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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA 53 ḥ | ākshēptā ch=ānumantā cha tāny=ēva narakē vasēt || [16*] Sva-dattāṁ para-dattāṁ [va*] yō harē[ta*] vasundharāṁ(rām) | sa vishṭhāyāṁ kṛimir=bhūtvā pi- 54 tṛibhiḥ saha pachyatē ||[17*] Sarvān=ētān=bhāvinaḥ pārthiv-ēndrān=bhūyō bhūyaḥ prārthayatē- (ty=ē)sha Rāmaḥ | sāmānyō=yaṁ dharmma-sētur=nṛi- 55 pāṇāṁ kālē kālē pālanīyaḥ kramēṇa || [18*] Iti kamala-dal-amvu-(l-āmbu)-vindu-lōlāṁ śriyam=anuvichintya[1] ma[nu*]shya-jīvita- 56 ñ=cha | sakalam=idam=uḍāhṛitañ=cha vu(bu)ddhvā na hi purushaiḥ para-kīrttayō vilōpyā iti ||[2] Śrī-Mahīpāladēvēna dvija-śrē- 57 shṭh-ōpapāditē [|*] [śrī-māl=La(l=La)kshmīdharō mantrī śāsanē dūtakaḥ kṛitaḥ || [20] Pōshalī- grāma-niryāta-Cha[ndrā]dityasya śū(sū)nunā | i- 58 daṁ śāsanam=utkīrṇṇaṁ śrī[3]-Pushyādityēna śilpinā || [21*]
B.─Plate of Vigrahapāla III Regnal Year 11 The inscription is written on a single plate which is of the same size as the Belwā plate of Mahīpāla I, edited above. The seal, which is broken at the top, very closely resembles that of Mahīpāla’s plate. The legend on the seal, attached to the charter under discussion, reads śrī-Vigrahapāladēvaḥ. There are 54 lines of writing on both sides of the plate, the obverse containing 29 lines and the reverse 25. The preservation of the writing on the plate is not quite satisfactory. Some of the letters have suffered from the effects of corrosion. Five lines at the top on the obverse of the plate and four lines at the top on the reverse have a gap in the middle owing to the space occupied by the lower part of the seal.
Little calls for special mention in regard to the palaeography, language and orthography of the inscription as they very closely resemble those of the Āmgāchhi plate,[4] the only other copper-plate charter of king Vigrahapāla III so far published. In most cases in our inscription, the left curve of the letter ṇ does not start from its top but from the middle of its central vertical. The letter ś usually resembles in form the conjunct tbh or vbh as found in some inscriptions of the Gupta age. The charter is dated on the 19th day of Bhādra in the year 11 of the king’s reign (line 46). Like the Belwā plate of Mahīpāla I and several other records of the family, the grant under discussion was made by king Vigrahapāla III after having taken a ceremonial bath in the waters of the Ganges on the occasion of the vishuvat-saṅkrānti. It appears therefore, as in the case of Mahīpāla’s record discussed above, that the grant had been made on the 1st day of solar Vaiśākha, although the charter was issued a few months later. As in the grant of Mahīpāla I edited above, both at the beginning and at the end of the first line of our charter occurs the letter ni which is a contraction of the expression nibaddha meaning ‘registered.’ \ The actual record begins with the siddham symbol and the word svasti which are followed by fourteen verses (lines 1-22). These verses are also found in the Āmgāchhi plate of the same king. Of these, twelve verses are common with Mahīpāla’s plate edited above. But, as already pointed out, the verse referring to the exploits of the king’s elephant force in all the four corners of the chakravartti-kshētra (verse 14) is employed in the description of Vigrahapāla III himself instead of that Mahīpāla I. (Verse 12 of our record speaks of king Nayapāla (circa 1038-55 A. C.), son and successor of Mahīpāla I, verse 13 of Nayapāla’s son and successor Vigrahapāla III (circa 1055-90 A. C.) who issued the charter under discussion.) These verses are not only found _________________________________________________
[1] Read=ºanuchintya. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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