Kāñcipuram, list of birudas

Author of digital edition: Emmanuel Francis (emfr).

Summary: Ekāmbaranātha temple. Pillar inscription recording a list of birudas of Mahendravarman I Pallava.

Palaeographic description: There is only one horizontal stroke in the letter ṟa (whereas the horizontal stroke is crossed by vertical a stroke, for instance in the inscription Pallava 34).

Languages: Sanskrit (san) [Grantha (grantha)], Tamil (tam) [Grantha (grantha), Tamil (tamil)], Telugu (tel) [Grantha (grantha), Telugu (telugu)], Undetermined (und) [Script (other) (script_other)].

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy).

Identifier: DHARMA_INSPallava00021.

File path: DHARMA_INSPallava00021.xml.

Version: 2026-07-17 15:32 (ecb0276), last modified 2026-07-17 15:32 (ecb0276).

Edition

Face A = West

⟨A1⟩ Eṟi

⟨A2⟩ kucañāṇa

⟨A3⟩ mahāmeghaḥ

⟨A4⟩ dṛdhabhaktiḥ

Face B = South

⟨B1⟩ Abhimukhaḥ
⟨B2⟩ citrakārapuli
⟨B3⟩ kuṟṟambu

Face C = East

⟨C1⟩ curmbu
⟨C2⟩ vaṁkaṁbu
⟨C3⟩ vnāṟa

Face D = North

⟨D1⟩ pisugu
⟨D2⟩ vambara
⟨D3⟩ bhrāntaḥ Akari

Apparatus

Face A = West

⟨A1⟩ Eṟi ⬦ SII IP; Eṟ B; Ēthi L • L (p. 198, 216) in fact hesitates between the readings vnāṟa and vnātha. There is only one horizontal stroke in the letter ṟa, which makes it close to the letter tha.

⟨A2⟩ kucañāṇa ⬦ kucagrāṇa SII IP B; kucañāṉa L.

⟨A3⟩ mahāmeghaḥ ⬦ L; mahāmegha SII IP; mahāmedha B.

Face B = South

⟨B1⟩ Abhimukhaḥ ⬦ L; Abhimukha SII IP B.

Face C = East

⟨C3⟩ vnāṟa ⬦ vnāṟ(pegu) SII IP B; vnātha L • There is only one horizontal stroke in the letter ṟa, which makes it close to the letter tha.

Translation

Face A = West

⟨A1⟩ ...

⟨A2⟩ He whose knowledge is sharp.

⟨A3⟩ The great cloud.

⟨A4⟩ He whose devotion is firm.

Face B = South

⟨B1⟩ ...

⟨B2⟩ The tiger among artists.

⟨B3⟩ ...

Face C = East

⟨C1⟩ ...

⟨C2⟩ ...

⟨C3⟩ ...

Face D = North

⟨D1⟩ The thunderbolt.

⟨D2⟩ ...

⟨D3⟩ ...

Commentary

The orientation (west to north) of the pillar’s faces is given in Jouveau-Dubreuil1919_01 and SII. It is presumably that of the pillar at the time it was found in situ in the Ekāmbaranātha temple. The pillar is currently (2025) displayed at the entrance of the main sculpture gallery in the Chennai Government Museum.

Bibliography

Reported and discussed in Jouveau-Dubreuil1919_01, with visual documentation. Reported in ARIE 1920–21 (ARIE/1920-1921/C/1921/82).

Edited in Venkatasubba Ayyar & Krishnamacharlu 1943 (SII 12.14), with visual documentation. Text in Mahalingam 1988 (IP 21). Text and French translation of the Sanskrit birudas in Brocquet 1997 (B 17). Edited and translated in Lockwood et al. 2001, with delineations of the original inscriptions. See Francis 2013 (IR 29).

This revised edition by Emmanuel Francis, based on autopsy (2017) and photos (2017, by Emmanuel Francis; 2024, by Emmanuel Francis).

Primary

[SII] Venkatasubba Ayyar, V. & C. R. Krishnamacharlu. 1943. South Indian inscriptions. Volume XII: The Pallavas (with introductory notes in English). South Indian Inscriptions 12. Madras: Government Press. Page 8, item 14, plate IV.

[IP] Mahalingam, T. V. 1988. Inscriptions of the Pallavas. New Delhi; Delhi: Indian Council of Historical Research; Agam Prakashan. Pages 100–101, item 21.

[B] Brocquet, Sylvain. 1997. “Les inscriptions sanskrites des Pallava : poésie, rituel, idéologie.” Thèse de doctorat, Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle. Paris. Pages 100–101, item 17.

[L] Lockwood, Michael, Vishnu Bhat A, Gift Siromoney & Dayanandan P. 2001. Pallava art. Madras, Tambaram: Tambaram Research Associates. Pages 193–222.

Secondary

Jouveau-Dubreuil1919_01

[ARIE] ARIE 1920–21. G.O. No. 183, 23rd September 1921, Epigraphy, Annual report for the year 1920-21 of the Assistant Archaeological Superintendent, Recorded. Edited by G. Venkoba Rao. No place, 1921. Page 65, appendix C/1921, item 51.

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.

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<lb n="A3"/>mahāmeghaḥ

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<lb n="A4"/>dṛdhabhaktiḥ

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<lb n="C2"/>vaṁkaṁbu

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<head>Face D = North</head>

<lb n="D1"/>pisugu

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<lb n="D2"/>vambara

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<lb n="D3"/>bhrāntaḥ Akari

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<lem>kucañāṇa</lem>

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<head>Face B = South </head>

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<rdg source="bib:Lockwood+al2001_01">vnātha</rdg>

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<p n="A2">He whose knowledge is sharp.</p>

<p n="A3">The great cloud.</p>

<p n="A4">He whose devotion is firm.</p>

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<head>Face B = South </head>

<p n="B2">The tiger among artists.</p>

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<head>Face D = North</head>

<p n="D1">The thunderbolt.</p>

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<p>The orientation (west to north) of the pillar’s faces is given in <bibl><ptr target="bib:Jouveau-Dubreuil1919_01"/></bibl> and <ptr target="bib:VenkatasubbaAyyar1943_01"/>. It is presumably that of the pillar at the time it was found in situ in the Ekāmbaranātha temple. The pillar is currently (2025) displayed at the entrance of the main sculpture gallery in the Chennai Government Museum.</p>

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<p>Reported and discussed in <bibl><ptr target="bib:Jouveau-Dubreuil1919_01"/></bibl>, with visual documentation. Reported in <bibl><ptr target="bib:ARIE1920-1921"/></bibl> (ARIE/1920-1921/C/1921/82).</p>

<p>Edited in <bibl><ptr target="bib:VenkatasubbaAyyar1943_01"/></bibl> (SII 12.14), with visual documentation. Text in <bibl><ptr target="bib:Mahalingam1988_01"/></bibl> (IP 21). Text and French translation of the Sanskrit <foreign>biruda</foreign>s in <bibl><ptr target="bib:Brocquet1997_01"/></bibl> (B 17). Edited and translated in <bibl><ptr target="bib:Lockwood+al2001_01"/></bibl>, with delineations of the original inscriptions. See <bibl><ptr target="bib:Francis2013_01"/></bibl> (IR 29).</p>

<p>This revised edition by Emmanuel Francis, based on autopsy (2017) and photos (<ref target="https://didomena.ehess.fr/concern/data_sets/k0698h80v">2017, by Emmanuel Francis</ref>; <ref target="https://didomena.ehess.fr/concern/data_sets/ks65hp10f">2024, by Emmanuel Francis</ref>).</p>

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