Pasapubaṟṟu grant of Viṣṇuvardhana III

Metadata

Current Version: draft, 2024-09-02Z

Editor: Dániel Balogh.

DHARMA Identifier: INSVengiCalukya00092

Hand Description:

Halantas. Final M is fairly large, but highly simplified into a tick-mark shape. Anusvāra is normally placed above headline to the right of the character to which it belongs. It is occasionally to the right of the next character, which has been treated as a scribal error, while when it is right atop the next character, as in the toponym Uppolaṁbu in line 17 (and probably maṁgi in line 7), it has been read in the expected place. Other palaeographic observations. The script is a mature alphabet executed beautifully and very neatly.

Additional Metadata

No metadata were provided in the table for this inscription

Edition

Seal

¹(t)ribhuvanāṁk(uśa)

Plates

^{⎘ plate 1v}¹svasti[.] śr(ī)mat¿a?⟨ā⟩ṁ sakala-bhu(va)[na-saṁstūyamāna-mānavya-sagotrāṇāṁ]
²^{Fragment 1vA}h¿a?⟨ā⟩riti-putrāṇāṁ kauśi^{Fragment 1vB}(k)ī-va(ra)-[prasāda-labdha-rājyānāṁ svāmi-mahāsena-]
³^{Fragment 1vA}-p¿a?⟨ā⟩dā◯nudhy¿a?⟨ā⟩t¿a?⟨ā⟩nāṁ ^{Fragment 1vB}bhaga[van-nārāyaṇa-prasāda-samāsādita-vara-va-]
⁴^{Fragment 1vA}rā◯halā¿caṁ?⟨ṁcha⟩nekṣa^{Fragment 1vB}ṇa-kṣa[ṇa-vaśīkr̥tārāti-maṇḍalānām aśvame-]
⁵^{Fragment 1vA}dh¿a?⟨ā⟩vabhr̥tha-snāna-pavi^{Fragment 1vB}tr¿i?⟨ī⟩[kr̥ta-vapuṣāṁ calukyānāṁ kulam alaṁkari-]
⁶^{Fragment 1vA}ṣṇo⟨ḥ⟩ śrī-viṣ⟨ṇ⟩uvarddhana-mah¿a?⟨ā⟩⟨rā⟩^{Fragment 1vB}(ja?)[sya sūnuḥ ?12+]-
^{⎘ plate 2r}⁷ dh(i)ka-vijaya-siddhi⟨ḥ⟩ prabhu-mantrots¿a?⟨ā⟩ha-śakti-traya-sampann(o) ma(ṁ)gi-
⁸-yuvarāj¿a?⟨ā⟩para-nāma-¿dehaya?⟨dheyaḥ⟩ tat-priya-sūnu⟨ḥ⟩ ¿Akaciṁgaṁgasāgara(ma?)?-
⁹¿dhya◯paripa(ṁ?)ka(ṁ?)? tulādānā¿dh?⟨d⟩i-daśa-vidha-mahā-dāna-m¿a?⟨ā⟩nā¿(th)?⟨dh⟩ika-
¹⁰-dāna-buddhi⟨ḥ⟩ Aneka-taṭākārāma-devālaya-pratiṣ¿ṭ?⟨ṭh⟩ita-prabh¿a?⟨ā⟩va⟨ḥ⟩ sa-
¹¹rvva-lokāśraya-śrī-viṣṇuvarddhana-mah¿a?⟨ā⟩rāja⟨ḥ⟩ gudrahāra-viṣaye pasapuba-
¹²(ṟṟu-nā)ma grāmam adhivasato rāṣṭrakūṭa-pramukhān kuṭ¡i!⟨u⟩ṁbinas sarvv¿a?⟨ā⟩n it(th)a-
^{⎘ plate 2v}¹³ m ājñ¡a!payati

viditam astu vo [’]smābhi⟨ḥ⟩ paṟantūr-vvāstavyāya sā(ṁ)kr̥-
¹⁴ti-gotrāya prāvacana-sūtrāya ¿ś?⟨ṣ⟩aḍ-aṁga-vi⟨de⟩ nārāyaṇa⟨śarmmaṇa⟩ḫ pautrāya tri-vedi-
¹⁵-de◯vaśarmmaṇaḫ putrāya caturvvedi-keśavaśarmmaṇe Asya grā-
¹⁶ma◯sya pūrvva-¡diśīṁ!⟨diśāyāṁ⟩ kṣetrasya pūrvvataḥ ¡śrīgaṁM!⟨śr̥ṁgaM⟩[.] dakṣiṇataḥ Ervvoka-ce-
¹⁷nu[.] paścimataḥ Uppolaṁbu[.] Uttarataḥ veḷḷeṟu[.] Evañ ca-
¹⁸tur-avadhi-madhya-s¿t?⟨th⟩ita⟨ṁ⟩ pañcadaśa-khaṇḍi-vr¿i?⟨ī⟩hi-¿v?⟨b⟩ījāvā(pa)-
^{⎘ plate 3r}¹⁹ ^{Fragment 3rA}paripramāṇaṁ ^{Fragment 3rB}kṣetraM gr̥ha-s¿t?⟨th⟩ānañ ca puṣpa-vāṭik(ā-sa)-
²⁰^{Fragment 3rA}hit(aṁ) sūr¡jy!⟨yy⟩a-graha^{Fragment 3rB}ṇa-nimitte Udaka-pūrvvaṁ ¡kr̥tya!⟨kr̥tvā⟩ dattaM sarvva-kara-parih¿a?⟨ā⟩-
²¹^{Fragment 3rA}reṇa[.] ◯ na ¿kha?⟨ke⟩na^{Fragment 3rB}ci¿rbba?⟨d bā⟩dhā karaṇīyā[.] karoti yas sa {sa} pañca-mah(ā-pā)-
²²^{Fragment 3rA}taka◯-saṁyukto bha^{Fragment 3rB}vati[.] vyāsenāpy ukta¿ṁ?⟨ḥ⟩ ślokaḥ

Anuṣṭubh

(sva)-dattā(ṁ) para-dattā(ṁ) vā

²³^{Fragment 3rA}yo hareta vasundh¿ā?⟨a⟩^{Fragment 3rB}rāṁ

ṣaṣṭiṁ varṣa-sahasrāṇi

viṣ¿ṭ?⟨ṭh⟩¿a?⟨ā⟩yā(ṁ) jāyate²⁴^{Fragment 3rA}k¡ri!⟨r̥⟩mi⟨ḥ⟩

Ājṇaptir a^{Fragment 3rB}sya dharmmasya Agra-mahiṣ¿i?⟨ī⟩ vijaya-mahādev(ī)

Apparatus

Seal

Plates

⁶ -mah¿a?⟨ā⟩⟨rā⟩‡(ja?)[sya] • The extant plate is broken off after ha, but part of the next character is still visible in the ASI estampage. I am quite certain it is not an r, as its left side is notched in the centre. On the other hand, the word mahārāja is certainly expected here, so I assume that the remnant belongs to ja, and rā was omitted. The ASI transcript first had mahārā here, and a later corrector struck out the final rā. — ⁶ sūnuḥ • A word meaning "son" must have been present in this lacuna, but not necessarily at this spot, and not necessarily this exact word.
⁷ dh(i)ka- • I cannot propose a restoration for the beginning of this word, except that the word adhika is probably involved. Other elaborations of Maṅgi Yuvarāja’s epithet Vijayasiddhi refer to him as vividha-yuddha-labdha-vijaya-siddheḥ, abhilaṣita-kāryya-vijaya-siddheḥ, or (in some of his own grants) ānvīkṣiky-ādi-vidyā-prayogeṣu vijaya-siddhiḥ. — ⁷ -siddhi⟨ḥ⟩ • This emendation is not essential, but I believe it conforms to the composer’s intent. — ⁷ -sampann(o) • The ASI transcript reads -sampanna here. The markers for o are very faint; in the estampage, only the end of the left-hand stroke is visible, but some trace of both can be made out in the photos of the original.
^8–9 ¿Akaciṁgaṁgasāgara(ma?)? /¿dhya◯paripa(ṁ?)ka(ṁ?)? • I am unable to make sense of this string. The reading is quite clear except for the following details. The two anusvāras in line 8 are over the two ga-s, slightly to the right of centre. Both are quite certainly deliberate, but their intended position may be gaṁgaṁ. The last character in line 8 is worn almost completely smooth, but is most likely to be ma, and this is also the ASI transcript’s reading. The two anusvāras in line 9 are less certain. Either or both may be random damage to the plate. The first is over the centre of pa, is larger in size, but lacks definition and looks more like a spot of damage to me. The second is above the headline in the space between ka and the following tu, smaller than the former, but apparently deeper and more sharply circular. The first ASI transcriber read both, but a corrector deleted the second in the transcript. The words akiṁca, gaṁgā, sāgara, madhya, and paripāka or paripakva present themselves as possible emendations, but I cannot fit them together meaningfully. It is possible that this string is to be joined to the following compound, and we are dealing with a garbled list of mahādānas, but none of the terms matches any such name that I am aware of. The closest seem to be Pañcalāṅgala and Saptasāgara.
^9–10 -m¿a?⟨ā⟩nā¿(th)?⟨dh⟩ika/-dāna-buddhi⟨ḥ⟩ • I emend tentatively, without being able to make perfect sense of the text. The reading is clear except for th near the end of line 9, where the ASI transcript reads dh. I am quite certain that the former was actually inscribed, even though the latter is expected.
¹³ paṟantūr- • The ARIE shows this name as Paṟandūr, but the ASI transcript, correctly, has paṟantūr.
¹⁴ nārāyaṇa⟨śarmmaṇa⟩ḫ • Eyeskip omission has evidently occurrec here.
¹⁶ -¡diśīṁ!⟨diśāyāṁ⟩ • The intent may also have been -diśi. Some words, such as kṣetraṁ dattam| tasya, may be missing here, but since the object and the act of giving are recorded in ll19-20, it is more likely that the following list of boundaries is to be understood as a parenthetical insertion in the framing sentence. — ^16–17 ce/nu • The ASI transcript reads cevu. The character is worn, but quite clear, and Ervvoka-cenu is attested in the Cevuru plates of Amma I.
¹⁷ veḷḷeṟu • The ASI transcript reads peṭṭeṟu corrected to ceṭṭeṟu. An initial c cannot be excluded with complete certainty, but v is much more likely. The doubled consonant is certainly not ṭ, but it may perhaps be ḍ instead of ḷ.
^19–20 (sa) /‡hit(aṁ) • What I (and the ASI transcriber) read as an anusvāra seems to be connected to the top of the character and to end in a downward hook. It is possible that the engraved text is in fact sahitā, with the ā perhaps added subsequently, or corrected to or from an anusvāra.
²¹ ci¿rbba?⟨d bā⟩dhā • The mark on bb is a very slightly sinuous vertical, identical to that in rjya (l20), so I read it as a repha. It is also possible that this is a subsequently added ā marker.
²² ukta¿ṁ?⟨ḥ⟩ ślokaḥ • The emendation is not essential. The composer may have intended vyāsenāpy uktam as a complete sentence, and ślokaḥ as a label without any syntactical connection to it.

Translation by Dániel Balogh

Seal

Plates

^1-13Greetings. His Majesty King (mahārāja) Viṣṇuvardhana (II) was eager to adorn the lineage of the majestic Chaḷukyas—[who are of the Mānavya gotra which is praised] by the entire world, who are sons of Hāriti, [who attained kingship by the grace of] Kauśikī’s boon, 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 son was ...] Vijayasiddhi also called Maṅgi Yuvarāja, endowed with the triple powers (śakti-traya) of might (prabhu), counsel (mantra) and energy (utsāha). His dear son, the shelter of all the world (sarva-lokāśraya), His Majesty King (mahārāja) Viṣṇuvardhana (III)— ... (akaciṁgaṁgasāgaramadhyaparipaṁkaṁ), whose mind is set on generosity beyond measure in the ten kinds of great gifts (mahā-dāna) such as the Gift of the Balance (tulā-dāna),^↓1 and whose stature has been substantiated in numerous tanks (taṭāka), wayrests (ārāma) and temples (devālaya)—commands all householders (kuṭumbin)—including foremost the territorial overseers (rāṣṭrakūṭa)—who reside in the village named Pasapubaṟṟu in Gudrahāra district (viṣaya) as follows:

^13-22Let it be known to you that we [have given a field] in the eastern direction of this village to the caturvedin Keśavaśarman, a resident of Paṟantūr of the Sāṁkr̥ti gotra and the Prāvacana sūtra, learned in the six limbs (ṣaḍ-aṁga) (of the Veda), the grandson of Nārāyaṇaśarman and son of the trivedin Devaśarman. To the east of the field is an oxbow lake.^↓2 To the south, the Ervvoka field (cenu).^↓3 To the west, Uppolaṁbu. To the north, Veḷḷeṟu. Thus located amid four boundaries, a field comprising (an area sufficient for) the sowing of fifteen khaṇḍikās of paddy (vrīhi) seed, and a homestead plot together with a flower garden, has been donated with an exemption from all taxes, sanctified by (a libation of) water, on the occasion of an eclipse of the sun. Let no-one pose an obstacle (to this). He who does so shall be conjoined with the five great sins. Vyāsa too has uttered this verse:

He who would seize land, whether given by himself or by another, shall be born as a worm in faeces for sixty millennia.

²⁴The executor (ājñapti) of this ruling (dharma) is the chief queen (agra-mahiṣī) Vijaya-mahādevī.

Commentary

The larger part of plate 3 has been lost since the plate was first recorded by the ASI, so the text of fragment 3rB is only available in the estampage, which only shows a small crack. Plate 1 was already mostly lost when first recorded, but a further small piece, here denoted fragment 1vB, has since been lost, affecting lines 2-6 of the verso of plate 1.

If the seal and the set are genuine, than this is the earliest known occurrence of the seal legend tribhuvanāṁkuśa in the corpus. All other known seals of Viṣṇuvardhana III’s grants have the legend viṣamasiddhi, and the next known occurrence of tribhuvanāṁkuśa is in the grants of his son and successor Vijayāditya I. The script of this grant is also more akin to grants of Vijayāditya I than to other grants of Viṣṇuvardhana III, so it seems likely that the charter was issued late in, or shortly after, the reign of Viṣṇuvardhana III.

Bibliography

Reported in ARIE 1913-1914: page 11, appendix A/1913–1914, № 9 with a description at ARIE 1913-1914: page 85, §8. No previous edition known. The present edition by Dániel Balogh is based on photographs taken by myself in February 2023 at the Andhra Sahitya Parishad Museum, Kakinada, and on estampages preserved at the ASI, Mysore, collated with a Devanagari transcript attached to the estampages.

Primary

Secondary

ARIE 1913-1914. Page 11, appendix A/1913–1914, № 9.

ARIE 1913-1914. Page 85, §8.

Notes

↑1. Lists of ten mahādānas generally do not include the tulā-dāna, which is, however, prominent in lists of sixteen mahādānas (History of Dharmaśāstra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law. Vol. II, Part II 1974: 869–872).
↑2. The word intended here was in all probability śr̥ṁga, although see the apparatus to line 16. I take this to be equivalent to jala-śr̥ṁga, arguably attested in the Elūru grant of Maṅgi Yuvarāja and plausibly interpreted by its first editor as a backwater or an oxbow lake, equivalent to Telugu nīṭi-kommu.
↑3. The term ervvoka-cenu occurs in the Cevuru plates of Amma I and is probably connected to the Telugu word eruvāka.