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The Indian Analyst
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North Indian Inscriptions |
POLITICAL HISTORY by Krishna Sastri. The grant is of Eastern Chālukya Bhīma I and refers to a village in Elamañchi-Kaliṅgadēśa comprised in Dēvarāshṭra-vishaya.1 Elamañchi-Kaliṅgadēśa is perhaps to be interpreted as “the Kaliṅga-country of which Elamañchi (the modern Yallamanchili) was the chief town.” Another reference to this Dēvarāshṭra is furnished by the Kindoppa plates of Anantavarman2 who ruled at Pishṭapura though his father Guṇavarman held Dēvarāshṭra. We thus have Kaliṅga, Dēvarāshṭra and Pishṭapura somehow connected with one another. The ruler of Dēvarāshṭra in the time of Samudragupta was Kubēra.3 The last king of Dakshiṇāpatha that has been named in the Allahabad inscription is Dhanañjaya of Kusthalapura. Kusthalapura is taken by Smith as a mistake for Kuśasthalapura, a name of the holy city of Dwārkā.4 This does not, however, seem likely, as it is situated, not on the east, but on the west coast. Barnett opines that it is probably Kuttalur, near Polur, in North Arcot District, Tamil Nadu.5 Aiyangar, on the other hand, draws our attention to the existence of a river Kuśasthali, south of the Krishna, mentioned in the Kaliṅgattupparaṇi poem.6 The question is nowadays asked : what was this Samudragupta’s expedition to the south like ? According to V. A. Smith, it was a very glorious one. The invader, marching due south from the capital, through Chuṭiā Nāgpur, directed his first attack against South Kōsala. Passing on, he subdued the Chief of the Forest Country. Still advancing southwards, by the east coast road, Samudragupta vanquished the chieftain of Pishṭapura; King Maṇṭarāja of the Kōllēru (Colair) lake; the neighbouring king of Vēṅgī between the Krishna and Godavari rivers; and Vishṇugōpa, king of Kāñchī or Conjeeveram, to the south-west of Madras, almost certainly a Pallava. Then turning west-wards, he subjugated Ugrasēna, king of Pālakka, a place perhaps situated in the Nellore District. Samudragupta returned homewards through the western parts of the Deccan, subduing on his way the kingdom of Dēvarāshṭra or the modern Maharatta country, and Ēraṇḍapalla or Khandesh.7 It was thus a wonderful campaign, in the estimation of Smith.
According to Dubreuil,8 however, the Allahabad pillar inscription contains a details which
indicates the exact contrary, because it has therein been stated that Samudragupta captured
the kings and afterwards released them. And it is confirmed by the fact that none of the
Deccan kingdoms remained in the possession of the Guptas. It is probable that Samudragupta
first subjugated some kings, but that very soon he encountered superior forces which obliged
him to relinquish his conquests and return rapidly to his kingdom. The expedition of Samudragupta presents itself to us in a quite different form. It is no more a new Alexander marching
victoriously through South India. It was simply the unfortunate attempt of a king from the
north who wanted to annex the coast of Orissa but completely failed. Leaving his capital
Pāṭaliputra, Samudragupta marched directly to the south. He first conquered South Kōsala
and then crossed the forests to the south of Sonapur, reaching the coast of Orissa. Maṇṭarāja
of Kōrāḷa, Mahēndra of Pishṭapura, Svāmidatta of Kōṭṭūra and Damana of Ēraṇḍapalla
tried to stop him, but were captured. Samudragupta now prepared himself for new conquests,
but was opposed by a confederacy of all the kings that ruled near the mouths of the Gōdāvarī
and the Kṛishṇā, the most powerful of them being Vishṇugōpa, the Pallava king of Kāñchī.
The other kings were Nīlarāja of Avamukta, Hastivarman of Vēngī, Ugrasēna of Pālakka, 1 ARASI., 1908-09, p. 123.
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