Artifact in Sanskrit Found in the Philippines

In 1989, a man in the concrete business was dredging sand at the mouth of the Lumbang River near Laguna de Bay when he uncovered a blackened roll of metal. He unfurled the roll he saw that it was a sheet of copper with strange writing on it, about the size of a magazine. He offered the copper sheet to one of the antique dealers in the area who bought it for next to nothing. The dealer, in turn, tried to sell it for a profit but when he found no buyers, he eventually sold it to the Philippine National Museum. In 1990, Antoon Postma, a Dutch expert in ancient Philippine scripts and Mangyan writing, and a long-time resident of the Philippines translated the document that came to be known as the Laguna Copperplate Inscription (LCI). When he saw that the writing looked similar to the ancient Indonesian script called Kavi, and that the document bore a date from the ancient Sanskrit calendar, he enlisted the help of fellow Dutchman, Dr Johann de Casparis, whose area of expertise was ancient Indonesia. In 1996, a Filipino history buff in California, Hector Santos, precisely converted the Sanskrit date over to our calendar by using astronomical software and some historical detective work. He determined that the Sanskrit date written on the plate was exactly Monday, April 21, 900 CE.

Casparis confirmed that the script and the words used in the Laguna document were exactly the same as those that were used on the island Java at the time stated in the document, which was the year 822, in the old Hindu calendar or the year 900 C.E. (Common Era) on our calendar.

In 1996, a Filipino history buff in California, Hector Santos, precisely converted the Sanskrit date over to our calendar by using astronomical software and some historical detective work. He determined that the Sanskrit date written on the plate was exactly Monday, April 21, 900 C.E.

swasti shaka warsatita 822 waisakha masa di(ng) jyotisa.

caturthi kresnapaksa somawara sana tatkala dayang angkatan lawan dengan ña sanak barngaran si bukah anak da dang hwan namwaran dibari waradana wi shuddhapattra ulih sang pamegat senapati di tundun barja(di) dang hwan nayaka tuhan pailah jayadewa.

di krama dang hwan namwaran dengan dang kayastha shuddha nu diparlappas hutang da walenda kati 1 suwarna 8 dihadapan dang huwan nayaka tuhan puliran kasumuran.

dang hwan nayaka tuhan pailah barjadi ganashakti. dang hwan nayaka tuhan binwangan barjadi bishruta tathapi sadana sanak kapawaris ulih sang pamegat dewata [ba]rjadi sang pamegat medang dari bhaktinda diparhulun sang pamegat. ya makaña sadaña anak cucu dang hwan namwaran shuddha ya kapawaris dihutang da dang hwan namwaran di sang pamegat dewata.

ini grang syat syapanta ha pashkat ding ari kamudyan ada grang urang barujara welung lappas hutang da dang hwa

Long Live! Year of Siyaka 822, the month of Waisaka, according to astronomy. The fourth day of the waning moon, Monday. On this occasion, Lady Angkatan, and her brother whose name is Buka, the children of the Honourable Namwaran, were awarded a document of complete pardon from the Commander in Chief of Tundun, represented by the Lord Minister of Pailah, Jayadewa.

By this order, through the scribe, the Honourable Namwaran has been forgiven of all and is released from his debts and arrears of 1 katî and 8 suwarna before the Honourable Lord Minister of Puliran, Ka Sumuran by the authority of the Lord Minister of Pailah.

Because of his faithful service as a subject of the Chief, the Honourable and widely renowned Lord Minister of Binwangan recognized all the living relatives of Namwaran who were claimed by the Chief of Dewata, represented by the Chief of Medang.

Yes, therefore the living descendants of the Honourable Namwaran are forgiven, indeed, of any and all debts of the Honourable Namwaran to the Chief of Dewata.

This, in any case, shall declare to whomever henceforth that on some future day should there be a man who claims that no release from the debt of the Honourable.