Thank you Daniel, Very clear. I'm looking for a graphic of an early om symbol . So you saved me from a boo-boo :-) Thanks, Harry Spier
On Wed, Jan 28, 2026 at 2:53 AM Dániel Balogh <[email protected]> wrote: > Dear Harry, > the clipping is not an oṁ symbol. It is the initial ā from the beginning > of the text, āsīt sarvva-mahīkṣitām etc. The symbol Fleet renders with oṁ > in his edition is the curl in the left margin next to line 3 (not line 1!). > Whether that symbol actually represents the word oṁ is debatable. The > prevailing opinion seems to be that it does not; if it is associated with > any lexical meaning, then it's more likely siddham or siddhi. I'm not sure > there are any strong arguments for this but seem to recall (I may be wrong) > that (some variant of) the sign does occasionally occur next to oṁ written > out in regular script. > For the history of the sign, see > Boeles, J.J. 1947. ‘The Migration of the Magic Syllable Oṃ’. In *India > Antiqua: A Volume of Oriental Studies Presented by His Friends and Pupils > to Jean Philippe Vogel., c.i.e. on the Occasion of the Fiftieth Anniversary > of His Doctorate*, 40–56. Leiden: E.J. Brill. > who seems to take it for granted that it represents oṁ. > See also: > Roth, Gustav. 1986. ‘Mangala-Symbols in Buddhist Manuscripts and > Inscriptions’. In *Deyadharma: Studies in Memory of Dr. D.C. Sircar*, > edited by Gouriswar Bhattacharya, 239–49. Sri Garib Dass Oriental Series > 33. Delhi: Sri Satguru. > Sander, Lore. 1986. ‘Om or Siddham — Remarks on Openings of Buddhist > Manuscripts and Inscriptions from Gilgit and Central Asia’. In *Deyadharma: > Studies in Memory of Dr. D.C. Sircar*, edited by Gouriswar Bhattacharya, > 239–49. Sri Garib Dass Oriental Series 33. Delhi: Sri Satguru. > Shomakhmadov, S. 2012. ‘The Features of the Interpretation of > Mañgala-Symbols in Buddhist Sanskrit Manuscripts from Central Asia’. > *Manuscripta > Orientalia* 18: 9–23. > Best wishes, > Dan > > On Wed, 28 Jan 2026 at 06:06, Harry Spier via INDOLOGY < > [email protected]> wrote: > >> Dear list members, >> I'm not familiar with Gupta script. >> Can someone confirm for me that the image below is the full Om symbol >> (and only the Om symbol) from the Vadathika cave inscription. My >> understanding is the Om sign in that inscription is the earliest Om sign in >> an inscription. >> >> >> https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:5th_or_6th_century_Vadathika_Cave_Inscription,_Sanskrit,_Shaivism,_Anantavarman,_Gupta_script,_Ancient_Om_symbol_2.jpg >> >> >> [image: image.png] >> >> >> Thanks, >> Harry Spier >> >> _______________________________________________ >> INDOLOGY mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://list.indology.info/mailman/listinfo/indology >> >
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