On 2014-04-17, at 3:00 PM, Patrick Olivelle wrote:
I wonder whether anyone has come across the word "kutta", which appears to mean a kind of land transfer for a particular purpose. Here is what I make of it, and it is found in the Sarasvatīvilāsa.
kuttā. f. a contractual agreement between an owner and a tenant in which the tenant keeps the profit or bears any loss, with the stipulation that he perform the funeral rites of the owner and pay off any debts he may have. SarVi 281–82: लोके कुत्ताख्यो व्यवहार: मूलस्वामिन: सकाशाद् गृहक्षेत्रादिकं गृहीत्वा तदुपचयापचयौ कौत्तिकस्य ममैव सोढव्याविति पारिभोषिक: समस्ति । अपरश्च कुत्ताख्यो मूलस्वामिन अौर्ध्वदैहिकं तत्कृतमृणं च तदीयगृहक्षेत्रादिना निर्वर्त्य संशोध्य अवशिष्टमस्ति चेत् ग्रहीतव्यं नास्ति चेन्नास्ती पारिभाषिक: ।।
Dear Patrick,
R.L. Turner's _A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages_ (p. 168, right column) lists kutta as meaning 'rent, lease ... rent in kind ... hire of land ... letting for a fixed rental ... survey, valuation'. The CDIL also informs us that the word occurs in Prakrit, Kumauni, Nepali and (only in the last, possibly unrelated sense 'survey, valuation') Hindi.
Your phrase "with the stipulation" does not seem to correspond to any word in the Sarasvatīvilāsa passage you quote. As I read the passage, it seems to gives two understandings of kutta, one paaribhaa.sika and one non-paaribhaa.sika. Are there any readings available that would give us the meaning (or has a typo occurred that when corrected would mean) ... ग्रहीतव्यं, नास्ति चेद् (अवशिष्टं contextually understood) न (ग्रहीतव्यं contextually understood) इत्यपारिभाषिक: ?
ashok