|
The Indian Analyst
|
|
South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA LODHIA PLATES OF MAHASIVAGUPTA ; YEAR 57 (Mālava Saṁvat) for king Sūryavarman. Apparently king Sūryavarman was living in the year 611 (Mālava Saṁvat) which is equal to A.D. 555. He is stated to have attained a position of pride by bestowing his daughter, Vāsaṭā, on Mahā-Śivaguptarājadēva’s father Harshagupta whom the Lakshman temple inscription describes as Prāk-paramēśvara, ‘ the Lord of the eastern region ’. Evidently Harshagupta ruled over the country known as Kōsala or Prāk-Kōsala,[1] which probably comprised Dakshiṇa Kōsala, East Kōsala with Tōsala, Utkala and Ōḍra, extending its limit up to the eastern sea-shore.[2] His uncle Mahā-Śiva-Tīvararāja had his capital at Śrīpura (now Sirpur) from which place his Baloda and Rājim plates were issued. He is described as prāpta-sakala-Kōsal-ādhipatyaḥ in the Baloda plates, the seal of which mentions him as Kōsalādhipati. Mahā-Śivaguptarājadēva must have succeeded his father or uncle and was, therefore, the supreme lord of Kōsala, apparently Mahā-Kōsala or Dakshiṇa-Kōsala. In what part of India king Sūryavarman was reigning, and whether his son Bhāskaravarman succeeded him or not, cannot be definitely ascertained now for want of evidence. This much is, no doubt, clear that Sūryavarman’s father was ruling over a kingdom within which was included the Bārābanki District in Oudh, where the Harāhā stone inscription of king Sūryavarman was found. The Aśīragarh[3] seal of the Maukhari king Śarvavarman might establish their connection with a part of the Central Provinces bordering on Mālava, i.e., the Nimar District, where the seal was found. The present plates disclose the fact that, although king Mahā-Śivaguptarāja was a devout worshipper of Śva (Parama-māhēśvara), he did patronise Buddhism and was a symbol of religious toleration, being averse to no other sects. As we know from the Mallār plates, he donated a village to ‘ the community of venerable (Buddhist) monks ’, residing in the small monastery (Vihārikā) situated in Taraḍaṁśaka.
In his time, his mother Vāsaṭā constructed a superb temple of Hari (Vishṇu) at Śrīpura, the capital town, and donated a number of villages to Vedic Brahmans engaged in the worship of the deity. This temple still stands at Sirpur. In the preset plates, he makes a donation of a village to a temple of Śiva named Īśānēśvara, probably consecrated by one of his forefathers, to wit, Īśānadēva of the Kharod stone inscription.[4] The donation was made in response to the request of a certain Śaiva ascetic, a disciple of Pramathāchārya whose preceptor hailed from the Pañchayajña tapōvana in the Dvaitavana forest. The box-headed script as well as the Kuṭila type of the Nāgarī characters were simultaneously in use during the reign of Mahā-Śivaguptarāja as both his Mallār plates and the Lodhiā plates, together with Lakshman temple inscription (in the Kuṭila script) belonging to his mother Vāsaṭā, show. It may be noted here that the Harāhā stone inscription of king Sūryavarman,[5] father of Vāsaṭā, is also in the Kuṭila variety of the Nāgarī script. Up till now not a single stone inscription _______________________________________________
[1] Close to Vidarbha was Prāk-Kōsala as stated in the Mahābhārata and the Harivaṁśa. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| > |
|
>
|
