Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c38.4

c38.4

The hermit’s cave, with the couch, curtain and water-pot (*keṇḍiya*), and the hermit’s dress, consisting of a cloth, a deer-skin and a girdle, should be observed. He holds in his hands a rosary (*nava-guṇa-vela*) and a staff. The two inscriptions read respectively, *Eḷi eṭa dan dun vaga* and *Madrī dēvī haṇḍu veṭunu vaga*; i.e., “Gift of the white elephant,” and “Madrī Dēvī’s weeping and prostration (before Vessantara).” (The syllable *nu* has been omitted in the reproduction.)