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The Indian Analyst
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South Indian Inscriptions |
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA
of line 1, varies between 5′ 11″ (in line 10) and 6′ 5″ (in lines 1 and 2) ; that of line 15 is only
2′ 5″. The size of such aksharas as ja, ma, ya, va is between ¾ and ⅞″, while the average height
of aksharas like a, ka, ra, pra, vya, jja, mû, mṛi is between 2 and 2½″. The inscription is most
carefully written and engraved, and is generally in so perfect a state of preservation that nearly
every syllable of it may be read with certainty.─ The characters are of the ‘ box-headed ’ type
of the southern alphabet. Among Kadamba inscriptions, they seem to resemble most those of
the Dêvagêri plates of the 4th year and the Hiṭṇahebbâgilu plates if Mṛigêśavarman,[1] but, as
is elsewhere the case with stone-inscriptions, they exhibit a more regular and artistic style of
writing than is found in the copper-plates. Of initial vowels the text contains a, â, i (e.g. in
ity=, l. 10), u (in udvavarha, l. 5), and ê (e.g. in êvam=, l. 3) ; and of the consonants, all excepting jh, ṭh, ph, and ḷ, but chh occurs only as subscript letter (e.g. in chchhâyâ-, l. 11). Attention
may perhaps be drawn here to the signs for kh (e.g. in- śêkharaḥ, l. 8), ṅ (e.g. in bhaṅgur-, l. 7), j
(e.g. in jayati, l. 1), ñ (e.g. in yajñâº, l. 2, and pañchabhir=, l. 13), ḍ (in -mṛiḍita-, l. 11, -chûḍâ-maṇayaḥ, l. 13, and taḍûkam=, l. 14), ḍh (in -saṁrûḍha-, l. 3), th and dh (e.g. in vividha-yajñâ-vabhṛtha-, l. 2), b (e.g. in brahma-, l. 4), and l (e.g.–kulaṁ, l. 2, and Pallavêndra-, l. 4) ;
and to the peculiar form[2] of the subscript ṇ in –aparâyṇṇav-, l. 7. As regards medial vowels,
it may suffice to point out the two forms of the akshara ṇâ, employed e.g. in guruṇâ and
ºśarmmaṇâ, both at the commencement of line 4, and the manner in which â is written in the
akshara ṭâ[3] (of -jaṭâ-, l. 1). The alphabet includes the signs of the jihvâmûlîya and upadhmânîya (e.g. in –nipuṇah=kaviḥ and –kuśalah=prajâ-, both at the end of line 9) ; those of
final m (e.g. in siddham, l. 1, and –maṇḍalam, l. 2), final t (e.g. in bhayât, l. 1, and tat, l. 3),
and final n (in yô=rîn, l. 9) ; and the sign of punctuation consisting of two vertical lines.─ The
language of the inscription is Sanskṛit, and, with the exception of the introductory Siddham [||]
Namaś=Śivâya || and the words in line 15, the whole is in verse. The orthography suggests
the following remarks. Within a half-verse and in the words Namaś-Śivâya of line 1. The final
visarga of a word before one of the three sibilants is always (altogether 19 times) assimilated
to the sibilant. Before a surd guttural (k or kh) it is nine times changed to the jihvâmûlîya
and left unchanged twice, both times at the end of a Pâda (in lîlaḥ Kâkustha, 1. 10, and –sthaḥ
Kubjas=, l. 14). The jihvâmûlîya is also employed in duhkham=, l. 4. Before p ─ ph does not
occur─ visarga is changed to the upadhmânîya five times and left unchanged seven times (once,
in putraḥ prathita-, l. 9, at the end of a Pâda). Before the conjuncts sn and st (but not before
sv and śr) visarga is dropped, in brâhmaṇai snâtakai stûyamânê, l. 13. In the words say=iha
(for the ordinary sa iha) of line 13 the final visarga of saḥ has by Pâṇini, VIII. 3, 17 (or 18)
been changed to (the ordinary or the laghuprayatnatara) y.[4]─ The final m of a word remains
unchanged, and is denoted by the sign of final m, in the word siddham in line 1 and always at
the end of a half-verse ; exceptionally (and wrongly) also at the end of the odd Pâdas of verse
28. Otherwise final m before a consonant is changed to anusvâra except in âpadan=tân=dhâra-yâm-âsa (for âpadaṁ tâṁ dhâº), l. 6, yan=daiva- (for yaṁ daiva-), l. 13, yum=mitram=, l. 7,
pṛithivîm=prasahya, l. 9, tam=bhûpâh=, l. 11, -sambhrama, l. 12, and taḍâkam=mahat, l. 14. In
[1] See Ind. Ant. Vol. VII. p. 37, Plates, and Ep. Carn. Vol. IV. p. 136, Plates ; compare also Prof. Bühler’s
Ind. Palæographie, Plate VII. Col. xiii.
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