3 Review(s)

A unique collection of Sanskrit documents by unknown compilers belonging to pre-Sultanate Gujarat, the Lekhapaddhati is a sourcebook of immense historical importance. Presumably written as a guide for official scribes and professional letter writers, it is the sole non-epigraphic repository of grants and other public and private documents from early medieval India. Pushpa Prasad puts together for the first time a complete translation of the documents with annotations and a detailed critical introduction. Careful, literal, and yet comprehensible, this study sheds light on various aspects of administrative, economic, and social history. It contains numerous specimens of letters and documents of various kinds, treaties between kings, rules of administration, and model drafts of private letters. The volume contains valuable information on the functioning of the judicial system, caste system, slavery, position of women, social customs like divorce, remarriage, and various aspects of economy such as agriculture, credit, banking, types of taxes levied, and coinage. In her insightful introduction, Prasad examines the significance of Lekhapaddhati documents for numerous aspects of late ancient and early medieval society. She investigates several terms used in these documents by reference to their use in inscriptions and literary texts. She also elucidates the historical context of the documents.