SII 1.24: original edition by Eugen Hultzsch

Alternative title: “PART I. SANSKRIT INSCRIPTIONS. I. INSCRIPTIONS OF THE PALLAVA DYNASTY. Nos. 24 TO 30. THE PALLAVA INSCRIPTIONS ON THE KAILĀSANĀTHA TEMPLE AT KĀÑCĪPURAM. No. 24. ROUND THE OUTSIDE OF THE SHRINE OF RĀJASIṀHEŚVARA.”

Author of digital edition: Emmanuel Francis (emfr).

Language: Sanskrit (san).

Version: (3992bd7), last modified (0ec4724).

Edition

⟨1⟩ [*****************] tvañjaṭābhe rnnīlatvaṁ kaṇṭhadhāmrā phaṇamaṇikiraṇaiḥ śoṇimānandadhānā [|] niryyāntī sthāṇuratnā⟨t⟩tribhuvanasarasīpūraṇī vaḥ punītānnānāvarṇṇārṇṇavārṇṇassamasakalaharinmaṇḍa [*****] [|| 1] [******] (sa)ttadanu munirasāvaṅgirāstanmanojastatsūnṛśśakramantrī gururamṛtabhujāntasya śa⟨ṁ⟩yustanūjaḥ [|] tasmādugraprabhāvā¿nn?r¿ī?bhuvanamahitāllabdhajanmā munīndraḥ sa śrīmānpallavānāṁ kulanidhirabhavadyo bharadvājanāmā || [2] tasmā⟨d⟩droṇa¿s?sa rāmādgururatimahitaḥ pāṇḍavānāṁ kurūṇāmaśvatthāmā tatobhūtpṛthuravanibhṛtā⟨ṁ⟩ sthairyyamānāpahārī [|] tatsūnuḥ pallavākhyaḥ sakalavasumatībhogināṁ pārtthivānāṁ śūrāṇāmādibhūto manuriva jayināmanvavāyasya karttā || [3] brahmaṇy(ā)nāmudīrṇṇapravalakalimadadhvaṁsināṁ satyavācāṁ gambhīrāṇāntrivarggasthiticaturadhiyāṁ vṛ{r}ddhasevāparāṇāṁ [|] kāmādyantaścarāriprasabhavijayināṁ hetividyāvar(ā)ṇāndhīrāṇāmūrjjitānānnayavinayavatāmpallavānānnṛpāṇām· || [4] teṣāṁ vaṁśe prasūtādraṇarasikapuro¿rm?marddanād¿a?gradaṇḍātsubrahmaṇyaḥ kumāro guha Iva paramādīśvarādāttajanmā [|] śakti{ḥ}kṣuṇṇārivarggo viditabahunayaśśaiṁvasiddhāntamārgge śrīmānatyantakāma⟨ḥ⟩ kṣatasakalamalo dhūrddharaḥ pallavānām· || [5] kalācaturayoṣitāṁ rahasi rañjane manmathastrayīpathaniṣe(viṇāṁ sa)tatapālane vāsavaḥ [|] munidvijasuradviṣāṁ hṛdayadāraṇe mādhavaḥ sa ca draviṇasaṁpadā sujanatoṣaṇe vittadaḥ || [6] duṣyantapramuravaiḥ śr¿a?tāmbaragatā vāṇī śarīraṁ vinā kṣmānāthaiḥ suradṛśvabhiryyadi kṛte kaṇvādibhiḥ svīkṛtaiḥ [|] tannāścaryyamidaṁ punaḥ kaliyuge dūrībhavatsadguṇe sośr¿o?ṣīditi tāṁ girammahadaho vismāpanaṁ śrībharaḥ || [7] yeneme nayavikramāttakamalāsaṁpattidarppoddhatā bhrūbhaṁgakṣaṇamātradhūtadhiṣaṇā namrīkṛtā⟨ḥ⟩ pārtthivā⟨ḥ⟩ [|] jātos¿o? puruṣottamo raṇajayastrātuñjanānmajjataḥ pāpābdheḥ kalikālabhīmamakaragrastānsa jīyācciram· || [8] nayorjjitaparākramārjjitamanena sarvvañjaga¿t?nṛpeṇa hatakaṇṭakaṁ praṇatarājakaṁ bhuñjatā [|] yaśaḥsadṛśamā¿n?mano bhavanametadutthāpitaṁ harasya harahāsarūpamatimānamatya¿t?bhutam· || [9] śrīrājasiṁhapallaveśvare nāgendrabhogabhīmabhūpaṇaḥ [|] devāsurendrabṛndavandita sthāne sthitostu śaṁkaraściram· || [10] Asminnu¿t?vṛttaśatr¿a?dviradaghanaghaṭārājasihena rā(jñā) rājñāmā(jñāvi)dhe(yī)kṛtasakaladiśā nirmmite dharm¿mi?bhājā [|] śaile kailāsalīlāmapaharati gṛhe rājasiṁheśvarākhyāṁ bibhratyabhraṁlihāgre viracayatu sadā sannidhānaṁ vṛṣāṅkaḥ || [11] rājasiṁho raṇajaya⟨ḥ⟩ śrībharaścitrakārmukaḥ [|] Ekavīraściraṁ pātu (śi)vacūḍāmaṇirmmahīm· [|| 12]

Translation by Hultzsch 1890

(Verse 1.) May (Gaṅgā) purify you!—she who springs from the jewel (on the head) of Sthāṇu (Śiva), appearing . . . . . black by the splendour of (his) neck and red by the rays of the gems on the hoods (of his snakes), who fills the lake of the three worlds . . . . .

(2.) . . . . . After him (there was) that sage Aṅgiras, who was born from his (viz., Brahman’s) mind. His son was (Bṛihaspati) the minister of Śakra (Indra) and preceptor of the gods. His son was Śaṁyu. From him, who possessed terrible power and was honoured in the three worlds, there took birth that illustrious chief of sages, Bharadvāja by name, who became the source of the race of the Pallavas.

(3.) From this lovely one came Droṇa, the highly honoured preceptor of the Pāṇḍavas (and) Kurus; from him the great Aśvatthāman, who deprived princes of their constancy and pride. Just as the first-born Manu, his son, Pallava by name, became the founder of a race of brave and victorious kings, who enjoyed the whole earth:—

(4.) Of the Pallava princes, who were pious, who destroyed the excessively great pride of the Kali (age), who spoke the truth, who were profound, whose minds knew how to practise the trivarga, who assiduously honoured the aged, who foreibly subdued lust and the other internal foes, who excelled in the knowledge of weapons, who were firm, mighty and endowed with polity and modesty.

(5.) Just as Guha (also called Subrahmaṇya or Kumāra) took birth from the supreme lord (Śiva), the destroyer of the warlike (demon) Pura, thus from the supreme lord Ugradaṇḍa,1 who was born in the race of these (viz., the Pallavas), the destroyer of the city of Raṇarasika, there took birth a very pious prince (subrahmaṇyaḥ kumāraḥ), the illustrious Atyantakāma,2 the chief of the Pallavas, who crushed the multitude of his foes by his power (or spear), whose great statesmanship was well-known3 and who had got rid of all impurity (by walking) on the path of the Śaiva doctrine.

(6.) Like Manmatha (Kāma), he charmed refined women in secret; like Vāsava (Indra), he constantly protected those, who frequented the path of the three Vedas; like Mādhava (Vishṇu), he tore the hearts of the enemies of sages, twice-born and gods; and like Vittada (Kucera), he gratified good people with abundant wealth.

(7.) If in the Kṛita (age) kings like Dushyanta, who saw the gods and were engaged by (saints) like Kaṇva, would hear a heavenly voice without body, that is not a matter of wonder; but ah! this is extremely astonishing, that Śrībhara4 has heard that voice in the Kali age, from which good qualities keep aloof.

(8.) May Raṇajaya5 be victorious for a long time, who humbled those princes, who were puffed up with the pride of abundant prosperity, which they had acquired by polity and prowess, depriving them of their intelligence in the mere space of knitting his brows, and who, like Purushottama (Vishṇu), was born to rescue from the ocean of sin the sinking people, who were swallowed by the horrid monster, (called) the Kali age !

(9.) While this prince enjoyed the whole world, which he had conquered by valour combined with polity, and in which he had killed rebels and humbled kings, he erected this extensive and wonderful house of Hara (Śiva), which resembles his fame and the laughter of Hara.6

(10.) May Śaṁkara (Śiva), whose terrible ornaments are the coils of the king of serpents, and who is praised by the hosts of the kings of gods and of demons, reside for a long time in this temple, (called) the holy Rājasiṁha-Pallaveśvara !

(11.) May the bull-marked (Śiva) always lend his presence to this temple of stone, called Rājasiṁheśvara, which touches the clouds with its top, which robs Kailāsa of its beauty, and which was built by that pious king of kings, who made all quarters obedient to his orders and (who proved) a royal lion (Rājasiṁha) to the dense troops of the elephants of his daring foes!

(12.) May Rājasiṁha, the conqueror in battle (Raṇajaya), the bearer of prosperity (Śrībhara), the wonderful archer (Chitrakārmuka),7the unrivalled hero (Ekavīra), who has Siva for his erest-jewel (Śivachuḍāmaṇi),8 for a long time protect the earth !

Bibliography

Digital edition of SII 1.24 by Hultzsch 1890 converted to DHARMA conventions by Emmanuel Francis.

Primary

[SII] Hultzsch, Eugen Julius Theodor. 1890. South-Indian inscriptions, Tamil and Sanskrit, from stone and copper-plate edicts at Mamallapuram, Kanchipuram, in the North Arcot district, and other parts of the Madras Presidency, chiefly collected in 1886-87. Volume I. South Indian Inscriptions 1. Madras: Government Press. Pages 12–14, item 24.

Notes

  1. 1. This was also a biruda of Rājasiṁha himself; see No. 25, 30th niche.

  2. 2. The same biruda of Rājasiṁha occurs in No. 25, 1st niche.

  3. 3. Or ‘who was famed (by the name of) Bahunaya,’ which is found in No. 25, 3rd niche.

  4. 4. On this biruda of Rājasiṁha see note 5, below.

  5. 5. See note 5, below.

  6. 6. I.e., which is of white colour.

  7. 7. The birudas Raṇajaya, Śrībhara and Chitrakārmuka occur also in No. 25, 1st, 3rd and 18th niches.

  8. 8. I.e., who is a devotee of Śiva; compare page 5, note 10.