South Indian Inscriptions

EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

The grant was issued from Kaliṅganagara, usually identified with Mukhaliṅgam. The record registers the grant of the village Harisavēlli (line 40) situated in Varāhavarttanī (vishaya). The gift village is mentioned again as Arisavalli in line 67, along with its adjoining village Māvēṇḍi. Varāha-varttanī occurs in other records of this king as well as of other members of this dynasty and is usually taken to correspond to the area near modern Śrīkākuḷam.

The date of our grant, which occurs in lines 42-43, is expressed in the chronogram, karavasu-nidhi-Śāk-ābdē, i.e. Śaka 982, Kārttika, the twelfth day of the first fortnight, Monday It regularly corresponds to Monday, October 9, A.D. 1060. It is earlier than the date of the Peddabammidi plates by two months and nineteen days only. Kārttika śu. 12 is known in the Kannada-Telugu speaking area as Uttāna-dvādaśī, i.e., the day on which god Vishṇu is woken up from his long sleep. It is also called Prabōdhōtsava. This tithi is also known for the end of Chāturmāsyavrata (which begins on the same tithi in the month of Āshāḍha) and Tulasī-vivāha (the marriage of Vishṇu with the Tulasī plant). The previous day,, i.e. ēkādaśī, is called Prabōdhinī ēkādaśī.

The details of the grant are given in lines 43 ff. This portion is defective in many places and so it is difficult to make out the purport satisfactorily. As stated above, the inscription registers the gift of the village Harisavēlli which is also called Arisavalli. It appears that the village was originally given by the king to the son and three daughters of Dālamapeggaḍa and his wife Mavanaka. Dālamapeggaḍa is stated to have been the chief minister (mahāpradhāna). The names of his son and daughters are given respectively as Mēḍapa-nāyaka, Viddāma, Mēḍama and Pōtama. The subsequent assignment^[1] of the gift village was as follows : The village was divided into four parts and one part was given to Śiriyapa-nāyaka, Vajjināyaka, Guṇḍamanāyaka and Naṁkama-nāyaka who were the sons of Naḍupana-nāyaka, a Kāyastha of Kāśyapa-gōtra, and his wife Paitapā. This part constituted the units called Puṇḍi-niyōga and Pāmchāli-niyōga.^[2] This portion was further divided into nineteen shares out of which eighteen shares were taken by Vajji-nāyaka, Guṇḍama-nāyaka and Nuṁkama-nāyaka (mentioned above) while the remaining share was given to Naḍupanāyaka, son of Śiriyapanāyaka.^[3] Again the second part of the village was divided into five shares as follows : one share to Guṇḍana and Apētana, sons of Māviraṭṭadi of Śūdra-vaṁśa and his wife Viṭṭapā ; one share to Chandēna, son of the younger Dāmaraṭṭaḍi and his wife Sāyapā ; one share to Chāmena, son of Viṭṭanaraṭṭaḍi and his wife Sarvapā ; one share to Māṁkana and Duggana, sons of Mādiraṭṭaḍi and his wife Chinnapā ; and one share to Kaṭṭana and Viṭṭana, sons of Dugganaraṭṭaḍi and his wife Gavakā. The part, consisting of these five shares, constituted the units known as Gavaḍa-niyōga and Chandrāditya-niyōga,

The record then proceeds to state that the village was divided into Santāraha-bhāga, the meaning of which is doubtful. We know that the village was originally divided into four parts. Out of these, two parts have been disposed of as indicated above and the fourth part is accounted for later in the record. Therefore, this corresponded to the third . . part of the village, which was probably divided into seventeen shares and given to Dāmara-nāyaka and Vinarāyi-nāyaka, sons of Kāyastha Chaṇḍu-nāyaka of Kāśyapa-gōtra. It appears that the grant was made at the instance of Iddachāhapa and that the recipients in their turn granted some portion to Nūṁkamōja, son of Chīḍumōja. The record next states that king Vajrahasta granted

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^[1] The expression uttara-niyōga is taken in this sense here, the word niyōga which occurs later in the record seems to have been used in a technical sense meaning ‘ a unit ’. See note 2 below.
^[2] The word niyōga is suffixed to the proper names here and in similar expressions in the sequel. It is difficult to make out their exact significance. Possibly the portions granted were known by these names at the time of the grant.
^[3] Probably Śiriyapa-nāyaka was dead at the time and so his son gets only one share while his brothers get eighteen shares.