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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA of the same king[1] also agree with the Raṇastipûṇḍi grant to a great extent, while the Piṭhâpuram pillar inscription of Mallapadêva[2] furnishes substantially the same facts regarding the early Eastern Châlukyas and their ancestors. The historical portion commencing with the reign of Kubja-Vishṇuvardhana is known from grants earlier than the time of Vimalâditya. But the Raṇastipûṇḍi grant is the earliest inscription hitherto discovered, which contains the Paurâṇik and legendary portions (ll. 1-25). This is the first inscription which has been found of king Vimalâditya, the son of Dâna or Dânârṇava by his wife Âryâmahâdêvi[3] (v. 12) and younger brother of that king Śaktivarman who ruled immediately after the interregnum in the Vêṅgi country. An important item of information furnished by our grant is the date of Vimalâditya’s accession, which until now had to be obtained by deducting the duration of his reign as given in the copper-plate grants from the date of the accession of his son and successor Râjarâja I. as found in the Korumelli plates[4] and in the Nandamapûṇḍi grant.[5] According to verse 13 of the subjoined inscription, Vimalâditya’s coronation took place in the Siṁha lagna and the Pushya nakshatra, on Thursday, the sixth tithi of the bright fortnight of the month Vṛishabha in Śaka-Saṁvat 933. Professor Kielhorn kindly contributes the following remarks on this date :─ “ In line 43 read pañchamyâṁ, ‘ on the fifth tithi,’ instead of yash=shashṭhyâṁ. With this alteration the date corresponds, for Śaka-Saṁvat 933 expired, to Thursday, the 10th May A.D. 1011. The fifth tithi of the bright half (of the lunar month Jyaishṭha) in the solar month Vṛishabha ended at 20 h. 44 m. after mean sunrise, and the nakshatra was Pushya, by the equal space system and according to Garga, for 21 h. 40 m. after mean sunrise. For a place situated at 16° Northern Latitude, the Siṁha lagna on that day lasted from 5 h. 14 m. to 7 h. 24 m. after true sunrise.”
The above date removes a discrepancy in the duration of the interregnum between Dânârṇava and Śaktivarman. All the grants assign 27 years to this interregnum. The interval between the accession of Amma II. (Śaka-Saṁvat 867) and that of Râjarâja I. (Śaka-Saṁvat 944) is 77 years, while the total duration of the intervening reigns is only 25+3+12+7=47 years. It had therefore to be inferred that the interregnum lasted 77 - 47=30 years. This discrepancy has already been pointed out by Dr. Hultzsch.[6] As we know now that Vimalâditya’s reign commenced in Śaka-Saṁvat 933, the interregnum is reduced to roughly 27 years, the period actually mention in the copper-plate inscriptions. If we subtract from A.D. 1011 the period of the reign of Vimalâditya’s predecessor Śaktivarman (12 years), we get the approximate date of the accession of Śaktivarman himself, viz. A.D. 999. The interregnum which precede Śaktivarman’s reign and which lasted 27 years has thus to be placed roughly between A.D. 972 and 999. Hitherto it has been supposed that the interregnum in the Vêṅgî country was caused by a Chôḷa invasion.[7] The earliest Chôḷa king who claims to have conquered Vêṅgi is Râjarâja I., who ascended the throne in A.D. 985. The conquest to Vêṅgî is first mentioned in inscriptions dated in the 14th year of his reign=A.D. 998-99.[8] Consequently, the interregnum could not have been caused by the invasion of the Chôḷas, but was probably put an end to by that event. If this conclusion is correct, the Chôḷa king Râjarâja I. must have restored order in Vêṅgî by placing Śaktivarman on the throne, and the interregnum must have been due to cause other that the Chôḷa invasion during the time of Râjarâja I. There is also reason to believe that no Chôḷa invasion could have taken place before the time of Râjarâja I. ________________________________________________________________ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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