Texts

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: Ekāmbaranātha temple. Pillar inscription recording a list of birudas of Mahendravarman I Pallava.

Languages: Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu.

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy).

DHARMA_INSPallava00021.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: Donation of the village of Puḷusulūra to nine Brahmins.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy).

DHARMA_INSPallava00378.

G. Vijayavenugopal, Emmanuel Francis.

Language: Tamil.

Repository: Tamil Nadu (varia) (tfa-tamilnadu-epigraphy).

DHARMA_INSTamilNadu00448.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: ...

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy).

DHARMA_INSPallava00053.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: This inscription is engraved in Pallava-Grantha characters in a single line on the beams of the upper and lower verandahs of the rock-cut cave (plates III and IV.) It gives a long list of birudas, some of them obscure in their import, of the Pallava king Mahēndravikrama (I) with whose name the inscription commences. These titles are in Sanskrit, Tamil and Telugu and indicate the character, erudition and personal tastes of the king. Some of these birudas are also found in the upper cave at Trichinopoly (No. 8 above).

The rock-cut temple is described in the Memoir of the Archaeological Survey of India, No. 17, page 16.

Languages: Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Undetermined.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv12p0i0013.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: Like the previous record this inscription also enumerates a few birudas of Mahēndravarman I (plate IV.) As this inscription is found on a detached pillar, it is evident that it must have formed part of a structural temple of the time of Mahēndravarman I. which has now disappeared.

West face.

Languages: Sanskrit, Telugu.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv12p0i0014.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: Of the two monolithic caves, one at the foot and the other half-way up, of ‘the rock’ at Trichinopoly, the latter alone contains inscriptions, two of which, published in South Indian Inscriptions, Vol. I, pages 29 and 30, state that the cave (upper) was constructed by Guṇabhara (i.e.) Mahēndravarman I. A verse inscription (No. 9 below) engraved on the beam over the inner row of pillars here, calls the cave ‘Laḷitāṅkura-Pallavēśvara-gṛiham’ after the title ‘Laḷitāṅkura’ of this king, which also occurs in his record at Pallāvaram. His birudas are engraved in bold Pallava-Grantha and Tamil characters on all the pillars in the upper cave at Trichinopoly. The outer wall of the sanctuary in this cave seems to have contained an inscription, but only a few letters of its first line are now visible, the rest being completely damaged. The name ‘Mahēndravikrama’ is found mentioned in the inscription on the extreme left outer pillar and most of the birudas occurring here are also found in the records of this king at Pallāvaram and other rock-cut excavations of his time. Some of these titles are unintelligible and appear to be Telugu in origin. The bottom of each of the four pillars contains a biruda in the Pallava-Tamil characters, of which only two are now clear, viz. Piṇapiṇakku and Chitti[rakāra]ppuli.

It is of interest to note that the birudas are alphabetically arranged and so engraved on the front face of the pillars. The same arrangement, though followed in the Pallāvaram inscription, is not so conspicuous there as in the present record (plates I and II).

The characters employed in the present inscriptions are of an ornate nature and provide an interesting contrast with the simpler variety of letters found in the Pallāvaram record of the same king, where almost all these birudas are repeated.

A description of the cave is found in the Memoir of the Archaeological Survey of India, No. 17, pages 13-15.

Languages: Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Undetermined.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv12p0i0008.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: The subjoined five grants belong to the kings Narendra-mṛigarāja or Vijayāditya II, Amma I. or Vishṇuvardhana VI, Chālukya-Bhīma II. or Vishṇuvardhana VII, Amma II. or Vijayāditya V. and Vīra-Choḍa or Vishṇuvardhana IX. The place, which is occupied by each of these princes in the genealogy of the Eastern Chalukya dynasty, will be seen from the annexed table, for which all hitherto published Eastern Chalukya grants have been consulted, and in which numbers are prefixed to the names of those princes who really reigned, in order to mark their succession.¹

The relation of the two usurpers (18) Tālapa and (21) Yuddhamalla to the direct line of the family is established by three inscriptions:—a. Tāḍapa is called the son of Vikramāditya’s brother (Ind. Ant. Vol. XIV. p. 56); b. Tāla is called the son of Yuddhamalla, who was the paternal uncle of Chālukya-Bhīma I. (Ind. Ant. Vol. XIII, p. 249, where pitṛivya has to be read for pitṛivyo); c. Bhīma II, the son of Kollabhigaṇḍa Vijayāditya, is at the same time called the son of Yuddhamalla, the son of Tālapa, i.e., he belonged to the next generation after (21) Yuddhamalla (Ind. Ant. Vol. XII, p. 92).

Three of the last kings, who are shown in the annexed table, viz., (28) Vijayāditya VI, (29) Rājarāja II. and (30) Vīra-Choḍa, are only known from the subjoined inscription No. 39.

This grant belongs to the Sir W. Elliot Collection of the British Museum, and was made over to me for publication by Dr. Burgess. It consists of five copper-plates with raised rims. Each plate measures 9 by 3 inches. The first and fifth plates are inscribed only on their inner sides, while the three middle ones bear writing on both sides. The preservation of the plates is tolerably good. They are strung on an elliptic ring, which is (1/2)" thick and 4(7/8)" by 3(1/2)" in diameter. The well-preserved circular seal, which is attached to the ring, measures 2(5/8)" in diameter. It bears the sun and the moon at the top, the legend śrītribhuvanāṁkuśa across the centre, and an expanded lotus-flower (side-view) at the bottom—all in relief on a counter-sunk surface.

The document is a grant of the parama-māheśvara Narendra-mṛigarāja, alias Vijayāditya II., the son of Vishṇuvardhana IV. and grandson of Vijayāditya I. The name of the district (vishaya), to the inhabitants of which the king addresses his order, is lost. On the occasion of a lunar eclipse (chandra-grahaṇa-nimitte²) the king gave the village of Koṟṟapaṟṟu to twenty-four brāhmaṇas. Of these, six adhered to the Hiraṇyakeśi-sūtra and eighteen to the Āpastamba-sūtra. They belonged to the following gotṛas:—Agniveśya, Kauṇḍinya, Kauśika, Gautama, Parāśara, Bhāradvāja, Vatsa, Śāṇḍilya, Saṁkṛiti and Harita. According to the colophon of the grant, “the excellent prince Nṛipa-Rudra, who was the brother of Narendra-mṛigarāja and a descendant of the Haihaya-vaṁśa (!), (was) the executor of this charity.”³

[[genealogical table:]] PEDIGREE OF THE EASTERN CHALUKYA DYNASTY. [C1]Kīrtivarman (until Śaka 489). [C1]Satyāśraya Vallabha (from Śaka 532 until at least 556).⁴ [C2]1. Kubja Vishṇuvardhana I. Vishamasiddhi⁵ (18 years; cir. Śaka 526-27 to cir. 544-45). [C1]2. Jayasiṁha I. Vallabha (33 years; cir. Śaka 544-45 to cir. 577-78).⁶ [C2]3. Indra Bhaṭṭāraka.⁷ [C1]4. Vishṇuvardhana II. (9 years; cir. Śaka 577-78 to cir. 586-87.) [C1]5. Maṅgi-yuvarāja (25 years; cir. Śaka 586-87 to cir. 611-12). [C1]6. Jayasiṁha II. (13 years; cir. Śaka 611-12 to cir. 624-25.) [C2]7. Kokkili (6 months; cir. Śaka 625). [C3]8. Vishṇuvardhana III. (37 years; cir. Śaka 625 to cir. 662.) [C1]9. Vijayāditya I. Bhaṭṭāraka (18 years; cir. Śaka 662 to cir. 680). [C1]10. Vishṇuvardhana IV. (36 years; cir. Śaka 680 to cir. 716.) [C1]11. Vijayāditya II. Narendra-mṛigarāja (48 years; cir. Śaka 716 to cir. 764).⁸ [C1]12. Kali Vishṇuvardhana V. (1(1/2) years; cir. Śaka 764 to cir. 765-66.) [C1]13. Guṇaga, Guṇagāṅka or Guṇakenalla Vijayāditya III. (44 years; cir. Śaka 765-66 to cir. 809-10.) [C2]Yuvarāja Vikramāditya. [C3]Yuddhamalla. [C1]14. Chālukya-Bhīma I. Drohārjuna (30 years; cir. Śaka 809-10 to cir. 839-40.) [C1]15. Kollabhigaṇḍa, Kollabigaṇḍa or Kaliyarttyaṅka Vijayāditya IV. (6 months; cir. Śaka 840.) [C1]16. Amma I. Vishṇuvardhana VI. Rājamahendra (7 years; cir. Śaka 840 to cir. 847). [C1]17. Vijayāditya.⁹ [C1]18. Tāha, Tāla, Tāḍapa, Tālapa or Tāḻapa (1 month; cir. Śaka 847). [C1]19. Vikramāditya (11 months or 1 year; cir. Śaka 847 to cir. 848). [C2]20. Bhīma.¹⁰ [C1]21. Yuddhamalla (7 years; cir. Śaka 848 to cir. 855).¹¹ [C1]22. Chālukya-Bhīma II. Vishṇuvardhana VII. Gaṇḍamahendra, son of queen Meḻāmbā (12 years; cir. Śaka 855 to 867). [C1]23. Amma II. Vijayāditya V. son of queen Lokamahādevī, ascended the throne in Śaka 867¹² and reigned 25 years (to cir. Śaka 892). [C1]24. Dānārṇava or Dāna-nṛipa (3 years; cir. Śaka 892 to cir. 895). [C1]25. Aftor an interregnum of 27 years,¹³ Śaktivarman or Chālukyachandra reigned 12 years; circa Śaka 925 to circa 937. [C2]26. Vimalāditya married Kūndavā, daughter of Rājarāja of the Sūrya-vaṁśa and younger sister of Rājendra-Choḍa (7 years; cir. Śaka 937 to 944). [C1]27. Rājarāja I. Vishṇuvardhana VIII. married Ammaṅga-devī, daughter of Rājendra-Choḍa of the Sūrya-vaṁśa, ascended the throne in Śaka 944¹⁴ and reigned 41 years (to Śaka 985). [C2]28. Vijayāditya VI. received the kingdom of Veṅgī from his nephew Rājendra-Choḍa and reigned 15 years (Śaka 985 to 1000). [C1]Rājendra-Choḍa, alias Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva I, Kulottuṅga-deva or Rājanārāyaṇa, Choḍa king, married Madhurāntakī, daughter of Rājendradeva of the Sūrya-vaṁśa, and reigned 49 years (Śaka 985 to 1034). [C1]Vikrama-Choḍa (15 years; Śaka 1034 to 1049). [C2]29. Rājarāja II. (1 year; Śaka 1000 to 1001.) [C3]30. Vīra-Choḍa Vishṇuvardhana IX. ascended the throne in Śaka 1001; a grant¹⁵ is dated in the 21st year of his reign (Śaka 1022). [C4]Four other sons. [C1]Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva II. was reigning in Śaka 1056.¹⁶

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv01p0i0035.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: The original of the subjoined inscription belongs to the Government Central Museum, Madras. According to Mr. Sewell,¹ it “was found at the close of the year 1871 buried in the ground in a field in the village of Eḍeru near Ākiripalle in the Kistna District, 15 miles north-east of Bezvāḍa, a village belonging to the present Zamīndārī of Nūzivīḍu. The plates were presented to the Madras Museum by the then Zamīndār.” A rough transcript and paraphrase of the inscription were published by S. M. Naṭeśa Śāstrī.² As the inscription deserves to be published more carefully owing to its bearing on a part of the history of the Eastern Chalukyas, I now edit it from the original plates, the use of which I owe to the kindness of Dr. E. Thurston, Superintendent, Government Central Museum.

The document is engraved on five copper-plates with raised rims, which are not less than (1/4) inch thick. Each plate measures 9(1/4) by 4(1/4) inches. The first and fifth plates are inscribed only on their inner sides, while the three middle ones bear writing on both sides. The characters are extremely elegant and must have been engraved by an accomplished calligraphist. The plates are strung on a slightly elliptic ring, which is (1/2) inch thick and measures about 5 inches in diameter. The well-cut circular seal, which is attached to the ring, rests on an expanded lotus-flower and measures 3(1/4) inches in diameter. It bears, at the top, a recumbent boar, which faces the right and is surmounted by the moon and the sun, two chāmaras, an elephant-goad and a symbol which I cannot make out; across the centre, the legend śrītribhuvanāṁkuśa; and at the bottom, an expanded lotus-flower (side-view),—all in relief, on a counter-sunk surface. Both the plates and the seal are in excellent preservation.

The inscription opens with a maṅgala, and then notices in prose and in verse the ancestors of the Eastern Chalukya king Amma I. Of the kings from Kubja-Vishṇuvardhana to Vishṇuvardhana IV. nothing but the names and the length of reigns is mentioned. The next king was Vijayāditya II., who is called Narendra-mṛigarāja in other inscriptions. He fought 108 battles during 12 years with the armies of the Gaṅgas and Raṭṭas, built 108 temples of Śiva in commemoration of his victories and ruled over Veṅgī for 44 years (verses 2 to 4). As Mr. Fleet has pointed out,³ “the Gaṅgas here referred to were mahāmaṇḍaleśvaras, feudatories of the Rāshṭrakūṭas, whose inscriptions are found in the Beḷgaum and Dhārwāḍ Districts.” The Raṭṭas mentioned in the grant were the Rāshṭrakūṭas themselves. If we deduct the sum of the reigns of the Eastern Chalukya kings from Kali-Vishṇuvardhana to Chālukya-Bhīma II. from the date of the accession of Amma II.—Śaka 867⁴—the accession of Kali-Vishṇuvardhana and the death of his predecessor Vijayāditya II. would fall in Śaka 764. Most inscriptions assign to the latter a reign of 48 years, two inscriptions a reign of 40 years,⁵ and the subjoined inscription a reign of 44 years. Accordingly, his accession would fall in Śaka 716, 724 or 720. Hence the war between Vijayāditya II. and the Raṭṭas—as suggested by Mr. Fleet—may have taken place during the reigns of the two Rāshṭrakūṭa kings Govinda III. and Śarva Amoghavarsha, who ruled at least from Śaka 726⁶ to 737 and from 737⁷ till at least 800⁸ respectively. As, in a grant of Śaka 730,⁹ the lord of Veṅgī is described as the servant of Govinda III., and as in a grant of Śaka 789¹⁰ it is stated, that Amoghavarsha was worshipped by the lord of Veṅgī, it seems that each party claimed the victory over the other. The fact, that Vijayāditya II. built 108 temples of Śiva, is also alluded to in two other inscriptions, where it is said, that he founded 108 temples of Narendreśvara, i.e., temples of Śiva called after his surname Narendra.¹¹

Nothing of importance seems to have happened during the short reign of Kali-Vishṇuvardhana. His successor Vijayāditya III., who reigned from Śaka 765-66 to 80910, “having been challenged by the lord of the Raṭṭas, conquered the unequalled Gaṅgas, cut off the head of Maṅgi in battle, frightened the fire-brand Kṛishṇa and burnt his city completely” (verse 10.) The killing of Maṅgi and the burning of the city of Kṛishṇa is also reported in another inscription.¹² The Kṛishṇa, whom Vijayāditya III. defeated, is probably identical with the lord of the Raṭṭas, who challenged him, and with the Rāshṭrakūṭa king Kṛishṇa II., whose earliest known date is Śaka 825.¹³

After the death of Vijayāditya III., the Rāshṭrakūṭas, as noticed by Mr. Fleet, seem to have been victorious; for his nephew Chalukya-Bhīma I., alias Drohārjuna, who ruled from Śaka 809-10 to 839-40, had to reconquer “the country of Veṅgī, which had been overrun by the army of the Raṭṭa claimants” (line 28f.) The length of the reign of Vijayāditya IV., the successor of Chalukya-Bhīma I., is not mentioned in the subjoined inscription; according to other grants he ruled six months.

There followed the king, who issued the grant, Amma I., alias Rājamahendra or Vishṇuvardhana VI. He, “having drawn his sword, which broke the dishonest hearts of his feudatory relatives, who had joined the party of his natural adversaries, won the affection of the subjects and of the army of his father (Vijayāditya IV.)” and of his grandfather (Chalukya-Bhīma I.)” (line 39 ff.) The natural adversaries of Amma I. were probably the Rāshṭrakūṭas under Prabhūtavarsha III., whose inscription is dated in Śaka 842.¹⁴

The grant proper, which takes up the remainder of the inscription, is an order, which Amma I. addressed to the inhabitants of the Kaṇḍeṟuvāḍi-vishaya, and by which he granted the village of Goṇṭūru¹⁵ together with twelve hamlets to Bhaṇḍanāditya, alias Kuntāditya, one of his military officers. The donee belonged to the Paṭṭavardhinīvaṁśa. His ancestor Kāḻakampa had been in the service of Kubja-Vishṇuvardhana, the first of the Eastern Chalukya kings, and had killed a certain Daddara in battle. Bhaṇḍanāditya himself had already served the donor’s father, who is here called Vijayāditya-Kaliyarttyaṅka. The second part of this name corresponds to the Kollabhigaṇḍa or Kollabigaṇḍa of other inscriptions. The grant closes with the enumeration of the four boundaries of the village granted and of the names of the twelve hamlets included in it, and with two of the customary imprecatory verses.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv01p0i0036.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: The original of the subjoined inscription was kindly placed at my disposal by R. Sewell, Esq., then Acting Collector of the Kistna District, and was, at his desire, made over to the Central Museum, Madras, for safe custody. It was discovered recently, while digging a mound near the temple at Kolavennu, Bezvāḍa Tālluqa. The document consists of three copper-plates with raised rims. Each plate measures 9 1/4 by 4 5/8 inches. The first and third plates are inscribed only on their inner sides, while the second one bears writing on both sides. The writing on the third plate breaks off in the description of the boundaries of the granted village. As there is no trace of any letters after the words: yasyāvadhayaḥ pūrvataḥ, “the boundaries of which (are), to the east,” it seems that the document was left incomplete, perhaps because the necessary details of the surroundings of the village were not to hand, when the edict was issued. The plates are strung on a ring, which is 1/2 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. The circular seal, which is attached to the ring, rests on an expanded lotus-flower and measures 2 1/4 inches in diameter. It bears at the top a standing boar, which faces the right, with the sun and the moon over it, a chaurī and an elephant-goad on its left and a chaurī on its right; the centre of the seal is occupied by the legend śrītribhuvanāṁkuśa and its bottom by a lotus-flower with eight petals (bird’s-eye view),—all in relief on a counter-sunk surface. Both the inscription and the seal are in fairly good preservation.

The inscription opens with a maṅgala, which mentions the lotus-flower that rises from Vishṇu’s navel,¹ and then gives the usual vaṁśāvali of the Eastern Chalukyas from Kubja-Vishṇu to Vikramāditya, the younger son of Chālukya-Bhīma I. The ensuing reign of Yuddhamalla, the son of Tāḻapa, is left out. This omission is probably due to the fact, that Chālukya-Bhīma II. considered his predecessor, whom he conquered, as an usurper and ignored him purposely. The grant consists of an order addressed by Chālukya-Bhīma II. alias Vishṇuvardhana VII. to the inhabitants of the Kaṇḍeṟuvāṭivishaya² and issued at the request of a vassal of the king, the Pānara prince Vājjaya. On the occasion of a winter-solstice (uttarāyaṇa),³ Bhīma II. gave the village of Koḍhatalli as an agrahāra to Kommaṇa, who know the kramapāṭha (kramavid) and adhered to the Āpastamba-sūtra. The donce was the son of Deṇiya, who know the kramapāṭha (kramaka), and of Kandamavvā, and the grandson of Revaśarman, an inhabitant of Ābharadvasukālmādi.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv01p0i0037.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: Like the preceding inscription, this one was received from Mr. R. Sewell, who found it lying in the Huzūr Treasury attached to the Collector’s Office, Masulipatam, and was made over to the Madras Museum. The document consists of three copper-plates with raised rims. Each plate measures 7 3/4 by 3 3/4 inches. The first and third plates are inscribed only on their inner sides, while the second one bears writing on both sides. They are all much worn, and of the third plate one entire half is lost. The plates are strung on a ring, which is 3/8 inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. The circular seal, which is attached to the ring, rests on an expanded lotus-flower and measures 2 7/8 inches in diameter. It is much corroded, but still shows distinct traces of a standing boar, which faces the right, at the top, of the legend śrītribhuvanāṁkuśa across the centre, and of a lotus-flower with eight petals [bird’s-eye view] at the bottom—all in relief on a counter-sunk surface.

The document opens with the usual vaṁśāvali of the Eastern Chalukyas from Kubja-Vishṇuvardhana. The donor is Amma-rāja II. alias Vijayāditya V. (who began to reign in Śaka 867). The king addresses his order to the inhabitants of the Gudravāra-vishaya, which must be identical with the Gudrāvāra- or Gudrahāra-vishaya of other inscriptions.¹ The donee, whose name is lost, was the family priest (kulabrāhmaṇa) of the king and belonged to the Kauṇḍilya-gotra (sic). The object granted seems to have been a field, which had formerly belonged to the donee (etadīya-prāktana-kshetra), but had been taken away from him (vilupta) and was probably restored to him by the present document. The other details of the grant are lost.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv01p0i0038.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: The original of the subjoined grant belongs to the Sir W. Elliot Collection in the British Museum and was lent to me for publication by Dr. Burgess. It had been previously in the possession of the karaṇam of Chellūr, a village in the Cocanada: Tālluqa of the Godāvarī District: The grant consists of five copper-plates with raised rims. Each plate measures 5 3/4 by 10 1/4 inches. The first plate bears writing only on its inner side, while the remaining ones are inscribed on both sides. The preservation of the plates is fairly good; the fifth only is somewhat damaged. The ring, which bears the seal, has been cut. It is 5/8 inch thick and 6 1/4 inches in diameter. The well-preserved seal measures 2 5/8 inches in diameter. It rests on an expanded lotus-flower and bears in relief on a counter-sunk surface the legend śrītribhuvanāṁkuśa. Over the latter, it contains a boar, which faces the right and is surrounded by two lamp stands, two chāmaras, the sun and the moon, an elephant-goad and a conch. Below the legend, there is a drum (?), an expanded lotus-flower (bird’s-eye view), an emblem resembling what Mr. Fleet supposes to be a makara-toraṇa,¹ and a svastika.

Abstracts of the present inscription have already been published by Sir W. Elliot.² It is the latest known document of the Eastern Chalukya a dynasty and possesses considerable interest, as it contains valuable details about the connection between the Eastern Chalukyas and the Choḷas and thus settles the dates of several kings of the last-mentioned dynasty.

The vaṁśāvali of the inscription consists of four parts:—

I. (Lines 1-16.) A genealogy of the lunar race down to Udayana, commencing with whom fifty-nine emperors are supposed to have reigned at Ayodhyā.

II. (Lines 16-28.) An account of five Early Chalukya kings, viz.:—

[[genealogical table]] Vijayāditya I., killed in a battle with Trilochana-Pallava. Vishṇuvardhana, married to a Pallava princess. Vijayāditya II. Pulakeśi-Vallabha. Kīrtivarman.

III. (Lines 28-46.) The usual succession of the Eastern Chalukyas of Veṅgī from Kubja-Vishṇuvardhana to Vimalāditya.

IV. (Lines 46-78.) An account of the later Eastern Chalukyas during their connection with the Choḷas, viz.:—

[[genealogical table]] [C1]Vimalāditya. [C1]Rājarāja I. [C2]Vijayāditya. [C1]Rājendra-Choḍa, alias Kulottuṅga-deva or Rājanārāyaṇa. [C1]Two sons, of whom one was Rājarāja II. [C2]Vīra-Choḍa, alias Vishṇuvardhana. [C3]Four other sons.

The first and second parts of the vaṁśāvali need not be treated in detail, as the first is entirely mythical, and Mr. Fleet considers the second to be “a mere farrago of vague tradition and Purāṇik myths, of no authority, based on the undoubted facts that the Chalukyas did come originally from the north, and did find the Pallavas in possession of some of the territories afterwards acquired by themselves, and on a tradition of the later Kādambas that the founder of their family was named Trilochana or Trinetra.”³

The third part of the vaṁśāvali agrees with Mr. Fleet’s grants of Rājarāja I. and of Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva II.⁴ Just as in the grant of Rājarāja I. a reign of 3 years is allotted to Dānārṇava, who is here also called Dāna-nṛipa, and an interregnum of 27 years is stated to have taken place after him. There follow the reigns of his sons Śaktivarman (12 years) and Vimalāditya (7 years). No mention is made of the Choḷa princess Kūndavā, whom the latter married according to the grant of Rājarāja I.

We now turn to the fourth part of the vaṁśāvali. The son of Vimalāditya, Rājarāja, who ruled for 41 years (line 47), married Ammaṅga-devī, the daughter of a Rājendra-Choḍa of the solar race (verse 7). Their son Rājendra-Choḍa (verse 8), Kulottuṅga-deva (verse 11) or Rājanārāyaṇa (verse 12) at first ascended the throne of Veṅgī (verse 9), conquered Kerala, Pāṇḍya, Kuṇtala and other countries (verse 10), and was anointed to the Choḍa kingdom (verse 11). He married Madhurāntakī, the daughter of a Rājendra-deva of the solar race (verse 12) and had by her seven sons (verse 13). When he rose to the Choḍa kingdom, he had given the kingdom of Veṅgī to his paternal uncle Vijayāditya (verse 14), who died after a reign of fifteen years (verse 15). Then he gave Veṅgī to his son Rājarāja (verses 13 and 16) and, when the latter had returned after one year’s reign (verse 17), to Rājarāja’s younger brother Vīra-Choḍa (verse 18), who was crowned at Jaganātha-nagarī⁵ (verse 20) in Śaka 1001 (verse 21). As the difference between this date and Śaka 944, the date of the accession of Rājarāja I. according to Mr. Fleet’s grant, is equal to the sum of the intervening reigns of Rājarāja I., Vijayāditya VI. and Rājarāja II. (41+15+1=57), it follows that Rājendra-Choḍa must have appointed Vijayāditya VI. viceroy of Veṅgī in the very year of his accession. The present grant of Vīra-Choḍa is dated in the 21st year of his reign, i.e., Śaka 1022, or 12 years before the death of his father Rājendra-Choḍa and before the accession of his elder brother Vikrama-Choḍa.

The chief importance of the Chellūr plates consists in the light, which they throw on a portion of the history of the Choḷa dynasty. The large Leyden grant and some of the Tamil inscriptions contained in the present volume mention three Western Chālukya kings, who were the antagonists of three Choḷa kings:—

1. According to the large Leyden grant, Rājarāja-deva (see Nos. 40, 41 and 66, below) conquered Satyāśraya. This was probably the Western Chālukya king Satyāśraya II. (Śaka 919 to about 930.) Consequently, Rājarāja-deva may be identified with that Rājarāja of the Sūryavaṁśa, whose daughter Kūndavā was married to the Eastern Chalukya king Vimalāditya (Śaka 937 (?) to 944). With this agrees the Koṅgu Chronicle, which places Rājarāja’s reign about Śaka 926.

2. According to Nos. 67 and 68, below, Rājendra-Choḷa-deva conquered Jayasiṁha. This was the Western Chālukya king Jayasiṁha III. (about Śaka 940 to about 964), who, in one of his inscriptions, calls himself “the lion to the elephant Rājendra-Choḷa” (see the introduction to No. 37). Consequently, Rājendra-Choḷa-deva must be identified with that Rājendra-Choḍa of the Sūryavaṁśa, whose daughter Ammaṅga-devī was married to the Eastern Chalukya king Rājarāja I. (Śaka 944 to 985), and who may be the same as that Rājendra-Choḍa, whose younger sister Kūndavā was married to Vimalāditya (Śaka 937 (?) to 944). If the last identification is correct, Rājendra-Choḷa-deva would have been the son of Rājarāja-deva.

3. According to the fragmentary inscription No. 127, below, and according to an inscription at Māmallapuram, Rājendra-deva conquered Āhavamalla. This was probably the Western Chālukya king Āhavamalla II. or Someśvara I. (about Śaka 964 to about 990), who, according to inscriptions and according to the Vikramāṅkacharita, fought with the Choḷas. Consequently, Rājendra-deva may be identified with that Rājendra-deva of the Sūryavaṁśa, whose daughter Madhurāntakī was married to the Eastern Chalukya king Rājendra-Choḍa or Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva I. (Śaka 985 to 1034.) The inscriptions do not inform us, in what manner Rājendra-deva was related to his predecessor Rājendra-Choḷa-deva.

The subjoined table will show at a glance all supposed synchronisms:—

[[genealogical table]] [C1]Western Chālukyas. [C2]Choḷas (Sūryavaṁśa). [C3]Eastern Chalukyas (Somavaṁśa). 1. Satyāśraya II. fought with Rājarāja-deva, who was the father-in-law of Vimalāditya [C1](Śaka 919 to about 930.) [C2](about Śaka 926.) [C3](Śaka 937 (?) to 944). 2. Jayasiṁha III. fought with Rājendra-Choḷa-deva, who was the father-in-law of Rājarāja I. [C1](about Śaka 940 to about 964.) [C2](Śaka 944 to 985.) 3. Āhavamalla II. fought with Rājendra-deva, who was the father-in-law of Rājendra-Choḍa or (about Śaka 964 to about 990.) [C2]Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva I. (Śaka 985 to 1034.)

In order to prevent its re-occurrence, I conclude with alluding to the in all previous pedigrees of the Choḷas. This was the confounding of the two Choḷa kings Rājarāja and Rājendra-Choḷa with their Eastern Chalukya grandsons, who seem to have received their names from those of their maternal grandfathers. In reality the Eastern Chalukya king Rājarāja I. ruled only over Veṅgī. His son Rājendra-Choḍa or Kulottuṅga-Choḍa-deva I., though at first king of Veṅgī, seems to have inherited the Choḷa kingdom from his father-in-law, the Choḷa king Rājendra-deva, in Śaka 985.

After the vaṁśāvali, the subjoined inscription contains the grant itself. It is an order, which was addressed by the paramamāheśvara Vīra-Choḍa-deva (line 79), alias Vishṇuvardhana (line 78) to the inhabitants of the Guddavāṭi-vishaya⁶ (line 80). In the 21st year of his reign (line 113) the king gave a village of the above-mentioned district, whose name is indistinct, but seems to have been Kolāṟu⁷ (line 103), to a temple of Vishṇu at the agrahāra of Chellūru.⁸ This Vishṇu temple had been founded (verse 36) by the king’s senāpati (verse 30) Meḍamārya (verse 27), alias Guṇaratnabhūshaṇa (verse 29), who had also constructed a pond at the same village of Chellūru (verse 34) and founded two sattras at Drākshārāma⁹ and Pīṭhapurī¹⁰ (verse 33). He was the son of Potana of the Mudgalagotra (verse 24), who had received from Rājarāja¹¹ the somewhat lengthy title of Rājarāja-brahma-mahārāja (verse 25), by Kannamāmbā (verse 26). The edict ends with the statement, that its executors (ājñapti) were the five ministers (pañcha pradhānāḥ), and with the names of the composer and the writer.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv01p0i0039.

Emmanuel Francis.

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv05p1i0001.

Emmanuel Francis.

Languages: Sanskrit, Telugu.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv05p1i0002.

Emmanuel Francis.

Language: Telugu.

Repository: South Indian Inscriptions (Original Edition) (south-indian-inscriptions).

DHARMA_INSSIIv05p1i0004.

Emmanuel Francis.

Summary: ...

Language: Sanskrit.

Repository: Pallava (tfa-pallava-epigraphy).

DHARMA_INSPallava00045.