Written
Monuments
of the Orient
2 (2015)
Issued twice a year
The entire issue as a *.PDF file
Hiroshi Umemura, Peter Zieme. A Further Fragment of the Old Uighur Qianziwen — 3
Abstract: In this paper the authors edit one fragment of the Old Uighur Qianziwen that
belongs to the Serindia Collection of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian
Academy of Sciences at St. Petersburg. This fragment is joined with some others that
were already published by M. Shōgaito. The Qianziwen belonging to the classical
scriptures is an old Chinese primer for learning Chinese. Rarely translated into other
languages the Old Uighur version confirms the strong relationship between Chinese and
Uighur scholarship in the Medieval period.
Key words: Qianziwen, Thousand Characters Book, Chinese primer, Old Uighur fragments,
Serindia Collection, translations from Chinese into Old Uighur
Maxim Fionin. Greek Manuscript D-227 from the Collection of IOM, RAS. An Archeographical Analysis — 14
Abstract: This paper deals with an archeographical analysis of the Greek minuscule
manuscript D-227 kept in the collection of the IOM, RAS. The author reviews its present
condition and deciphers the inscriptions left on its binding by the staff of the Winter
Palace Imperial Library when it was delivered there and notes made by the staff of the
Asiatic Museum (forerunner of the IOM). The contents of the parts are established, as is,
wherever possible, their numbering. Inscriptions in Greek, including one written by
Hierotheos, Patriarch of Antioch (1850–1885), are deciphered and translated.
Key words: Greek lectionary, minuscule manuscript, IOM manuscript collection, collection
of Gregory IV, Arab Christian manuscripts, parchment codex
Arakawa Shintaro. On the Design of a “Trebuchet” in the Tangut Manuscript of IOM,
RAS — 21
Abstract: The paper focuses on a unique Tangut manuscript (Tang. 46 inv. No. 156(2006),
old inv. No. 5217) kept in the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, Russian Academy of
Sciences. In previous studies, it has been taken to be a constructional diagram of musical
instrument. The writer concludes that the manuscript is the design for a pao 砲 (stone
launcher, trebuchet, sling).
Key words: Tangut manuscript, Tangut script, Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, stone
launcher, Khara-Khoto
Olga Lundysheva. Fragments of dhāraṇī Blockprints from Khara-Khoto (Serindian Fund
of IOM, RAS). With Appendix by Alla Sizova — 31
Abstract: The paper focuses on a blockprinted dhāraṇī from Khara-Khoto belonging to
the group of unidentified and unpublished fragments in the Serindian Fund of the IOM,
RAS. The characters used in the text of the print have much in common with the pāla
script that was widespread in the North-Eastern India and associated with the Pala
Empire. The print exists in several fragments. Judging by the content, it comprised two
independent parts. Their relationship to each other, as well as the total number of pages,
remain unknown. The first block of text has survived in its entirety. It has five lines
of text. The first four lines are a triple repetition of the Akṣobhya Buddha Dhāraṇī
The fifth line consists of five bija mantras and the well-known “Buddhist creed”, the
Ye dharmā mantra. Only half of the second block of text has survived but still it can
be identified and is presumed to be the mūlamantra, hṛdaya and upahṛdaya from the Bodhigarbhālaṇkāralakṣa dhāraṇī. Part of the print is also half of an engraved image. Features of the image and its stylistic peculiarities make it very similar to the printed
engravings in the Tangut and Dunhuang collections. It is assumed that the entire blockprint
could have been a compilation of selected prayers used in common Buddhist ritual
practice. The type of paper, image and script suggest a date for the blockprint around the
12th c.
Key words: IOM collection, editions, Indian paleography, Central Asia Buddhism,
Sanskrit blockprint, dhāraṇī , Khara-Khoto
Kirill Bogdanov. Ritual Funeral Text Tang 665 from the Tangut Collection of IOM,
RAS — 48
Abstract: This paper represents a brief study and a translation of a ritual funeral text
dated to the 11th–13th сc. Despite its brevity, the manuscript is a consistent and
complete fragment describing the ritual and proving the doubtless similarity between the
Tangut and Tibetan religious traditions. The very age of the text attests to the fact that
this tradition has survived down to the present day in unaltered form.
Key words: Khara-Khoto, funeral ritual, bardo teaching, Tangut Buddhism
Agnieszka Helman-Ważny, Liubov Kriakina, Alexander Zorin. The First Tibetan Leaves Acquired by the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences: Conservation Issues, Contents and Paper Analysis — 61
Abstract: The paper presents the first results of the study of 204 folios from the
legendary Ablaikit monastery recently identified within the IOM, RAS Tibetan collection.
The three main aspects touched upon are 1) the condition of the folios and the
conservation treatment applied to make the study of their contents possible, 2) identification
of texts that turned out to be fragments of an independent version of the Tibetan
Buddhist canon, and 3) paper analysis.
Key words: conservation of Oriental texts, history of Tibetan paper, Tibetan thing shog
manuscripts, Tibetan Buddhist Canon, Ablaikit monastery
Svetlana Sabrukova. Examples of Buddhist Letters from A.M. Pozdneev Archive Collection — 77
Abstract: Buddhist letters represent official documents that were issued by the Dalai
Lamas and Panchen Lamas to prominent political or religious figures as a sign of
recognition of their achievements. They appeared at the end of the 16th c. when
Buddhism was recognized as a state religion among Mongolian peoples. Three copies of
such letters have been kept in the A.M. Pozdneev (1851–1920) collection in the Archives
of the Orientalists at the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, RAS. The earliest letter,
which was written in Tibetan semi-uncial script and included a translation in the Oirat
language, was given by the 5th Panchen Lama (Lobsang ye shes dpal bzang, 1663–1773)
to a Torghut Yogochari Tsordji. Two other scrolls were written only in Tibetan semiuncial
script and were given by the 13th Dalai Lama (1876–1933) and the 9th Panchen
Lama (1883–1937) in 1903 to a Dörbet Lama Ngag dbang sangs rgyas. From a practical
point of view, these letters can be seen as certificates of completed education and
obtaining a title that enabled the holder to engage in teaching activities. Their language
and style have a formal structure and are of scholarly interest to researchers as examples
of Buddhist documents.
Key words: Buddhist letters, Panchen Lama, text, document, seal
Youli Ioannesyan. The St. Petersburg 19th c. Collection of Materials on the Babi and Baha’i Faiths: Primary and other Sources — 85
Abstract: The article is concerned with one of the richest collections of materials related
to the Babi and Baha’i faiths, the St. Petersburg collection. The large amount of primary
sources flowing into pre-revolutionary Russia was distributed between three scholarly
and learning centers: the Asiatic Museum, presently the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts,
Russian Academy of Sciences (the bulk of the sources), the St. Petersburg State
University and the Russian National Library. These materials either in Persian or Arabic
take the form of manuscripts and lithographs. The article describes these materials and
gives briefly the history of studies of these sources.
Key words: manuscript collections, Babi and Baha’i studies in Russia
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