South Indian Inscriptions

EPIGRAPHIA INDICA

TRANSLATION.

(Line 1.) Hail ! May the great Vishṇu protect you !

(Verse 1.) There was a king named Gôvindarâja (I.), a royal lion among kings, whose fame reached the ends of the quarters, (and) who, raising his scimitar (and) facing (them), destroyed his enemies in battles, just as the moon, whose luster spreads to the ends of the quarters, raising the tip of her disc (above the horizon), (and transmitting her rays) straight forward, dispels darkness at night.

(V. 2.) His son, known as the glorious Kakkarâja (I.), a king whose brilliant fame was heard of throughout the world, who relieved the sufferings of the distressed, who possessed the spirit and valour of Hari,^[1] who rivaled (Indra) the king of heaven, (and) who was grateful (for services rendered), became a jewel of (his) race.

(V. 3.) His son, king Indrarâja (II.)., whose expansive shoulders were full of graceful scratches consequent upon the strokes of the tusks of (hostile) elephants from whose cleft temples ichor tricked down,^[2] (and) who destroyed (all his) enemies on earth, became, as it were, the golden mountain (Mêru) of the excellent Râshṭrakûṭas.

(V. 4.) The son of him who had acquired fame, the glorious Dantivarman (II.), who resembled Indra, enjoyed the earth whose garland is the circle of the four oceans.

(V. 5.) With a handful of followers he suddenly vanquished the countless forces of Karṇâṭaka, which were invincible to others, (and) which had proved their efficacy by inflicting crushing defeats on the lord of Kâñchî, the king of Kêraḷa, the Chôḷa, the Pâṇḍya, Śrîharsha and Vajraṭa.

(V. 6.) Without knitting his brow, without using any sharp weapon, without (anybody’s) knowledge, without giving orders, without effort, he suddenly conquered Vallabha by the (mere) force of (his) royal sceptre (i.e. majesty) and attained to the state of ‘ king of kings ’ and ‘ supreme lord.’^[3]

(V. 7.) When that Vallabharâja had gone to heaven, king Kṛishṇarâja (I.), the son of the glorious Kakkarâja (I.), became the protector of (his) subjects on earth.

(V. 8.) The career of that glorious Kṛishṇarâja (I.), during which the multitude of enemies in (all) directions was completely driven away by the prowess of his arms, was spotless like that of Kṛishṇa.

(V. 9.) The whole sky, wherein the rays of the sun above were obstructed by the dust raised by the lofty steeds of Śubhatuṅga (Kṛishṇarâja I.), looked clearly like (the sky in) the rainy season, though it was summer.

(V. 10.) Akâlavarsha (i.e. ‘ the untimely rainer,’ viz. Kṛishṇarâja I.) instantly rains (i.e. fulfills) unceasingly the desired objects of the miserable and the helpless, and of (his) favourites, in any way he likes, so as to remove all (their) distress.

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^[1] The second line of this verse is one long compound which we should split up, as Dr. Bühler has done, into two parts, either of which should be taken as an attribute of Kakkarâja. But Dr. Bühler’s rendering of the second part of the line is based on the etymological sense of the words vikrama and dhâman, and is therefore not likely to be the correct one.
^[2] Both Dr. Bühler and Dr. Fleet connect prabhinna-karaṭa-chyuta-dâna with ruchira, and danti-danta-prahâra with ullikhita ; but this course is objectionable because the word dantin occurring after dâna shows the preceding expression to be a Bahuvrîhi compound and an attribute of dantin.
^[3] Dr. Bühler and Dr. Fleet adopt sabhrûvibhaṅgam for their Kâvî and Sâmângaḍ inscriptions respectively Further, these plates read daṇḍalakêna instead of daṇḍabalêna, the reading of our grant, which is identical with that of the Paiṭhaṇ plates. This is a very knotty verse. First, it is very difficult to determine whether abhrûvibhaṅgam etc. are to be taken as adjectives or adverbs. Dr. Bühler supposes all of them to be adjectives except sabhrûvibhaṅgam. Dr. Fleet takes them all to be adverbs. This mode of interpretation is, I think, the correct one. Secondly, the meaning of daṇḍabalêna is not clear.