Current Version: draft, 2025-01-15Z
Editor: Dániel Balogh.
DHARMA Identifier: INSVengiCalukya00075
Hand Description:
Halantas. Final N (e.g. l6, l7) is a simplified na without a headmark. Final T (l39) is a slightly reduced ta with an elongated vertical stem without a headmark. Final M (l44, l45) is a stylised ma (lacking the right limb), with an extension that begins horizontally and then turns sharply upward.
Original punctuation marks are short, straight verticals with small serifs. The closing gomūtra symbol is a series of 4 diminishing bars (in addition to the first two, which I interpret as a separate double daṇḍa). The fourth bar is only a dot, and this is followed by a final dot from which a flourish extends right and then up, vaguely resembling a tick mark.
Other palaeographic observations. Anusvāra is normally at the top right of the character to which it belongs, but sometimes (e.g. l1 sagotrāṇāṁ) above the next character. There is a probable instance of rare jh in line 35. This subscript component begins with a shape resembling ka or ña. Attached to this, on its right-hand side, slightly below the crossbar, there is a wavy horizontal line which then turns upward at a soft right angle. In addition, there is a circle like an anusvāra, placed to the right of this additional stroke, on a level with its horizontal component. The circle may be irrelevant, but it does not look like random damage. Dependent o is always written with two separate strokes.
No metadata were provided in the table for this inscription
⎘ plate 1v 1svasti[.] śrīmatāṁ sakala-bhuvana-saṁstūyamāna-mānavya-sagotrāṇāṁ hārīti-pu-
2trāṇāṁ kauśikī-vara-prasāda-labdha-rājyānām mātr̥-gaṇa-paripālitānāṁ svāmi-ma(hā)-
3sena-pādā◯nudhyātānāṁ bhagavan-nārāyaṇa-prasāda-samāsādita-vara-varā-
4ha-lāñcha◯nekṣaṇa-kṣaṇa-vaśīkr̥tārāti-maṇḍalānām aśvamedhāvabhr̥tha-snā-
5na-pavitrīkr̥◯ta-vapuṣāṁ cālukyānāṁ kulam alaṁkariṣṇus satyāśraya-vallabhe-
6ndro nāma babhūva|
sa sarvva-lokāśraya-
28-śrī-viṣṇuvarddhana-mahārājādhirāja-parameśvara-pa⟨ra⟩ma-bhaṭṭārakaḥ parama-brahmaṇyo
m(ā)-
⎘ plate 3v 29(tā-p)it(r̥)-pādānudhyātaḥ Ānvīkṣiky-ādi-nīti-nipuṇaḥ guha Ivāpratihata-śaktiḥ vai-
30(na)teya Iva vinatānanda-jananaḥ| yudhiṣṭhira Iva (bh)īma-senoddhr̥ta-pracaṇḍārāti-maṇḍa-
31(laḥ po)t(t?)u◯(pa)-viṣaya-nivāsino rāṣṭrakūṭa-pramukhāN kuṭuṁbinas sarvvān ittha-
32(m ājñāpa)◯yati
viditam astu vaḥ| kauṇḍinya-gotrāya| vājasaneya-sa-
33brahmacā◯riṇe sabbiśarmmaṇaḥ pautrāya| vīthiśarmmaṇaḥ putrāya ḻaṁgāthi-
34kaśvarābhidhānāya Asmat-khaḍga-sahāya-nimittaṁ| sodaka-p¡au!⟨ū⟩rvvaṁ sarvva-kara-parihāra-
35m agrāhārīkr̥tya pañcapāka nāma (grā)mas sa-dvādaśa-grāmaṭikaḥ| koppani-grāmaṭi-
⎘ plate 4r 36kā| potūri-parvvataś ca| vallani-grāmaṭikā ca (p)odaṟupākaś cāsmābhis saṁprada-
37ttā (It)i(|)
Et(e)ṣām avadhayaḥ| pūrvvataḥ potūri-parvvatasya pūrvvāntaḥ| Ā-
38gneyataḥ sattavu nāma paṁdri mro(ḍ)lāni garuguś ca| dakṣiṇataḥ (kana)ṟuvatas sa-
39kāśāT ◯ Umm(e)ṁggim āgataḥ purāṇa-panthāḥ| nairr̥tyāṁ ca sa Eva panthāḥ-
40paścima◯(ta)ḥ Ummeṁggi-koppani-grāmaṭikayor mmadhye nij(jh)ar(a)-nadī| vā-
41yavyata(ḥ) śa(rkara)ku(t?)ti-sīmaiva sīmā| Uttarataḥ paṁpā nadī| ¡Ī!⟨Ai⟩śānataḥ cīku-
42lūri vā(ka?)-sīmaiva sīmā|
Asya dharmmasyopari na kenacid bādhā karttavyā[.] yaḥ karo-
⎘ plate 4v 43ti sa paṁca-mahāpātaka-(s)aṁyukto narakaṁ gamiṣyati[.] tathā ca bhagavatā vyāseno-
44ktaM|
Ājṇaptir asya dharmmasya kaḍeya-rājaḥ|
1-6Greetings. 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 Hārīti, 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—there arose the one named Satyāśraya Vallabhendra (Pulakeśin II).
27-32That shelter of all the world (sarva-lokāśraya), the supremely pious Supreme Lord (parameśvara) of Emperors (mahārājādhirāja), His Majesty Viṣṇuvardhana (Bhīma I), who was deliberately appointed (as heir) by his mother and father, skilled in procedures (nīti) such as critical investigation (ānvīkṣikī); whose power is as irresistible as {the spear} of Guha (Skanda); who engenders joy in those who bow [to him] like Vainateya (Garuḍa) {who engenders joy in Vinatā}; who eradicates the realms of fierce enemies with his awesome army like Yudhiṣṭhira {who does so through Bhīmasena}↓4—commands all householders (kuṭumbin)—including foremost the territorial overseers (rāṣṭrakūṭa)—who reside in Pottupa district (viṣaya) as follows.
32-37Let it be known to you that to the one named ¿Ḻaṁgāthikaśvara?, of the Kauṇḍinya gotra and the Vājasaneya school, grandson of Sabbiśarman and son of Vīthiśarman, on the occasion of [his having been] a help to our sword, we have given, [the donation being] sanctified by (a libation of) water and converted into a rent-free holding (agrahāra) by a remission of all taxes, the village named Pañcapāka along with [its] twelve hamlets, as well as the hamlet Koppani, the hill of [the village] Potūru, the hamlet Vallani and [the village] Podaṟupāka.
37-42The boundaries of these [are as follows].↓5 To the east, the eastern extremity of the hill of [the village] Potūru. To the southeast, the ¿way shelter? (paṁdri) named Sattavu and ¿the scree of the hill? (mroḍlāni garugu). To the south, the old road coming from the vicinity of Kanaṟuvat toward Ummeṁggi. To the southwest too, that same road. To the west, the Nijjhara river between the hamlets of Ummeṁggi and Koppani. To the northwest, the border is none other than the border of Śarkarakutti. To the north, the Paṁpā river. To the northeast, the border is none other than the border of ... (cīkulūri vāka).
42-44Let no-one pose an obstacle over this ruling (dharma). He who does so shall go to hell, conjoined with the five great sins. So too has the reverend Vyāsa said.
51The executor (ājñapti) of this provision (dharma) is the castellan (kaḍeya-rāja).
Walter Elliot’s note on Folio 64 of the Edinburgh collection: ‘In possession of Pottúru Appana Carnam (i.e. karaṇam) of Guntúr// Recd from K Jagamatham July 1857// Records a grant of Vahiputra Soma Vi** by Yuvaraja Vikramarka & his son Chalukya Bhima in SS// See copy & abstt translation in the E Chalukya Book’.
A "Paṇḍipāka grant," probably identical to the present one, is said to be published in Journal of the Telugu Academy vol. 11 pp. 256-257 (not traced), and to be described in Mad. Govt. MSS. Library Catalogue 15-6-36, pp. 185-91 (not traced). The present edition has been prepared for DHARMA by Dániel Balogh on the basis of inked rubbings in Sir Walter Elliot’s collection.↓6 Elliot may have prepared an edition that never reached publication (see his note in the commentary).
↑1. The text is somewhat problematic here; see the apparatus to line 24. I believe the
beginning of pāda b may be connected to the topic of the first quarter, as in my tentative translation. Fear
of ageing and death motivates to good conduct through a concern for the afterlife.
The word māraṇa may have been intended as it is (“killing,” i.e. capital punishment), but coupled
with jarā (lengthened for the sake of the metre into jārā), it is much more likely that the word intended is maraṇa, “dying,” also lengthened for the sake of the metre. If this phrase is not connected
to the first quarter, then the sense is that those who are afraid of old age and death
have adopted good conduct. This, however, is rather bland and says nothing about the
merit of the king.
↑2. The text is again problematic; see the apparatus to line 24. Failing to find a better
solution, I make a minor emendation (āsu to āśu) and interpret asu to mean “grief,” though this is attested only in lexicons and neuter in gender. Nonetheless,
trividhāsu was probably intended to mean the same as duḥkha-traya, the three kinds of grief, usually enumerated as ādhyātmika, ādhibhautika and ādhidaivika: grief originating from within one’s person, from living beings (and/or the physical
world), and from the gods (fate).
↑3. The text is again awkward; see the apparatus to line 26. I believe the composer used
yatho (yathā+u; or perhaps equivalent to atho with an epenthetic y?) in the sense of “even” or perhaps “all the more so if,” and ku-kriya in the sense of duṣkara. This interpretation is, however, problematic; duṣkarāḥ would have fit the metre perfectly if this was what the composer had wished to express.
Emending yatho to yato would result in an interpretable, though still very awkward sentence meaning “diseases
have ceased to exist [along with] bad deeds, because the Brahmins perform the sacrifices well.
↑4. This last bitextual simile is rather lame on account of the long segment uddhr̥ta-pracaṇḍārāti-maṇḍalaḥ, which does not seem to carry a double entendre. The Pr̥thivipallavapaṭṭana grant of Viṣṇuvardhana IV uses yudhiṣṭhira iva bhīmasenānvitaḥ to the same effect. Perhaps pracaṇḍa and/or pracaṇḍārāti is meant to refer to a particular person in one of the meanings.
↑5. The Telugu phrases in the boundary description are translated very tentatively, with
the aid of Jens Thomas.
↑6. Scans of these impressions were obtained by Emmanuel Francis from the Edinburgh University
Library and supplemented by Andrew Grout.