Kāñcipuram, donation, time of Pallava Abhimānasiddhi, no year

Metadata

Current Version:  draft, 2024-04-22Z

Editor:   Emmanuel Francis.

DHARMA Identifier: INSPallava00262

Summary: Donation of a golden plate and of an image by the Pallava Abhimānasiddhi to the god of the Parameśvaraviṣṇugṛha.

Hand Description:

The puḷḷi is used. Medial i and ī not distinguished and interchangeable.

Additional Metadata

Alternative identifier:

Origin:

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    Corresponding Artefact:

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    Edition

    1(Āyuḷ) cīr-p

    pa(ra)meśvara-viṇ·ṇa-karattavarkk’ ōr āyiram· poṉ(·) pali-t-tā‡lam⟨um⟩ paṭi(ma)mu[m]


    2[2+] (cem) poṉ ‡ [1+] (y)¡ī!⟨i⟩r(u)ppatteru(māṉa-p) poṉ· Abhimānasiddhi-y-āyi(ṉa) ‡ (pa)llavaṉ (ṟā)[1+]


    3‡ k(u)ṭuttāṉ(·) eṉ·ṟ’ aṟimiṉ·kaḷē |

    Apparatus

    1 (Āyuḷ) ◇ Āyuḷ HKS • The stone appears to have been damaged since the first edition by HKS. Only the upper part of the final ḷ is visible. — 1 pa(ra)meśvara° ◇ pa(ra)meśvara° HKS — 1 palittā‡lam⟨um⟩ ◇ palittālam HKS — 1 paṭi(ma)mu[m] ◇ paṭimamu HKS
    2 [2+] (cem) poṉ ◇ Āyiram cem poṉ HKS • Contra HKS, there does not appear to be enough space on the stone to accomodate āyiram. — 2 [1+] (y)¡ī!⟨i⟩r(u)ppatteru(māṉap) ◇ [2+] yirappatterumāṉap HKS — 2 Abhimānasiddhiyāyi(ṉa) ◇ Abhimānasiddhiyāyi(ṉa) HKS — 2 (pa)llavaṉ (ṟā)[¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ē] ◇ pallavaṉ ṟā(ne) HKS • The reading ṟā(ne), that is tāṉē, by HKS makes good sense, but there is today no trace of these letters on the stone, which appears to have been damaged since the first edition by HKS.
    3 ‡ k(u)ṭuttāṉ(·) eṉ·ṟ’ aṟimiṉ·kaḷē | ◇ kuṭuttāṉeṉṟaṟimiṉkaḷē | HKS • HKS places these words, which are on another face of the base, at the end of line 1, but it makes sense to consider that these are in fact the end of the inscription as they are followed by a punctuation.

    Translation by Emmanuel Francis

    1 Long life (āyuḷ↓1)! Fortune (cīr↓2)!↓3

    1-3 Know that he who he has given (kuṭuttāṉ) a plate for offerings and an image [of] one thousand gold [coins]↓4 to him [who resides in] the Parameśvaraviṣṇugṛha ... refined gold ... gold ... [this is] the Pallava alias Abhimānasiddhi himself.

    Translation into French by Emmanuel Francis

    1 Longue vie ! Fortune !

    1-3 Sachez que celui qui a donné un plateau à offrandes et une image [d’]un millier [de pièces d’or] à celui [qui réside dans] le Parameśvaraviṣṇugṛha ... or de qualité supérieure ... or ... [c’est] le Pallava alias Abhimānasiddhi lui-même.

    Commentary

    On the identity of the Pallava Abhimānasiddhi see Mahalingam 1963 and Mani 1968.

    Bibliography

    Edited in Krishna Sastri 1923 (SII 4, no. 131); text and summary in Mahalingam 1988 (IP no. 262); re-edited and translated here for DHARMA (ERC n° 809994) by Emmanuel Francis (2022), based on autopsy and photographs.

    Primary

    Krishna Sastri, H. 1923. South-Indian Inscriptions (Texts). Volume IV: Miscellaneous Inscriptions from the Tamil, Telugu and Kannada Countries and Ceylon. South Indian Inscriptions 4. Madras: Government Press.
    Page 8, № 131. [siglum HKS]
    Mahalingam, T. V. 1988. Inscriptions of the Pallavas. New Delhi; Delhi: Indian Council of Historical Research; Agam Prakashan.
    Page 642, № 262. [siglum IP]

    Secondary

    ARIE 1887-1888. Page 5, appendix I/1887–1888, № 33.
    Mahalingam, T. V. 1963. “An Interregnum in Pallava History.” Journal of Indian History 41.

    Mani, V. R. 1968. “A Pallava Metal Image: Epigraphical Evidence.” Seminar on Inscriptions 1966: Speechs and Papers, edited by R. Nagaswamy, 147–50. Madras: Books (India).

    Francis, Emmanuel. 2013. Le discours royal dans l’Inde du Sud ancienne : inscriptions et monuments Pallava, IVème-IXème siècles. Tome I : Introduction et sources. Publications de l’Institut orientaliste de Louvain 64. Louvain-la-Neuve; Paris: Université catholique de Louvain, Institut orientaliste; Peeters.
    Page 303, № IR 94.

    Notes

    ↑1. The word āyuḷ, “lifetime”, a Tamil tadbhava of Sanskrit āyus, appears to be used here as an auspicious beginning.
    ↑2. That is, a Tamil tadbhava of Sanskrit śrī.
    ↑3. This auspicious beginning contrasts with the usual svasti śrī.
    ↑4. It is not clear whether the gold is that used to make the plate and the image, to make the plate only, or the value of the plate and the image.