The Indian Analyst
 

South Indian Inscriptions

 

 

Contents

Index

Introduction

Contents

List of Plates

Additions and Corrections

Images

Contents

Chaudhury, P.D.

Chhabra, B.ch.

DE, S. C.

Desai, P. B.

Dikshit, M. G.

Krishnan, K. G.

Desai, P. B

Krishna Rao, B. V.

Lakshminarayan Rao, N., M.A.

Mirashi, V. V.

Narasimhaswami, H. K.

Pandeya, L. P.,

Sircar, D. C.

Venkataramayya, M., M.A.,

Venkataramanayya, N., M.A.

Index-By A. N. Lahiri

Other South-Indian Inscriptions 

Volume 1

Volume 2

Volume 3

Vol. 4 - 8

Volume 9

Volume 10

Volume 11

Volume 12

Volume 13

Volume 14

Volume 15

Volume 16

Volume 17

Volume 18

Volume 19

Volume 20

Volume 22
Part 1

Volume 22
Part 2

Volume 23

Volume 24

Volume 26

Volume 27

Tiruvarur

Darasuram

Konerirajapuram

Tanjavur

Annual Reports 1935-1944

Annual Reports 1945- 1947

Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Volume 2, Part 2

Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Volume 7, Part 3

Kalachuri-Chedi Era Part 1

Kalachuri-Chedi Era Part 2

Epigraphica Indica

Epigraphia Indica Volume 3

Epigraphia
Indica Volume 4

Epigraphia Indica Volume 6

Epigraphia Indica Volume 7

Epigraphia Indica Volume 8

Epigraphia Indica Volume 27

Epigraphia Indica Volume 29

Epigraphia Indica Volume 30

Epigraphia Indica Volume 31

Epigraphia Indica Volume 32

Paramaras Volume 7, Part 2

Śilāhāras Volume 6, Part 2

Vākāṭakas Volume 5

Early Gupta Inscriptions

Archaeological Links

Archaeological-Survey of India

Pudukkottai

EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

REYURU GRANT OF PALLAVA NARASIMHAVARMAN ;
YEAR 12

is faulty and the composition contains syntactical and other mistakes. These have been corrected either in the body of the text itself or in the footnotes.

As we shall see presently, the charter was issued by the Pallava ruler Narasiṁhavarman II of the Siṁhavishṇu line. The records of the early rulers of this family are generally on stone, until we come to the time of Nandivarman II. Only two exceptions have come to our notice so far ; one is the Kūram grant of Paramēśvaravarman I, father of Narasiṁhavarman II, and the other the present inscription. It has to be noted further that the Kūram grant bears closer affinity with the Udayēndiram[1] or Kaśākuḍi[2] plates of Nandivarman II in respect of the script and treatment of the subject-matter. The script employed in both is Pallava-Grantha and Tamil. Both contain an elaborate invocation in Sanskrit verse, a legendary account of the origin of the family and a lengthy praśasti and poetic descriptions of kings. In all these aspects, the present record presents a marked contrast. The script employed here is the highly developed southern alphabet which has assumed the distinct shape of Kannaḍa-Telugu. The subject is treated briefly and directly. The invocation and the praśasti are short without the intervention of poetic passages. Thus our charter stands conspicuously as a class by itself, not only among the copper plate records, but also amidst the mass of inscriptions belonging to this Pallava house.

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We may on the contrary realise that the formal part of our epigraph bears close resemblance with that of the earlier copper-plate documents of the Pallava princes, which are older by more than two centuries. Like the Pīkira[3] and Vilavaṭṭi[4] grants of Siṁhavarman, our epigraph opens with the brief invocatory expressions svasti and jitaṁ Bhagavatā.[5] A comparison of the specific epithets used for describing the ruling king and his ancestors, as found in the grants of Uruvupalli,[6] Pīkira and Vilavaṭṭi forming one group on one side and the present charter on the other, reveals a number of striking similarities of expression in the latter, which have been in some cases borrowed directly and in others either paraphrased or modified suitably from the former. For instance, the epithets, pratāp-ōpanata-rāja-maṇḍala, Lōkapālānāṁ pañchama and rājarshi-guṇa-sarva-sandōha-vijigīshu, are commonly met with in all the epigraphs under reference. The expression archita-, abhyuchchita-, or atyuchchita-śakti-siddhi-saṁpanna of the Uruvupalli, Pīkira and Vilavaṭṭi grants respectively, figures in the modified form abhyarchita-śakti-siddhi-saṁpanna in the present inscription. While the phrase vasudhā-tal-aika-vīra of the Uruvupalli grant or its equivalent pṛithvī-tal-aika-vīra of the Pīkira and Vilavaṭṭi grants has been amplified into anēka-samara-saṁghaṭṭa-janita-vikrama-vasudhā-tal-aika-vīra, the term bhagavad-bhakti-sadbhāva-saṁbhāvita-sarva-kalyāṇa in the earlier group has been slightly modified and abridged into bhagavad-bhakti-sadbhāva-samarpita-sarva in the record under study. Another case of modified contraction is the qualitative bahu-samara-vijaya-labdha-yaśaḥ-prakāśa of our charter, which is evidently derived from anēka-samara-sāhas-āvamarda-labdha-vijaya-yaśaḥ-prakāśa of the Uruvupalli category.[7]

The present inscription commences with a brief invocation and reference to the Pallavas who belonged to the Bhāradvāja gōtra. Next are mentioned three members of this family, viz., Mahēndravikramavarman, his son Paramēśvaravarman and his son Narasiṁhavarman. The last of

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[1] Ind. Ant. Vol. VIII, pp. 273 ff.
[2] S. I. I., Vol. II, pp. 342 ff.
[3] Above, Vol. VIII, p. 161.
[4] Ibid., Vol. XXIV, p. 301.
[5] In the Pīkira grant the word svasti comes after jitaṁ Bhagavatā. In regard to the expression Bhagavatāṁ occurring in line 1 of the Rēyūru grant, see below in the text portion.
[6] Ind. Ant., Vol. V, p. 51. It may further be noted that the Pallava praśasti of these charters bears close resemblances with that of the Chendalūr plates of Kumāravishṇu II and others ; compare above Vol. VIII, pp. 233 ff.
[7] Thus I have noticed in all thirteen expressions bearing mutual kinship. Besides the seven commented above, six others met with in the present inscription are as follows : vidhi-vihita-sarva-maryāda, sthiti-sthita, yathāvad-ābhṛit-āśvamēdh-ādy-anēka-kratu-yājin, prajā-saṁrañjana-paripālan-ōdyōga, satata-satya-vrata-dīkshita and Kaliyuga-dōsh-ōpahṛita-dharm-ōddharaṇa-nitya-sannaddha.

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