple of Sanskrit inscriptions. Well, to be honest it´s Piers doing most of the work.

 

There are three facets with these inscriptions. Two which looks identical consisting of seven characters and one with eight.

 

For the sake of an opened mind, I will not show the actual object. I can do that afterwards. But with Sanskrit texts we are dealing with a number of possible "meanings" to this object.

 

Any push in the right direction would be fantastic and highly appreciated.

 

 

All the best!

 

Jan

[Baka Gaijin]

Hi Jan.,

 

How's the Red Armour Collection coming on??

 

Just a random thought, but if it's in Bonji characters, chances are its an invocation or series of invocations to whatever deity or deities the maker or user held allegiance.

 

The Siddham scripts which we know as Bonji are phonetic like Hiragana, so if I set you out two invocations in Hiragana, the esteemed Piers can likely take it further.

 

('Cos he's a sly old fox and well versed in looking sideways to find the real answer....  )      

 

Watch out for seed syllables, which are points when only the beginning or ending of the invocation is used, like the Bonji "Kan - Man" carved on the famous Koryu Kagemitsu, an invocation to FUDŌ MYŌ-Ō, using the last two syllables of the invocation.

 

http://www.emuseum.jp/detail/100178/000/000?mode=detail&d_lang=en&s_lang=en&class=6&title=&c_e=&region=&era=&century=&cptype=&owner=&pos=9&num=3

 

Here we go:

 

FUDŌ MYŌ-Ō

 

なーまくさーまんだーば    さらなんせんだ
まーかろしゃーな    そわたやうんたらた    かんまん

 

BISHAMON TEN

 

おん　べいしらまなや　そわか

 

 

Oh, Jan, before the Grammar Police get on to you, it's not "Me and Piers", it's "Piers and I"

 

(If you want to sound like a true Englishman).

 

Moi,  as a true Welshman do not.................

 

 

Pip Pip Cheerio!!!

[Bugyotsuji]

Ah, the 'sowaka' at the end of Bishamonten tickles the gills, although it seems to be part of invocations to several deities, Kannon, etc. Malcolm could be our man, or compass needle even.

 

We had a thread on chanting in battle in the film Heaven and Earth around here somewhere.

[Viper6924]

The Red armour collection is waiting for a very important addition. Any day now...

 

I'm so happy to have Piers with me on this latest translation enigma. It's sooo above my pay grade.

 

I'm liking the Bishamonten angle.

 

Thanks for getting the ball rolling, Malcolm!!!

 

Jan

[Baka Gaijin]

Hi guys,

 

I would forget the so waka element and look for the seed syllables or alternate names, don't forget Fudo shows as Acala and so forth.

 

Don't just include  the so called  War Gods, check out all deity options.

 

And Jan, please pass on my kind regards to another esteemed Viking Blunderbuss Collector of whom you are well acquainted:

 

     and another     

 

 

Odin!!!

 

Pip Pip Cheerio

[Viper6924]

You can consider your kind regards as passed on.

 

Miss you over at "the other place"

 

I'm praying to all sorts of Gods to get through these inscriptions with my sanity intact...

 

Jan

[Baka Gaijin]

Your words Jan are received with the greatest respect.

 

Regarding the "other place"......

 

 

 

Pip Pip Cheerio

[The_ozzy_samurai]

Your words Jan are received with the greatest respect.

 

Regarding the "other place"......

 

 

 

Pip Pip Cheerio

Best reply i have seen on this site for a long time  Clsssic!!

 

Julian

[Baka Gaijin]

Hi Guys, 

 

If you have not already discovered this, here's some lists of the various Myo-o and Bosatsu, many with Hiragana invocations:

 

You will need to dig about a bit, but they are there.

 

http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/myo-o.shtml

 

http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/bodhisattva.shtml

 

Here's a very useful search engine, which, despite its architectural theme, is quite good for cross referencing deities:

 

http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/

 

And this one is really useful:

 

http://eos.kokugakuin.ac.jp/modules/xwords/

 

 

 

 

Pip Pip Cheerio!!

[Bugyotsuji]

Many thanks Malcolm. Now, where's that shovel?

[Viper6924]

Well, to illustrate my progress so far     

 

Start to feel a tingling sensation in my head.... is it enlightenment? 

 

No...probably just a delayed concussion 

 

     

 

 

Jan

[Bugyotsuji]

http://www1.plala.or.jp/eiji/BONJI.htm

 

This page gives many of the *Shuji (Taneji) 種字 Sanskrit letters, representing aspects of the Buddha, and the deities associated with them, but the author emphasizes that they continued to be blended and developed within Japan according to the various sects springing up, and he acknowledges that although he always tries to update, there are many more.

 

In an ideal world we would compare and try to match up, for example 'Yoku' No.10, representing Fugen Enmei Bosatsu, with one of the Sanskrit/Bonji/Shuji within Jan's three inscriptions above.

 

In this practical world, however, it might be simpler to send the inscriptions to the author of that webpage and ask him/her to read them for us, especially as there seem to have been classical, decorative, and shortened/casual ways of writing the same characters.

 

*Malcolm's "seed" syllables above.

[Viper6924]

When I look at these inscriptions I get a feel that they fall under the shortened/casual cat.

Perhaps contacting an expert is the best way to find out what these invocations really means.

That is if Malcolm can't "terminate" this riddle once and for all...

 

Jan

[Baka Gaijin]

Piers.,

 

Thank you for

 

http://www1.plala.or.jp/eiji/BONJI.htm

 

Excellent 

 

 

I reckon we need someone like Morita san to have a look.

 

 

M

[Bugyotsuji]

Well, I've written to the monk at Koya San who seems to run that web page, Malcolm, and I now await his reply with interest.