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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA ABSTRACT OF CONTENTS Hail ! Prosperity ! (Issued) with the royal signature in the 24th year, current, of the reign of king Vīraśōla-Kalimūrkkap-Perumāḷ. In this year, queen (nambirāṭṭiyar) Vaḷavan-Mādēviyār alias Iṭṭiymūttār purchased from the members of the assembly and gave the following land as tirumelukkuppuram (i.e., for the requirement of washing with cow-dung) to the temple of Tiruvalañjulidēva at Vīrasaṅgāda-chaturvēdimaṅgalam :─ One mā and half a kāṇi of land in Madurāntakavaḷāgam on the south western side of the land of Nāraṇan Madurāntaka …. and one kāṇi and a half of land adjoining the land (called) Vīrasaṅgādan-mēratalai,[1] in all one mā and a half of land was given for the requirement of persons that wash the temple with cow-dung. IV.─Piramiyam Inscription of the 20th year of Kōnāṭṭān-Vikrama-Chōḷa The subjoined inscription, in Vaṭṭeluttu characters and Tamil language, is engraved on the west wall of the central shrine of Tiruvalañjulināthasvāmin temple at Piramiyam. The peculiarity of this inscription consists in the fact that at the outset, immediately after the auspicious opening words ‘ Hail ! Prosperity !’ the king himself proclaims his name, country and the year of his reign :─ “ I am Vikrama-Chōḷa of Kōnāḍu (Konāṭṭān). (This is) the twentieth year of my (reign) ”. It then proceeds to say (using the first person plural) that he deposited 12 kalañju of gold, as weighed (or tested) by the nagarak-kal, with the ūrār of Veḷḷakal-Veḷḷānūr in Kāṅgaya-nāḍu and enjoined that the ūrār should measure out annually 90 nāli or 45 kāṇa-nāli of oil (at the rate of one ulakku of oil per day) to the assembly of Vīrasaṅgāda-chaturvēdimaṅgalam, and that, receiving this quantity of oil, the assembly should burn a perpetual light in the temple of Tiruvalañjuli-Mahādēva at Vīrasaṅgāda-chaturvēdimaṅgalam, for the merit of the king’s daughter who was the Chōḷa queen (Śōlamādēviyār), wife of Vikrama-Chōḷa.
The whole record from the announcement of the king’s name and country to the very end of the grant is a statement made by the king himself and the grant was made by him for the merit of his daughter. The statement of ARSIE for 1920[2] that ‘ the lamp was ordered to the temple by Vikramaśōlan-Śōlamādēviyār ’ is therefore not correct. The occasion for the endowment is contained in the word pramādikka. Though the word pramāda is generally used in the sense of ‘ carelessness or blunder ’, it seems to indicate here some accident or calamity resulting in the death of the king’s daughter who is stated to be the queen of Vikrama-Chōḷa. In this sense, the word is found used in an inscription of Vikrama-Chōḷa relating to the accidental death of a calf by the chariot of Manu-Chōḷa’s son.[3] The word also occurs in another inscription edited here (No. VII, line 4). It is gathered from this record that the year consisted of 360 days, that 4 ulakku made ne nāli and that a kāṇa-nāli had double the capacity of a Parakēsari-nāli. As the 40th year of the reign of king Kalimūrkka-Vikrama-Chōḷa of Kōnāḍu corresponded to Śaka 967 (1045A.D.), the date of the present inscription i.e. the 20th year of reign must be 1025 A.D. The Chōḷa king at the time was Parakēsarivarman Rājēndra-Chōḷa I. That he had the surname Vikrama-Chōḷa was known previously but that he had married the daughter of Kōnāṭṭān Kalimūrkka-Vikrama-Chōḷa was learnt only from this inscription which relates also her death. The word Kōnāṭṭān preceding the king’s name clearly indicates that his original home was Kōnādu, one of the big districts of South India that had several subdivisions in it. It bordered ________________________________________________________________ [1] This may also be rendered as on the western side of the land of Vīrasaṅgādan.
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