South Indian Inscriptions

KALACHURI OF SOUTH KOSALA

to a tradition recorded by Mr. Beglar,¹ the ancient name of Ratnapura was Manipura, which is mentioned in the Mahābhārata as the capital of a Nāga king.² As our poet has slightly changed the names of places, Ratnavati in the Navsāhasānkacharita may represent ancient Manipura, which came to be known as Ratnapura when Ratnadēva made it his capital. If Sindhurāja crossed the Naramdā near Māndhātā,³ Ratanpur would be about 200 miles from the place as described in Padmagupta’s poem.

In his battle with Vajrānkuśa, Sindhurāja’s ally was the Vidyādhara prince Śikhanda- kētu. He probably represents the Śilāhāra king Arikēsarin alias Kēśidēva, the ruler of North Konkan; for, the Śilāhāras traced their descent from Jimūtavāhana, the mythical prince of the Vidyādharas.⁴ The Similarity of the names Kēśidēva and Śikhandakētu confirms the identification.

Finally, the Nāga king Śankhapāla, whose daughter was loved and ultimately married by Sindhurāja, was probably a ruler of Chakrakōtya in the Bastar District. The princes of Chakrakōtya call themselves Nāgavamśīs and lords of Bhōgavatiī, the best of towns. This dynasty produced some powerful rulers towards the end of the eleventh and the begin- ning of the twelfth century A.C. Their capital Chakrakūta or Chakrakōtya often figures in inscriptions and literature.⁵ This shows the strategic importance of that territory.⁶ These Nāga princes were often at war with the Kalachuris of Ratanpur. The existence of a Nāga chieftain, ruling in the Bastar District in the beginning of the tenth century A.C., who was hostile to Vajrānkuśa or Vajjūka of the Kōmō mandala, is not, therefore, unlikely.

The historical basis of the Navasāhasānkacharita thus seems to be that the Nāga ruler of Chakrakōtya sought the powerful Paramāra king Sindhurāja's aid against Vajjūka of the Kōmō mandala, with whom the Kalachuri prince Kalingarāja was probably allied. Sindhu- rāja seems to have welcomed this opportunity to strengthen the south-eastern frontier of his kingdom against a possible Chōla invasion; for, owing to the debacle of the Later Chālukyas of Kalyānī after the death of Satyāśraya, the power of the Chōlas, their rivals for supremacy in the south, was increasing. As we shall see later, Rājendrachōla, I’s general did indeed attack Kōsala a few years later during his victorious march to the north. It was probably to check the Chōla power that Sindhurāja, with a commendable foresight, entered into a matrimonial alliance with the king of Chakrakōtya. He marched against Vajjūka, whom he slew in battle. Afterwards he placed a Nāga prince in charge of Vajjūka's territory and married the daughter of the Nāga king of Chakrakōtya.

The Kalachuri king Kalingarāja, who was probably allied with Vajjūka, must have also suffered a defeat at the hands of Sindhurāja. But he seems to have soon rehabilitated himself by driving out Sindhurāja’s protégé from the Kōmō mandala. We have, however, no further knowledge of any political events of his reign. The description of him in the records of his successors is purely conventional.

Kalaingaraja was succeeded by his son Kamalaraja about 1020 A.C. He also ruled from the old capital Tummana, and acknowledged the supremacy of the Emperor of Tripuri. During his reign, Gangeyadeva of Tripuri undertook an expedition against the king of Utkala (Orissa). He seems to have marched through the territory of Kamalaraja,
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¹C.A.S.I.R.,Vol. X, p. 216.
²(Chitrasala Press ed.) Adiparvan, adhyaya 215, v. 13; Asvamedhikaparvan, adhyaya 79, v.3.
³It may be noted that some records of the Paramaras were issued after bathing in the Narmada at this holy place. To the east of Mandhata lay the country of Chedi, which Sindhuraja does not seem to have entered on this occasion
⁴See, e.g., the Bhandup plates of chhittarajadeva, Ep. Ind., Vol. XII pp. 250.ff.
⁵See, e.g., Vikramankadevacharita, canto IV, v. 30.
⁶It is worthy of note that the attack on Kosala followed the victory at Sakkarakottam (Chakrakotya)