North Indian Inscriptions

INSCRIPTIONS OF THE KALACHURIS OF RATANPUR

KONI STONE INSCRIPTION OF PRITHVIDEVA II : YEAR 900

from his great-grandfather Pṛithvīdēva I who is called the lord of Tummāṇa.^¹ The description of this king as also of his son Jājalladēva I and grandson Ratnadēva II is mainly conventional. The only historical event referred to is the defeat which a king of Kaliṅga suffered for the first time at the hands of Ratnadēva II. The reference is evidently to the defeat which that Kalachuri king inflicted on the mighty Gaṅga king AnantavarmanChōḍagaṅga and which is mentioned in several records of his descendants.^²

With verse 14 begins the genealogy of Purushōttama who erected the temple of Śiva recorded in the present inscription. His ancestor Sōḍhadēva belonged to a Brāhmaṇa family which served the Kalachuri princes for several generations. Sōḍhadēva was appointed Minister by Pṛithvīdēva I (v. 15). His son was Nimbadēva. He and his wife Lakhamā (Lakshmī) are glorified in three verses (vv. 16-18). Their son was Purushōttama who was appointed to the post of Sarvādhikārin (Minister Plenipotentiary) by Ratnadēva II. He is eulogised in as many as eight verses. We are told that all kings having been subdued by the policy or prowess of this minister, the king Ratnadēva II was able to rule without any trouble.

Verse 26 mentions the exploits of Purushōttama. He conquered the Khimmiṇḍi maṇḍala, made the Talahāri maṇḍala attractive, punished Daṇḍapura, subjugated Khijjiṅga, killed Haravōhu and threatened the ruler of Daṇḍabhukti. It may be noted that some of these countries are also mentioned in a fragmentary verse eulogising the Kalachuri king Jājalladēva I, which occurs in his Ratanpur stone inscription, dated K. 866.^³Jājalladēva is said to have received annual tributes from the rulers of Dakshiṇa Kōsala, Andhra, Khimiḍi, Vairāgara, Lañjikā, Bhāṇāra, Talahāri, Daṇḍakapura, Nandāvalī and Kukkuṭa. It will be noticed that Khimiḍi, Talahāri and Daṇḍakapura are common to the two lists of countries. It may therefore be conjectured that Purushōttama took a prominent part in the expeditions of Jājalladēva I against the rulers of these three countries. The present inscription no doubt states that Purushōttama was made Sarvādhikārin by Ratnadēva II, but that does not necessarily imply that he first came into prominence during that kings' reign. He may have held the office of a minister under Jājalladēva I also, and may have distinguished himself during that king's wars. Of these three countries, Talahāri maṇḍala was probably the name of the southern portion of the Bilaspur tahsil and the adjoining portion of the Jānjgir tahsil. Jājalladēva's conquest of Talahāri is mentioned in some other records of the period.^⁴ Khimmiṇḍi or Khimiḍi may be the former Kimēḍi Zamindarī in the Ganjam District. Jājalladēva I's expedition against this country, which probably owned the suzerainty of the Eastern Gaṅgas, may have provoked Anantavarman-Chōḍagaṅga into launching his invasion of the Kalachuri kingdom during the reign of Jājalladēva's son and successor Ratnadēva II. Nothing is known about the expedition against Daṇḍapura. This town may have been the capital of Daṇḍabhukti.

The remaining three events mentioned in v. 26 may have occurred during the reign of Ratnadēva II. The first two of these, viȥ., the subjugation of khijjiṅga and the slaying of Haravōhu are not known from any other source, but the third one, viȥ., the intimidation
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¹ Tummāṇa was the earlier capital of this Kalachuris in Dakshiṇa Kōsala. That Pṛithvīdēva I was ruling at Tummāṇa is known from line 28 of his Amōdā plates, above, No. 76, 1.28.
² See, e.g., the Ratanpur stone inscription of Pṛithvīdēva II, dated V. 1207, below, No. 93, the Mallār stone inscription of Jājalladēva II, dated K. 919, below, No. 97 and the Pendrabandh plates of Pratāpamalla, below, No. 101.
³ Above, No. 77, 1. 22.
⁴ See, e. g., the Rājim stone inscription of Jagapāladēva (No. 88, above). 30