North Indian Inscriptions

INSCRIPTIONS OF THE KALACHURIS OF RATANPUR

TRANSLATION

Success ! Ōṁ ! Obeisance to Śiva !
(Verse 1) May the terrific and violent tāṇḍava of the god Śiva always protect you !— (the tāṇḍava) which bewildered the guardians of the quarters by the dashings of his shining arms against the mountains on the borders as he whirled them violently, while the earth sank under his steps^⁵, and in which the brahmāṇḍa was pierced by the sharp points of his khaṭvāṅga which srtuck against it !

(V. 2) May the Bull⁶ of Śiva grant you the attainment of your desired object !—(he) who frequently torments the brahmāṇḍa by the hard and dreadful rows hair (on his body); who by the noise of his thunder-like unchecked bellowing, causes intense pain to the ears of elephants (stationed) in the different quarters; who , by his very high-jumping hoofs, bruises the hoods of the lord of serpents; who destroys the splendour of enemies' cities; and who is adored by the three worlds !

(V. 3) We bow to that Speech who makes the practical life in the three worlds possible; who causes the attainment of the imperishable goal; and by attaining whose favour, good people regard the past, present and future as (placed) on the palm of their hand.

(V. 4) May that god of two mothers^⁷ (i.e., Gaṇēśa) increase your welfare!—(the god) who threatens, as it were, a large multitude of obstacles by the humming of bees intoxicated by the drinking of the limpid rutting juice as it gushes forth with force at the commencement of his dance !

(V. 5) (People) may perform hundreds of glorious deeds on battle-fields, exterminate a host of enemies and bestow (plenty of ) wealth; but all that would, in course of time, be like dancing in pitchy darkness^⁸ in case it is not recorded by poets.

(V. 6) Formerly there was, in the family of the Kalachuris, a king (named) Pṛithvīdēva (I), the lord of Tummāṇa, of spotless and abundant fame, who , by his administration of justice, made the whole world always seek refuge in righteous deeds; who was the sun to the darkness in the form of arrogant kings, and an ornament of the earth.

(V. 7) From him of holy lustre was (born) an illustrious son namely the king Jājalladēva (I) who was possessed of superhuman virtues and an excellent nature; whose
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¹ Metre of this and the next verse : Sragdharā
² Read -राजहंस
³ This visarga is superfluous. Metre: Anushṭubb.
⁴ Read संत्रत्‌
⁵ For a similar idea, see the Bilhāri stone inscription, No. 45, above, v. 4
⁶ Generally the word grishṭi is feminine and signifies 'a cow that has had only one calf'. When masculine, the word means 'a boar'. Here it is used in the sense of 'Śiva' s bull'.
⁷ Gaṇēśa is so called because he was brought up by the goddesses Durgā and Chāmuṇḍā.
⁸ I.e., it would remain hidden from the people.