Paḷḷivāḍa grant of Viṣṇuvardhana II

Editor: Dániel Balogh.

Identifier: DHARMA_INSVengiCalukya00011.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: Eastern Cālukya (tfb-vengicalukya-epigraphy).

Version: (37404d2), last modified (d8622e8).

Edition

Seal

⟨1⟩ śrī-viṣamasiddhi

Plates

⟨Page 1r⟩⟨left: 1⟩

⟨01⟩ @ ⟨02⟩ svasti

⟨1⟩ śrīmatāṁ sakala-bhuvana-saṁstūyamāna-mānavya-sagotrāṇāṁ ⟨2⟩ hāritī-putrāṇāṁ sapta-loka-mātr̥bhir mmātr̥bhir abhivarddhitānāM kārtti⟨3⟩keyānugrahāvāpta-kalyāṇa-parampar¿a?⟨ā⟩nāṁ bhagavan-nārāy¿ā?⟨a⟩ṇa-pra⟨4⟩sādāsādita-varāh¿ā?⟨a⟩-lāñcchanātmīkr̥tāśeṣa-bhūbhr̥tāṁ bhū-bhr̥tāṁ ivācala-sthi⟨5⟩tīnāṁ Aśvamedhāvabhr̥tha-snānāpanīta-kali-malānāṁ caḷukyānāṁ kulam a⟨Page 1v⟩⟨6⟩(laṁ)ka¿r?⟨ri⟩ṣṇoḥ śrī-kīrttivarmmaṇaḥ pranaptā sakalāvan¡ī!⟨i⟩-pati-makuṭa-taṭa-ghaṭita⟨7⟩-maṇi-mayūkha-puṁja-piṁjarita-caraṇa-yuga¡ḷ!⟨l⟩asya śrī-viṣṇuvarddhana-mahārājasya ⟨8⟩ naptā śakti-traya-s⟦ā⟧⟨⟨a⟩⟩māsāditāśeṣa-bhū-maṇḍalādhipateḥ sva-guṇā⟨9⟩nurakta-prakr̥ti-saṁpādita-sarvva-saṁpadaḥ śrī-jayasi⟨ṁ⟩ha-vallabha-¿v?⟨m⟩ahārājasya ⟨10⟩ priya-bhrātur a⟨⟨ne⟩⟩ka-yuddha-labdha-vijayālaṁkr̥ta-śarīrasyendra-bhaṭṭārakasya ⟨Page 2r⟩⟨left: 2⟩ ⟨11⟩ priya-tanayaḥ samadhigata-pañca-mahāśabdaḥ sakalendur iva sakala-kalādhi⟨12⟩ṣṭhāno vi⟦ṣa⟧ṣṇur iva śrī-nivāsaḥ śrīmān viṣṇuvarddhana-mahārājaḥ gudrahāra⟨13⟩-viṣaye Aṟutaṅkūrāśraye pa(ḷḷ)i(v)āḍa-grāmam adhivasataḥ ⟨14⟩ sarvvān evam ¿a?⟨ā⟩jñāpayati

yathā Asanapura-v¡a!⟨ā⟩s¿th?⟨t⟩avyasya kāśy¿ā?⟨a⟩pa-gotrasya ⟨15⟩ nūvucūṭṭi-trivedasya taittirīya-sabrahmacāriṇaḥ veda-vedāṁgetihā⟨Page 2v⟩⟨16⟩sa-purāṇa-nyāyāneka-dharmmaśāstr⟦ā⟧⟨⟨a⟩⟩-vidaḥ Agniṣṭomādi-pauṇḍarīka-pa⟨17⟩ryyantāneka-kratu-yaṣṭuḥ dhruvaśarmmaṇaḥ pautrāya veda-vedāṁga-vidaḥ ⟨18⟩ doci(śa)rm(m)a(ṇaḥ pu)t(r)āya Adhīta-veda-dvayāya dhruvaśarmmaṇe ⟨19⟩ Asmin grāme A(s)mat-puṇyābhivr̥{r}ddhaye ¿A?⟨Ā⟩tmano vijaya-rājya-pañca⟨20⟩me saṁ¡vv!⟨v⟩atsare phā(l)gu¡ṇ!⟨n⟩a-māse AmāvāsyāyāM sūryya-gra⟨ha⟩ṇa-nimi

Apparatus

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Plates

⟨3⟩ -nārāy¿ā?⟨a⟩ṇa- • According to Fleet’s note, the superfluous ā marker was partially erased. Based on the photos of the cleaned original plate, this does not seem to be the case. Nonetheless, Fleet may be correct; for the premodern correction of śāstrā to śāstra in line 16, he notes that the correction was made by paring down the copper on both sides of the unwanted stroke, but in the estampage, only the stroke is visible. In the photo of that locus, a thinning of the superfluous stroke is clear, and the surface around it seems slightly different from the rest of the surface. None of these signs are, however, discernible here.

⟨4⟩ -varāh¿ā?⟨a⟩- ⬦ -varāha- JFF • The superfluous ā may have been corrected in the original. — ⟨4⟩ -piṁjarita- ⬦ -pi⟨ṁ⟩ja{ṁ}rita- JFF.

⟨12⟩ vi⟦ṣa⟧◯ṣṇur • This line is above the hole, so regular-sized characters could have fit here. The engraver clearly started engraving ṣṇu (but got only as far as ṣa), then realised the subcript components would not fit, and therefore hammered out this character and started again to the right of the hole.

⟨14⟩ kāśy¿ā?⟨a⟩pa- ⬦ ¿kaśyāpa?⟨kāśyapa⟩ JFF • The first ā is faint but clear in the photo of the original.

⟨18⟩ dhruvaśarmmaṇe • After this word, there are three faint dots one below the other. These may be random, but it is also possible that an initially engraved ṇaḥ was corrected to ṇe by cancelling the visarga and adding a vowel mark.

⟨19⟩ -rājya- • Fleet’s edition omits this word, but his translation includes it.

⟨20⟩ -nimi • Restore -nimitte.

Translation by Dániel Balogh

Seal

Plates

(1–14) Greetings. The great-grandson of His Majesty Kīrtivarman, who was eager to adorn the family of the majestic Caḷukyas—who are of the Mānavya gotra, which the entire world praises, who are sons of Hāritī, who are cherished by the Mothers who are the mothers of the seven worlds, who have by the favour of Kārttikeya attained hereditary good fortune, who have turned all kings into their dependents by means of the Boar emblem acquired through the grace of the divine Nārāyaṇa, whose presence is as permanent as that of mountains, and who have cast off the filth of the Kali [age] by bathing in the purificatory ablutions (avabhr̥tha) of the Aśvamedha sacrifice—; grandson of His Majesty King (mahārāja) Viṣṇuvardhana, whose pair of lotus feet were engilded by a mass of beam clusters from gems fitted to the surfaces of the crowns of all (other) kings; dear son of Indra Bhaṭṭāraka, whose body was adorned by victories achieved in numerous battles and who was the beloved brother of His Majesty King (mahārāja) Jayasiṁha Vallabha, who reigned supreme (adhipati) over of the entire circle of the earth obtained by means of his three powers (śakti-traya), and whose wealth has been entirely consigned to his subjects (prakr̥ti) who [in turn] are impressed (anurakta) by his virtues; the majestic King (mahārāja) Viṣṇuvardhana (II), who has attained the five great sounds1, a vessel of all skills (kalā) as the full moon {is comprised of all its digits}, the abode of royal majesty (śrī) as Viṣṇu {is the shelter of (the goddess) Śrī}, commands everyone inhabiting the village Paḷḷivāḍa subordinate to (āśraye) (the town?) Aṟutaṅkūr in Gudrahāra district (viṣaya) [as follows]:

(14–20) To wit, in this village, in the fifth year of my victory (i.e. reign), at the new moon of the month of Phālguna, on the occasion of a solar eclipse, [I have donated] to Dhruvaśarman who has studied the two Vedas, son of Dociśarman, who was familiar with the Vedas and Vedāṅgas, grandson of Dhruvaśarman of the Kāśyapa gotra and the Taittirīya school, a nūvucūṭṭi scholar of the three Vedas and a resident of the monastery2 of Asanapura who was familiar with the Vedas, Vedāṅgas, Itihāsas, Purāṇas, Nyāya and numerous legal treatises (dharmaśāstra) and who performed numerous sacrifices from the Agniṣṭoma all the way to the Pauṇḍarīka, […]

Translation into French by Estienne-Monod 2008

Seal

Plates

(1–14) Prospérité ! l’arrière petit-fils de l’illustre Kīrtivarman, ornement de la lignée des Calukya, illustres, honorés dans l’univers entier, du même gotra que les descendants de Manu, fils de Hāritī, rendus prospères par les Mères, mères des sept mondes, doués d’une prospérité ininterrompue, octroyée par la faveur de Kārtikeya, qui eurent tous les rois sous leur pouvoir grâce au signe du sanglier, faveur accordée par le bienheureux Nārāyaṇa, demeures inébranlables comme les montagnes, eux dont les souillures de l’âge de Kali furent lavées par le bain purificatoire de l’aśvamedha, le petit-fils du grand roi illustre Viṣṇuvardhana, dont les deux pieds sont colorés par le rouge doré des faisceaux de rayons des pierres précieuses serties sur l’orbe des diadèmes des seigneurs de la terre entière, le cher fils d’Indra Bhaṭṭāraka, dont le corps est orné par les victoires remportées dans les nombreux combats, cher frère du grand roi illustre Jayasiṁha Vallabha, maître suprême du cercle entier de la terre, conquis grâce à [ses] trois pouvoirs, qui gagna toutes les richesses grâce à sa nature, qui fut attaché à la vertu, l’illustre grand roi Viṣṇuvardhana, qui a perçu les cinq grands sons,3 - il rassemblait tous les arts comme la pleine lune rassemble toutes ses portions,4 comme Viṣṇu, refuge de Śrī,5 - à tous ceux qui résident dans le village de Paḷḷivāḍa, mitoyen d’Aṟutaṅkūr, dans le viṣaya de Gudrahāra, ordonne ceci :

(14–20) au petit-fils de Dhruvaśarman, qui habite Asanapura, du gotra de Kaśyapa, disciple dans l’école de Taittirīya de Nūvucūṭṭi, qui connaît les trois Veda, qui connaît les Veda, les Vedāṁga, les Ithihāsa, les Pūraṇa, la doctrine du Nyāya et les nombreux Dharmaśāstra, qui a accompli de nombreux sacrifices, à commercer par l’agniṣṭoma,6 jusqu’au pauṇḍarīka,7 au fils de Dociśarman, qui connaît les Veda et Vedāṁga, à Dhruvaśarman, dans ce village, pour l’accroissement de nos mérites, la cinquième année de notre règne victorieux, au mois de Phālguṇa, le jour de la nouvelle lune, à l’occasion de l’éclipse de soleil.

Commentary

There is no image of the seal in either set of estampages consulted, and its text is reproduced here as reported by Fleet, without indication of any unclarity or loss. The first two plates of the grant are extant, the rest are lost. The writing starts on the recto of the first plate. Foliation numbers are in the left margin, roughly at the level of the binding hole, below the level of line 3 on plate 1, and at the baseline of line 3 on plate 2. The first plate begins with two short marginal lines distinct from the body text. Fleet does not read the mangala symbol (in the top left corner, aligned with l1) and prints svasti (aligned with l2) at the beginning of l1. I believe śrī belongs with the mangala symbol in the marginal field. The third text line begins directly below svasti; the first two lines are indented to make space for the opener; the second line’s indent is larger, because śrī encroaches on the space where this line could have been started.

Each extant plate has five lines.

Bibliography

Edited from the original by J. F. FLeet (1878), with estampages of the plates and translation. The date is revised in Fleet 1891, pp. 8–9. Subsequently noticed in Gai 1967, p. 49, appendices A/1962-1963, № 16. The present edition by Dániel Balogh is based on a collation of Fleet’s text with his published facsimiles and with photographs of the original taken by Arlo Griffiths at the British Library in 2016, as well as with inked impressions from Sir Walter Elliot’s collection.8

Primary

[JFF] Fleet, John Faithfull. 1878. “Sanskrit and Old Canarese inscriptions: No. XLIII.” IA 7, pp. 191–192.

Secondary

Fleet, John Faithfull. 1891. “The Chronology of the Eastern Chalukya Kings.” IA 20, pp. 1–15, 93–104, 266–285. Pages 8–9.

Gai, G. S. 1967. Annual report on Indian epigraphy for 1962-63. Delhi: Manager of Publications. Page 49, appendixes A/1962-1963, item 16.

Gaur, Albertine. 1975. Indian charters on copper plates in the Department of Oriental Manuscripts and Printed Books. London: British Museum Publications. Page 5, item Ind. Ch. 7.

Notes

  1. 1. The expression pañca-mahāśabda probably refers to being honoured by the sound of five musical instruments, but may also mean five titles beginning with “great”. See Fleet 1888, pp. 296–298, n. 9 for a discussion.
  2. 2. It seems likely that sthāna does not simply mean a place or locality here. In a discussion of the Puloṁbūra Grant, Sankaranarayanan (1977, p. 74) suggests that sthāna may be equivalent to ghaṭikā-sthāna, but the ghaṭikā is mentioned as clearly separate in the Niḍupaṟu Grant. I therefore assume that sthāna means a temple complex where Brahmans reside, semantically (though perhaps not physically) distinct from the ghaṭikā as an institution of learning.
  3. 3. Mention la plus ancienne de cette épithète et la seule appliquée à un roi (N. D. E.).
  4. 4. śabdaśleṣa reposant sur le mot kalā qui désigne les beaux arts, que connaît le roi, et les portions de la lune.
  5. 5. śabdaśleṣa reposant sur le mot śrī qui désigne la fortune du roi et l’épouse de Viṣṇu.
  6. 6. Sur ce sacrifice, cf. insc. n°8. Mentionné aussi in insc. nos 7 et 8.
  7. 7. Sur ce sacrifice, cf. insc. n°7. Mentionné aussi in insc. nos 8, 15, 16 et 20.
  8. 8. Scans of these impressions were obtained by Emmanuel Francis from the Edinburgh University Library, the Bibliothèque nationale de France and the British Museum.