Current Version: draft, 2025-01-14Z
Editor: Dániel Balogh.
DHARMA Identifier: INSVengiCalukya00069
Hand Description:
Halantas.
KR does not describe the original punctuation marks. This edition prints | and || as shown in KR’s edition.
Other palaeographic observations, summarised from Krishna Rao. The writing is very neat and beautiful, but with innumerable mistakes. Anusvāra is frequently omitted or added superfluously. There are two forms of ja, an open square form (l5, 10) and a later cursive form (l6, 7, 8, 9, 10). The scribe makes a distinction between da and ḍa, notable in l45 where the two are side by side.
No metadata were provided in the table for this inscription
⎘ plate 1v 1svasti| śrīmatāṁ sakala-bhuvana-saṁstūyamāna-mānavya-sagotrā¿n?⟨ṇ⟩ā⟨ṁ⟩ harīti-putrā¿n?⟨ṇ⟩āṁ kau-
2śikī-vara-prasāda-labdha-rājy¿a?⟨ā⟩nāṁ mātr̥-ga¿n?⟨ṇ⟩a-paripāl¿ī?⟨i⟩tānāṁ svāmi-mahāsena-pādā-
3nudhyātānāṁ bhagava¿ṇ-ṇ?⟨n-n⟩ārāyaṇa-prasāda-samāsādita-vara-var¿a?⟨ā⟩ha-lā¡n!⟨ñ⟩chanekṣa¿n?⟨ṇ⟩a-kṣa-
4ṇa-vaś¿i?⟨ī⟩kr̥tārāti-maṇḍalānāṁ Aśvamedhāvabhr̥tha-sn¿a?⟨ā⟩na-pavit¿r̥?⟨rī⟩kr̥ta-vapuṣāṁ cālu-
5kyānāṁ kulam ala¡n!⟨ṁ⟩kariṣṇoḥ satyāśraya-vallabhendrasya bhrātā{D} kubja-viṣṇuvarddhana Aṣṭā-
6⟨da⟩śa varṣ¿a?⟨ā⟩¿n?⟨ṇ⟩i[.] tasya sūnuḥ sakala-lokāśrayo jayasiṁha-vallabhaḥ trayast¿r̥?⟨ri⟩⟨ṁ⟩śad varṣā¿n?⟨ṇ⟩i[.]
7tasyānujasya Indra-bhaṭṭārakasya p¿r̥?⟨ri⟩ya-tanayaḥ viṣṇurājaḥ nava varṣā¿n?⟨ṇ⟩i[.] tasya suta¿ṁ?⟨ḥ⟩
⎘ plate 2r 8maṁgi-dau(ga?)rājaḥ pañcaviṁśati varṣā¿n?⟨ṇ⟩i[.] tasya putraḥ jayasi⟨ṁ⟩ha-vallabhaḥ trayodaśa va-
9¿ṣa?⟨rṣā⟩ṇ¿ī?⟨i⟩[.] tasyānujaḥ dvaimātura⟨ḥ⟩ kokkiliḥ ṣaṇ māsā¿T?⟨N⟩[.] tasyāgrajaḥ viṣṇur¿a?⟨ā⟩jaḥ sv¿a?⟨ā⟩nujam uccā-
10ṭya pañcat¿r̥?⟨ri⟩ṁśad va⟨r⟩ṣāṇ¿ī?⟨i⟩[.] tasyātmajaḥ vijayāditya-mahārāja Aṣṭāda⟨śa va⟩rṣā¿ṇ?⟨n⟩i[.] tasya ta-
11nayaḥ viṣṇuvarddhanaḥ pañcat¿r̥?⟨ri⟩ṁśad varṣāṇi dvādaśa-sahasra-pramāṇa⟨ṁ⟩ ve¿(n)?⟨ṅ⟩gī-maṇḍala{ṁ}-
12m anvapālaya¿N?⟨T⟩
tasya jyeṣṭhaḥ vijayādityaḥ Āditya Iva satatodaya-kar¿i?⟨ī⟩ vindhyāṭa-
13v¿i?⟨ī⟩va su-vaṁśa-śatādhāraḥ merur iva su⟨va⟩r¿nn?⟨ṇṇ⟩a-va⟨r⟩¿nn?⟨ṇṇ⟩īkr̥ta-tanuḥ hara-jaṭ(ā)-makuṭa I(va gaṁ)gā-
14rava-pratibandhana-samart¿t?⟨th⟩a⟨ḥ⟩ surapati-gaja Iva satata-dāna-(karo) viṣṇur i⟨va⟩ ba-
⎘ plate 2v 15li-ripu-ma¿t?⟨th⟩a¿ṇ?⟨n⟩aḥ śeṣa-mahānāga Iva bhū-dharaṇa-kṣama-bhujaḥ mahā-vrat¿i?⟨ī⟩va mahā-śaṁkha-
16-dhvani-virājanaḥ sa⟨ṁ⟩kula-garjjaj-jalada-ghaṭa-koṭi-vitrāsana-viśiṣṭa-mā-
17rutaḥ Api ca
20Aṣṭottara-śata-na⟨re⟩ndreśvara-dev¿a?⟨ā⟩layānāṁ karttā dvādaśa-varṣa-yuddhaṁ vallabhendra-daṇḍa-
21-nāyakaiḥ saha bhīma-saḷuke-n(ā)māna⟨ṁ⟩ sv(ā)nujaṁ nirjjitya gr̥⟨hī⟩ta-veṁgi-maṇḍala(ḥ)
catvāri⟨ṁ⟩śa-
⎘ plate 3r 22d varṣāṇi
tasya sutaḥ|
kali-viṭṭa-nāmā varṣārddhaṁ[.] tasya sūnuḥ vijayādityaḥ Aneka-tulā-dhr̥ta-suvar¿nn?⟨ṇṇ⟩a-
26-dāna-dhārā-santa⟨rppa⟩ṇāni ku¿rmmaḥ?⟨rvvaN⟩ guṇakkenallan iti jaya-gīyamāna-kīrtti(ḥ) sa-
27N dakṣiṇāpatha⟨ṁ⟩ sa-trikaliṅga-deśam anvapālayā(m āsa)[.] Eva⟨ṁ⟩ pañca viṣṇuvarddha(na)-nāmānaḥ
dvau ja-
28yasi⟨ṁ⟩ha-nāmānau Eko ma⟨ṁ⟩gi-y¿ū?⟨u⟩varāja⟨ḥ⟩ tray(o) vijayāditya-nāmānaḥ[.]
tatra t¿ri?⟨r̥⟩tīya-vi-
⎘ plate 3v 29jayāditya⟨ḥ⟩ dvāri pratiṣṭhāpita-gaṁgā-yamun¿a?⟨ā⟩-candrāditya-pāl¡ī!-ketana-samadhigataḥ
30pañca-mahāśabda-śravaṇa-vitrāsita-¿m?⟨c⟩aturāśaś ¿cake? varāha-lāñchana⟨ḥ⟩ vīra-makaradhvajaḥ
punar api tasyai⟨va⟩ rājña⟨ḥ⟩ viśeṣaṇa⟨ṁ⟩|
38vijayāditya-bhūpati-svānujena nr̥pakāmena prerita⟨ḥ⟩ sūryya-grahaṇa-nimitt{y}a⟨ṁ⟩
sa vija-
39yāditya⟨ḥ⟩ rāṣṭrakūṭa-pramukhān kuṭ¡i!⟨i⟩⟨ṁ⟩bina⟨ḥ⟩ sarvvān ittham ājñāpayati
viditam astu v¿ā?⟨o⟩ [’]smā-
40bhiḥ gudravāra-viṣaye śantagrām¿e?⟨o⟩ nāti-kuṇṭha-sahitaṁ dvija-śatā(ya) dattavāN[.] veda-vedā⟨ṁ⟩-
41getihāsa-purāṇādi-catu⟨ṣṣa⟩ṣṭi-kalā-niśāka¿l?⟨r⟩ebhya⟨ḥ⟩ parama-brahmavidbhyaḥ par¿i?⟨ī⟩tāgni-
42hotrādy-anuṣṭhāna-parebhyaḥ śama-dama-yama-niyamāśr¿ī?⟨i⟩ta-śaucācāra-śīla-guṇa-ga¿n?⟨ṇ⟩ā-
⎘ plate 4v 43laṁkr̥ta-śarīra-padbhyaḥ dhātr-¿ā?⟨a⟩ryyamādi-dvādaśāditya-samāna-bhrājita-kī⟨r⟩tt¿ī?⟨i⟩bhyaḥ
tathā hi prati-
44grāhakāḥ[.] svasti[.] śrīmaT-vaṁgipaṟ-vāstavyāya yajñaśarmmaṇe trayo bhāgāḥ guṇḍaśarmmaṇe
Eko bhāgaḥ
45vidaḍiśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ droṇaśarmmaṇe A⟨r⟩ddh¿a?⟨ā⟩⟨ṁ⟩śaḥ karamiceḍu-vāstavyāya parāśara-go-
46trāya droṇaśarmmaṇe Adhyarddhako bhāgaḥ kañciśarmmaṇe dvau bhāgau droṇaśarmmaṇe dvau
bhāgau ba-
47ddiśarmmaṇe pañca(mo?) bhāgāḥ kaṟṟoṟa-vāstavyāya bhāradvāja-gotrāya śivanaśarmmaṇe
trayo bhā-
48gāḥ revaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāg¿ā?⟨a⟩ḥ śivikuṟṟaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāg¿ā?⟨a⟩⟨ḥ⟩ śāṇḍilya-gotrāya petaśarmmaṇe
49Eko bhāgaḥ Ayyappaśarmmaṇ¿o?⟨e⟩ Addhyarddhako bhāgaḥ devarata-gotrāya vakaśarmmaṇe Eko bhā(gaḥ)
⎘ plate 5r 50savvaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāg¿ā?⟨a⟩ḥ kuṇḍiśarmmaṇe Eko bhāg¿ā?⟨a⟩⟨ḥ⟩ va⟨ṁ⟩gipaṟ-vāstavyāya kata-gotrāya bu-
51daḍiśarmmaṇe dvau bhāgau vennaśarmmaṇe arddh¿a?⟨ā⟩⟨ṁ⟩śaḥ harīta-gotrāya revaśarmmaṇe dvau bhāgau droṇa-
52śarmmaṇe Addhyarddhako bhāgaḥ ¡koṇḍinda!⟨kauṇḍinya⟩-gotrāya śrīdharaśarmmaṇe trayo bhāgāḥ damaśarmmaṇe Eko (bhā)-
53g¿ā?⟨a⟩⟨ḥ⟩ keśavaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ trivikramaśarmmaṇe Arddh¿a?⟨ā⟩⟨ṁ⟩śa⟨ḥ⟩ Upūṭūru-v(ā)stavyāya kau-
54śika-gotrāya koṇḍiśarmmaṇe dvau bhāgau kāśyapa-gotrāya ṟudvaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ go-
55ḷaśarmmaṇe Arddhāṁśaḥ ṟudvaśarmmaṇe Addhyarddhako bhāgaḥ goḷaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ Eṟaśarmmaṇe
E-
56ko bhāgaḥ kraṁja-vāstavyāya kāśyapa-gotrāya mahākāḷa-śarmmaṇe dvau bhāgau (droṇa)maśa(rmma)-
⎘ plate 5v 57ṇe Arddhāṁśaḥ nārāyaṇaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kauśik¡i!⟨a⟩-gotrāya piṭṭamaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ ¡koṇḍinda!⟨kauṇḍinya⟩-
58-gotrāya droṇaśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kāramiceḍu-vāstavyāya kaṇva-gotr(ā)ya sarvvaśarmaṇe
dvau
59bhāgau cāmiśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ harita-gotr(ā)ya kañciśarmmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ mah¡i!dharaśarmaṇe
60Eko bhāgaḥ div¡a!karaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ śaṁkaraśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ krovaśrī-vāstavyā-
61ya radhītara-gotrāya nārāyaṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ bhāradvāja-gotrāya Āgyapaśarmaṇe
62Eko bhāgaḥ vennaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ guṇḍaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kutsa-gotrāya turkaśarmaṇe
63dvau bhāgau boppaṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kauśika-gotrāya raviṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kāra-
⎘ plate 6r 64ñceḍu-v(ā)stavyāya lohita-gotr(ā)ya goyindaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ ¡koṇḍinda!⟨kauṇḍinya⟩-gotrāya Irugamaśa-
65rmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ bhīmaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ madhuvaṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ Uppuṭūru-vā-
66stavyāya bhāradvāja-gotrāya keśavaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ guṇḍaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ nāgaśa-
67rmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ Ātreya-gotrāya ¡narāya!śarmaṇe trayo bhāgāḥ rāyūru-vāstavyā-
68ya Agniveśya-gotrāy¿ā?⟨a⟩ mayindamaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kaśyapa-gotrāya bopaśarmaṇe
69Eko bhāgaḥ kuṇḍuru-vāstavy(ā)ya gautama-gotrāya droṇaśarmaṇe dvau bhāgau bhāradvāja-gotrāya
ka-
70ndaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ Uppuṭṭūru-vāstavy¿a?⟨ā⟩ya parāśara-gotrāya vīraśarmaṇe Addhyarddhak¿e?⟨o⟩ bhāgaḥ
71cāmiśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ trivikramaśarmaṇe Eko
⎘ plate 6v 72bhāgaḥ bavvaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ dugaśarmaṇe Arddh(ā)ṁśaḥ ¡b!īmaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ (vaṁ)gipaṟ-vā-
73(sta)vyāya gautama-gotr(ā)ya baṭaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ ¡koṇḍinda!⟨kauṇḍinya⟩-gotrāya somaśarmaṇe Addhyarddha(ko)
74bhāgaḥ droṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ mādhavaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ droṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhā(gaḥ)
kuṇṭuru-
75-vāstavyāya kauśika-gotrāya droṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ kārañceḍu-vāstavyāya {(bhā)radvā}
76bhāradvāja-gotrāya Eṟaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ droṇaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ śiva(śarmaṇe) A-
77rddhāṁśaḥ vallana(yya)śarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ revaśarmaṇe Eko bhāgaḥ śrīpura-vāstavy(ā)ya
har¡ī!ta-gotrā-
78ya sabaḍiśarma(ṇe Addhyarddhakau) dvau bhāgau|
Asyāvadhayaḥ[.] pūrvata⟨ḥ⟩ penubūṇḍi-sīmai⟨va⟩[.] dakṣi¿n?⟨ṇ⟩ataḥ Aṟuta-
81guru-s¿ī?⟨ī⟩mai⟨va⟩[.] nair¿a?⟨r̥⟩tita⟨ḥ⟩ m{m}uñjalūru-sīmai⟨va⟩[.] paścimataḥ Urivi-sīmai⟨va⟩[.] Ut⟨t⟩arataḥ tuṁburuballi-s¿ī?⟨ī⟩-
82mai⟨va⟩[.] ¡(Ī)!⟨Ī⟩ś¿a?⟨ā⟩nataḥ muluḍupendoṟu-sīmai⟨va⟩[.] catur-avadhi-kṣetra⟨ṁ⟩ dattavāN|
⎘ plate 7v 88¿dattaharayitābhūmi?
1-12Greetings! Satyāśraya Vallabhendra (Pulakeśin II) was eager to adorn the lineage of the majestic Cālukyas—who are of the Mānavya gotra which is praised by the entire world, who are sons of Harīti, who attained kingship by the grace of Kauśikī’s boon, who are protected by the band of Mothers, who were deliberately appointed (to kingship) by Lord Mahāsena, to whom the realms of adversaries instantaneously submit at the [mere] sight of the superior Boar emblem they have acquired by the grace of the divine Nārāyaṇa, and whose bodies have been hallowed through washing in the purificatory ablutions (avabhr̥tha) of the Aśvamedha sacrifice. His brother Kubja Viṣṇuvardhana [reigned] for eighteen years. His son Jayasiṁha Vallabha (I), the shelter of the complete world (sakala-lokāśraya), for thirty-three years. His younger brother Indra Bhaṭṭāraka’s dear son Viṣṇurāja (Viṣṇuvardhana II), for nine years. His son Maṅgi Daugarāja,↓1 for twenty-five years. His son Jayasiṁha Vallabha (II), for thirteen years. His younger brother by a different mother, Kokkili, for six months. After dethroning his younger brother, his elder brother Viṣṇurāja (Viṣṇuvardhana III), for thirty-five years. His son King (mahārāja) Vijayāditya (I), for eighteen years. His son Viṣṇuvardhana (IV), protected the country (maṇḍala) of Veṅgī, twelve thousand in extent,↓2 for thirty-five years.
12-17His eldest [son] Vijayāditya (II) always effected prosperity like the sun (āditya) {whose rays are always on the rise}; he was the supporter of hundreds of good (noble) lineages like the wilderness of the Vindhyas {which is the ground for hundreds of nice bamboos}; he had a body painted with gold like Meru {whose body is coloured golden}; he was able to suppress the grumbling of the Gaṅgas like Hara’s (Śiva’s) crown of matted locks {which is able to hem in the roaring of the Gaṅgā river}; he always made donations like the elephant of (Indra) the Lord of the Gods {whose trunk always has rut fluid on it}; he crushed powerful enemies like Viṣṇu {who crushed his enemy Bali}; he had arms capable of supporting the earth, like the great serpent Śeṣa {whose coils are capable of upholding the earth}; he was resplendent with great conch shells (and the five great) sounds like a great (pāśupata) ascetic {who is resplendent with a great sound of the conch shell}; who was ¿a wind deity distinguished by routing a myriad of teeming, rumbling, rut-dripping elephant battalions {as opposed to the actual wind deities, which dispel a myriad elephant battalions consisting of moiling, booming clouds}?↓3. Moreover:
20-22He erected a hundred and eight Narendreśvara [temples]. He seized the country of Veṅgī after defeating his own younger brother named Bhīma Saḷuke along with the generals of the Vallabha (Rāṣṭrakūṭa) Lord in a twelve-year war. [He reigned] for forty years.
22His son—
25-27—named Kali-Viṭṭa, [reigned] for a year and a half. His son Vijayāditya (III) has been protecting the Southern Region (dakṣiṇāpatha) together with the country of Trikaliṅga, making a series of many offerings (santarpaṇa) of gold weighed (against his body) in the balance and with his reputation of victory being sung as Guṇakkenallan. Thus, [there have been] five [kings] named Viṣṇuvardhana, two named Jayasiṁha, one Maṅgi Yuvarāja, three named Vijayāditya.
29-30The third Vijayāditya among these attained the Gaṅgā and Yamunā stationed at his door, the Moon and the Sun, and the pennant garland (pāli-ketana); intimidated the four quarters by the [mere] hearing of [his] five great sounds (pañca-mahāśabda); has the boar as his insignia;↓7 and is a crocodile-bannered [god of love] among heroes.
34Once again, a description of that same prince (rājan) (Nr̥pakāma):
38-39Urged by King Vijayāditya’s own younger brother Nr̥pakāma, on the occasion of an eclipse of the sun that Vijayāditya (III) commands all householders (kuṭumbin)—including foremost the territorial overseers (rāṣṭrakūṭa)—as follows:
40-43Let it be known to you that we have given Śāntagrāma in Gudravāra district (viṣaya), together with the ¿Nāti pond?,↓11 to a hundred Brahmins, who are moons of the sixty-four arts beginning with the Veda, the Vedāṅgas, the Itihāsas and the Purāṇas;↓12 supremely knowledgeable about Brahman, thoroughly engaged in the performance of the agnihotra and so on, whose bodies and [even] feet are adorned by a host of virtues of conduct (ācāra) and morality (śīla) founded on tranquility (śama), self-control (dama), restraint (yama) and observance (niyama), and whose reputation blazes equally to the twelve Ādityas beginning with Dhātr̥ and Aryaman.
43-78And thus [follow] the recipients. Blessings!
80-82Its boundaries [are as follows]. To the east, exactly the border of Penubūṇḍi. To the south, exactly the border of Aṟutagūru. To the southwest, exactly the border of Muñjalūru. To the west, exactly the border of Urivi. To the north, exactly the border of Tuṁburuballi. To the northeast, exactly the border of Muluḍupendoṟu. [The king] has donated the land [thus delineated by] four boundaries.
88¿He who seizes land after giving it?↓18
KR’s editorial notation is inconsistent. He appears to use both square brackets and round parentheses for unclear, and brackets or parentheses with an asterisk for text supplied by the editor. But collation with a facsimile would be essential to improve the fidelity of the edition.
71From the shortness of line 71 I assume that this was written in insufficient space at the bottom of the plate.
KR’s discussion says that Nr̥pakāma, the donor or initiator of the grant, is a brother of Vijayāditya III born of a Haihaya princess. I see no indication of his mother in the text here. However, in the Koṟṟapaṟṟu grant of Vijayāditya II, also a grant to many Brahmins, the executor is Nr̥parudra, a brother of the king born of a Haihaya princess.
KR observes that although the text mentions a donation to a hundred Brahmins, only 79 donees are mentioned by name. I count 78 (KR apparently counts three Bhīmaśarmans in his list, of whom Bhīmaśarman (perhaps of the Kauṇḍinya gotra, perhaps resident of Kārañceḍu) and Bīmaśarman (perhaps of the Parāśara gotra), perhaps resident of Uppuṭṭūru) are actually present on the list, but the latter appears to be counted twice by KR. He assumes that the rest of the recipients were omitted by the scribe’s or composer’s mistake, but the total number of shares allotted is exactly 100. Although the text clearly talks of a hundred Brahmins, it is nonetheless likely that a hundred shares were in fact meant.
KR may be correct to assume that gotra names and places of residence are to be supplied from above where they are not specified. This, however, leaves the first four donees without a gotra name. Moreover, both the list of gotras and that of names contain items that reappear one or more times in the document, so neither gotra nor residence is an exclusive top-level sorting factor. (Spelling differences aside, Bhāradvāja gotra is mentioned 5 times; Kauṇḍinya and Kauśika 4 times; Kāśyapa 3 times; Gautama, Harita and Parāśara twice. As a place of residence, Kārañceḍu, Uppuṭṭūru and Vaṁgipaṟu are mentioned 3 times and Kuṇḍuru twice). There are, on the other hand, no cases where the same gotra is explicitly mentioned twice for one presumable residence, nor any cases where the same residence is mentioned twice for one presumable gotra. If such cases occurred, that would be a strong indication against supplying the missing information from above, but lacking such cases, supplying remains possible. Perhaps the list is sorted primarily by the qualifications of the donees, which would explain why certain residences and gotra names recur. The lack of a gotra for the first four donees is, however, a problem and may be due to scribal error.
First reported and edited by K. V. Lakshmana Rao (posthumous publication curated by M. Somasekhara Sarma) in Bhārati, Vol. I, No. 1, pp. 90 ff., not traced. Edited by B. V. Krishna Rao (1930-1931) from inked impressions, without facsimiles and without translation. Photographs of the seal have been published in ARIE 1937-1938: page 80, plate II. The present edition by Dániel Balogh follows Krishna Rao unless otherwise noted.
↑1. The reading daugarāja is slightly problematic (see the apparatus to line 8), but the word dugarāja or dogarāja is a legitimate form in Andhra.
↑2. Twelve thousand may be the number of villages encompassed in the country. KR (pp. 107-108)
dismisses this prevailing interpretation, but his reason for doing so is not clear
and his alternatives are not convincing.
↑3. I am not certain of the double entendre intended with the phrase involving conch shells,
and my translation after that point is a desperate attempt to make sense of a text
that appears quite incoherent. KR makes a major emendation here (see the apparatus
to line 16), but this does not seem to improve the text to any great degree. If the
interpretation I propose here is anywhere close to correct, then ghaṭa is to be understood as a non-standard in-compound form of the feminine noun ghaṭā, or as a scribal error for ghaṭā.
↑4. The reading and emendation of this phrase is problematic; see the apparatus to line
17.
↑5. This is another phrase that does not appear intelligible as read by KR. I provisionally
assume that sarva-santa means sarva-santya, but santya itself is rare and Vedic usage. See also the apparatus to line 18.
↑6. The entire stanza is awkward and may have been read incorrectly at several points
by KR. See the apparatus to lines 23-24. Since sita-ruci means the moon, I assume that a-sitaruci has been used in the second quarter in the sense of a moonless night. My interpretation
of the third quarter relies on emendation.
↑7. See the apparatus to line 30 about the uninterpretable word cake here.
↑8. See the apparatus to line 34 about the word matta.
↑9. The compound nāti-kuṇṭha is opaque. KR speculates that it may be a combination of a Sanskrit and Telugu word,
but does not say what Sanskrit word he has in mind; he suggests the meaning ‘with all the tanks adjoining the village’. I wonder if perhaps the composer’s intent was nāṭi, meaning “ponds of the countryside.” But since the word is in the singular, it is
perhaps most likely to be a name.
↑10. The somewhat awkward arrangement of the English is intended to reflect the original’s
repetitiveness. The Sanskrit is almost as hard to parse as the translation, but I
am certain it is to be understood along these lines. The term yama-sura is unusual, but given the context, it must in my opinion mean the god Dharma. In
the third quarter, the Son of the Sun is in all probability Karṇa, famed for his selflessness.
I do not, however, know how he could be selfless through his lord’s power. The poet’s
implication may be that Karṇa could afford to be magnanimous because Duryodhana gave
him lordship over Aṅga, but Karṇa’s famous act of generosity is giving away his innate
armour and ear pendants, which has nothing to do with this lordship. Could the text
perhaps read pituḥ instead of pati-, or should it be emended to that? In that case the implication would be that it is
only because of his miraculous birth as the son of the sun god that he could make
that great gift.
↑11. See the note on this term in stanza 5 above.
↑12. Moons in the sense that they shine brightly. The composer may have chosen this rather
unusual phrasing in order to pun on the word kalā (“art” and “digit of the moon”), implying that these Brahmins are moons with sixty-four
digits where the real moon has only sixteen.
↑13. Or perhaps one fifth share; see the apparatus to line 47.
↑14. I translate the reading I suggest in the edition; see the apparatus to line 79.
↑15. I am not sure what the composer had in mind with the passive participle anuṣṭhīyamānāḥ. Instead of the donees’ relocation, it may have been intended mean that they were
to line up one after another to give their blessing or (with incorrect use of the
passive) that they were to carry on with their sacrificial duties. I am also not sure
whether the “own” in “their own king” indicates Nr̥pakāma, who is presumably the ruler
of the territory where the village is located, or whether sva is employed in a weak sense and the king meant is Vijayāditya.
↑16. There are several problems with the text of this stanza as read by RK; see the apparatus
to line 84. Assuming that the gist is as translated here, it still remains uncertain
whether the person described in this stanza is Pāṇḍaraṁga or someone else, and whether
he was also the composer of the text or “made” means “executed.” KR explicitly says
in his commentary that the name of the composer is not mentioned, but I am not sure
he is right. With the wilder conjecture offered in the apparatus, the stanza might
mean “He, the great-grandson of Bhaṭṭa Kāla has executed upon the earth the ruling
of the innate good sense of Guṇaga.”
↑17. See the apparatus to line 85 for my overriding of KR’s reading in the third pāda, and about the uninterpretable fourth quarter. According to KR’s commentary, the
scribe had built a ghantaśāla (sic), which he interprets as ‘a factory to manufacture bells or styles (ghaṇṭa)’, but this seems unlikely in the context and is syntactically impossible (also, ghaṇṭā or ghaṇṭa does not, to my knowledge mean a stylus). I wonder if the historic site of Ghaṇṭaśālā
may be referred to here; or if ghaṇṭā-śālā means a foundry where, among other things, copper plates are manufactured. The word
kārakaM, if correctly read, does not fit into the syntax in any way I can imagine.
↑18. The text ends abruptly, with only these few words on the verso of plate 7. See the
apparatus to line 88 for a possible interpretation of the unintelligible text.