Mēlpāṭi, Cōḻēśvara temple, time of Parakesarivarman Rājendra Cōḻa, year 9

Editors: Emmanuel Francis, Eugen Hultzsch.

Identifier: DHARMA_INSSII0300018.

Summary: ...

Languages: Sanskrit, Tamil.

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

Version: (bbe36dc), last modified (6c51936).

Edition

⟨1⟩ svasti śrī

I. āciriyappā

tiru maṉṉi vaḷara Iru-nila-maṭan=taiyum

1

pōṟ-caya-p-pāvaiyum c¡i!⟨ī⟩r-t-tani-c-celviyu⟨2⟩n=

2

tan pe[ru]n=-teviyar āki [y-i]ṉpuṟa

3

neṭ¡in!⟨u⟩t¡u!⟨i⟩y¡i!⟨a⟩l ūḻiyuḷ I[ṭ]ai-tuṟai-nāṭun=

4

tu[ṭa]rvana vēli-p-pa⟨3⟩ṭar va¡n!⟨ṉ⟩avāciyum

5

cuḷḷi-⟨c⟩cūḻmatiṭ koḷḷi-[p]-pāk[k]aiyum

6

naṇṇaṟk’ aruma⟨4⟩raṇ maṇṇai-k-kaṭakka[mu]m

7

po[ru]-kaṭal ¡i!⟨ī⟩ḻatt’ araiyar ta muṭiyum

8

ā[ṅ]kavar ⟨5⟩ tēviyar ōṅkeḻil muṭiyu

9

muṉṉavar ⟨pa⟩kkal-t teṉṉavar [v]aitta

10

⟨6⟩ cun=tara-muṭiyum in=tira¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ āra¿ḻan=?⟨mum⟩

11

teṇ-ṭirai Īḻa-ma⟨7⟩ṇṭala [mu]ḻuvatum

12

eṟipaṭai-k= kēraḷan [mu]⟨8⟩ṟaimaiyil cūṭuṅ

13

kulatanam ākiya palar-puka⟨9⟩ḻ muṭiyuñ

14

ceṅ-katir mālaiyuñ caṅ-katir vē⟨10⟩lai-t

15

tol peruṅ-kāval pala-paḻan=-t¡i!⟨ī⟩vuñ

16

ce[ru] ⟨11⟩ viṟ cinavil Irupatt’ oru-kāl

17

araicukaḷai kaṭṭa parac¡i!⟨u⟩-rāman

18

⟨12⟩ mēvaruñ c[ā]n=timatt¡i!⟨ī⟩v’ araṇ karuti

19

Iruttiya cem-p[oṟ]ṟiru⟨13⟩-t-taku muṭiyum

20

payaṅ-koṭu paḻi mika [mu]¡c!⟨y⟩a[ṅ]kiyil [mu]tukiṭṭ’

21

oḷitta ⟨14⟩ caya-ciṅkaṉ Aḷapperum pukaḻoṭu

22

[pī]ṭi I¡l!⟨r⟩aṭṭa-pāṭi Ēḻ’ arai

23

Ilak=kamu na[va]⟨15⟩neti-[k]-ku[la]-p-pe[ru]malaikaḷu

24

mā-p-[p]e[ru]n=taṇ[ṭā]ṟ koṇ[ṭa]

25

kō-p-parakēsari-[pa]⟨16⟩nmar-ā⟨ṉa⟩ śrī-[rā]jen¡t!⟨d⟩ra-cōḻadevarkku yāṇṭu 9-tāvatu

jayaṅ-koṇṭa-c[ō]⟨17⟩ḻa-maṇṭala[t]tu perum-pāṇa-p-pāṭi-t-tūy-nāṭṭu mēṟ-pāṭi-y-āna rāj[ā]śra⟨ya⟩⟨18⟩-purattu tiru-[v-a]ṟiñc¡i!⟨ī⟩śvara¡mm!⟨m⟩-uṭaiya mah¿a?⟨ā⟩-devar maṭam-uṭaiya Ilakuḷ¡i!⟨ī⟩[śva]⟨19⟩ra-paṇṭitar kanmikaḷuk=ku It-tēvar āṭu toṇṇūṟu kaiy-k-k[o][ṭu] ⟨20⟩ tiru-nan=tā-viḷakku Onṟinukku Erikka ne¡yy!⟨y⟩ aṭṭuvatāka [Iv]v-ūr iruk=kum iṭ[ai]⟨21⟩[ya]¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ Ēṟaṉ cātta[¡n!⟨ṉ⟩u]k=ku Ivv-ūr irukkum Iṭaiyan kalli kuṭṭēṟa¡ni!⟨ṉ⟩um pu⟨22⟩ṉṉai ciṅka¡n!⟨ṉ⟩um Ēṇi kaṅkātara¡n!⟨ṉ⟩um vāṇa¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ co[m]ā[ta]⟨ṉu⟩n= taṇṭanāṉai[yu]⟨23⟩m nampi cātēva¡n!⟨ṉ⟩u⟨m⟩ Ayiti kāṭāṭi⟨yu⟩m nampi tiṇaiya¡n!⟨ṉ⟩um nampi paṉṟiyu⟨24⟩m vāṇa¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ puḷiya[¡n!⟨ṉ⟩u]⟨m⟩ Āka Ivv-aṉaivōm oṭṭi-p puṇai-p-paṭṭa paric’ āvatu

I ⟨25⟩ ṭaiya¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ ēṟaṉ cāttaṉai-k koṇṭu tiru-nan=tā-viḷakk’ oṉṟinukku rā[ca]⟨26⟩cariyāl nicatam Uḻakku [n]e¡yy!⟨y⟩ aṭ[ṭu]vippat’ ākavum

[I]vaṉ cāvilum [po]ki⟨27⟩lum ciṟai taḷai caṅkili pukilum Ivv-aṉaivō [mu]ṉpu [ni]ṉṟōmē ca⟨28⟩n=tirātitta-vaṟ ti[ru]-viḷak=k’ erik=ka ney aṭṭuvat-āka puṇai-p-paṭṭōm Ivv-aṉaivōm

⟨29⟩ Ivarka[ḷ] vēṇṭa v-[e]ḻuti¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ēṉ I⟨n⟩-nakara-k-karaṇattā¡n!⟨ṉ⟩ poṉṉāli [A]ṟu-⟨30⟩-patt-iruva¡n!⟨ṉ⟩-ēṉ Eḻuttu

rācāśra[ya]-purattu viyāpāri Am[mu]ri [I]ḷa[m]peru ⟨31⟩ n=ti

Translation by Hultzsch 1899

(1) Hail! Prosperity! In the 9th year [of the reign] of king Parakesarivarman,alias Śrī-Rājendra-Cōḻadeva, who,——in [his] life of high prosperity, while Fortune, having become constant, was increasing, [and] while the goddess of the great earth, the goddess of victory in battle, and the matchless goddess of fame rejoiced to have become his great queens,——conquered with [his] very great army Iṭaituṟai-nāṭu; Vanavāci, whose warriors [were protected by] walls of continuous forests; Koḷḷippākkai, whose walls were surrounded by cuḷḷi [trees]; the camp of Maṇṇai,1 whose fortifications were unapproachable; the crown of the king of Īḻam, [who was as impetuous as] the sea in fighting; the exceedingly beautiful crowns of the queens of that [king]; the crown of Sundara and the pearl necklace of Indra, which the king of the South (i.e. the Pāṇḍya) had previously given up to that [king of Īḻam]; the whole Īḻa-maṇṭalam on the transparent sea; the crown praised by many and the garland of the Sun, family-treasures which the arrow-shooting [king of] Kēraḷa rightfully wore; many ancient islands, whose old and great guard was the sea which resounds with conches; the crown of pure gold, worthy of Lakṣmī, which Paraśurāma, having considered the fortifications of Cāntimattīvu impregnable, had deposited [there], when, in anger, [he] bound the kings twenty-one times in battle; the seven and a half lakṣas of Ilaṭṭa-pāṭi, [through the conquest of whose] throne2 immeasurable fame arose, [and which he took from] Jayasiṁha, who, out of fear [and] full of vengeance, turned his back at Mucaṅki and hid himself; and the principal great mountains [which contained] the nine treasures [of Kubera];——before the Pūjāri (kaṉmikaḷ) Lakuḷīśvara-Paṇḍita, [the head] of the maṭha of [the god] Mahādeva of the holy Aṟiñcīśvara [temple] in Mēṟpāṭi, alias Rājāśrayapuram, [a city] in Tūy-nāṭu, [a subdivision] of Perumpāṇa-pāṭi in Jayaṅkoṇḍa-Cōḻa-maṇṭalam,——we, all the following shepherds of this village: Kalli-Kuṭṭēṟaṉ, Puṉṉai Ciṅkaṉ (i.e. Siṁha), Ēṇi Gaṅgādharaṉ,3 Vāṇaṉ Cō[m]ā[ta](i.e. Somanātha), Taṇṭaṉ Āṉai, Nampi Cātēvaṉ (i.e. Sahadeva), Ayiti Kāṭāṭi, Nampi-Tiṇaiyaṉ, Nampi Paṉṟi and Vāṇaṉ Puḷiyaṉ, agreed to become security for Ēṟaṉ-Cāttaṉ, a shepherd of this village, [who] had received ninety ewes of this temple, in order to supply ghee for burning one perpetual lamp.

(24) [We] shall cause the shepherd Ēṟaṉ Cāttaṉ to supply daily to one perpetual lamp [one] uḻakku of ghee, [measured] by the Rājakēsari.

(26) If he dies, absconds, or gets into prison, fetters [or] chains, we, all these aforesaid persons, are bound to supply ghee for burning the holy lamp as long as the moon and the sun endure.

(29) At the desire of these persons, I, the accountant of this city, Poṉṉāli Aṟupattiruvaṉ, wrote [this. This is] my writing.

(30) [The signature of] Am[mu]ri [I]ḷa[m]-Perunti, a merchant (vyāpārin) of Rājāśrayapuram.

Translation by Emmanuel Francis

(1) Prosperity! Fortune!

(15–16) 9th year of the glorious king Rājendra Cōḻaaliasthe king Parakesarivarma,

(1–15) who ... [meykkīrtti of Rājendra I Cōḷa]

(16–24) This is the manner in which ...

(24–26) There should ...

(26) ...

(1) ...

(1) ...

(1) ...

Bibliography

Edited in Hultzsch 1899, with English translation (SII 3.18).

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 27–29, item 18.

Notes

  1. 1. See Mr. Rice’s Epigraphia Carnataca, Part 1. p. 10 of the Introduction.
  2. 2. pīṭi is perhaps the Sanskrit pīṭhī.
  3. 3. The same person is mentioned in line 16 of No. 17.