# SII 12.178: original edition by V. Venkatasubba Ayyar

Emmanuel Francis

Alternative title: No. 178. (A.R. No. 119 of 1906). JAMBAI, TIRUKKOYILUR
TALUK, SOUTH ARCOT DISTRICT. ON THE GŌPURA (RIGHT OF ENTRANCE) OF THE
JAMBUNĀTHA TEMPLE

Author of digital edition: Emmanuel Francis

Identifier: DHARMA_INSSIIv12p0i0178

Repository: SII original (south-indian-inscriptions)

File path: SII_B_clean/SII12/DHARMA_INSSIIv12p0i0178.xml

Language: Tamil [Grantha, Tamil]

Commit: 2026-11-09 23:45 (242ff60), last modified 2026-09-29 11:08
(2b36d53)

## Summary

An instance of voluntary human sacrifice for the successful completion
of a building is mentioned in this inscription dated in the 13th year.
It registers a tax-free gift of 150 kuḻi of land by the tānattār of the
temple, according to the order of Gāṅgayar, to Aṇṇāmalai, the younger
brother of Aṭkoṇḍāṉ, who cut off his head so that the nitta
(nṛitta)-maṇḍpa in the temple of Tiruttāntōṉṟi Āḷuḍaiya-Nāyaṉār at
Śaṇbai might be completed.[1]

Āṭkoṇḍāṉ is stated to be the younger brother of Peṟṟāḻvi, a dēvaraḍiyāḷ
(temple maid-servant) residing in the village.

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## Edition

⟨1⟩ svasti śrī [∥] cakalapuvaṉaccakkaravattikaḷ śrī kopperuñciṅkatevaṟku
y¿a?⟨ā⟩ṇṭu 10 3⁓caṇpaiyil Uṭaiyār ⟨2⟩ tiruttāntoṉṟi Āḷuṭaiyanāyaṉārkoyil
nittamaṇṭapam camai⟨k⟩kiṟa Itukku Iv(vū)ṟ tevaraṭiyāḷ peṟ⟨3⟩ṟāḻvi tampi
Āṭkoṇṭāṉ talai Arintukoṇṭa Itukku Ivūr vaṇṇakkan ceṟu ⟦[3×]⟧ Uṭaiyār
kāṅkayar ⟨4⟩ tirumukappaṭikku tānattārom Ā⟨ṭ⟩{k}koṇṭān tampi
Aṇṇāmalaikku viṭṭa kuḻi nū⟨ṟ⟩ ṟaimpatum pati(ṉālā)vatu ⟨5⟩ mutal
cantirātittavarai Iṟaiyiliyāka Aṉupavikkakkaṭavatāka viṭṭom ௳

## Bibliography

Digital edition of SII 12.178 by Venkatasubba Ayyar & Krishnamacharlu
1943 converted to DHARMA conventions 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
105, item 178.

[1] Such instances of sacrifice are common. The Rāshṭrakūṭa king
Amōghavarsha is said to have cut off and offered a finger of his left
hand to the goddess Mahālakshmī in order to ward off a public calamity
(Ep. Ind. Vol. XVIII, p. 241).