गुप्त अभिलेख संग्रह (जे. एफ. फ्लीट - गुप्त सम्राटों एवं परवर्ती नरेशों के ऐतिहासिक पाषाण व ताम्रलेख)

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 3, PLATE II B. 23
eighty-two (A.D. 401-2), and on the eleventh lunar day of the bright fortnight of the
month Âshâḍha (June-July). The cave appears to be a Vaishṇava cave; and this must,
therefore, be a Vaishṇava inscription. And the object of it is to record the gift or dedi-
in words and fully in figures, the number of the current year,—Êkâdaśasv=atîtêshu saṁvatsara-
śatêshu cha l êk-ôna-pañchâśati cha gatêshv=abdêshu Vikramât || Pañchâśê ch=Âśvinê mâsê kṛishṇa-
pakshê nṛip-âjñayâ | rachitâ Maṇikaṇṭhêna praśastir=iyam=ujjvalâ || Aṅkatô=pi 1150 ||
Âśvina-bahula-pañchamyâm,—"and when eleven centuries of years had passed by, and (in addition)
fifty years, less by one, had gone, from (the time of) Vikrama; and in the fiftieth (year); in the
month Âśvina; in the dark fortnight; by order of the king, this brilliant eulogy was composed by
Maṇikaṇṭha; or, in figures, (in the year) 1150, on the fifth lunar day of the dark fortnight of
Âśvina."—Excluding special and capricious instances, the inscriptions disclose the following general
and systematic constructions in the expression of dates.—(1) The use of the nominative singular or
plural, unaccompanied by any verb or participle. Instances of this are somewhat rare. But I can
quote (a) the Mathurâ image inscription (No. 70 below, Pl. xlD. l. 2), saṁvatsaraḥ 200 30; (b) the
Goa grant of Satyâśraya-Dhruvarâja-Indravarman (Jour. Bo. Br. R. As. Soc. Vol. X. p. 365,
l. 17 ff.), pravardhamâna-vijaya-râjya-saṁvatsaraṁ viṁśatitamaṁ Śaka-kâlaḥ=pañcha varsha-śatâni
dvitriṁśâni; (c) the Dighwâ-Dubaulî grant of the Mahârâja Mahêndrapâla (Ind. Ant. Vol. XV.
p. 113, l. 4), saṁvatsrâ (i.e. saṁvatsarâḥ) 100 50 5 Mâgha śu °li ° (d) the Bengal Asiatic Society's
grant of the Mahârâja Vinâyakapâla (id. Vol. XV. p. 141, l. 17), saṁvatsrô (i.e saṁvatsarô, for either
saṁvatsaraḥ or saṁvatsarâḥ) 100 80 8 Phâlguna ba di 9; and (e) the second date in the 'Deogarh'
inscription of Bhôjadêva of Gwâlior, dated Vikrama-Saṁvat 919 and Śaka-Saṁvat 784 (Archæol. Surv.
Ind. Vol. X. p. 101, and Pl. xxxiii. No. 2, l. 10), Śaka-kâl-âbda-sapta-śatâni chatur-aśîty-adhikâni 784.
And, for early times, we may compare, though they relate to years of government, instead of eras,
(f) the nominative in the Banawâsi Prâkṛit inscription of Hârîtîputra-Śâtakarṇi (Ind. Ant. Vol. XIV.
p. 333, l. 1), rañô Hâritîputasa ...... Sâtakaṁṇisa ...... savachharaṁ 10 2 Hêmaṁtâna
pakhô 7 divasa 1; (g) the nominative in the Râjim grant of the Râja Tîvaradêva (No. 81 below, Pl.
xlv. l. 35 f.) pravardhamâna-vijaya-râjya-saṁvatsaru 9 Kârttika divasu ashṭamu 8; and the
crude form in (h) the Âraṅg grant of the Râja Mahâ-Jayarâja (No. 40 below, Pl. xxvi. l. 24),
pravardhamâna-vijaya-saṁvatsara 5 Mârgaśira 20 5, and (i) the Râypur grant of the Râja Mahâ-
Sudêvarâja (No. 41 below, Pl. xxvii. l. 27), pravardhamâna-vijaya-saṁvatsara 10 Mâgha 9. Compare
also, for later times, the crude form in (j) the 'Dewal' inscription of Lalla of the Chhinda family
(Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. I. Pl. li. l. 24), saṁvatsara-sahasra 1049 Mâgha ba di 3 Gurudinê; in (k) a
Kôlâpur inscription of Siṅghaṇa II. (Indian Inscriptions, No. 47, l. 1 f.), Śrî-Śaka 1157 Manmatha-
saṁvatsarê Śrâvaṇa bahula 30 Gurau; and in numerous other instances.—(2) The use of the
nominative singular or plural, in apposition with an ordinal adjective, which, again, usually qualifies
the nâme of the saṁvatsara, of the sixty-years cycle, in the genitive case. This is a Drâviḍian
method, in constant use in Southern India. As typical and leading instances, I will quote, in re-
spect of the nominative singular, (a) a Baḷagâṁve inscription of Bijjala (Pâli, Sanskrit, and Old-
Kanarese Inscriptions, No. 183, l. 62), Śaka-varsham 1080neya Bahudhânya-saṁvatsarada Pushyada
puṇṇami Sômavârav=uttarâyaṇasaṁkrânti-vyatîpâta-sômagrahaṇad-andu; and, to illustrate a numer-
ous class of instances in which the crude form is used to represent the nominative singular, (b) a Baḷa-
gâṁve inscription of Sômêśvara II. (Ind. Ant. Vol. IV. p. 209, l. 30 ff.), Śaka-varsha 997neya
Râkshasa-saṁvatsarada Pushya śuddha 1 Sômavârad-andin=uttarâyaṇasaṁkrânti-parva-nimittadiṁ;
and, in respect of the nominative plural, (c) the grant of Gôvinda III. (id. Vol. XI. p. 126, l. 1 ff.),
Śaka-nṛipa-kâl-âtîta-saṁvatsara-śataṅgaḷ=êḷ-nûṟ-irpatt-âṟaneyâ Subhânu embâ varshadd Vaiśâ-
khamâsa-kṛishṇapaksha-pañchamî Brihaspativâram=âgi, and (d) the Adaraguñchi inscription of Koṭ-
ṭiga or Khoṭṭiga (id. Vol. XII. p. 256, l. 7 ff.), Śaka-nṛipa-kâl-âtîta-saṁvatsara-śataṅgaḷ=eṇṭu nûṟa
tombhatta-mûṟaneya Prajâpati-saṁvatsaraṁ saluttam-ire tad-varsh-âbhyantarad=Âśvayujad=ama-
vâse Âdityavâra sûrya-grahaṇa.—(3) The use of the locative singular or plural, with the corresponding
locative, in apposition, of atikrânta, atîta, gata, nivṛitta, prayâta, samatîta, vyatîta, yâta, or
any similar word, signifying 'elapsed, or gone by.' Thus, in respect of the locative singular, (a)
the first date of the Mandasôr inscription of Kumâragupta and Bandhuvarman (No. 18 below, Pl. xi.
l. 19), Mâlavânâṁ gaṇa-sthityâ yâtê śata-chatushṭayê | tri-navaty-adhikê=bdânâm=ritau sêvya-
ghana-stanê || Sahasya-mâsa-śuklasya praśastê=hni trayôdaśê; and (b) the Sâmâṅgaḍ grant of