Mēlappaḻuvūr, Kīḻaiyūr, Ireṭṭaikkōyil, Agastyeśvara, time of Parakesarivarman, year 15

Editors: Valérie Gillet, Emmanuel Francis.

Identifier: DHARMA_INSMelKil00019.

Summary: AIM, southern shrine; on the two wall sections on the eastern side of the niche of Śiva on the southern façade of the sanctuary and on the southernmost wall section of the eastern façade of the sanctuary; c) personally located and read in situ; SII 19, no. 378 [lines 1 to 37]; SII 32, part 2, no. 166 [lines 1 to 37]; Āvaṇam 3.2 [complete inscription]; 15th regnal year of Kōpparakesarivarman = probably Uttamacōḻa (circa 986 A.D.); the inscription is not engraved continuously: I have given the details in the edition itself. Lines 38–96 record a list of signatures which may have been added later, because the script is slightly different from the first part (lines 1–37).

Hand description:

Language: Tamil.

Repository: Mēlappaḻuvūr & Kīḻappaḻuvūr (tfa-melappaluvur-kilappaluvur-epigraphy).

Version: (0c6f29a), last modified (0c6f29a).

Edition

⟨Zone A⟩ ⟨1⟩ svasti śrī

kō-p-parakēcari-paṉmaṟkku yā⟨2⟩ṇṭu 10 5-Āvatu

kuṉṟakkūṟṟattu nāṭ⟨3⟩ṭōmukku Aṭikaḷ paḻuvēṭṭaraiyar kaṇṭaṉ ma⟨4⟩ṟavaṉār Ināṭṭu Uṟattūraip paḻam ⟨5⟩ perum paḻaṅ kuṭiyu[m] n¡i!⟨ī⟩kki karuppūr-u⟨6⟩ṭaiya vēṅkaṭavaṉ Araṅkaṉ-āṉa cem⟨7⟩piyaṉ viṟaināṭṭu kōnārkku janma⟨8⟩bh¡u!⟨ū⟩mi-y-āka-k karuppūr eṉṉum pēriṉāl kā⟨9⟩ṇi ceytu Itukku Āṭṭai-vaṭṭam tāla⟨10⟩c cemmai poṉ Irupattai¡y!ṅ kaḻañ⟨11⟩cum cantrādityaval nilai ⟨⟨I⟩⟩ṟaiy-āvat’ ākavum

nā⟨12⟩ṭu tarañ ceyyum pōtu Irupattai¡y!ṅ ⟨13⟩ kaḻañcum allatu Ēṟat tarañ ceyyāta⟨14⟩t’ ākavum

Ipparicu candrādittavat kāṇi⟨15⟩-y-ākac ceytu kuṭuttōm nāṭṭār niṅ⟨16⟩kaḷum Ipparicu ceytu kuṭuṅkaḷ eṉṟ’ aruḷi⟨17⟩c-ceyya nāṭṭōmum

Iṉṉāṭṭu Uṟattū⟨18⟩rai paḻam perum paḻaṅ kuṭiyu n¡i!⟨ī⟩kki karuppū⟨19⟩r eṉṉum pēyar ākki Āṭṭai-vaṭṭam nilai ⟨20⟩ y-iṟai tālac cemmai poṉ Irupattai⟨21⟩¡y!ṅ kaḻañc’ ākki nāṭṭōm tarañ ceyum po⟨22⟩ṉ Irupattai¡y!ṅ kaḻañcum allatu Ēṟat ta⟨Zone B⟩⟨23⟩rañ ceyyātat’ ākavum

I⟨24⟩pparicu karuppūr-uṭaiya vē⟨25⟩ṅkaṭavaṉ Araṅkaṉ-āṉa ⟨26⟩ cempiyaṉ viṟai¡ṉ!⟨n⟩āṭ⟨27⟩ṭu kōṉārkku janmapūmi-y-āka ⟨28⟩ karuppūr eṉṉum (pē)yar(i)ṉāl ⟨29⟩ cantrātittaval kāṇi-y-āka A⟨30⟩ṟai-y-ōlai ceytu kuṭut⟨31⟩tōm kuṉṟakkūṟṟattu nāṭ⟨32⟩ṭōm (ci)ṟṟiṟaiyum Aṇa⟨33⟩[1 illegible line]

⟨Zone C⟩ ⟨34⟩ Ivai paḻuvēṭṭaraiyaṉ (kaṇṭa)ṉ maṟa⟨35⟩vaṉēṉ Ivai E¡ṉṉ!⟨ṉ⟩ eḻuttu [1×] Ipparicu I⟨36⟩caintō⟨m⟩ marutūr-uṭaiya kāṭaṉ mā(ṟu)yaṉē⟨37⟩ṉ Ivaiy e¡ṉṉ!⟨ṉ⟩ eḻuttu

⟨Zone D⟩ ⟨38⟩ [1 lost line] ⟨39⟩ (ṉa/ḷa)ṭṭār (A)ṟaiyō [1×] la[2×]⟨40⟩l eḻutt’ eḻutaṉārai y-eḻutiya ⟨41⟩ [2×] mallūr-uṭaiya caṅkaṉ nāke⟨42⟩[2×] kamāṉṉ eṉ Eḻuttu(p) puttūr-u⟨43⟩ṭaiya tū(caṭi) kōṉ{e} E¿ṉa?⟨ḻu⟩ttu ⟨44⟩ Āṟaṇitallūr-Uṭaiya ceruvan ⟨45⟩ (U)ta co(mi)tēvaṉ cuvāmi E⟨ḻu⟩ttu ⟨46⟩ cāttaṉūr-uṭaiya tiṇeyāṉ mā⟨47⟩yilaṭṭi Eḻuttu mēlmaru{t}⟨48⟩ttūr-uṭaiya tiṇaiyāṉ kuṭitara⟨49⟩ṅki Eḻuttu paṭṭ-uṭaiya (c)iṅka⟨50⟩ṉeyyoṟaṉ eḻuttu ⟨51⟩ Umapaḷakkāṉattūr-uṭai⟨52⟩ya Oṉeṉpāmpaṉ eḻu⟨53⟩ttu Āṇpāṉ cukūr-u⟨54⟩ṭaiya cāttaṉ nampaṉ e⟨55⟩ḻuttu kuṟṟūr-uṭaiyaṉ ṉe⟨56⟩[1 lost line]⟨57⟩ttu vākūr-uṭaiya Oṉeṉ⟨58⟩(pa)mpal eḻuttu (Ali?)mi[1×]⟨59⟩Uṭaiya ve(li)taraṅki Eḻuttu ⟨60⟩ Āttūr-uṭaiya cāttaṉ tara⟨61⟩[1×] Eḻuttu (௳) kuḷattūr-uṭaiya ⟨62⟩ Aṉaiyaṉamutaṉ eḻuttu ⟨63⟩ varākupāṭi-Uṭaiya māṉtaṉp⟨64⟩peraiyaṉ eḻuttu

⟨Zone E⟩ ⟨65⟩ (caṅ)kaṇamūr-uṭaiya kāra[2×]mu⟨66⟩kaṉ Eḻuttu [3×]-Uṭaiya ⟨67⟩ vaṭukaṉ pūti y-eḻuttu ⁋ timmi⟨68⟩y-uṭaiya cuntaracōḻapperunti⟨69⟩ṇ(ai) y-eḻuttu ⁋ puttūr-uṭaiya Ā⟨70⟩ramālakkōṉ peraiya⟨71⟩ṉ eḻuttu (pe)raṟconi-y-u⟨72⟩ṭaiya Araiyaṉāccaṉ e⟨73⟩ḻuttu || ciṅkaraṉattūr-uṭai⟨74⟩ya perumāṉ maḻapāṭi y-eḻu⟨75⟩[ttu] [5×] ppati-Uṭaiya ⟨76⟩ kali(yiva) [3×] y-(e)ḻut⟨77⟩tu || kūṟaṅ [1×] ṭaiya maṟava ko⟨78⟩ṉ peruna [1×] ṇai Eḻuttu ⟨79⟩ kaṟakāṭṭur-uṭaiya vempa⟨80⟩ṉuḷveli Eḻuttu ⟨81⟩ pokaḻi-y-uṭaiya kaṇṭama⟨82⟩laiyama[1×]ṉ eḻuttu ⟨83⟩ kiḷiy-u(ṭai)ya nāraṇaṉā⟨84⟩ [1×] ṅkay eḻuttu[3×]⟨85⟩ṇi-y-uṭaiya kaṇṭap pe[2×]⟨86⟩ṉ eḻuttu ciṅkaṇamūr-uṭai⟨87⟩ya paṭaipperaiyaṉa(ddhay)āṟa⟨88⟩ṉ eḻuttu || Aruṅkarayil-u⟨89⟩ṭaiya Āccaṉ nakkaṉ e⟨90⟩ḻuttu Āṉaiñallū⟨91⟩r-uṭaiya nakkaṉ kumaraṉ eḻut⟨92⟩tu vaṭavacukūr-uṭaiya niru(pa/va)⟨93⟩[1×] kacarama(lai)ya [2×] ṉ (e)ḻu(ttu) ⟨94⟩ mālvāyil-uṭaiya mana⟨95⟩vakōṉ pe(rai)yaṉ eḻu⟨96⟩ttu ||

Translation by Gillet 2024

Commentary

The epigraph is inscribed on 3 wall sections: A and B on the eastern side of the main niche of the southern façade; C on southernmost wall section of the eastern façade. Moreover, it is not inscribed continuously: from lines 1 to 22, inscribed from the middle of wall section A; from lines 23 to 33, inscribed on the bottom of wall section B; lines 34 to 37, inscribed on top of wall section A; lines 38 to 64, inscribed on the upper part of wall section B; lines 65 to 96, inscribed on the wall section C. From the line 34, this is a series of signatures. The editions in SII do not consider the signatures after the line 37. Only the revised edition in Āvaṇam includes them.

Bibliography

Reported in ARIE 1923-1924 (ARIE/1923-1924/C/1924/356).

Edited (36 lines) in Srinivasa Rao et al. 1967 (SII 19.378), in Swaminathan 2012 (SII 32.2.166). Edited (93 lines), in Tiyākarācaṉ 1993 (Āvaṇam 3.2). Edited and translated in Gillet 2024, based on autopsy.

This digital edition by Valérie Gillet and Emmanuel Francis.

Primary

[SR] Srinivasa Rao, G.V., Dines Chandra Sircar and G.S. Gai. 1967. South-Indian inscriptions. Volume XIX: Inscriptions of Parakesarivarman. South Indian Inscriptions 19. Delhi: Archaeological survey of India (Manager of Publications). Pages 197–198, item 378.

[S] Swaminathan, S. 2012. South Indian inscriptions. Volume XXXII: inscriptions of the early Chola kings upto Uttama Chola. South Indian Inscriptions 32. New Delhi: Archaeological survey of India (Director General). Part II, pages 292–294, item 166.

[T] Tiyākarācaṉ, Ila. 1993. “paluvūrp paḻuvēṭṭaraiyar kalveṭṭu.” Āvaṇam 3, pp. 8–10.

Secondary

ARIE 1923-1924. Annual report on South-Indian epigraphy for the year ending 31st March 1924. Edited by G. Venkoba Rao. Madras: Government Press, 1925. Page 73, appendix C/1924, item 356.