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

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 21. 97
Vaiśâkha saṁvatsara; on the third lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month
Kârttika,—on this (lunar day), (specified) as above by the day (&c.),¹—
(Line 3.)—By the Mahârâja, the illustrious Hastin,—who is born in the family of
a kingly ascetic;²—who is the great-grandson³ of the Mahârâja Dêvâdhya;⁴—who
is the grandson of the Mahârâja Prabhañjana;—who is the son of the Mahârâja
Dâmôdara;—who is the giver of thousands of cows, and elephants, and horses, and gold,
and many lands;—who is earnest in paying respect to (his) spiritual preceptor and (his)
father and mother;—who is extremely devoted to the gods and Brâhmans;—who has been
victorious in many hundreds of battles;—(and) who causes the happiness of his own race,—
(L. 7.)—(By him),—for the purpose of increasing his own religious merit, (and) in
order to cause (himself) to ascend by the steps of the ladder that leads to heaven,—the
village of Vasuntarashaṇḍika is granted to the Brâhmaṇ Gôpasvâmin, of the Vâja-
sanêya-Mâdhyamdina (śâkhâ) and the Kautsa gôtra, and to Bhavasvâmin, Sandhyâputra,
Divâkaradatta, Bhâskaradatta, and Sûryadatta.
(L. 11.)—On all sides (there are) trenches (of demarcation);⁵ (and) on the north by
the west, the boundaries are those that have been previously enjoyed. (This village is
made the property) of Sandhyâputra and the others, with the udranga⁶ and the upari-
It also occurs, governing a dative case, at the end of the Mandasôr inscription of Kumâragupta and
Bandhuvarman, No. 18, page 84 above, line 24; and as a neuter noun, signifying ‘prosperity,’ in
conjunction with astu, ‘let there be,’ the two together governing a dative, at the end of the Êraṇ
pillar inscription of Budhagupta, No. 19, page 89 above, line 9, and at the end of the Êraṇ inscrip-
tion of Tôramâṇa, No. 36 below, Plate xxiiiA. line 8.
¹ The text (line 3) has asyâñ=divasa-pûrvvâyâṁ, in apposition with which tithau has to be
supplied.—The same expression was used in the Gaḍhwâ inscription of Chandragupta II No. 7,
page 37 above, line 2 f.; and it occurs in other places also.—But the fuller and more formal
expression was asyâṁ saṁvatsara-mâsa-divasa pûrvâyâṁ, “on this (lunar day), (specified as above
by the saṁvatsara (or year) and month and day,” which occurs, for instance, in the Majhgawâṁ grant
of the Mahârâja Hastin of the year 191, No. 23 below, Plate xiv. line 2 f Another variety of the
expression is asyâñ=divasa-mâsa-saṁvatsar-ânupûrvvyâṁ, in the Shâhpur image inscription of Âdi-
tyasêna, No. 43 below, Plate xxixA. line 2.—In the Bilsaḍ pillar inscription of Kumâragupta, No. 10
page 44 above, line 7, we have asyâṁ=divasa-pûrvvâyâṁ, without the specification of any details
except the year
² See page 95 above, note 1.
³ In this and the other three formal inscriptions of this family, Nos. 22, 23, and 25 below,
pranaptṛi and naptṛi are used, instead of the more customary and stricter terms, prapautra, or ‘son
of a son’s son,’ and pautra, ‘son’s son;’ see page 15 above, note 3. Pranaptri and naptri
may denote, at any rate in early times, descendants through a daughter, as well as through a son;
and I therefore translate them by the less binding expressions of ‘great-grandson’ and ‘grandson.’
We may, however, assume with safety that they are used here to denote descendants through sons.
⁴ F. E. Hall (Jour. Beng. As. Soc. Vol. XXX. p. 6, and p. 8, note) read this name as Dêvâhya, and
rejected H. H. Wilson’s reading of Dwrhya (which is evidently a misprint for Dêvârhya, i.e. Dêvâḍhya)
with the remark—“in both inscriptions, the name is most legibly incised; and Mr. Thomas’ deciphe-
ments bear out my lection unhesitatingly.” The fact remains, however, that in all the three inscrip-
tions of Hastin, and in the inscription of Saṁkshôbha, the name is unmistakably Dêvâḍhya; as,
indeed, would be recognised at once by any careful reader, acquainted with Sanskrit, since ahya or
âhya is no real word or termination at all; and Prof. H. H. Wilson was right, and Dr. FitzEdward
Hall was wrong.
⁵ garta; lit. ‘a hollow, a hole, a cave.
⁶ udranga is a technical fiscal term.—Dr. Bühler has brought to notice (Ind. Ant. Vol. XII.
p. 189, note 39) that in the Śâśvatakôsha, Zachariæ’s edition, pp. xxix., 260, it is explained by uddhâra
O.