South Indian Inscriptions

ADMINISTRATION

and Hiraṇyapurabhōga¹, and one bhukti, viz., Asibhukti² which was probably included in the Pākkaṇa rāshṭra. The bhōgas contained cities, towns and villages³. The names of the cities and towns generally ended nagara or pura, such as Aśvatthanagara, Pravarapura, Hirṇayapura, Chandrapura, Padmapura, etc. Sometimes towns were named after the princes who founded them. Compare Pravarapura founded by Pravarasēna II. The names of villages ended in grāma (cf. Daṅguṇa-grāma, Śīrshagrāma, Maṇḍuki-grāma, etc)., khēṭa or khēṭaka (cf. Varadākhēṭa, Aśvatthahēṭaka), vāṭaka (cf. Bōnthikavāṭaka, Pavarajjavāṭaka, etc) or viraka (cf. Karañjaviraka, Darbhaviraka, etc.). Some territorial divisions were named after the number of villages included in them. Such was Pravarēśvara-shaḍviṁśati-vāṭaka⁴. It appears to have been a group of twenty-six villages which received this name after a shrine of Śiva under the name of Pravarēśvara erected by Pravarasena I.

...In the earlier records of the Sātavāhanas, geographical names occur in Prakrit. As the Vākāṭakas adopted Sanskrit for writing their charters, the names of mountains, rivers, towns and villages are given in that classical language. It is interesting to note that the Sātmālā range in which the Ajaṇṭā caves are situated is called Sahya-pāda in an inscription at Ajaṇṭā⁵ In some cases the names of rivers have since been changed quite out of recognition. Thus the river Umā mentioned in the Jāmb plates is now known as Wannā⁶. Similarly the Madhunadī⁷, on the bank of which the village Charmāṅka (modern Chhammak) was situated, bears now the name of Chandrabhāgā. The names of the Bēṇṇā⁸ and the Hiraṇyā⁹ mentioned in the Tiroḍī and Waḍgaon plates can, however, still be recognised in the Waingaṅgā and Ēraī of modern times.

... The form of government in the Vākāṭaka age was monarchical. The king had supreme authority which was, however, checked considerably by the dictates of religious works like the Smṛitis. There is no reference to any Mantri-parīshad or Council of Ministers in Vākāṭaka grants. It is needless to say that there was no popular assembly also. still, the rule of kings was not despotic or oppressive to the people. The ideal of a Welfare State has always been kept before Indian kings by the writers of Smṛitis and Arthaśāstras and it has also been preached by great Sanskrit poets like Kālidāsa¹⁰. Many of the Vākāṭakas must have attempted to reach it. Our records are unfortunately lacking in details about the
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¹No. 10, line 16.
² No. 4, line 13 and No. 5, line 13.
³ Mārga, which is generally translated by ‘a way’, seems also to have denoted a territorial division. The records of the Śarabhapurīya kings, which use taddhita forms words denoting territorial divisions (e.g. vaishayika, bhogiya etc.) contain the expression Sundrikā-mārgīya derived from Sundarikā-mārga. This shows that like vishaya and bhōga, mārga also meant a territorial division. We have several such divisions in Vākāṭaka grants. See e.g. Sailapura-mārga mentioned in the Belorā plates (Nos. 4 and 5, line 13), Kauśika-mārga in the Ṛiddhapur plates (No. 8, line 12), Gēpuraka-mārga in the Indore plates (No. 9, line 8), Varadākhēṭa-mārga, in the paṭṭan plates (No. 13, line 20), Sundhāti-mārga and Yaśapura-mārga in the Pāṭnā Museum plates (No. 15, lines 2 and 6), Uttara-mārga (which is specifically mentioned as situated in nāndīkaṭa) in the Bāsim plates (No. 23, line 5) and Uttara-mārga (in Nāṅga rakaṭaka) in the India Office plate (No. 24, line 1). Mārga corresponds to the territorial division pathaka mentioned in other records.
⁴ No. 5, line 14.
⁵ No. 27, line 23.
⁶ No. 3, line 17.
⁷ No. 6, line 18.
⁸ No. 11, line 13.
⁹ No. 12, line 1.
¹⁰ Cf.प्रजनां विनपाधानाद्रवाणाद्भरणादपि।स पिता पितरस्तासां केवल जग्महेतवः॥Raghuvaṁsa. I, 24.