Tangut : Golden Guide [𗵒𗭭𘃎𘐏𘝞]

This page provides a summary of the contents of the Tangut verse text known as Grains of Gold Placed in the Palm (Tangut: 𗵒𗭭𘃎𘐏𘝞), referred to by Marc Miyake as the Golden Guide. The text comprises 1,000 different characters in 100 lines of 10 characters (or 200 half-lines of five characters each). The text is given in Unicode Tangut, together with a Chinese translation by Niè Hóngyīn 聂鸿音 and Shǐ Jīnbō 史金波 for the entire text, and an English translation by Marc Miyake for the first 52 lines (lines 1–104 in Marc's notation), which was published periodically in his blog between May 2010 and January 2015. Marc's translation is also accompanied by his phonetic reconstruction. Click on the English translation to go to the corresponding post in Marc's blog where he gives a detailed explication of the meaning and pronunciation of every Tangut character (or "tangraph" in Marc's terminology).

Preface

𗵒𗭭𘁨

𘍞𘓐𗫂𘝞𗧁𘖑𘘭𗌭𘝦𗨯𗅋𘓳𗬩𗅲𗅋𗥤𗌭𘕋𘄭𗇋𗮅𗫈𗪘𗵑𘕿𗨤𗵘𘖒𘅙𗏡𘈑𗗙𘘝𘉐𗵆𗑩𘘦𘔼𗑉𗙼𘜣𗋂𘄴𗧘𗈪𗺉𘙌𗎹𗰖𗨨𗡞𗏇𗅋𗰛𘏒𗋒𗕑𗧘𗑷𗪲𗼄𗼄𘙌𗌾𗏱𗐗𗐗𗈪𗆛𘏴𗴮𘊳𗥦𗱚𗌮𗧘𗜈𗅔𘌽𗍊𘓁𘟂𗫶𗓱𘇫𗴿𗮅𗴿𘓳𘎪𗅋𗤋𗧙𘕤𗣓𘕤𗂙𗡢𗰓𗋂𗏁𗏇𗣃𘜼𗥃𗍫𘉨𗵆。𘄡𘗁𗼑𘍞𗢼，𗭩𗅰𗤒𗅋𗹑。𗦻𗿸𗵒𗭭𘃎𘐏𘝞𘘣。𗭩𗪞𗫩𗅩𘓆𘉰𘟀𘅇𘉪。

Grains of Gold Preface

...

...

Five-character words match [each other], four [times] two stanzas they form.

Those who are clever and sharp [can complete the text] in a whole month exactly;

Those who are dim-witted and slow [can complete the text] in less than a year.

As to its title, Grains of Gold Placed in the Palm of One's Hand Text it is called.

I, foolish man, am embarrassed to abandon this absurd discourse, seeing its flaws without ridicule.

Main Text

𗆧𗰖𗵒𗭭𘃎𘐏𘝞𗈪𗺉

Newly-collected Grains of Gold Placed in the Palm, text in one chapter

End Title and Colophon

𗵒𗭭𘁨𗈪𘐳　𘃪

𘌽𗺉𘅤𗇋𘁂𗰔𘄒𘎑𗯿𗩭𗼑𗥃𗬥𘅤𘃪

𘈩𗢶𘜏？

𗵒𗭭𘁨𗈪𘐳𘃪…

Grains of Gold [with] preface in one volume, finished

This volume written by A'ew Prajñā Flourishing, on the fourth day of the first lunar month the writing was completed.

Proof-read one time

End of Grains of Gold [with] preface in one volume. [...]

Versions of the Tangut Text

The following manuscript and xylograph versions of the Tangut text of Grains of Gold Placed in the Palm are known to me:

• IOM Inv. No. 741: 《新集碎金置掌文》（甲種本）: manuscript; complete
• IOM Inv. No. 742V: 《新集碎金置掌文》（乙種本）: manuscript; lacking characters 806–1000
• IOM Inv. No. 7676: xylograph/manuscript; incomplete, 8 folios covering lines 20–98 (first 6 folios woodblock printed, last 2 folios in manuscript).
• Ningxia Provincial Archives B56:14 : 28 manuscript fragments
• British Library Or. 12380/2581 : manuscript fragment (lines 80b–83a; 83b–86a, 87a)
• British Library Or. 12380/2476 : manuscript fragment (lines 32a–34b; lines 35b–38b)
• British Library Or. 12380/2478 : manuscript fragment (lines 52a–54b; lines 55a–57b)
• British Library Or. 12380/2477 : manuscript fragment (lines 58a–60b; lines 61a–63b)
• British Library Or. 12380/1112 : manuscript fragment (lines 64a–66b)
• British Library Or. 12380/1111 : manuscript fragment (lines 67b–69b)
• British Library Or. 12380/2625 (practice piece: preface)
• British Library Or. 12380/39 (practice piece: characters 81–84)
• British Library Or. 12380/36 (practice piece: characters 88–92)
• British Library Or. 12380/73 (practice piece: characters 90–92)
• British Library Or. 12380/2623 (practice piece: characters 371–375)
• British Library Or. 12380/2624 (practice piece: characters 375–378)

Practice Pieces

Grains of Gold Placed in the Palm was commonly used by students to practice writing Tangut characters, and at least fifteen fragments of manuscript practice pieces covering the entire poem from preface to end-title, are known in the collections of the British Library (BL) and the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts (IOM), as summarized below. Each character in the entire text was written out in large characters along the top of the paper, and the student would copy out each character twenty or thirty times in a column below. See my blog post Grains of Gold (May 2015) for more details.

Textual Notes

The Tangut transcription above is based on the text given in IOM Inv. No. 741, which is the only surviving complete text. The following notes indicate variant readings and glyph forms in the source texts and in Nie & Shi's 1995 study.

• #0031 𗸴: IOM 742V has 𘇡.
• #0191 𗂸: written as ⿲𘠁𘦳𘦬 in IOM 741, but this should be a mistake for 𗂅 as 𗂸 occurs at #0157. IOM 742V has 𗂅 for #0191 and 𗂸 for #0157.
• #0274 𗣆: given as 𗣕 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0317 𗣑: given as 𗣒 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0319 𗨵: written as ⿲𘢌𘠈𘧺 in IOM 741; written as 𗣹 in IOM 742V, which should be a mistake as 𗣹 occurs as #0305.
• #0320 𗣱: written as 𗒅 in IOM 742V, which should be a mistake as 𗒅 occurs as #0323.
• #0341 𗥡: written as ⿰𘢌⿻𘧽㇔ in IOM 741 & IOM 742V.
• #0348–0349 𗍾𗎯: IOM 742V has 𗎯𗍾.
• #0350 𘑻: written as ⿺𘧄𘨯 in IOM 741 (correct in IOM 742V).
• #0351 𗩙: given as 𘛮 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0356 𗣡: given as 𗼆 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0390 𘙊: written as ⿲𘨷𘠁𘦬 in IOM 741 (correct in IOM 742V).
• #0430 𗶃: written as ⿰𘣑𘤩 in IOM 741 (correct in IOM 742V).
• #0433 𗁬: given as 𘜳 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0514 𗾶: given as 𘊒 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0549 𘄽: given as 𗩴 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0577 𘖖: given as 𗡸 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0581–0590: line 59 is after line 64 in IOM 742V.
• #0646–0648 𗳔𗶧𗳑: given as 𗳑𗶧𗳔 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0660 𗣈: corrected to 𗔠 in IOM 741 by addition of extra character at end of line after 𗣈. IOM 742V has 𗔠 here. 𗣈 should be a mistake as it occurs as #0880.
• #0766 𘅮: written as ⿰𘤻⿱𘡩⿰𘢌𘠴 in IOM 741 & IOM 742V.
• #0794 𗸦: given as 𗣕 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0816 𗳳: written as 𗘌 in Or.12380/2581.
• #0823 𘌙: written as ⿲𘦞⿺𘢍𘣟 in IOM 741 (correct in BL Or.12380/2581).
• #0888 𗫑: written as 𗩴 in B56:14.
• #0897 𗂽: written as ⿲𘠁𘨆𘤺 in IOM 741.
• #0939 𗝿: given as 𘎨 in Nie & Shi 1995.
• #0954 𗷾: written as ⿰𘡫𘦂 in IOM 741.
• #0970: there is a hole in IOM 741, so the character is lost. It is not present in any other known version.
• #0972 𘂁: written as ⿰𘤣⿱𘠀𘢉 in IOM 741.

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