Mēlpāṭi, Cōḻēśvara temple, time of Rājakesarivarman Rājarāja, year 29

Editors: Emmanuel Francis, Eugen Hultzsch.

Identifier: DHARMA_INSSII0300015.

Summary: ...

Languages: Sanskrit, Tamil.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (tfa-sii-epigraphy).

Version: (53c5f71), last modified (6c51936).

Edition

⟨1⟩ svasti śrī

I. āciriyappa

tiru-makaḷ pōla-p peru-nila-c-celviyun=

1

taṉakkē y-urimai [pūṇ]ṭamai maṉa-k-koḷa-k

2

kān=ta[ḷ¡u!⟨ū⟩r]-⟨c⟩ c[ā]lai kalam aṟutt-aru[ḷi]

3

v[ē]ṅkai-nāṭuṅ kaṅka-pāṭiyu

4

[nu]ḷampa-pāṭiyun taṭ¡ī!⟨i⟩k¿a?⟨ai⟩-pāṭiyuṅ

5

kuṭa-malai-nāṭuṅ kollamuṅ kaliṅkamum

6

eṇ-ṭicai pukaḻ tara v-īḻa-maṇṭalamum

7

iraṭṭa-pāṭi y-Ēḻ’ arai y-ilakkamun=

8

tiṇ-ṭiṟal veṉṟi-t taṇṭāṟ-k koṇṭa ta¡nṉ!⟨ṉ⟩

9

eḻil vaḷar ūḻi Ēllā [y]ā[ṇ]ṭun=

10

toḻuta⟨k⟩ai viḷaṅkum yāṇṭē-y

11

ceḻiyarai-t tēcu koḷ

12

śrī-kō-v-irāja-rāja-kesari-panmar-āna śrī-rāja-rāja-devarkku yāṇṭu 2 10 9-Āvatu

jayaṅ-koṇṭa-coḻa-maṇṭalattu-p perum-pāṇa-p-pāṭi-t-tū-ñāṭṭu m[ē]ṟ-p-pāṭi-y-ā[ki]ya rājāśraya-purattu nakarattōm Āṟṟ¡u!⟨ū⟩rar-t tuñciṉa tēvark=ku-p-paḷḷi-paṭai-y-āka Uṭaiyār śrī-rāja-rāja-devar Eṅkaḷ nakarat[ti]l eṭuppitt-aru[ḷi]ṉa [ti]ru-Aṟiñcikai-[Ī]śvarattu mahā-devar [śrī]-kō[yi]lukkun [ti]ru-c-cuṟṟālaikkun [ti]ru-muṟṟattukkun [ti]ru-nantaṉa-vaṉattukkum ⟨2⟩ maṭa-viḷākattukkum-ā[ka] nāṅ kaḷi-t-tēvaṟku-k kuṭutta nilattukk’ ellai

  • nukā v-eṉṉu[m] āṟṟukku mēṟkum
  • Ivv-ūr [mu]-m-m¿a?⟨u⟩ṭi-cōḻa-p-[p]erun-teruvil vyāpāri Āccerumāṉ vayira-mēkaṉ toṭṭa-p-pā[ḻ]-āṉa [ni]lattiṉ vaṭa-v-arukē-y nukā-v-āṟṟi niṉṟum iru-kōl-akalattāl mēṟku nōkki-[p] pōṉa peru-vaḻi Eṇ-patt’ eḻu-[kō]l-ācaṟutikku vaṭakkum
  • ivv-ācaṟutiyē-y vaṭakku nōkki-c cōḷēn¡t!⟨d⟩ra-siṃ[h¡i!⟨ī⟩]śvaram-uṭaiya tēvar tēva[ra]ṭiyār mattavāṇa-c-cēriyē-y e[ṟa]-p pōṉa teruvukku-k kiḻakkuñ
  • cō[ḷēn¡t!⟨d⟩ra]-siṃhīśvaram-uṭaiyār kōyiliṉ teṟkil ti[ru]-nantaṉa-vaṉattiṉ t[e]¡ṉṉ!⟨ṉ⟩-arukē-y nukā v-eṉṉum āṟṟukkē-y kiḻakku nōkki nāṟ-kōl-akalattāṟ pōṉa pe[ru]-vaḻikku-t teṟkum

in-nāṟ-pēr-ellaiyuḷḷum aka-p-paṭṭa nilam Eṅkaḷ¡u!⟨ū⟩r aḷantu kūṟ-iṭṭa patiṉ-eṇ-cāṇ kō¡ll!⟨l⟩āṟ kuḻi Ai-¡yy!⟨y⟩-āyiratt’ [oru-n¡u!⟨ū⟩]{ra}ṟṟu mu-⟨p⟩-patt’ āṟ’ araiyum it-tēva[ṟ]ku-t tēvatāṉa-Iṟai-y-ili-y-āka-k kuṭuttō[m]

I[n]-ni[la]tt[āṟē-y] nukā v-eṉṉu[m] āṟṟi ṉiṉṟum It-tē⟨3⟩var in-nilattukkum ilupp[ai]-k kaḻaṉikku nīr pāynta vāykkāl kāṟ-kōl-akalattāl It-tēvar in-nilattukkum iluppai-k kaḻaṉikku n¡i!⟨ī⟩r pāya-p peṟavum ip-pari[cu] tēvatāṉa-[I]ṟai-y-ili-y-āka-c cilā-lēkai ceytu kuṭuttō mēṟ-pāṭi-y-āṉa rājāśraya-purattu nakarattōm

In-nakarattār colla Eḻutiṉēṉ In-nakara-k-karaṇattāṉ nārāyaṇaṉ aṭaikkalavaṉ-ēṉ

Ivai y-e¡ṉṉ!⟨ṉ⟩ eḻ¿a?⟨u⟩ttu ⁋

Itu [pa]ṉ-mā¿bh?⟨h⟩eśva⟨ra⟩-rakṣai⁋

Apparatus

⟨1⟩ maṉakkoḷak ⬦ maṉakkoḷk SII.

Translation by Hultzsch 1899

(1) Hail! Prosperity! In the 29th year [of the reign] of the glorious king Rājarāja-Kesarivarman, alias Śrī-Rājarājadeva, who, [in] his life of growing strength, during which,——[in] the belief that, as well as the goddess of fortune, the goddess of the great earth had become his wife,——[he] was pleased to destroy the ships [at] Kāntaḷūr-Cālai and conquered by [his] army, which was victorious in great battles, Vēṅkai-nāṭu, Kaṅka-pāṭi, Nuḷampa-pāṭi, Taṭīka-pāṭi, Kuṭamalai-nāṭu, Kollam, Kaliṅkam, Īḻa-maṇṭalam, [the conquest of which] made [him] famous [in] the eight directions, and the seven and a half lakṣas of Iraṭṭa-pāṭi,——deprived the Ceḻiyas of [their] splendour at the very moment when Utak[ai], which is worshipped everywhere, was [most] resplendent;——we, the citizens of Mēṟpāṭi, alias Rājāśrayapuram, in Tūñāṭu, [a subdivision] of Perumpāṇa-pāṭi in Jayaṅkoṇṭa-Cōḻa-maṇṭala, gave land to the god Mahādeva (Śiva) of the holy Aṟiñcikai-Īśvara [temple],——which the lord Śrī-Rājarājadeva had been pleased to build in our city as a resting-place (? paḷḷi-paṭai) for the king who fell asleep1 at Āṟṟūr,——for the sacred temple, for the temple enclosure,2 for the temple court, for the temple garden, and for the environs of the temple.3

(2) The [four] boundaries of [this land are] to the west of the river called Nukā; to the north of the limit, eighty-seven rods [in length], of the high-road which, at a breadth of two rods, leads westward from the Nukā river along the northern extremity of the wasteland of the garden of the merchant (vyāpārin) Āccerumāṉ Vayiramēkaṉ, [who resides] in the high-street of Mummaṭi-Cōḻa in this village; to the east of the street which leads up northward from this limit to Mattavāṇaccēri, [the quarter] of the dancing-girls of the god of the Cōḷēndrasiṁhīśvara [temple]; and to the south of the high-road which, at a breadth of four rods, leads eastward to the river called Nukā along the southern extremity of the temple garden on the south of the temple of the lord Cōḷendrasiṁhīśvara. The land enclosed within these four great boundaries, [which measures] five thousand one hundred and thirty-six and a half kuḻis by the rod of eighteen spans, by which our village is measured and divided, we gave to this god as tax-free temple land. The channel, a quarter rod in breadth, [which flows] through this land from the river called Nukā [and] supplies water to this land and to the iluppai4 field of this god, shall [continue to] supply water to this land and to the iluppai field of this god.

(3) Thus we, the citizens of Mēṟpāṭi, alias Rājāśrayapuram, having engraved [this] on stone, gave [this land] as tax-free temple land. At the bidding of these citizens, I, the accountant (karaṇattāṉ) of this city, Nārāyaṇaṉ Aṭaikkalavaṉ, wrote [this]. This is my writing. This [gift is placed under] the protection of all Māheśvaras.

Translation by Emmanuel Francis

(1) Prosperity! Fortune!

(1) 29th year of the glorious king Rājarāja,aliasthe glorious king Rājarājakesarivarman,

(1) who ... [meykkīrtti of Rājarāja I Cōḷa]

(1–2) The boundaries tot the land that ... has given ... [are as follow]s:

  • west of the river named Nukā;
  • north of ...;
  • east of ...;
  • south of ....

(2) The land comprised between these four great boundaries ... We have given ...

(2–3) We, the members of nakaram of ...

(3) ...

(3) ...

(3) ...

Bibliography

Edited in Hultzsch 1899, with English translation (SII 3.15).

This edition by Emmanuel Francis (2024), based on Hultzsch 1899 and photos (E. Francis, 2024).

Primary

[SII] Hultzsch, Eugen Julius Theodor. 1899. South-Indian inscriptions. Volume III: Miscellaneous inscriptions from the Tamil country. Part I: Inscriptions at Ukkal, Melpadi, Karuvur, Manimangalam and Tiruvallam. South Indian Inscriptions 3.1. Madras: Governement Press. Pages 23–24, item 15.

Notes

  1. 1. In the Appendix to Paṇḍit Cāminātaiyar’s edition of the Puṟanāṉūṟu, Mr. V. Kanakasabhai Pillai suggests that the expression tuñciṉa or tuñcjiya, ‘who slept,’ which forms part of the designations of several Cōḷa, Pāṇḍya and Cēra kings, means ‘who died.’
  2. 2. ālai is a corruption of ālaiyam (ālaya in Sanskrit). Hence tiruccuṟṟālai is synonymous with tiruc cuṟṟumāḷikai and parivārālaya, on which see Vol. II. p. 151, note 1.
  3. 3. Compare Vol. I. p. 92, note 5.
  4. 4. This is the Tamil name of the tree Bassia longifolia.