# Taṇṭarāmpaṭṭu, time of Narasiṁhavarman, year 7

Emmanuel Francis

Author of digital edition: Emmanuel Francis

Identifier: DHARMA_INSPallava00293

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy)

File path: DHARMA_INSPallava00293.xml

Language: Tamil [Vaṭṭeḻuttu]

Commit: 2026-10-08 12:16 (1b1b17c), last modified 2026-09-29 11:09
(6edbbfa)

## Summary

Hero-stone inscription commemorating the death of a hero.

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## Edition

⟨1⟩ kō-vicaiya-narai⟨2⟩ciṅka-parumaṟku yā⟨3⟩ṇṭ’ Eḻ-āvatu

vāṇa-kō-mut⟨4⟩taraicaru nāṭu pāviya mēṟ-kō⟨5⟩valūr mēl vantu tañ
ciṟṟa-p⟨6⟩-paṭikaḷai Eṟinta ñāṉ⟨7⟩ṟu paṭṭāṉ cēvarpari Aṭṭuṅ koḷ⟨8⟩ḷi
turumā⟨9⟩vaṉār maka⟨10⟩ṉ mārkaṭa⟨11⟩laṉ

## Translation

⟨1–3⟩ Seventh year of the victorious king Naraiciṅkaparumaṉ.[1]

⟨3–11⟩ ⟨This is⟩ the stone ⟨of⟩ Mārkaṭalaṉ, the son ⟨of⟩ Turumāvaṉār …
(cēvarpari Aṭṭuṅ koḷḷi), he who fell at the time the royal Bāṇa
Muttaraiyar attacked (eṟinta[2]) his (tañ[3]) uncle (ciṟṟappaṭikaḷ[4]),
when marching (vantu[5]) upon Mēṟ-Kōvalūr … (nāṭu pāviya).

## Commentary

See DHARMA_INSPallava00294, from the same place and of similar content.

Mahalingam 1988, p. 685, n. 1 notes: “The figure of a soldier facing
left is engraved on the stone. It bears a bow in the left hand and a
short stagger in the right hand. There is a festoon over the right hand.
To the right of the figure is seen a casket, mirror while on the side of
the left leg is seen a spout.”

The inscription is described as follows in IAR 1971-72: “An inscription
from Tandrampattu, in characters of about the eighth century A.D. and
dated in the seventh year of the reign of Narasimhavarman, records the
death of Marudakalan, son of Eruma[nda]nar while Merkovalur was auacked
by Vanako-Puttaraisar.”

⟨1–2⟩ Naraiciṅkaparumaṉ (Sanskrit Narasiṁhavarman) has been identified
as the Pallava king Narasiṁhavarman I by Nākacāmi 1972.

## Bibliography

Edited in Nākacāmi 1972 (CN 1971/69). Text and summary in Mahalingam
1988 (IP 293).

This digital edition by Emmanuel Francis, based on previous edition(s).

### Primary

[CN] Nākacāmi, Irā. 1972. Ceṅkam naṭukaṟkaḷ. TNSDA publication 21.
Ceṉṉai: Tamiḻnāṭu Aracu tolporuḷ Āyvuttuṟai. Item 1971/69.

[IP] Mahalingam, T. V. 1988. Inscriptions of the Pallavas. New Delhi;
Delhi: Indian Council of Historical Research; Agam Prakashan. Pages
685–686, item 293.

### Secondary

[IAR] IAR 1971-72. Indian Archaeology 1971-72: A Review. Edited by M. N.
Deshpande. New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, 1975. Page 59,
item 40.

[1] Sanskrit Narasiṁhavarman.

[2] Literally "destroyed".

[3] That is, taṉ in sandhi.

[4] That is, ciṟṟappaṉ + aṭikaḷ.

[5] Literally "coming".