The Buddhist Art of Ancient Arakan ( IX )

By U SAN THA AUNG

Two Inscribed Ancient Bronze Bells

All over the world bells have been rung to attract the attention of people. They ring out the hour of the day, call people to prayer at home or in the monastery, announce news of joy or sorrow, and remind people of something of the past.

The bell in the monastery sounds the signal for rising at a particular time in the morning, it indicates the time for the morning meal, the time for prayer and it sounds the retiring signal at night.

In Burma, we have caitya bells (Pagoda bells) also. They are hung under the hti or the finial. Their constant ringing remind celestial under the hti or the finial. Their constant ringing remind celestial devas, men and creatures of the nether world, of Buddh’s endless compassion and charity, and it is hoped people would thus be persuaded to follow Buddha’s path and thus gain release from the cycle of rebirths and attain nirvana.

People donate bells producing sweet sounds, to gain merit. They believe that by donating bells that produce sweet sounds, they will have sweet voices in their next existence. In general, people donate bells primarily to gain any wish relating to the voice, in their next existence.

So far, we have found two inscribed ancient bells from the vicinity of vesali in Arakan. One of the bells seems to be a caitya bell and the other a monastery bell. Both of them are made of bronze, that is, an alloy of copper and tin. The dates of their casting can be determined paleographically. Both of them are found by this method to have been casted in the sixth century A..D.

The caitya bell ( See Picture. Go was found in the vicinity of Ahpaungdaw Dattaung ceti which is situated close to Tharlarwaddy Village, near the South-west corner of the outer wall of Vesali about 12 years age. It was brought to my notice in September, 1973. The bell is about 11.5 c.m. high, the inner diameter of the mouth is 9.9 c.m. and the outer diameter 11.5 c,m. It weighs over 2 lbs. The shape resembles the top part of a stupa. There are two bands at the lip of the bell. It is thus thickened to strengthen it at the point of clapper impact. This thickening of the lip also improves the tone of the bell. There are two bands bare of decoration, just below the neck of the bell. From the size of the neck which has an inner diameter of 2 c.m. and outer diameter of 3.4 c.m. it can be inferred as a caitya bell.

Two lines of writings have been inscribed around the centre. The first line contains 18 words endowed with vowelmarks or conjunct Arakanese and Sanskrit. They record the donation of the bell, which is described as a naraghanta. The inscription ends with the so-called “garuda” symbol, found at the end of the 8th century caitya inscription and Anandacandra’s parsasti of Arakan.

TEXT

matapitroh hiritathettr Kimmayan Dhanayah - - nama

naraghantayad datteyam samarira svarah

Word for word translation in Sanakrit does not make sense as some of the words are ancient Arakanese. Translation can be roughly rendered as follows.

Obeisance - - - for the welfare and Punya of (my) mother and father, Kimmayana - - - this nara bell with a sweet sound is given.

At least one personal name can be identified. This is, Kimmayana. The palaeography is exactly the same as that of the copper plate. Therefore, it can be dated around 507 A.D. The copper plate grant was issued by a Vesali king saying that a village by the name of Dengutta was granted by Kimmajuvdevi in favour of a vihara (Buddhist mon-satery) built by herself.

Notice that the nemes of the donor of the bell and the donor of the village to be somewhat related.

The second bell, (see plate 18) which seems to be a monastery bell was found by the late U San Shwe Bu at Prinedaung village, about six miles north of Vesali in 1918. The bell is 9.8 c.m. high and has an inner diameter of 9.5 c.m. and outer diameter of 10.5 c.m. It weighs about one pound. This bell is of smaller structure then the first one but is better cast. It weighs only half that of the first one. The neck of the bell is rather wide and seems to have an arrangement for fixing a handle. Hence it is inferred as a monastery bell. It has a band below the neck decorated with flower petals. There also bands without decorations around the shoulder and the lip. The lip of the bell is also thickened.

Here again, two lines of writing were inscribied between the bands around the shoulder and the lip. The writings can be palaeographically assigned to the pre-or early Niticandra period, that is around 520 A.D/ The writings reveal the dedication by a monk for the benefit of his spiritual preceptors, etc, and his mother and father,

TEXT

deyadharma’ yam Sakyabikso ………………. yac atra punyam tad bhavatu matapitrpurvangamam krtva.

caryyipadhyayanam sarvvasatvanan ca anuttarajnanavaptaye iti. It can be translated as follows:

This is a pious offering of the Buddhist monk …………. May the merit that is therein be for the gaining of supreme knowledge (acquiring nirvana) by teachers, tutors and all beings in company with his mother and father.

Both these bells are at present in Akyab. These bronze bells show us that the people of Arakan of that age already possessed an advanced metallurgical technology.