South Indian Inscriptions

INTRODUCTION

he is described as the son of piriyarasi Ballamahādēvī. The Kachchūru inscription (No. 219) dated 1288 A.D., belongs to the reign of Ballamahādēvī. It states that she was ruling from Bārahakanyāpura along with her five ministers (pañcha-prashānas). But in a record from Brahmāvara dated two years earlier than the above i.e., while Sujēru inscription states that he was present in the hall (mogasāle) called Bhuvanāśraya of the hiriy-aramane at rājadhāni Maṅgaḷapura which is the modern Mangalore. The latter inscription is interesting for the reason that gift of land was made by the king to the deity Timirēśvara as a part his vow and token of gratitude for the timely rains during the period of famine. (anāvṛishṭiyalu harasikoṁḍu maḷeyukoṭtiddakke-geyda-dharmma-kāryya).

        Subsequent to the records of Baṅkidēva, we get the records belonging to his successor Vīra Sōvidēva Āḷupēndra Siṅgaṇṇa-Sāhiṇi who is referred to as the grandson of Mahāpradhāna Sōvaṇṇa-sēnabōva. In the record (No. 224) from Mūḍa-Nidambūru dated in the cyclic year Prabhava (i.e., 1327 A.D.), this Siṅgaṇṇa is mentioned as a mahāpradhāna, obviously indicating that he succeeded his grandfather to this position somewhere before 1286 A.D., during the rule of Baṅkidēvarasa It describes the latter as a mahāmaṁḍalēśvara though he bears all the royal titles generally borne by the rulers of the Āḷupa family. It may be noted in this connection that the records of Vīrapāṇḍyadēva from Kōṭa and Brāhmāvara (Nos. 205 and 206) describes Baṅkidēva as aḷiya (nephew ?). The Keñjūru inscription of Ballamahādēvī (No. 216) mentions a Baṅkidēva, who is described as belonging to the family of Dattāḷva-Dattālupa (Dattāḷvara-baḷiya). It is likely, therefore, that this Baṅkidēva, who is probably identical with aḷiya Baṁkidēva referred to above, was a son of Dattāḷupa, predecessor and father of Vīrapāṇḍyadēva. If this is accepted, it may be said that he later on turned out to be a rival to the Āḷupa throne and contested against Ballamahādēvī and her son Nāgadēvarasa. Two more inscriptions of Baṁkidēvarasa dated 1296 and 1305 A.D. from Kurnāḍu (No. 225) and Sujēru (N. 226) are interesting. The one from Kurnāḍu states that he and his officials met at the big palace (hiriya-aramane) at Maṅgalūru on this date i.e., 1327 A.D. It is probably after this date that the Hoysaḷas invaded the Āḷupas to accept the suzerainty. This is evidenced from the Hoysaḷa records available from Nīlāvara, Hosāḷa and Hatyaṅgaḍi ranging in date from 1333 A.D. to 1337 A.D.

       The record from Nīlāvara dated Śaka 1255 (1333 A.D.) belongs to the reign period of Vīra Ballāḷa. He is credited with the titles like Pāṇḍyachakravarti, Arirāya-Basava-saṅkara, rāyagajāṅkuśa. etc. These