South Indian Inscriptions

EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

that Śatrubhañja of the present record was a later member of the same family, who utilised the said verses first introduced in the records of these Bhañjas by a court poet of Nēṭṭabhañja-Kalyāṇakalaśa, son of Raṇabhañja.^[1] The use of numerical symbols instead of decimal figures in the date of our inscription, however, seems to suggest that Śatrubhañja Maṅgalarāja flourished before the middle of the eleventh century.^[2]

Thirdly, in the two known records of Śatrubhañja of Dhṛitipura and Khiñjali-maṇḍala, that king is represented as a devout worshipper of Visḥna, while Śatrubhañja-Maṅgalarāja of our inscription is described as a devotee of the god Mahēśvara or Śiva. It should be noticed that among the early Bhañjas of Khiñjali-maṇḍala only Śatrubhañja and Raṇabhañja in his earlier years were Vaishṇavas.^[3] Raṇabhañja later became a Śaiva. Nēṭṭabhañja-Kalyāṇakalaśa, son of Raṇabhañja, and Vidyādharabhañja-Amōghakalaśa, who was the son of Śilābhañja (II), grandson of Digbhañja and great-grandson of Raṇabhañja, were Śaivas. Śatrubhañja-Maṅgalarāja of our record may thus have flourished after Raṇabhañja who introduced Śaivism in the family. None of the above arguments may be conclusive ; but, taken together, they appear to make a strong case against the identification of the issuer of our inscription with his namesake who was the father of Raṇabhañja. It is probable that the secondary name Maṅgalarāja was assumed by the later ruler to distinguish himself from his earlier namesake.

The Sulvāḍḍa vishaya and the village of Kōntamullō are the only geographical names mentioned in the record. I have not been able to identify them, although they appear to have been situated in the present Ganjam District.

TEXT^[4]

[Metres : verse 1 Mālinī ;verse 2 Śārdūlavikrīḍita ; verse 3 Āryā ; verses 4-6, 8 Anushṭubh ; verse 7 Pushpitāgrā.]

First Plate

1 Svasti [||*] Jayati Kusumavā(bā)ṇa-prāṇa-vikshōbha-dakshaṁ sva-kiraṇa-pari-
2 vēśy-ō(ś-au)rjitya-jīrṇṇ-ēndu-lēkhaṁ(kham |) tṛi(tri)-bhuvana-bhu(bha)van-āntar-dyōta- bhāsva[t*]-pra-
3 dīpaṁ kanaka-nikasha-tāmvra(mra)ṁ vibhru-nētraṁ Harasya || [1*] Śēsh-āhēr=iva yaḥ(yē)
4 phaṇā[ḥ*] pravilasat=yu(nty=u)dbhāsur-ēndu-tvishaḥ prālēy-āchala-śṛiṅga-kō-
5 ṭaya iva tvaṁganti yē=tyunnatā[ḥ | *] nṛitt-āṭōpa-vighaṭṭitā iva
6 bhujā rājanti yē shāṁ(śāṁ)bhavāṁ(vā)ś=tē [sa*]rvv-āgha-vighātinaḥ sura-tsva(sa)rit-tō-
7 y-ōrmmayaḥ pāntu vaḥ [||] [2*] Asti jaya-śrī-nilaya-prakaṭa-guṇa-grasta-sarvva-
8 ripu-garvv[ḥ |*] śrīmān=Maṅgalarājō rājā nirddhūta-Kali-kalysha[ḥ || 3*] Bhañj-āmala- kula-
9 tilakaḥ śrī-Yathāsukhadēvasya pranaptā śrī-Mallagambhīradē[va *]sya pauttraḥ

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^[1] See above, Vol. XVIII, pp. 293, 295, 296 ; Vol. XXVIII, p. 273 ; Vasu, Arch. Surv. of Mayurbhanj, Vol. I, pp. 146, 149, etc.
^[2] Cf. Ojha, op. cit., p. 115 ; above, Vol. XXIX, pp. 184, 190.
^[3] Nēṭṭabhañja-Kalyāṇakalaśa II, who was the son of Vidyādharabhañja, grandson of Śilābhañja (II), great-grandson of Digbhañja and great-great-grandson of Raṇabhañja, was a Vaishṇava (Bhandarkar, op. cit., No. 1502).
^[4] From the Plates in JBORS, Vol. XVIII, and JKHRS, Vol. I. The pencil rubbing published in JBORS is more reliable than the inked impression published in JKHRS. The latter is, however, clearer than the former.