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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA It is very probably[1] that Alaṁpura of the present charter is identical Hēlāpura of the Sanjan plates.[2] According to the British Museum plates,[3] Gōvinda III was camping at Rāmēśvaratīrtha on the bank of the Tuṅgabhadrā on the 4th April of 804 A.D. after his victorious expedition against the Pallava ruler. From this we are led to surmise that his southern expedition was carried on between the date of the present charter and that of the British Museum plates, i.e., between the 2nd November of 803 A.D. and the 4th April of 804 A.D. As pointed out by Prof. Mirashi,[4] the charters of Gōvinda III fall into two groups, the first consisting of the Paiṭhaṇ and Añjanavati plates, in both of which the draft of the introductory part follows for the most part the text of the earlier records of the Rāshṭrakūṭa family. Under the second group fall all other charters commencing with the Nēsarī plates of Śaka 727. In the series, a new draft was employed for the introduction describing the victories of the king over his northern and southern adversaries. The new draft is also found in the Maṇṇe plates of his brother Stambha dated Śaka 724 which was therefore taken to be the starting point of the second series by Prof. Mirashi. The genuineness of the Maṇṇe plates was questioned by Dr. Altekar who pointed out that as Gōvinda III was still engaged in his southern campaign in Śaka 726 according to the British Museum plates, the new draft could not have been composed prior to this date. To obviate this difficulty, Prof. Mirashi argued that the southern expedition mentioned in the British Museum plates must have been a second expedition of a later date. But an examination of the inscription shows that there is no ground for such an assumption.[5]
The present inscription proves the spurious nature of the Maṇṇe plates. The first group of charters issued by Gōvinda III is represented by the Paiṭhaṇ and Añjanavatī plates and the present record is a new and important addition to it. While the Paiṭhaṇ and Añjanavatī plates were issued before the Maṇṇe plates, the charter under study was issued one year later than that record. It can therefore be inferred that even in Śaka 725 the old draft was being used by the king. If the new draft was already composed and used in the Maṇṇe charter, there was no point in continuing with the old one in a charter issued one year later. The combined evidence of the Jharikā and British Museum plates shows that, during Śaka 725 and 726, Gōvinda III was still engaged in his southern campaign which he carried on from his camp at Alaṁpur on the bank of the Tauṅgabhadrā and that after this expedition, on his way back to the capital, he had the new draft prepared. It was used, as far as evidence goes, for the first time in the Nēsarī charter of Śaka 727. Prof. Mirashi’s inference that Gōvinda III’s expedition against the southern kings occurred in Śaka 722 and 723 needs revision.[6] ___________________________________________________
[1] Bhandarkar’s suggestion (above, Vol. XVIII, p. 241) that Hēlāpura might be Vēlāpūr or Bēlūr in the Hassan
District of Mysore does not seem to be correct, as the place is far away from the Tauṅgabhadrā.
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