North Indian Inscriptions

INSCRIPTIONS OF THE SILAHARAS OF NORTH KONKAN

..(V. 34) One should extract substance from what is worthless, (viz.) gifts from wealth, truth from speech, fame and religious merit form life, (and) benevolence to others from the body.

.. (V. 35) A gift of land is said to be the best gift ; (for) land, being firm and indestructible, fulfils all desires.

..(V. 36) A giver of land, having gone up to heaven, prospers for ever. And being born again, he will surely become a king !

.. (V. 37) Whatever sin a man distressed for his livelihood may commit, he will be absolved of it by a gift of land equal in measurement to a cow’s hide.

.. (V.38) The manes cry out and the grandfather leap about (saying), “There has been born in our family a giver of land. He will save us !”

..(Line 56) Having realized that youth is being devoured by the demoness in the form of Old Age, that pangs of separation after union with one’s dear ones are like those caused by falling into a hell after dwelling in heaven, that worldly existence is as unsubstantial as the interior of a plantain tree, that the body is subject to old age and death natural (in this world), and that wealth and life are extremely fickle like drops of water on a lotus leaf tossed by wind, one should accumulate the rewards of (religious) gifts by very firm non-attachment.

.. ( Here occur three verses about the importance of a gift of land.)

.. (Line 61) Having pondered over such sayings of ancient sages which are delightful owing to their distinguishing between what is righteous and what is not, the Mahāmaṇḍalēśvarādhipati, the illustrious Aparādityadēva, having bathed in the Western Ocean at the holy place of Marut on the occasion of an eclips of the moon, the crest-jewel of all planets, on Monday, the fifteenth tithi of the bright fortnight of Āśvayuja (Āśvina) in the (cyclic) year Siddhārtha in the year one thousand increased by sixty by the era of the Śaka King—in figures, the Śaka year 1071—, and having made an offering delightful with fragrant flowers to the Moon, and having worshipped (the god) Marud-īśvara, the lord of all worlds, with saffron powder, sandal paste and fragrant flowers—has, for the spiritual wellbeing of his son, the illustrious prince Vikramāditya, caused to be given the village Khairaḍī comprised in the vishaya of Praṇālaka together with orchards of areca-nut trees and together with all royal privileges such as the dramma cess on houses and trees (included in it) to the learned Brāhmaṇa, the illnstrious Rudrabhaṭṭōpādhyāya, son of Kēśava Dvivēdi Bhaṭṭōpādhyāya, who had performed a Sōma sacrifice, and grandson of Vidyādharabhaṭṭō- pādhyāya, who belongs to (the Bhāradvāja gōtra with the pravaras) [1] Āṅgirasa, Bārhaspatya and Bhāradvāja, and to the Taittirīya śākhā, who is always engaged in the performance of the six (religious) duties of sacrificing for oneself and for others, and so forth, who has acquired knowledge of the higher Brahman, who lives at the holy (town of) Vārāṇasī and has his body sanctified by seeing, bathing in and drinking (the water of) the Gaṅgā, for the purpose of the observance of the six (religious) duties, for the performance of bali, charu, vaiśvadēva, agnihōtra and so forth, for the reception of guests that may come, and for the maintenance of his family. (And) it has been donated by the wise and illustrious Vikramāditya, who is very devoted (to his parents) for the spiritual welfare of his parents and himself.

.. The boundaries of (the donated village) are as follows :—On the east, the boundary of the village Karajāṇi and also that indicated by the Kēla tree on the bank of the Kēla river ; on the south, the boundary of the village Tālasura and the Kadamba tree near a stream which will serve as the boundary ; on the west, the boundary of the river near the boundaryline of (the village) Haḍavatthara; on the north, the boundary of the village Uchchhupa
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[1] Āṅgirasa, Bārhaspatya and Bhāradvāja are pravaras, not gōtras. The gōtra is Bhāradvāja.