One of the most bittersweet moments in South Asian life is the send-off of the newly married daughter to her in-laws' home. Tears are shed, outward bound steps are taken with great effort and then rapidly retraced, attempts are made to allay fear and pain with warm hugs and reassuring words. Below are the words of a concerned and farsighted parent trying to console their weeping daughter as she embarks on a new phase of her life.
Maharashtri Prakrit text in the Devanagari script:
नियडकुडङ्गं पच्छन्नदेउलं बहुजुवाणसंकिण्णं|
थेरो पइ त्ति मा रूवसु पुत्ति दिन्ना सि सुग्गामे||
थेरो पइ त्ति मा रूवसु पुत्ति दिन्ना सि सुग्गामे||
niyaDakuDaGgaM pacchannadeulaM bahujuvANasaMkiNNaM|
thero pa-i tti mA rUvasu putti dinnA si suggAme||
– Anonymous
निकटकुटङ्गकं प्रच्छन्नदेवकुलं बहुयुवसंकीर्णं|
स्थविरः पतिरिति मा रोदीः पुत्रि दत्तासि सुग्रामे||
स्थविरः पतिरिति मा रोदीः पुत्रि दत्तासि सुग्रामे||
– रत्नदेव
nikaTakuTaGgakaM pracchannadevakulaM bahuyuvasaMkIRNaM|
sthaviraH patiriti mA rodIH putri dattAsi sugrAme||
sthaviraH patiriti mA rodIH putri dattAsi sugrAme||
– ratnadeva
Loose translation: Do not cry, dear daughter, just because your husband is senile – I am sending you off to an excellent village which is close to a bower with a well-concealed temple frequented by many young men.
Source: Vajjalaggam (वज्जालग्गं; Sanskrit व्रज्यालग्नम् (vrajyAlagnam)), "a union of chapters", Verse 472. This rather obscure eclectic Prakrit anthology is traditionally believed to have been compiled by a Shwetamabara Jain monk named Jayavallabha (जयवल्लभ) in the "early 1st millenium" of the common era.
Notes: If the import of the couplet was not clear already, suffice it to say that it is the first verse of the असईवज्जा (asaIvajjA; Sanskrit असतीव्रज्या (asatIvrajyA)), "the chapter on the adulteress": Pleasure gardens with overgrown pavilions and old, secluded shrines appear repeatedly in Indic literature as settings for lovers' trysts. However, the all-too-familiar reality of a young woman being consigned to a mostly unhappy life with an aged husband adds a sour touch to the otherwise flippant two-liner.
Source: Vajjalaggam (वज्जालग्गं; Sanskrit व्रज्यालग्नम् (vrajyAlagnam)), "a union of chapters", Verse 472. This rather obscure eclectic Prakrit anthology is traditionally believed to have been compiled by a Shwetamabara Jain monk named Jayavallabha (जयवल्लभ) in the "early 1st millenium" of the common era.
Notes: If the import of the couplet was not clear already, suffice it to say that it is the first verse of the असईवज्जा (asaIvajjA; Sanskrit असतीव्रज्या (asatIvrajyA)), "the chapter on the adulteress": Pleasure gardens with overgrown pavilions and old, secluded shrines appear repeatedly in Indic literature as settings for lovers' trysts. However, the all-too-familiar reality of a young woman being consigned to a mostly unhappy life with an aged husband adds a sour touch to the otherwise flippant two-liner.
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