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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA arraying his men and horses against him, Ēkāntada Rāmayya fought and vanquished them. He smashed the Jina and installed the liṅga (in its place). Now I will take up two more inscriptions in the same temple. These deal with the same theme as the above, viz., Ēkāntada Rāmayya’s victory over the Jainas. These are also of the label category. They are not dated, but evidently belong to the same period as that of the above epigraph. They may be assigned approximately to 1200 A. C. on palaeographic considerations. INSCRIPTION I This is incised above a panel of sculptures to the left of the entrance into the inner shrine of the Sōmēśvara temple. The sculptures represent a dignitary with attendants on one side and a row of Śaiva devotees on the other. A person holding a document in his hand is shown prominently in the middle. The epigraph reads :─ TEXT[1] 1 Śrīmad-ēkāntada-Rāmayyaṁge Saṁka-gauṁvuṁ- 2 ḍan=ōleyaṁ kuḍuva ṭhā[vu] [ ||* ] TRANSLATION This is the place (depicting the scene) of conferring the certificate (of victory) upon the illustrious ēkāntada Rāmayya by Saṁka-gavuṇḍa.
INSCRIPTION II This is incised above a panel of sculptures to the right of entrance into the inner shrine of the same temple. The sculptures depict the scene of a Jina placed horizontally ready to be broken amidst a group of local officials and Śaiva devotees. The epigraph reads :─ TEXT[2] 1 Yē(ē)kāntada Rāmayyaṁgaḷu Jinanan=oḍedu 2 liṅga-pratishṭheyaṁ māḍida ṭāvu[ ||*] TRANSLATION At this place ( is depicted the scene of ) ēkāntada Rāmayya breaking the ( image of ) Jina and setting up the Śivaliṅga. INSCRIPTION III This is an independent inscription by itself, made up of labels. It is incised above a panel of sculptures to the right side of the parapet wall at the entrance proper into the same temple and just opposite to Fleet’s F. The characters are of about the same period as those of the foregoing records. The panels of sculptures as well as the inscription divide themselves into three portions pertaining to different episodes in the lives of Śaiva saints. The first series of sculptures consist of the figure of Śiva in his divine form followed by that of a Śaiva mendicant standing before a devotee holding a long piece of cloth in his hand. The second series represents a devotee with his wife carrying a child in her arms and a Kāpālika bhikshu facing them. The last is the figure of a seated man holding an object like a small round bat. The labels below these sculp- _________________________________________________
[1] In situ and from impressions. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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