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

212 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL III.
TEXT.¹
No. 44.
1 Ôm Paramabhaṭṭâraka-mah[â]r[â]jâdh[i]r[â]ja-
2 śrî-Âditya²sênadêva-dayit[â] parama-
3 bhaṭṭârik[â]-r[â]j[ñ]i-mah[â]d[ê]v[î]-śrî-[Kô]ṇad[ê]v[î]
4 pushkariṇî-kîrttim=im[â]n=k[â]r[i]tava[tî] [॥*]
No. 45.
1 Ôm Paramabhaṭṭâraka-mah[â]r[â]j[â]dhirâja-śrî-Âd[i]tya³sênadêva-
day[i]tâ
2 paramabhaṭṭârik[â]-r[â]jñî-mahâd[ê]vî-śrî-K[ô]ṇad[ê]vî pu[shkariṇî-
kîrt]t[i]m-im[â]n-kâritavatî [॥*]
TRANSLATION.
Ôm ! The Paramabhaṭṭârikâ,⁴ the queen,⁵ the Mahâdêvî, the glorious Kôṇadêvî,—
the dear wife of the Paramabhaṭṭâraka and Mahârâjâdhirâja, the glorious Âditya-
sênadêva,—caused to be made this famous work⁶ of a tank.
¹ From Mr. Beglar’s rubbing of No. 44, and Dr. Buchanan’s published lithograph of No. 45.
² Read śry-Âditya. ³ Here, again, read śry-Âditya.
⁴ Paramabhaṭṭârikâ, lit. ‘she who is supremely entitled to respect or veneration,’ is the femi-
nine of paramabhaṭṭâraka (see page 17 above, note 3); it was one of the customary technical titles
of the wives of paramount sovereigns.
⁵ râjñî; also in line 2 ff. of the following Dêô-Baraṇârk inscription of Jîvagupta II.—The word is
only the feminine form of râjan; but it does not seem to have been so exclusively and technically
used as a subordinate feudatory title, in the way in which râjan was used. In the present day also
Rânî, which is the Prâkrit form of râjñî, is the proper title of a wife of a Râjâ, but is also used,
equally with Mahârânî, as a title of the Queen-Empress of England and India.
⁶ kîrtti.—Mr. K. T. Telang (Ind. Ant. Vol. IX p. 36, note 13) first brought to notice, on the
authority of Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji, that in certain connections kîrtana has the meaning of ‘a
temple;’ e.g. in line 18 of the Khârêpâṭaṇ grant of Anantadêva, dated Śaka-Saṁvat 1016 (id. p.
34), which he was then editing.—This was supported by Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar (id. Vol. XII. p.
228 f.); who, in pointing out the error into which, from not being aware of this meaning of the word,
I had fallen in translating the passage in lines 14 f. of the Barôda grant of Kakka II., dated Śaka-
Saṁvat 734 (id. Vol. XII. p. 159), was able to quote three passages from the Agni-Purâṇa (in the
Bibliotheca Indica, Vol. I p. 111), Bâṇa’s Kâdambarî, and Sômêśvara’s Kîrttikaumudî, in which the
word evidently has the same meaning.—And to these instances I have since been able to add the
‘Dudahi’ inscriptions of Dêvalabdhi (id. Vol. XII. p. 289), and the Udayagiri inscription, dated
Vikrama-Saṁvat 1093 (id. Vol. XIII. p. 185).—On the analogy of these authorities, there is every reason
for allotting the same meaning, when required, to kîrtti, which is a derivative from the same root.
Dr. Bhandarkar has, however, recently suggested to me that kîrtti and kîrtana are hardly to be
actually translated by the word ‘temple,’ or by any other specific term; but denote generally ‘any
work, of public utility, calculated to render famous the name of the constructor of it.’ This is in
accordance with the etymology of the words, from the root kṛit, ‘to mention, commemorate,
praise.’ And the particular work referred to may be a temple, as in the instances quoted above; or a
tank, as in the present inscriptions; or anything else of a suitable nature.
Another passage in which kîrtti has the same meaning, though we have no information now
as to the specific nature of the work referred to, is in line 4 f. of an inscription on the right-hand
side pier in the porch of the temple of Vaidyanâtha at ‘Deoghar’ in the ‘Santâl’ Pargaṇâs in the
Bengal Presidency, edited by Dr. Rajendralala Mitra in the Jour. Beng As. Soc. Vol. LII. Part I

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 46, PLATE XXIX B 213

No. 46; PLATE XXIX B.

DEO-BARANARK INSCRIPTION OF JIVITAGUPTA II.

THIS inscription was discovered in 1880-81 by General Cunningham; and was first
brought to notice by him, in 1883, in the Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. XVI. pp. 68 and 73 ff.,
where he published a reading of the text, and a partial translation of it, supplied to him by
Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji, with a lithograph (id. Plates xxv. and xxvi.) from a photograph
by his Assistant, Mr. H. B. W. Garrick.
p. 190 f., No. 3. It is a Vaishṇava inscription; and, therefore, as pointed out by Dr R. Mitra, it does
not belong properly to the temple of Vaidyanâtha, which is a Śaiva shrine; and, from the conclud-
ing words, it seems to have been brought away from some building on the Mandâr Hill. I had no
opportunity of obtaining a proper impression of the inscription. But the one in the Society's library
suffices to shew that Dr R. Mitra's version of the text, which I now give, with my own translation of
it, is correct:—

TEXT.

Śâstâ samudrânta-vasundharâyâḥ yashṭ=Aśvamêdh-âdya-mahâ-
kratûnâm | Âdityasênaḥ prathita-prabhâ-
vô babhûva râj=âmara-tulya-têjâḥ || Mâghyâm Viśâkhâ-pada-
saṁyutâyâṁ Kritê yugê Chôla-purâd=a-
pêtya mahâ-maṇînâm=ayuta-trayêṇa trilaksha-châmîkara-ṭaṅkakêna ||
Ishṭv=âśvamêdha-trita-
yêna dattvâ . . . . . . . . . . . . kôṭi-yuktam | śrî-Kôshadêvyâ
sahitô ma? .â .chikarat
rttim=imâm sa sarvvâm || . . . vê . . . 'thêna vidhivat=
dvijêndraiḥ svayam yathâ vê . . . narêndraḥ |
kalyâṇa-hê . . .
tôr=bhuvana-trayasya chakâra saṁsthâṁ Nṛiharêḥ sa êva ||
Sthâpitô Balabhadrêṇa varâhô bhukti-mukti-
daḥ | svarg-ârthê pitṛi-mâtṝiṇâṁ jagataḥ sukha-hêtavê || Iti
Mandâragiri-prakaraṇaṁ ||

TRANSLATION.

There was a king, Âdityasêna, of renowned prowess, equal in glory to the
gods; the ruler of the (whole) earth up to the shores of the oceans; the performer
of the aśvamêdha and other great sacrifices. On the full-moon day of (the month)
Mâgha, coupled with the sign of (the lunar asterism) Viśâkhâ, in the Kṛita age,
—having arrived from the Chôla city,—having sacrificed with three aśvamêdha-
sacrifices, (and) having given away his own weight a thousand times over,
together with a crore of horses,—he, with (his) consort, the glorious Kôshadêvî,
caused to be made the whole of this famous work (kîrtti), with three myriads
of large jewels (and) three lakhs of gold (coins of the kind called) ṭaṅkakas.
Having consecrated (it) according to due rite (through the ceremonies performed)
by Brâhmans, just as if he, the king, himself (was laying out) the path of the
Vêdas, he made an establishment of (the god) Nṛihari, who is the cause of the
prosperity of the three worlds. A boar (i.e. the god Vishṇu in that form), the giver
of enjoyment and final emancipation, has been set up by Balabhadra, in order
that (his) parents may attain heaven, (and) for the happiness of the (whole)
world. Thus runs the chapter on the Mandâragiri.

214 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
**Dêô-Baranârk,**¹ or Dêva-Baranârk, the ancient Vâruṇikâ of this inscription, is
a village about twenty-five miles south-west of Arrah (properly Ârâ), the chief town of the
Shâhâbâd District in the Bengal Presidency. The inscription is on two contiguous faces
of a pillar in the entrance-hall of a temple on the west side of the village,² which has
apparently been adapted in modern times as a temple of the god Vishṇu.³
The writing, which covers a space of about 2' 3½" broad by 1' 4" high, has suffered
a great deal of injury from the weather, especially down the proper right side, where
many passages are hopelessly illegible; but fortunately the whole of the genealogy of the
Guptas of Magadha given in this inscription is intact, with the exception of the first three
syllables of the name of Mâdhavagupta, in line 2, which can easily be supplied. In lines
7 ff., however, there was a good deal of historical information that is not now quite per-
fect.—The average size of the letters is about ⁷/₁₆". The characters belong to the north-
ern class of alphabets, and are of almost the same Kuṭila type as those of the Aphsaḍ
inscription of Âdityasêna, No. 43 above, Plate xxviii.; but they do not shew the bent tails
of the letters quite so markedly.—The language is Saṁskṛit; and the inscription is in
prose throughout. In style, it follows the customary form of a copper-plate charter; not
of a stone-inscription.—In respect of orthography, we have to notice (1) the use of sh,
instead of the jihvâmûlîya or the visarga, in antashpâti, line 7; (2) the use of the dental
n, instead of the anusvâra, before s, in hansa, line 14; (3) the doubling throughout of t, in
conjunction with a following r; e.g. in ttraya, line 1; puttra, line 5; and mittra, line 16;
and (4) the use of v for b, in vâlâditya, line 13.
The inscription is one of Jîvitagupta II., of the family of the Guptas of Maga-
dha; and the charter recorded in it is issued from the fort of Gômatîkoṭṭaka. It is not
dated.⁴ It is an inscription of solar worship;⁵ its object being to record the continuance
of the grant of a village, either Vâruṇikâ or Kiśôravâṭaka, to the Sun, under the
title of Varuṇavâsin, a name which is of some interest, as apparently preserving the ancient
belief, in accordance with which varuṇa, lit. 'that which envelopes,' meant 'the all-encom-
passing sky, before it became the name of the ocean-god Varuṇa, who himself was ori-
The characters, called Maithila by Dr. R. Mitra, shew that this inscription is quite modern,
—certainly not earlier than the sixteenth century A.D.; and it must have been engraved when the
boar-statue of Vishṇu, spoken of in line 6, was set up by Balabhadra. I have thought it worth
while, however, to give the record in full, because, in my opinion, it so plainly contains a memorial
of the great Âdityasêna of Magadha. The antiquity of the allusion is indicated by its being referred
to the Kṛita age. And though the name of Âdityasêna's wife is here given as Kôshadêvî, instead of
Kôṇadêvî, this is to be explained by the usual inability of the people, then as now, to read correctly
the ancient characters of the inscription or other record from which the composer of these verses
obtained his information; and it is a mistake of the kind that corroborates, not invalidates, the
identification of Âdityasêna.
¹ The 'Deo-Barnârak, Deo-Barnârâk, Deo-Barunârak, and Deonar Narooh,' of maps, &c. Indian
Atlas, Sheet No. 103. Lat. 25° 15′ N.; Long. 84° 31′ E.
² See Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. XVI. Plates xxii. xxiii. and xxiv.
³ id. p. 69.
⁴ Gen. Cunningham read in it the date of 152, which he referred to the era of Harshavardhana of
Kanauj. But this arose only from a misunderstanding of the words sa-daśâparâdha-pañcha, in line
19.
⁵ It appears that two special festivals in honour of the sun still take place at Dêô-Baranârk, on
the sixth day of the bright fortnight of the months Chaitra and Kârttika (see Archæol. Surv. Ind.
Vol. XVI. p. 72).

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 46, PLATE XXIX B. 215
ginally looked upon as one of the twelve Âdityas, or forms of the sun, the offspring of
Aditi.¹
The importance of this inscription consists, first, in its continuation, for three more
generations, of the genealogy of the Guptas of Magadha, including the name of Dêva-
gupta, which, as will be seen hereafter, gives the clue to the date of the Vâkâṭaka
Mahârâjas; and secondly, in its recording the names of certain previous kings, who each
in succession had confirmed the grant. The names that are now legible are those of
Bâlâditya, who, as is known from the writings of the Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsiang,
played so important a part in connection with Mihirakula; Śarvavarman, who is evident-
ly the Maukhari king Śarvavarman, whose copper-seal we have in No. 47 below, Plate
xxxA.; and Avantivarman, who is probably the Maukhari Avantivarman, mentioned in
Bâṇa's Harshacharita as the father of Grahavarman who became the husband of Râjyaśrî,
the sister of Harshavardhana of Kanauj.²
Of the places mentioned in the inscription, Gômatikoṭṭaka, the fort whence the
charter was issued, must evidently be looked for somewhere along the river Gômatî, the
modern Gômti or Gumti, which, rising in the Shâhjahânpur District of the North-West
Provinces, passes Lucknow and Jaunpur, and flows into the Ganges about half-way between
Benares and Ghâzîpur, and about eighty-five miles to the west of Dêô-Baraṇârk. And
Vâruṇikâ is plainly the modern Dêô-Baraṇârk itself. In the modern name, the first
component is dêva, 'a god;' and the second, a corruption of Varuṇârka, evidently gives
the name of a later conception of the original god, embodying the attributes of the Sun
(arka) with those of Varuṇa.
TEXT.³
1 ..........⁴ [na]maḥ [||] Svasti Śakti-ttray-ôpâtta-jayaśabdân=mahâ-nau-
hâ(ha)sty-aśva-patti-sambhâra-durnivâraj=jaya-skandhâvârât Gômatikoṭṭaka-
samîpa-vâsa-
2 [kât] .....⁵ [śrî-Mâdhava]guptas=tasya puttras=tat-pâd-ânudhyâtaḥ
paramabhaṭṭârikâyâm râjñyâm mahâdêvyâm śrî-Śrîmatyâm=utpannaḥ
paramabhâgavataḥ śrî-Âditya[sê]-
3 [nadêvas=tasya] pu[ttra]s=tat-pâd-ânudhyâtaḥ paramabhaṭṭârikâyâm râjñyâm
mahâdêvyâm śrî-Kôṇad[ê]vyâm=utpannaḥ paramamâhêśvara-
paramabhaṭṭâraka-mahâr[â]j[â]-
4 [dhirâja-paramêśvara]-śrî-D[ê]vaguptad[ê]vas⁷=tasya puttras=tat-pâd-ânu-
¹ See, for instance, Monier Williams' Indian Wisdom, pp. 12 f. and 68; and Muir's Sanskrit
Texts, Vol. I. p. 27, note 42.
² See FitzEdward Hall's preface to the Vâsavadattâ, p. 52; and the Harshacharita, Kaśmîr
edition, p. 311 ff.
³ From the ink-impression..
⁴ Bhagwanlal Indraji supplied varuṇavâsi-bhaṭṭârakâya here. But only about five aksharas, or
at the most six, appear to have been destroyed.
⁵ Some sectarian title of Mâdhavagupta must have been destroyed here; but there seems hardly
room enough for paramabhâgavata or paramamâhêśvara.
⁶ Read śry-âditya.
⁷ This name of Dêvaguptadêva,—which is of considerable importance, from its bearing on the
date of the Vâkâṭaka Mahârâjas,—is very indistinct; but I agree with Bhagwanlal Indraji that it
can be read with sufficient certainty.

216 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
dhyâtaḥ paramabhaṭṭârikârikâyâ[ṁ*] râjñyâ[ṁ*] mahâdêvyâ[ṁ*] śrî-
Kamala¹dêvyâm=utpannaḥ paramamâhê-
5 [śvara-paramabhaṭṭâraka-ma]hârâjâ[dhi]râja-paramêśvara-śrî-Vishṇuguptadêvas=
tasya puttras=tat-pâd-ânudhyâtaḥ paramabhaṭṭârikâyâ[ṁ*] râjñyâ[ṁ*]
mahâdêvyâ[ṁ*] śrî-Ijjâ²dê[vyâ]·
6 [m=utpannaḥ parama .........³-parama]bhaṭṭâraka-mahârâjâdhirâja-paramêśvara-
śrî-Jîvita⁴guptadêva[ḥ*] kuśalî Nagara-bh[u*]ktau Vâlavî-vaishayika-
śrî-Vâ(?vô) ..
7 .............................. padra(?)lik(?ksh)-ântashpâti-V[â*]ruṇikâ-grama-
gôshṭh[â]na(?)kula-talâvâṭaka-dûta-sîmakarmakara-madyâ(?)-
8 .................................... taka-râjaputtra-râjâmattra⁵-maha ....
kshatika-mahâdaṇḍanâyaka-mahâpratîhâra-mah[â]sâ-
9 ............................. pra(?)mâtasâ ...... k[u]m[â]râmâtya-râjasthânîy·
ôparika- .................. dhika-chaurôddharaṇika-dâṇḍika-da(?dâ)ṇḍa-
10 [pâśika(?)] ......................................... ka .... rshṇi(?)vala - vyâyata -
Kiśô(?)ravâ(?)ṭa(?)ka(?)-g[r]âma-h ........... d . t ... vaṇikaga .... pati-
karma(?)-
11 ...................... rasaka ............. t-âsmat-[p]âda-prasâd-ôpajîvinaś=cha
prativ[â]sinaś=cha vrâ(bra)hmaṇ-ôttarâ[n*] mahattara-ka(?ku)kshi(?)pura-
12 ............................................... vijñâpita-śrî-Varuṇavâsi-
bhaṭṭâraka-prativa(ba)ddha-bhôjaka-Sûryamittrêṇa upari-likhi-
13 [ta] .................................... grâm-âdi-saṁyutaṁ paramêśvara-
śrî-Vâ(bâ)lâdityadêvêna sva-śâsanêna bhagava-śrî⁶-Varuṇavâsi-
bhaṭṭâraka ..
14 ..................... ka ......... va-parivâ(?)haka ...... bhôjaka-Hansa-
mittrasya samâpat[t*]yâ yathâkâl-âdhyâsibhiś=cha êvaṁ paramêśvara-
15 śrî-Śarvvavarmma ....................... bhôjaka-Rishi⁷mittra ...... yatakaṁ
êvaṁ paramêśvara-śrî[ma*]d-Avantivarmmaṇâ pûrvva-dattakam· avala-
16 [mbya] ....................... êvaṁ mah[â*]râ[jâdhirâ*]ja-paramêśvara-
................... śasana-dânêna bhôjaka-Durddha(?)ra(?)mittrasy=
ânumô-
17 [dita] ...................... tê(?)na(?) bhu(?)jyatê(?) [|] tad=aham
kimapi(?) .... êvaṁ ........ matimân ........ ânupâ(mô)ditam=iti
sa(?)rvva(?)-samâjñâpa(?)nâ(?) [|] êtâ ..
18 ........................................... payu ....................
....... Varuṇavâsy-âyatanaṁ tad=anu dattam ....
¹ Bhagwanlal Indraji read kumâra; but the three aksharas are distinctly kamala.
² Read sr-Îjjâ. ³ Either bhâgavata or mâhêśvara is illegible here.
⁴ Bhagwanlal Indraji read savitri; but the three aksharas are distinctly jîvita, as, in fact, was
recognised by Gen. Cunningham (Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. XVI. pp. viii., 68).
⁵ Read râjâmâtya. ⁶ Read bhagavach-chhrî.
⁷ Read bhôjaka-rishi; or, according to the more usual custom, bhôjak-arshi.—In the case of a
final a, followed by an initial ṛi, it is usual to join the vowels in regular saṁdhi. But Dr. Hultzsch
has drawn my attention to the fact that the commentary on Pâṇini, vi. 1, 128, rity=akaḥ, states
that the saṁdhi here is in accordance with the opinion of Śâkalya, and thus seems to intimate that,
according to other grammarians, the saṁdhi is optional, and a hiatus is equally permissible.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 46, PLATE XXIX B. 217
19 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . tyaksha . . . . . . . . . . . . .
s-ôdraṅgaṁ s-ôparikaraṁ sa-daśâparâdha-pañcha . .
20 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [॥*]
TRANSLATION.
Reverence to . . . . . . . . .! Hail! From the victorious camp, possessed of shouts of
victory acquired by the three constituents of power,¹ (and) invincible through (its)
equipment of great ships and elephants and horses and foot-soldiers, (and) situated near
the fort of Gômatikoṭṭaka :—
(Line 2.)—(There was) . . . . . . . . the illustrious Mâdhavagupta. His son, who
meditated on his feet, (was) the most devout worshipper of the Divine One, the glorious
**Âdityasênadêva,**² begotten on the Paramabhaṭṭârikâ, the queen,³ the Mahâdêvî, the
glorious Śrîmatîdêvî.
**(L. 3.)—**His son, who meditated on his feet, (was) the most devout worshipper of
(the god) Mahêśvara, the Paramabhaṭṭâraka, Mahârâjâdhirâja, and [Paramêśvara], the
glorious **Dêvaguptadêva,**⁴ begotten on the Paramabhaṭṭârikâ, the queen, the Mahâdêvî,
the glorious Kôṇadêvî.
**(L. 4.)—**His son, who meditated on his feet, was the most devout worshipper of (the
god) Mahêśvara, the [Paramabhaṭṭâraka], Mahârâjâdhirâja, and Paramêśvara, the
glorious Vishṇuguptadêva, begotten on the Paramabhaṭṭârikâ, the queen, the
Mahâdêvî, the glorious **Kamaladêvî.**⁵
**(L. 5.)—**His son, who meditates on his feet, the most devout worshipper of . . . . . . . .,
the Paramabhaṭṭâraka, Mahârâjâdhirâja, and Paramêśvara, the glorious Jîvita-
guptadêva⁶ (II.),—[begotten] on the Paramabhaṭṭârikâ, the queen, the Mahâdêvî, the
glorious **Ijjâdêvî,**⁷—being in good health, [issues a command] to the herdsmen,
Talavâṭakas,⁸ messengers,⁹ makers of boundaries,¹⁰ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
¹ śakti-traya.—The three śaktis, or ‘constituents of regal power,’ are prabhutva, ‘majesty;’
mantra, ‘good counsel;’ and utsâha, ‘energy.’
² The omission, in the case of Âdityasêna, of the paramount titles,—which are duly attached to his
name in the Mandâr Hill inscriptions, Nos. 44 and 45 above, page 211, and to the names of his mother
and wife, and all his successors, in the present inscription,—is rather peculiar.
³ râjñî; see page 212 above, note 5.
⁴ See page 215 above, note 7.
⁵ See page 216 above, note 1.
⁶ See page 216 above, note 4.
⁷ This is a Prâkṛit name, in which ijjâ represents the Sanskrit ijyâ, ‘a sacrifice.’—We have had
another Prâkṛit name of a female, in Ajjhitadêvî; e.g. in line 5 of the Kârîtalâî grant of the Mahârâja
Jayanâtha of the year 174, No. 26 above, page 117.
⁸ Talavâṭaka is an official title, the etymology and meaning of which are not apparent.—Dr.
Bhagwanlal Indraji, in his treatment of this inscription, read the word with the short vowel a in the
second syllable, and explained it as meaning the modern Talâṭî or Talâṭhî, ‘the village accountant;’
but of course some authority requires to be cited, before this explanation can be accepted.
⁹ Dûta; the word seems to denote here simply ordinary message-carriers or postmen; not the
special officers called Dûtakas, employed in connection with copper-plate charters (see page 100
above, note 3).
¹⁰ Sîmakarmakara.
2 E2

218 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
...... Râjaputras,¹ Râjâmâtyas, ............ Mahâdaṇḍanâyakas, Mahâpratîhâras,²
................................... Kumârâmâtyas, Râjasthânîyas, Uparikas,
................ Chaurôddharaṇikas,³ Dâṇḍikas,⁴ Daṇḍapâśikas, ............
.... of the village of Vâruṇikâ, which lies in the .. ............................
............ in the Nagara bhukti,⁵ (and) .. ............ belonging to the
Vâlavî vishaya, (and) to................... the village of Kiśôravâṭaka (?), which
was laid out by ....................,
and to those who subsist on the favour of Our feet, and to the neighbours, headed by the
Brâhmaṇs, (and) to the Mahattaras, ............................................
(L. 12.)—By the Bhôjaka⁶ Sûryamitra, belonging to (the establishment of) the divine
(god) the holy and sacred Varuṇavâsin, who was requested................... the
above-mentioned [village] .................... together with ...............and the
village, &c., was formerly bestowed by the Paramêśvara, the glorious Bâlâdityadêva, by
(his) own charter, ................ the divine (god) the holy and sacred Varuṇavâsin,
............ by restoration to the Bhôjaka Haṁsamitra, and by those who presided at
different times, viz. the Paramêśvara, the glorious Śarvavarman ..................
[to] the Bhôjaka Ṛishimitra......... by the Paramêśvara Avantivarman. In accord-
ance with this practice⁷ ................................. assent to its enjoyment by the
Bhôjaka Durdharamitra was giaen, by the grant of a charter, by the Mahârâjâdhirâja and
Paramêśvara.................; and it is now enjoyed by him.
(L. 17.)—“Therefore I [now announce] that it is assented to ....................
......; such is (my) command to all people. ................................
...... the altar of (the god) Varuṇavâsin; after that, there is given .................
............................. with the udraṅga and the uparikara, with (the proceeds of
fines for) the ten offences, the five.......................................
¹ Râjaputra means literally ‘a king’s son, a prince;’ but, as used in such passages as the pre-
sent, it evidently has some technical official meaning, differing from this. In the modern Prâkṛits we
have, in Marâṭhî, râut or râût, and in Gujarâtî, râwat, in the sense of ‘a horse-soldier, a trooper.’
And these words would seem to be derived from râjaputra, and so to indicate its technical meaning;
rather than, as given by Molesworth and Candy in their Marâṭhî Dictionary, from râva-dûta, ‘a
king’s messenger.’
² Mahâpratîhâra, lit. ‘a great door-keeper,’ was the technical title of the officer next in grade
above the Pratîhâras (see page 190 above, note 1).
³ Chaurôddharaṇika, lit. ‘one who is entrusted with the extermination of thieves,’ is evidently
the technical title of a certain class of police officers.
⁴ Dâṇḍika, lit. ‘a chastiser, a punisher,’ may denote either a judicial functionary, from daṇḍa in
the sense of ‘a fine;’ or a police officer, from the same word in the sense of ‘a rod (of punishment).’
⁵ bhukti, lit. ‘enjoyment,’ is a technical territorial term.—From the arrangement of the text
here, as also from the mention of “the village of Pânîyaka, in the Śrâvastî bhukti, and belonging to
the Vâlayikâ vishaya which lay in the Śrâvastî maṇḍala,” in the Dighwâ-Dubaulî grant of the Mahâ-
râja Mahêndrapâla (Ind. Ant. Vol. XV. p. 112, line 7 f.), and the mention of “the village of Ṭikkarikâ,
in the Pratishṭhâna bhukti, and attached to the Kâśîpâra pathaka which belonged to the Vârâṇasî
vishaya,” in the Bengal Asiatic Society’s grant of the Mahârâja Vinâyakapâla (id. Vol. XV p. 141,
line 9 f.), the term bhukti seems to have denoted a larger extent of territory than a vishaya.
⁶ Bhôjaka is explained by Monier Williams, in his Saṅskṛit Dictionary, as denoting ‘a class of
priests, or sun-worshippers, supposed to be descended from the Magas by intermarriage with women
of the Bhôja race.’—Childers, in his Pâli Dictionary, gives the same word as meaning ‘a village-head-
man.’
⁷ The construction of the original is Bâlâdityadêvêna ......... pûrva-dattakam=avalambya,
“having relied on (i.e. having adapted himself to) the former grant that was made by Bâlâdityadêva
(and the others mentioned).” I have broken up the construction for convenience of translation.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 47, PLATE XXX A. 219
No. 47; PLATE XXX A.
ASIRGADH COPPER SEAL INSCRIPTION OF SARVAVARMAN.
THIS inscription was first brought to notice, through two independent channels, in
1836. In the Jour. Beng. As. Soc. Vol. V. p. 482 ff., Mr. James Prinsep published the
Rev. W. H. Mill's reading of the text, and translation of it, accompanied by a lithograph
(id. Plate xxvi.) reduced from a drawing, forwarded to him by Dr. J. Swiney, which had
been made in 1805 from a wax-impression of the original seal, and had been in the possession
of Dr. Mellish from then; the lithograph is a fairly good one; but the rendering of the in-
scription was erroneous almost throughout. And in the Jour. R. As. Soc. F. S. Vol. III.
p. 377 ff., Professor H. H Wilson published Sir Charles Wilkins' reading of the text and
translation of it, accompanied by a lithograph, apparently full-size, prepared from an im-
pression which was found in 1805 or 1806 by Captain Colebrooke at Asîrgaḍh, in a box
containing property of the Mahârâjâ Scindia, and was forwarded by him to Sir Charles
Wilkins.
Asîrgaḍh¹ is a hill-fort, which formerly belonged to Scindia, about 'eleven miles to
the north-east of Burhânpur,² the chief town of the Burhânpur Tahsîl or Sub-Division of the
Nimâḍ³ District in the Central Provinces. As is shewn by the Sônpat seal of Harshavardhana,
No. 52 below, Plate xxxiiB., and the seal attached to the spurious Gayâ plate of Samudra-
gupta, No. 60 below, Plate xxxvii., the original of the inscription is evidently the seal,
presumably of copper, of a copper-plate grant. The grant itself appears never to have
been found. As regards the seal, it is not quite clear from the published accounts whether
the original was ever found, or only impressions of it. But, at any rate, I have not been
able to find out what became either of the seal, or of the impressions of it. My litho-
graph is a full-size reproduction of the lithograph published with Professor H. H. Wilson's
paper.
In the absence of the original seal and impressions, I am unable to give any details
as to its measurements, weight, state of preservation, &c. But, if the original lithograph
is full-size, it represents a seal, roughly oval in shape, measuring about 4⅞" by 5⅛". The
upper part is occupied by emblems, which are—in the centre, a bull, walking to the proper
right, decorated with a garland; beyond it, or perhaps attached to its off-side, there is
an umbrella, the staff of which is decorated with two streamers; on the proper right side,
in front of the bull, there is a man, walking, who carries in his right hand a curved double
axe on a short transverse handle, and in his left hand, either a standard, with a wheel or
sun-emblem on the top of it, or perhaps an abdâgîr or 'sunshade;' and on the proper left,
behind the bull, there follows another man, who carries in his left hand an ordinary long-
handled double axe, and in his right either a chauri-brush or a stick, with which he is
driving the bullock.—The characters belong to the northern class of alphabets; and,
though rather florid, especially in respect of the representation of the superscript vowels,
they are of a perceptibly older type than those of the inscriptions of the Guptas of
¹ The 'Asirgarh and Asseer Gurh' of maps, &c. Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 54. Lat. 21° 28' N.;
Long. 76° 20' E.
² The 'Burhanpur and Boorhanpoor' of maps, &c.
³ The 'Nimár' of maps, &c.
2 E 2

220 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
Magadha, Nos. 42, 43, and 46, Plates xxviii. and xxixA. and B.—The language is
Sanskrit; and the inscription is in prose throughout.—In respect of orthography, we have
to notice (1) the use of the upadhmānîya, in utpannaḥ=parama, line 7; (2) the doubling
throughout of k and t, in conjunction with a following r; e.g. in atikkrānta, line 1, and
puttra, line 3; and (3) the doubling of dh, in conjunction with a following y, in anuddhyāta,
lines 3, 4, 5, and 6.
The seal is one of the Maukhari king Śarvavarman, whose approximate date
is fixed very closely by the mention of his father Îśānavarman, as the contemporary of
Kumāragupta of Magadha, in line 7 of the Aphsaḍ inscription of Âdityasêna, No. 42 above,
page 200. The mere finding of the inscription at Asîrgaḍh of course does not suffice
in any way to connect the members of this family of Maukharis with that locality. Their
territory probably lay some hundreds of miles more to the east. Its real position,
however, is a point that, with the definite date of Śarvavarman, can only be cleared up by
the discovery, if it is still in existence, of the plate itself, to which the seal belongs.
**TEXT.**¹
1 Chatus-sāmudr-ātikkrānta-kîrttiḥ pratâp-ânurâg-ôpanat-ânya-rājā(jô)² varṇṇ-
āśrama-vyavasthā-
2 pana-pravṛitta-chakkraś=Chakkradhara iva prajānām=artti-hara[ḥ*] śri(śrī)-
mahārāja-Harivarmmâ [II*] Tasya
3 puttras=tat-pâd-ânuddhy[ā*]tô Jayasvâminî-bhaṭṭârikâ-dêvy[ā*]m=utpannaḥ
śrī-mahârâj-Âdityava-
4 rmmâ [II*] Tasya puttras=tat-pâd-ânuddhyâtô Harshaguptâ-bhaṭṭârikâ-
dêvyâm=utpannaḥ śrī-mah[ā*]râ-
5 j-Êśvaravarmmâ [II*] Tasya puttras=tat-pâd-ânuddhyâta Upaguptâ³-
bhaṭṭârikâ-dêvyâm=utpannô
6 mah[ā*]râjâdhirâja-śri(śrī)-Îśâna⁴varmmâ [II*] Tasya puttras=tat-pâd-
anuddhyâtô La(?)ksh[m]îva-
7 [t]î⁵-bhaṭṭârikâ-mah[ā*]dêvyâm=utpannaḥ=paramamâhêśvarâ(rô) ma-
8 hârâjâdhirâja-śrī-Śarvvavarmmâ Maukhariḥ [II*]
¹ From the lithograph published with Sir Charles Wilkins and Prof. Wilson's paper; so also the
present lithograph.
² In the absence of the original seal, which possibly was not properly cleaned before it was
copied, I can only treat this, and a few other instances, as mistakes of the original, though they may
be only defects in the lithograph.
³ Sir Charles Wilkins read umāguptā. As regards the second syllable, m and p are very much
alike in the lithograph. But the letter here seems to be p, rather than m; and there is certainly no
ā over it.—In support of my reading, the name Upaguptā occurs in the masculine form, Upagupta,
as the name of the fourth or fifth Buddhist Patriarch (e.g. Ind. Ant. Vol. IX. pp. 149, 315; Buddh
Rec. West. World, Vol. I. p. 182, and Vol. II. pp. 88, 93, 273).
⁴ Read śr-Îśāna.
⁵ Sir Charles Wilkins read harshiṇī; but there are four aksharas to be accounted for, not three.
The first akshara is very doubtful; the second is certainly not rshi, but seems to be ksh[m]ī, rather
imperfectly copied; the third is va; in the fourth, the superscript ī is distinctly visible, and the con-
sonant, which is almost entirely illegible, naturally suggests itself as t.

...
कन्दर्प्प-प्रतिमो नृपः शमित-धीर् यस्य प्रभावार्ज्जितैः पुण्यैः प्राप्य महीम् अकण्टकतया शास्त्य् एव चक्रार्द्ध-भाक् [|*]
Then:
Line 5:
उत्सन्न-द्विषि तेन धाम भगवद्-वैकुण्ठयोर् आत्मना
श्रीमद्-बिम्बोत्थ-कान्त्या विहित-दिन-करे प्रेक्षणीये गुहायाम् [|*]
Line 6:
कान्तेऽद्भुत-विन्ध्य-भूधर-गुहा-गेहे समा-रोपयत् ॥
Wait, let's read the exact words of Line 5 and 6!
Line 5:
उत्सन्न-द्विषि तेन विग्रहवता धात्रावतार-च्छलात्
Wait, look at line 5:
उ त्स न्ने द्वि ष तै र्नि...
Let's look at the start of Line 5 in the photo:
उ त्स न्ने द्वि षि ते न धा म ज ग ताम् आ रा ध यि ष्णुं ह रिम्...
Wait, look at Line 5:
`उ त्स न्

The provided image is entirely blank and does not contain any visible text, inscriptions, or content to transcribe.

Please re-upload or check the image file.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 48, PLATE XXX B. 221
TRANSLATION.
(There was) the illustrious Mahârâja Harivarman, whose fame stretched out beyond
the four oceans; who had other kings brought into subjection by (his) prowess and by
affection (for him); who was like (the god) Chakradhara, in employing (his) sovereignty¹
for regulating the different castes and stages of religious life; (and) who was the remover
of the afflictions of (his) subjects. His son, who meditated on his feet, (was) the illustri-
ous Mahârâja Âdityavarman, begotten on the _Bhaṭṭârikâ_² and _Dêvî_³ Jayasvâminî.
His son, who meditated on his feet, (was) the illustrious Mahârâja Îśvaravarman,
begotten on the Bhaṭṭârikâ and Dêvî Harshaguptâ. His son, who meditated on his
feet, (was) the Mahârâjâdhirâja, the glorious Îśânavarman, begotten on the Bhaṭṭârikâ
and Dêvî Upaguptâ.⁴ His son, who meditates on his feet, (is) the most devout wor-
shipper of (the god) Mahêśvara, the Mahârâjâdhirâja Śarvavarman, the Maukhari,
begotten on the Bhaṭṭârikâ and Mahâdêvî Lakshmîvatî.⁵
No. 48; PLATE XXX B.
BARABAR HILL CAVE INSCRIPTION OF ANANTAVARMAN.
THIS inscription appears to have been discovered, about 1785, by Mr. J. H. Harington,
and was first brought to notice, in 1790, in the Asiatic Researches, Vol. II. p. 167 f.,
where Sir Charles Wilkins published his translation of it, apparently from a copy made
under the direction of Mr. Harington.⁶—In 1837, in the Jour. Beng. As. Soc. Vol. VI.
p. 674 ff., Mr. James Prinsep published his reading of the text, and a translation of it,
accompanied by a lithograph (id. Plate xxxvi. Nos. 15, 16, and 17) reduced from an
ink-impression taken under the direction of Mr. Hathorne.—And in 1884, in the Ind.
Ant. Vol. XIII. p. 428, note 55, Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji has incidentally published his own
reading of the text.
The Barâbar Hill, the ancient Pravaragiri of this inscription, stands about a mile
and a half away on the north side of the village of Panâri,⁷ which is about fourteen miles
to the north by east of Gayâ,⁸ the chief town of the Gayâ District in the Bengal Presiden-
cy In the south part of the hill there is a cave-temple, which it has become the custom
to call the "Lômaśa Ṛishi Cave,"⁹ and the original construction of which is allotted by
¹ Typified by the chakra, or 'wheel (of his chariot).'—chakra means also the discus of Vishṇu,
and hence the point of the comparison.
² Bhaṭṭârikâ, lit. 'she who is entitled to reverence or homage,' is the feminine form of bhaṭṭâraka
(see page 17 above, note 1). It is used here as a technical title of a wife of a Mahârâja; but, in
line 7 below, it occurs also as the title of a wife of a Mahârâjâdhirâja.
³ Dêvî, lit. 'goddess,' is another technical title of a wife of a Mahârâja.
⁴ See page 220 above, note 3. ⁵ See page 220 above, note 5.
⁶ See also the Calcutta reprint of the Asiatic Researches, Vol. II. p. 128.
⁷ The 'Punaree-Ferozpoor' of the Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 103. Lat. 24° 59' N.; Long. 85° 7'
E. The hill itself is entered under the name of 'Baraber Hill,' and is a Trigonometrical Survey Sta-
tion.
⁸ The 'Gya of maps, &c.
⁹ Marked C. in Gen. Cunningham's sketch given in the Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. I. p. 40,
Plate xviii.

222 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
General Cunningham to the Aśôka period, though the entrance-porch was enlarged and
decorated with a sculptured façade at a later time, probably when the present inscrip-
tion was engraved. The inscription is on a smooth polished surface of the granite rock,
over the entrance to the cave.¹
The writing, which covers a space of about 3′ 9½″ broad by 1′ 3½″ high, is in a state
of excellent preservation throughout.—The size of the letters varies from ⅜″ to 1⅛″. The
characters belong to the northern class of alphabets, and exhibit very markedly the fully
developed mâtrâs, or horizontal top-strokes of the letters, that have already been noticed
at pages 43 and 140 above.—The language is Saṁskṛit; and, except for the opening
symbol representing the word ôm, the inscription is in verse throughout.—In respect of
orthography, the only points that call for notice are (1) the doubling throughout of t, in
conjunction with a following r; e.g. in puttra, line 1, and yattra, line 5; and (2) the use
of v for b, in vabhûva, line 4.
The inscription is one of a Maukharî chieftain named Anantavarman; but, from
the way in which his father Śârdûla or Śârdûlavarman is mentioned in line 5, it seems to
have been engraved while the latter was still alive. It is not dated. It is a Vaishṇava
inscription; the object of it being to record the installation in the cave, by Anantavarman,
of an image of the god Vishṇu, in his incarnation as Kṛishṇa.
The hill itself is mentioned in line 2, under the name of Pravaragiri. The word, of
course, is capable of being taken simply as an epithet, to be rendered by "(this) excellent
hill." But, on the analogy of the town of Pravarapura, which is mentioned in the first
line of the Chammak grant of the Mahârâja Pravarasêna II., No. 55 below, Plate xxxiv.,
it seems to me to be clearly intended as the actual name of the hill. And we have pos-
sibly a reminiscence of it in the modern name Barâbar, for which, at any rate, General
Cunningham's proposed etymology of baṛâ âvara, 'the great enclosure,"² does not suffice
to account.
TEXT.³
1 Ôm⁴ [||] Bhûpânâ[ṁ]⁵ Maukharîṇâṁ kulam=atanu-guṇô-laṁ-chakâr=âtma-
jâtyâ |⁶ śrî-Śârdûlasya yô=bhûj-jana-hṛidaya-harô-Nantavarmmâ
su-puttraḥ [|]
2 Kṛishṇasy=âkṛishṇa-kîrttiḥ Pravaragiri-guhâ-saṁśritaṁ viṁvam=êtat mûrtta⁷ṁ
lôkê yaśa[ḥ] svaṁ rachitam=iva mud=âchîkarat=kântimat=saḥ ||
¹ Gen. Cunningham (Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. I. p. 47) speaks of it as "two distinct inscriptions,
the upper one, of two lines, being somewhat later in date than the lower one, of four lines, in rather.
larger characters." But the six lines are all one and the same inscription; and the rather smaller size
of the letters in the first two lines is simply due to the lateral space available being less, in con-
sequence of the turning over of the upper part of the façade, within the limits of which the inscription
is engraved.
² id. p. 43. ³ From the original stone.
⁴ In the original, the symbol for this word, ôm, stands in the margin, opposite the commence-
ment of line 3.
⁵ Metre, Sragdharâ.
⁶ This mark of punctuation is unnecessary.
⁷ The engraver first formed rtti, and then partially cancelled the i.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 49, PLATE XXXI A. 223
3 Kālaḥ¹ śattru-mahībhujāṁ praṇayināṁ ichchhā-phalaḥ pādapô l² dīpaḥ
kshattra-kulasya naika-samara-vyāpāra-śôbhāvataḥ [।*]
4 kāntā-chitta-haraḥ Smara-pratisamaḥ pātā va(ba)bhūva kshitêḥ śrī-Śārdûla
iti pratishṭhita-yaśā[h*] sāmanta-chūḍāmaṇiḥ ॥
5 Utpakshm-āntavilôhit-ôru-tarala-spashṭ-êshṭa-tārāṁ rushā l³ śrī-Śārdûla-nṛipaḥ
karôti vishamāṁ yattra sva-dṛishṭiṁ ripô(pau) ।
6 tattr-ākarṇṇa-vikṛishṭa-śārṅga-śaradhi-vyastaś=śarô=tt(nt)-āvahah tat-puttrasya
pataty=ananta-sukha-dasy=Ânantavarmma-śrutêḥ ॥
TRANSLATION.
Ôm! He, Anantavarman, who was the excellent son, captivating the hearts of
mankind, of the illustrious Śardûla,⁴ (and) who, possessed of very great virtues, adorned by
his own (high) birth the family of the Maukhari kings,—he, of unsullied fame, with joy
caused to be made, as if it were his own fame represented in bodily form in the world, this
beautiful image, placed in (this) cave of the mountain Pravaragiri, of (the god) Kṛishṇa.
(Line 3.)—The illustrious Śārdûla, of firmly established fame, the best among
chieftains,⁵ became the ruler of the earth ;—he who was a very Death to hostile kings;
who was a tree, the fruits of which were the (fulfilled) wishes of (his) favourites; who
was the torch of the family of the warrior caste, that is glorious through waging many
battles; (and) who, charming the thoughts of lovely women, resembled (the god)
Smara.
(L. 5.)—On whatsoever enemy the illustrious king Śārdûla casts in anger his
scowling eye, the expanded and tremulous and clear and beloved pupil of which is red at
the corners between the up-lifted brows,—on him there falls the death-dealing arrow, dis-
charged from the bowstring⁶ drawn up to (his) ear, of his son, the giver of endless plea-
sure, who has the name⁷ of Anantavarman.
No. 49; PLATE XXXI A.
NAGARJUNI HILL CAVE INSCRIPTION OF ANANTAVARMAN.
THIS inscription, again, appears to have been discovered, about 1785, by Mr. J. H
Harington, and was first brought to notice, in 1790, in the Asiatic Researches, Vol. II.
p. 168 f., where Sir Charles Wilkins published his translation of it, apparently from
a copy made under the direction of Mr. Harington.⁸—In 1847, in the Jour. Beng.
As. Soc. Vol. XVI. p. 401 ff., Major Markham Kittoe published a lithograph of it
¹ Metre, Śārdūlavikrīḍita ; and in the following verse.
² and ³ These marks of punctuation are unnecessary.
⁴ As regards this abbreviated form of his name, see page 8 above, note 3.
⁵ Sāmanta; see page 148 above, note 1. The use of the word here perhaps indicates the
exact status of these Maukhari chiefs.
⁶ śaradhi, lit. ‘the arrow-holder,’ is usually explained by ‘quiver.’ But here it plainly denotes
the string of the bow.
⁷ lit. ‘the hearing, the sound.’
⁸ See also the Calcutta reprint of the Asiatic Researches, Vol. II. p. 129.

224 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
(id. Plate x.) reduced from a copy made apparently by himself, to accompany his
“Notes on the Caves of Barabar.”—And this was followed, in the same volume, p. 594 ff.
by Dr. Rajendralala Mitra’s reading of the text, accompanied by a reprint of Sir Charles
Wilkins’ translation.
The Nâgârjunî Hill, which, in line 8 of the following inscription of the same
chieftain, No. 50 below, is spoken of as (a part of) the Vindhya range, is about a mile
away on the north side of the village of Jâphra,¹ which is about fifteen miles to the
north by east of Gayâ, the chief town of the Gayâ District in the Bengal Presidency.
It is the most eastern part of the group of hills that includes the Barâbar Hill,
mentioned in connection with the preceding inscription, page 221 above. On the north
side of the hill, there is a cave-temple, which is shewn to belong to the Asôka period by
an inscription, in four lines, of Dasalatha-Dêvânampiya on the rock over the entrance,
and which, from the first two words of that inscription, has been named the “Vadathi
Cave.”² The present inscription is on the smooth and polished surface of the granite
rock, on the right hand in the entrance to the cave.
The writing, which covers a space of about 4' 2¾" broad by 1' 5½" high, is in a
state of excellent preservation throughout.—The average size of the letters is about 1".
The characters belong to the northern class of alphabets, and are of precisely the
same type as those of the preceding inscription of the same chieftain, No. 48 above,
Plate xxxB., exhibiting, in the same way, the fully developed mâtrâs.—The language
is Sanskrit; and, except for the opening symbol representing the word ôm, the inscrip-
tion is in verse throughout.—In respect of orthography, the only points that call for
notice are (1) the use of the dental nasal, instead of the anusvâra, before s, in ansa,
line 5; and (2) the customary doubling of t, in conjunction with a following r, in
kshattra, line 1, and nêttra, line 2.
The inscription is another record of the Maukhari chieftain Anantavarman.
It is not dated. It is a Śaiva inscription; the object of it being to record the installa-
tion in the cave, by Anantavarman, of an image representing Śiva, in the form of
Bhûtapati or “the lord of beings,” and his wife Pârvatî, under the name of Dêvî. The
image was probably of the kind called Ardhanârîśvara, combining Śiva and Pârvatî in
one body; the right half being the male god, and the left the female.
TEXT.³
1 Ôm⁴ [||*] Âsît⁵=sarvva-mahîkshitâm=Anur⁶=iva kshattra-sthitêr=ddêśikaḥ
śrîmân=matta-gajêndra-khêla-gamanaḥ śrî-Yajñavarmmâ nṛipaḥ [|*]
2 yasy=âhûta-sahasranêttra-viraha-kshâmâ sad=aiv=âdhvaraiḥ Paulômî chiram=
aśru-pâta-malinâṁ dhâ(dha)ttê kapôla-śriyaṁ ||
¹ The ‘Kootbunpoor-Jafra’ of the Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 103. Lat. 25° 0' N.; Long. 85° 8' E.—
The name of the hill is not shewn in the map.
² Marked G. in Gen. Cunningham’s sketch given in the Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. I. p. 40
Pl. xviii.
³ From the original stone.
⁴ In the original, the symbol for this word, ôm, stands in the margin, opposite the commencement
of line 3.
⁵ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita ; and in the following verse.
⁶ Sir Charles Wilkins and Dr. R. Mitra both read mahîkshitâṁ Manur=iva; but there is no
anusvâra over the tâ.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 49, PLATE XXXI A. 225
3 Śrī-Śârdûla-nṛip-âtmajaḥ para-hitaḥ śrī-paurushaḥ śrûyatê ।¹ lôkê chandra-
marîchi-nirmmala-guṇô yô=Nantavarmm-âbhidhâ(dha)ḥ [।*]
4 dṛishṭ-âdṛishṭa-vibhûti kartṛi-varadaṁ tên=âdbhutaṁ kâritaṁ ।² viṁvaṁ
Bhûtapatêr=guh-âśritam=idaṁ Dêvyâś=cha pâyâj=jagat ॥
5 Aṁs³-ânt-âkṛishṭa-śârṅga-pravitata-saśara-jyâ-sphuran-maṇḍal-ânta- । -vyakta⁴-
bhrûbhaṅga-lakshma-vyatikara-śaval-âkhaṇḍa-vaktrêndu-vimva[ḥ*] ।
6 antây=Ânantavarmmâ Smara-sadṛiśa-vapur=jjîvitê ni[ḥ*]spṛihâbhiḥ dṛishṭa[ḥ*]
sthitvâ mṛigîbhiḥ suchiram=animisha-snigdha-mugdh-êkshaṇâbhiḥ ॥
7 Atyâkṛishṭât⁵=kurara-viruta-sparddhinaḥ śârṅga-yantrâ- । -d⁶=vêg-âviddhaḥ
pravitata-guṇâd=îritaḥ saushṭhavêna ।
8 dûra-prâpî vimathita-gaj-ôdbhrânta-vâjî pravîṇô ।⁸ vâṇô=ri-strî-vyasana-padavî-
dêśikô=Nanta-nâmnâ(mna)ḥ⁹ ॥
TRANSLATION.
Ôm! There was a glorious king, the illustrious Yajñavarman,—who, as if he were
Anu,¹⁰ instructed all rulers of the earth in the duty of those who belong to the warrior
caste;—whose gait was like the play of a rutting elephant;—(and) through whose sacri-
fices (the goddess) Paulômî, always emaciated by separation from (the god Indra) who
has a thousand eyes, invoked (by this king so constantly as to be perpetually absent from
her), has had the beauty of (her) cheeks for a long time sullied by the falling of tears.
(Line 3.)—He, the son of the illustrious king Śârdûla, who has the name of
Anantavarman; who is reputed in the world to be benevolent to others, (and) to be
possessed of fortune and manliness, (and) to be full of virtues that are as spotless as the
rays of the moon,—by him was caused to be made this wondrous image, placed
in (this) cave, of (the god) Bhûtapati and (the goddess) Dêvî, which is possessed of
excellencies (of workmanship) some of them (previously) beheld (in other images) but
others not so; (and) which confers boons upon the maker (of it). May it protect the
world!
(L. 5.)—Having the surface of the full-moon that is (his) face made grey through
being scattered over with spots that are (his) frowns displayed at the ends of the bent
arc, glistening with (its) string pulled tight and fitted with an arrow, of the bow drawn
up to the extremities of (his) shoulders, Anantavarman, whose body is like (that of)
(the god) Smara,—having stood, gazed upon for a very long time by the does, indiffer-
ent to life, whose moist and tender eyes omit to blink (through the intentness with
¹ and ² These marks of punctuation are unnecessary. ³ Metre, Sragdharâ.
⁴ Read ânta-vyakta, omitting the mark of punctuation.
⁵ Metre, Mandâkrântâ.
⁶ Read yantrâd, omitting the mark of punctuation.
⁷ This akshara is partly mixed up with the ê of dê in vidêśavasu, which was subsequently engraved below this inscription, but has no connection with it.
⁸ This mark of punctuation is unnecessary.
⁹ This visarga was at first omitted, and then was inserted partially on the first stroke of the following mark of punctuation, when the text was altered from nâmnâ to nâmnah.
¹⁰ See page 224 above, note 6.—Anu, one of the sons of Yayâti, was the progenitor of the Ânavas who are identified by Gen. Cunningham (Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. II. p. 14 ff.) with the ‘Janjûhas,’ who now occupy ‘Makhyâla’ and other places in the Salt Range, in the Pañjâb.
2 F.

226 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
which they regard him),—(lives only) for (the purpose of dealing out) death. The far-
reaching (and) powerful arrow, scattering the elephants and driving horses wild with
fear, of him who has the name of Ananta,¹—impelled with speed (and) skilfully discharged
from the machine of (his) bow, fitted with a well-stretched string, that is drawn very
tight (and) rivals the screams of an osprey (with the noise of its twanging),—teaches
to the wives of (his) enemies the condition of the sorrows (of widowhood).

No. 50; PLATE XXXIB.

NAGARJUNI HILL CAVE INSCRIPTION OF ANANTAVARMAN.
THIS inscription, again, appears to have been discovered, about 1785, by Mr. J. H.
Harington, and was first brought to notice in 1788, in the Asiatic Researches Vol. I.
p. 276 ff., where Sir Charles Wilkins published his translation of it, from a copy made un-
der the direction of Mr. Harington, and, with it, a lithograph from the same materials.²
—And in 1837, in the Jour. Beng. As. Soc. Vol. VI. p. 672 ff., Mr. James Prinsep published
another reading of the text, and a translation of it, accompanied by a lithograph (id. Plate
xxxiv.), reduced from an ink-impression taken under the direction of Mr. Hathorne.
This is another inscription from the Nâgârjunî Hill³ in the lands of Jâphra, in the
Gayâ District of the Bengal Presidency. On the south side of the hill, there is another
cave-temple, which also is shewn to belong to the Aśôka period by another inscription, in
four lines, of Dasalatha-Dêvânaṁpiya on the rock over the entrance, and which, from the
first two words of that inscription, has come to be called the “Gôpî Cave.”⁴ The inscrip-
tion now published is on the smooth and polished surface of the granite rock, on the left
hand in the entrance to the cave.
The writing, which covers a space of about 4′ 11″ broad by 1 11½″ high, is in a state
of excellent preservation throughout ; except that, in the last line, the name of the village that
was granted has been intentionally obliterated.—The average size of the letters is about
1″. The characters belong to the northern class of alphabets, and are of precisely the
same type as those of the preceding two inscriptions of the same chieftain, Nos. 48 and
49 above, Plates xxxB. and xxxiA., exhibiting, in the same way, the fully developed mâtrâs.
—The language is Sanskrit ; and, except for the opening symbol representing the word
ôm, the inscription is in verse throughout.—In respect of orthography, we have to
notice (1) the use of the guttural nasal, instead of the anusvâra, before ś, in anśu, line 2, and
before h, in anhas, line 9; (2) the customary doubling of k and t, in conjunction with a
following r, e.g. in vikkrama, line 4, and puttrêna, line 7; and (3) the use throughout of
v for b, in lavdhaṁ, line 5; vandhu, line 6; and amvubhiḥ, line 9.
The inscription is another record of the Maukhari chieftain Anantavarman.
It is not dated. It is either a Śaiva, or a Śâkta, inscription ; the object of it being to
record the installation in the cave, by Anantavarman, of an image of the goddess Pârvatî,
the wife of Śiva, under the name of Kâtyâyanî, and also the grant to the same goddess,
under the name of Bhavânî, of a village, the name of which has been destroyed.
¹ As regards this abbreviated form of his name, see page 8 above, note
² See also the Calcutta reprint of the Asiatic Researches, Vol. I. p. 236 ff.
³ See page 224 above, and note 1.
⁴ Marked E. in Gen. Cunningham’s sketch in the Archaeol. Surv. Ind. Vol. I. p. 40, Pl xviii.

jval-ātmā ||
Verse 2: Sragdharā:
tasyodbhūto yaśobhir-vvitatam-apahṛt-āśeṣa-kānta-dyutīnāṁ
dīptendrāṇāṁ diśām-antar-amala-vapuḥ kīrtti-śeṣo dharitrīm |
śāstāsīd-bhūri-dhāmā nṛpa-śata-makuṭ-ālīḍha-pād-āravindaḥ
śrī-śārddūla-kṣitīśaḥ kṣata-ripu-mahimā śārdūla-vikrīḍit-āṅgaḥ || (or śārdūla-vikrīḍit-occaiḥ)
Verse 3: Vasantatilakā:
tasy-ātmajaḥ pṛthu-kul-āmbar-pūrṇa-candro
hrīmān-vineya-mati-kānti-vilāsa-dhāmā |
ārtta-priyo sthita-pada-padavī-su-dātā
nāmn-ānanta-varmmā kṛtī kṣitipa-maulir-ananta-kīrttiḥ ||
Verse 4:
kātyāyanīṁ sthita-cala-caraṇ-āgra-pātād-

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THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 50, PLATE XXXI B. 227
In line 8 of this inscription, the Nâgârjunî Hill is spoken of as (a part of) the
Vindhya range. This is in accordance with facts; since the Vindhya mountains, though
most conspicuous in Western and Central India, do extend right across the peninsula,
until, passing through the neighbourhood of Gayâ, their easternmost spurs reach and dis-
appear in the valley of the Ganges at Râjmahâl.
TEXT.¹
1 Ôm [||*] Unnidrasya² sarôruhasya sakalâm=âkshipya śôbhâṁ ruchâ l³
s-âvajñaṁ Mahish-âsurasya śirasi nyastaḥ kvaṇan-nûpuraḥ |
2 Dêvyâ vaḥ sthira-bhakti-vâda-sadṛiśîm yuñjan=phalên=ârthitâṁ | diśyâd=
achchha-nakh-âṁśu-jâla-jaṭilaḥ pâdaḥ padaṁ sampadâm ||
3 Âsîd=ishṭa-samṛiddha-yajña-mahimâ śrî-Yajñavarmmâ nṛipaḥ | prakhyâtâ(tô)
vimal-êndu-nirmmala-yaśâ[ḥ*] kshâttrasya dhâmnaḥ padaṁ |
4 prajñân-ânvaya-dâna-vikkrama-guṇair=yô râjakasy=âgraṇî[ḥ*] | bhûtv=âpi
prakṛiti-stha êva vinayâd=akshôbhya-sat[t*]v-ôdadhi[ḥ*] ||
5 Tasy=ôdîrṇa-mah-ârṇav-ôpama-raṇa-vyâpâra-lavdha(bdha)ṁ yaśaḥ [l*] tanvânaḥ
kakudaṁ mukhêshu kakubhâṁ kîrt[t*]yâ jit-êdaṁyugaḥ [l*]
6 śrîmân=va(ba)ndhu-suhṛij-jana-praṇayinâm=âśâḥ phalaiḥ pûraya[n*] | puttraḥ
kalpa-tarôr=iv=âpta-mahimâṁ⁴ Śârdûlavarmmâ nṛipaḥ ||
7 Tasy=anantam=ananta-kîrtti-yaśasô=Nant-âdi-varmm-âkhyayâ | khyâtên=âhita-
bhakti-bhâvita-dhiyâ puttrêṇa pût-âtmanâ [l*]
8 â-sûrya-kshiti-chandra-târakam=iyaṁ puṇy-âspadaṁ vâñchchha(ñchha)tâ |
vinyast=âdbhuta-Vindhya-bhûdhara-guhâm=âśritya Kâtyâyanî ||
9 Dhaut-âṅhô-mala-paṅka-dôsham=amalair-mâhânadair=amvu(mbu)bhiḥ | vyâdhût-
ôpavana-priyaṅgu-vakulair=âmôditaṁ vâyubhi[ḥ*] |
10 kalpânt-âvadhi-bhôgyam=uchcha-śikhari-chchhây-âvṛit-ârkka-dyutiḥ | [— —]
grâmam=analpa-bhôga-vibhavaṁ ramyaṁ Bhavânyai dadau ||
TRANSLATION.
Ôm! May the foot of (the goddess) Dêvî, fringed with the rays of (its) pure nails
point out the way to fortune, endowing with a (suitable) reward your state of supplication
which is such as befits the expression of firm devotion ;—(that foot) which, surpassing in
radiance all the beauty of a full-blown waterlily, was disdainfully placed, with its tinkling
anklet, on the head of the demon Mahishâsura !⁵
(Line 3.)—There was a king, the illustrious Yajñavarman, possessed of greatness
by celebrating copious sacrifices; renowned; possessed of fame as pure as the spot-
less moon; the abode of (all) the dignity of one of the warrior caste;—who, though
he was the foremost of all kings in respect of wisdom, (high) descent, liberality, and
prowess, yet, through modesty, was (like) an ocean which adheres to the natural state
(of tranquillity), (and) the calmness of which is never to be disturbed.
¹ From the original stone. ² Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita, throughout.
³ It is not customary to punctuate the first and third pâdas of a verse; but it was done almost
uniformly throughout this inscription.
⁴ Read mahimâ.
⁵ A demon who assumed various forms, but principally that of a buffalo, and was slain by Pârvatî,
who, in the form of Dêvî or Durgâ, attacked him, on a lion, and cut off his head.
2 F 2.