SII 3.88: original edition by Eugen Julius Theodor Hultzsch

Alternative title: “IX.—INSCRIPTIONS OF KULOTTUNGA-CHOLA III. No. 88.—INSCRIPTION AT SRIRANGAM.”

Author of digital edition: Emmanuel Francis (emfr).

Summary: This inscription (No. 66 of 1892) is engraved on the left of the entrance to the north wall of the fourth prākāra of the Raṅganātha temple on the island of Śrīraṅgam near Trichinopoly. It is dated in the 19th year of Kulōttuṅga-Chōḷa III. on a day which corresponds to Tuesday, the 12th November A.D. 1196,1 and recorded an order of the king, the contents of which are lost.

Languages: Sanskrit (san) [Grantha (grantha)], Tamil (tam) [Grantha (grantha), Tamil (tamil)].

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

Identifier: DHARMA_INSSIIv03p0i0088.

File path: SII03/DHARMA_INSSIIv03p0i0088.xml.

Version: (bb5c2b7), last modified (bb5c2b7).

Edition

⟨1⟩ ||~ hari (௳) svasti śrī [||] puyal vāyttu maṇ vaḷara puli(yā)ṇaiyum cakkaramuñceyal vā(yt)ta manunūluñceṅkolunticai naṭa(k)ka(k)ko(ṟ)ṟava(nu)ṭa(ṉ) tiru makiḻakkoṭuṅkali k(e)ṭa-

⟨2⟩ kkuḷir veṇkuṭaikkaṟpakālam paṭi kavikkakkatiravan kulamuṭi kavittu(t)tani yāṉai viṭṭāṇmai cey(tu) vaṭamaṉṉar(ai)ttaṟaippaṭutti (mu)nivāṟakkac(ci pu)k(ku) mu(ḻu)t(ā)-

⟨3⟩ caiyuntiṟai (ka)varntu taṇṭo(ṉ)ṟāl vaḻuti maintanai m¿u?kka(ri)ntu tamimmatur(ai) (k)oṇṭu vi(kra)mapāṇṭiyaṟkkukkoṭuttu m¿i?ṇṭa pin paripavattāleṭuttu van=tu neṭṭ¿u?-

⟨4⟩ (ri)letirnta (v¿i?ra)pāṇṭiyanai muṭittalai koṇṭamar muṭittavaṉ maṭakkoṭiyai ve(ḷam) Eṟṟittiruviḻanta teṉ(ṉa)vanuñceralanum van=taṟaiñciyariya(ṇaiyiṉ) k¿i?(ḻiru)kka Ava(ṉ mu)ṭi mela-

⟨5⟩ ṭi vaittuppa(ṭi) vaḻaṅ(ki) mu(ṭi) vaḻaṅki pā(ṇṭi)yaṟkku vi(ṭ)ai (ku)ṭuttu koṭi vaḻaṅku vi(llava)ṟ(kku) k(oṟṟa)va(r) peṟā tiru va(ḻa)ṅki (vīra)keraḷaṉ vi(ra)l taṟittu ve(ṉai) k¿o?ṇṭu vaṉ(ti)ṟ(ai)ñca(pp)āraṟiya vā(ḻvaruḷi)-

⟨6⟩ (ppari)kalattila(mu)taḷittupparutiku(la)patiyeṉṉuntirunā(ma)m pa(ri)tta pāṇṭiyaṟ(ti)ru(n)e(ti)yamum pa(ri)caṭṭamumilaṅkuma(ṇi)kkalaṉum (na)l(ki) tiyākavīrakkoṭiyeṭuttu (v)āk(ai) vīrakkaḻal kaṭṭit(tik)keṭṭume-

⟨7⟩ val keṭppa cakkaraveṟpil pukaḻeṟippaccempon vīra(si)ṅ·hāsaṉattuppuvaṉamuḻutuṭaiyāroṭum v¿i?ṟṟiruntaruḷiya kopparakecaripaṉmarāṉa tribhuvaṉaccakkaravarttika(ḷ maturai) koṇ-

⟨8⟩ ṭu pāṇṭiyaṉ muṭittalai koṇṭaruḷi(ya) śrīkulottu(ṅ)kacoḻadevaṟku yāṇṭu 10 9 Āvatu vṛścikanāyaṟṟu Aparapakṣattu pañcamiyuñcevvāykkiḻamaiyum peṟṟa pūcattu (nā)ḷ prasā-

⟨9⟩ dañceytaruḷiṉa tirumuka(p)paṭi ||~ EtaT trailokyanirmmāṇattrāṇasaṃhārakāraṇaM [|] śrīmacrīraṃganāthasya śāsana¿M? śāśvataM paraM ||~ nam variyilāṟkku nam kuṟaipaṟṟil pū

Apparatus

⟨3⟩ tamimmatur(ai) • No. 170 of 1902 reads tamiḻ.

⟨4⟩ van=taṟaiñci • No. 170 of 1902 reads vantiṟaiñci.

⟨6⟩ tiyākavīrakkoṭiyeṭuttu • Instead of the passage beginning with tiyāka and ending with pukaḻeṟippa, No. 170 of 1902 reads:— Īḻattān muṭi vāḻa vāḻattāḷiṇai cūṭṭi.

Translation by Hultzsch 1903

(Line 1.) (Obeisance to) Hari (i.e. Vishṇu) ! Hail ! Prosperity ! (The king) put on the crown of the race of the Sun, while clouds were abundant and (hence) the land was fertile; while the commands (sealed with the crest) of the tiger, the discus, the rules of Manu, (by) which (good) conduct prospered, and the sceptre ruled (every) region; while the goddess of Fortune rejoiced (to be united) with the king; while the cruel Kali (age) perished; (and) while the cool white parasol (of the king) overshadowed the earth to the end of the world.

(L. 2.) (He) despatched matchless elephants, performed heroic deeds, prostrated to the ground the kings of the North, entered Kachchi when (his) anger abated, and levied tribute from the whole (northern) region.

(L. 3.) By a single army (he) cut off the nose of the son of the Vaḻudi (i.e. the Pāṇḍya king), took the Madurai of the Tamiḻ (country) and gave (it) to Vikrama-Pāṇḍya. (He) took the crowned head of Vīra-Pāṇḍya,2 who, after (the Chōḷa king) had returned, started because (he felt his) disgrace and faced (him) at Neṭṭūr. (He) put an end to the war and caused his (viz). the Pāṇḍya's) young wife to enter (his) harem (?).3

(L. 4.) When the Teṉṉavaṉ (i.e). the Pāṇḍya king), who had lost (his) fortune, and the Śēralaṉ (i.e). the Chēra king) came (to the Chōḷa king), bowed (to him) and sat down at the foot of (his) throne, (he) placed (his) feet on the crown of the former, granted (him) land, granted (him) a crown, and gave the Pāṇḍya permission (to go); and to the Villavaṉ (i.e. the Chēra king), who (formerly had) distributed crores, (he) granted a fortune which (other) kings could not obtain.

(L. 5.) (He) cut off a finger of Vīra-Kēraḷa and saw (his) back (i.e). put him to flight); (but), when (the latter) came and bowed (to him), (he) bestowed riches (on him) in public4 and gave (him) to eat from the (royal) plates.

(L. 6.) To the Pānḍya who bore the glorious name of ‘chief of the family of the Sun’ (he) granted great treasures, robes, and vessels (set with) brilliant jewels. (He) raised the banner of liberality and heroism and put on the vāgai5 ) (garland) (and) the ankle-rings of heroes. The eight quarters obeyed (his) orders, (and his) fame shone on the mountain surrounding (the earth).6

(L. 7.) In the 19th year of (this) king Parakēsarivarman, who was pleased to be seated together with (his queen) Bhuvanamuḻuduḍaiyār on the throne of heroes (which consisted of) pure gold, alias the emperor of the three worlds, Śrī-Kulōttuṅga-Śōḻadēva, who, having taken Madurai, was pleased to take the crowned head of the Pāṇḍya,7 —on the day of Pushya, which corresponded to a Tuesday and to the fifth tithi of the second fortnight of the month Vṛiśchika,—the following order was issued (by the king).

(L. 9.) This (is) the everlasting great order of the holy Śrīraṅganātha (who is) the cause8 of the creation, protection and destruction of the three worlds.9

To our revenue officers10 . . . . . . . . . .

Commentary

⟨9⟩ nam kuṟaipaṟṟil pū. The remainder of the inscription is lost.

Bibliography

Digital edition of SII 3.88 by Hultzsch 1903 converted to DHARMA conventions by Emmanuel Francis.

Primary

[SII] Hultzsch, Eugen Julius Theodor. 1903. South-Indian inscriptions. Volume III: Miscellaneous inscriptions from the Tamil country. Part II: Inscriptions of Virarajendra I., Kulottunga-chola I., Vikrama-chola and Kulottunga III. South Indian Inscriptions 3.2. Madras: Government Press. Pages 217–219, item 88.

Notes

  1. 1. See Ep. Ind. Vol. IV. p. 219, No. 17.

  2. 2. See above, p. 215, note 4 [[From No. 88 below, text line 4 f., it appears that this phrase implies that the king, while seated on the throne, placed his feet on the crown of the Pāṇḍya king, who thus publicly acknowledged his defeat. On previous occasions I explained the words talai koṇḍa by ‘who cut off the head;’ see above, pp. 21 and 43, and Ep. Ind. Vol. IV. p. 219.]].

  3. 3. The word vēḷam is not found in the dictionaries. It is perhaps connected with vēḷ, ‘Kāma, desire, lust.’

  4. 4. Literally, ‘so that the (whole) earth knew (it).’

  5. 5. The tree Mimosa flexuosa. Garlands of the flowers of this tree are worn by conquerors.

  6. 6. Instead of the two last sentences, No. 170 of 1902 has:—“(He) placed (his) pair of feet—may (they) prosper long !—(on) the crown of the king of Īḻam.”

  7. 7. See above, p. 215, note 4 [[From No. 88 below, text line 4 f., it appears that this phrase implies that the king, while seated on the throne, placed his feet on the crown of the Pāṇḍya king, who thus publicly acknowledged his defeat. On previous occasions I explained the words talai koṇḍa by ‘who cut off the head;’ see above, pp. 21 and 43, and Ep. Ind. Vol. IV. p. 219.]].

  8. 8. Kāraṇam is meant for kāraṇasya, which would, however, offend against the metre.

  9. 9. In this Sanskrit verse the king's order is represented as emanating from the god of Śrīraṅgam himself.

  10. 10. See above, p. 44, note 10 [[varikku kūṟu ceyvārkaḷ (which occurs also in Vol. II. No. 21, second section, l. 4) corresponds to variyilār in No. 20, l. 21.]].