[INDOLOGY] stone traps

[Toke Knudsen]

Hi, all,

As a complete aside, in season 1, episode 1 of the TV series See (available on Apple TV+), the Alkenny tribe has such a defense: cutting one rope (or untying a knot, I can’t remember) will send a mass of boulders rolling down the hill, crushing the enemies approaching the Alkenny village on the hilltop. The Alkenny uses it against the advancing Witchfinder army, but their leader has been told about the trap by a traitor and is able to outsmart the Alkenny.

Best wishes,
Toke



On Apr 27, 2024, at 09:57, Patrick Olivelle via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

In the hill fortress of Sigiriya in Sri Lanka, there is a huge boulder up the hill sitting precariously on small stones. The theory was that with a push the boulder would slip over the stones and fall down over an approaching army. “peraḷā” in Sinhala means to roll down.



On Apr 27, 2024, at 8:49 AM, Madhav Deshpande via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

There are descriptions from medieval Maratha warfare against the enemy sieges of forts. They would make stacks of stones in such a way that with one push the stones would roll down on the soldiers climbing the hill or walls.

Madhav M. Deshpande
Professor Emeritus, Sanskrit and Linguistics
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Senior Fellow, Oxford Center for Hindu Studies
Adjunct Professor, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, India

[Residence: Campbell, California, USA]


On Sat, Apr 27, 2024 at 6:22 AM Rolf Heinrich Koch via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info<mailto:indology at list.indology.info>> wrote:
Dear listmembers,
stone traps for the hunting of wild animals are mentioned in a Jātaka
(pāsāṇa-yantāni sajjenti). Also in a Sinhalese manuscript (12th
century?) I came across the description of a trap by which animals are
killed after "stones set in motion" (gal-peraḷā < parivartana).

I cannot imagine how this happens. The stones are hanging somewhere and
fall down on the animals?

Anyone of you can enlighten me?

Thank you
Heiner

--
Dr. Rolf Heinrich Koch
www.rolfheinrichkoch.wordpress.com<http://www.rolfheinrichkoch.wordpress.com/>


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