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

66 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
Kahâum or **Kahâwaṁ,**¹ the ancient Kakubha or Kakubhagrâma of this in-
scription, is a village about five miles to the west by south of Salampur-Majhaulî,² the
chief town of the Salampur-Majhaulî Pargaṇâ in the Dêôriyâ or Dêwariyâ³ Tahsîl or Sub-
Division of the Gôrakhpur District in the North-West Provinces. The grey-sandstone
column on which the inscription is, stands a short distance on the north of the village.⁴
Of the sculptures on the column, the most important are five standing naked figures,
—one in a niche on the western face of the square base; and one in a niche on each side of
the square block immediately below the circular stone with an iron spike in it, which, the
original pinnacle having been lost, now forms the top of the column. As appears to have
been first fully recognised by Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji, these are distinctly Jain images.
He suggested that they represent the five favourite Tîrthaṁkaras,—Âdinâtha, Śântinâtha,
Nêminâtha, Pârśva, and Mahâvîra. And they are in all probability the five images of
Âdikartṛis, or Jain Tîrthaṁkaras, referred to in the inscription itself.
The writing, which covers a space of about 2′ 2½″ broad by 1′ 8″ high, is on the
three northern faces of the octagonal portion of the column; and the bottom line appears to
be about 7′ 6″ above the level of the ground. It is evidently in a state of excellent preservation
throughout.—The size of the letters varies from ⅜″ to ⅞″. The characters belong to the
northern class of alphabets, and are of the same type with those of the Allahâbâd posthu-
mous pillar inscription of Samudragupta, No. 1, p. 1 ff. above, Plate i.—The language is
Saṁskṛit; and, except for the opening word siddham, the inscription is in verse through-
out.—In respect of orthography, the only points that call for notice are (1) the use of
the dental nasal, instead of the anusvâra, before ś, in vanśa, line 2, and ttrinśat, line 4;
and (2) the usual doubling of k and t, in conjunction with a following r, e.g. in chakkrê,
line 9 (but not in śakrô, line 3), and puttrô, line 6.—My lithograph has been prepared
from a lithograph of the same kind, handed to me by Dr. Burgess, from which was
prepared the opposite lithograph, with the letters in black on a white ground, publish-
ed with Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji’s paper. One or two letters, imperfect in that litho-
graph, have been cleared out on the authority of General Cunningham's ink-impressions,
which, though not adapted for complete reproduction, sufficed for this purpose.
The inscription refers itself to the reign of the Early Gupta king Skandagupta.
It is dated, in words, in the year one hundred and forty-one (A.D. 460-61); and in the
month Jyêshṭha (May-June); but without any specification of the day of the month or fort-
night. As is shewn by the images in the niches of the column, as well as by the tenour of the
record itself, this is distinctly a Jain inscription. And the object of it is, to record that a
certain Madra set up five stone images of Âdikartṛis or Tîrthaṁkaras,—i.e. apparently
the five images in the niches of the column,—and the column itself, at the village of
Kakubha or Kakubhagrâma, i.e. Kahâum.
¹ The ‘Kahaon, Kahong, Kangho, and Kuhaon, of maps, &c. Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 103.
Lat. 26° 16′ N.; Long. 83° 55′ E.
² The ‘Sullempoor-Mujhowlee’ of maps.
³ The ‘Deorya’ of maps.
⁴ For a full description, with drawings, of the column and other remains at Kahâum, see Archæol.
Surv. Ind. Vol. I. p. 91 ff. and Plate xxix., and id. Vol. XVI. p. 129 f. and Plate xxix.