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

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.

228 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
(L. 5.)—His son (was) the king Sârdûlavarman, who stretched out over the faces
of the points of the compass, (as) an emblem of sovereignty, the renown that he had
acquired in the occupation of war resembling (in its extensiveness) the great swollen ocean;
who conquered (the stains of) this present age with (his) fame; who was illustrious; (and)
who acquired, as it were, the glory of the kalpa-tree, by satisfying with rewards the wishes
of (his) relatives and friends.
(L. 7.)—Of him, who was always possessed of infinite fame and renown, the son (is)
he, pure of soul, (and) possessed of intellect animated with innate piety, who is known by
the appellation of Varman commencing with **Ananta;**¹—by whom, desiring a shrine of
religious merit that should endure as long as the sun, the earth, the moon, and the stars,
this (image of) (the goddess) Kâtyâyanî has been placed in (this) wonderful cave of the
Vindhya mountains.
(L. 9.)—He has given to (the goddess) Bhavânî, to be enjoyed up to the time of the
destruction of all things, the charming village of . . . . . . ., possessed of a great wealth
of enjoyment,—the sin, impurity, mud, and blemishes of which are washed away by the
pure waters of a great river;²—which is filled with perfume by the breezes that agitate
the priyaṁgu³ and vakula-trees⁴ in (its) groves;—(and) from which the radiance of the
sun is screened off by (this) lofty mountain.

No. 51; PLATE XXXII A.

JAUNPUR STONE INSCRIPTION OF ISVARAVARMAN.

THIS inscription,—which was discovered by General Cunningham in 1875-76 or 1877-78,
and was first brought to notice by him in 1880, in the Archæol. Surv. Ind. Vol. XI.
p. 124 f., where he published his reading of the text, accompanied by a lithograph
(id. Plate xxxvii. No. 1),—is from a stone built in as one of the lower voussoirs of the outer
arch of the south gate of the Jâmi Masjid at **Jaunpur,**⁵ the chief town of the Jaunpur
District in the North-West Provinces.
The writing, which covers a space of about 1′ 3½″ broad by 1′ 1½″ high, is, so far as
it goes, in a state of very good preservation, except for the marks by which it has been
disfigured a little above the centre of the stone. But it is only a fragment of a very
much larger inscription. Nothing has been lost at the top, and at the ends of the lines.
But from thirty-eight to seventy-two aksharas,—probably the larger number,—are lost
at the beginning of each line; and also an indefinite number of lines below the last line that
is extant.—The average size of the letters is about ⁷⁄₁₆″. The characters belong to the

¹ i.e. Anantavarman.
² We might find in this verse a reference to "the pure waters of (the river) Mahânadî." But the
Mahânadî, which rises in the Râypur District, flows into the Bay of Bengal, without coming anywhere
within two hundred and fifty miles of the Nâgârjunî hill. The small river that runs past this hill, is
named the Phalgu; and it flows into the Ganges, not into the Mahânadî. Under the name of Phalgu,
it is mentioned in an inscription, belonging to about the twelfth century A.D., of a prince named
Yakshapâla, at the Satî Ghât at Gayâ (Ind. Ant. Vol. XVI. p. 64, line 2).
³ priyaṁgu; the Panicum Italicum; a medicinal plant, and perfume.
⁴ vakula; the Mimusops Elengi.
⁵ The 'Jounpoor' of maps. Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 88. Lat. 25° 41′ N.; Long. 82° 43′ E.

THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 51, PLATE XXXII A. 229
northern class of alphabets, and are radically of much the same type as those of the
Asîrgaḍh seal of Śarvavarman, No. 47 above, Plate xxxA.; but the execution is, in some
details, still more florid. In dôrbhyâm, line 1, kîrttêr, line 4, karair=guṇair=guṇavatâm,
line 5, and other places, we have to note that the superscript r is formed on the top line
of the writing, instead of above it.—The language is Sanskrit; and the extant portion of
the inscription is in verse throughout.—In respect of orthography, the only points that
call for notice are (1) the doubling of k, t, and d, in conjunction with a following r, e.g. in
kkrûra, line 5; kshattrêṇa, line 1; and upaddravair, line 5; and (2) the use of v for b, in
lavdha, line 1.
The inscription mentions, in line 4, a 'king' named Îśvaravarman, of the
Maukhari, or as it is here called the Mukhara family, who is evidently the Mahârâja
Îśvaravarman, the grandfather of Śarvavarman, who is mentioned in line 5 of the
Asîrgaḍh seal, No. 47 above, page 219. But the lacunæ in the following lines are so exten-
sive, that it is impossible to say whether the historical information given in them refers to
Îśvaravarman, or to one of his descendants. It is much to be wished that the first half of
the stone could be recovered; since, in addition to clearing up this point, it would probably
give the name of a king in connection with the city of Dhârâ that is mentioned in line 6,
and also the name of a king in connection with the Andhras who are spoken of in lines
7 and 8; and the latter information might afford the much-wanted starting-point for settling
the chronology of the Andhra family. It would probably give us also the name of a king of
Saurâshṭra or Kâṭhiâwâḍ, in connection with the mountain Raivataka that is men-
tioned in line 7. The extant portion of the inscription contains no date, and nothing to
indicate a sectarian character.

**TEXT.**¹

1 ² . . . . . . . . . . . r(?). ksh(?). l(?). gam³ || Dôrbhyâm⁴=[Â]tmabhuvô dhanuḥ
saha-bhuvâ kshattrêṇa lavdh(bdh)-âtmanâ vistâr⁷
2 . . . . . . . . [u]dayini⁵ Mukharâṇâṁ bhûbhujâm=anvavâyê | sakala-
purusha-śakti-vyakta-śâṅrga-pratâpô
3 . . . . . . . . . . . karmmaṇâ⁶ yajñaṁ dh[û]ma-vitâna-mêgha-nivahaḥ puṇyaṁ
vitênê divi ||⁷
4 . . . . . . . . . . . laka⁸-srast-âlakâgram kulaiḥ || Tasya⁹ dikshu [v]itat-
âmala-kîrttêr=âtmajô nṛipatir=Îśvaravarmmâ
¹ From the ink-impression.
² If (since we have a half-mark of punctuation after anvavâyê in line 2) we accept the double mark
of punctuation after the fourth extant akshara of this line as marking properly the end of a verse,
seventy-two aksharas have been cut away and lost here. If, however, it marks only the end of the
second pâda of a verse, then only thirty-eight aksharas are lost.—I have tried several ways of
arranging the verses, in order to determine exactly how many aksharas are lost at the commencement
of each line, but without being able to satisfy myself. The probability is, however, that the larger
number (seventy-two) has been lost at the beginning of this line, and in proportion all the way down.
³ Metre, doubtful. ⁴ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita.
⁵ Metre, Mâlinî.
⁶ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita.
⁷ This mark of punctuation is followed by some scroll-work, to fill up the line.
⁸ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita.
Metre, Svâgatâ.

230 CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM, VOL. III.
5 . . . . . . . . . [kri]p¹-ânurâga-śamita-kkrûr-âgam(?)-ôpaddravair=lôk-ânanda-karair=
gunair=gunavatâṁ kô nâma
6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . [a]dhishṭhitaṁ kshitibhujâṁ siṁhêna siṁhâsanam || Dhârâ-
mârgga-vinirgat-âgni-kaṇikâ
7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . dam || Vindhy-âddrêḥ prati-randhram-Andhra-patinâ śaṁkâ-
parêṇ=âsitaṁ yâtô Raivatak-âchalaṁ
8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . sâṁ ² vâraṇânâṁ ghaṭâsu vyâptêsh=ûtkhâta-khaḍga-dyuti-
khachita-bhujêshv=Andhra-sênâ-bhaṭêshu
9 . . . . . . . . . . . . . ra³-prapâta-salilaiḥ snâtaṁ śilâ-gandhibhiḥ prâlêy-âddri-
bhuvaś=cha śîta-payasaḥ prakshâ-
10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . rēṇubhir=giri-sarit-pûr-ôrmmi-bhaṅg-âkulair=utsarppadbhir=anupragê=
pi divasô yasy=âp .
11 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . h ya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
TRANSLATION.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [Wielding]
with (his) arms the bow of (the god) Âtmabhû,⁴ by means of (his) innate warriors' skill
that pervaded (his very) soul . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . in the flourishing lineage
of the Mukhara kings; whose prowess with the bow was displayed with all the energy of
a man ; . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . by the rite . . . . . . . . . ; (and his) religious
merit, arising from sacrifices, spread out over the sky (in the form of) the mass of the
clouds of the canopy of the smoke (of his oblations) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
having the ends of (their) curls fallen down . . . . . . . . . . . . by the families . . . . . . . . . . . .
(Line 4.)—Of him, whose spotless fame spread far and wide over the regions, the
son (was) king Îśvaravarman, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . with virtues which by
means of compassion and affection allayed the troubles (caused) by the approach of cruel
people, and which effected the happiness of mankind ; who, indeed, of virtuous people
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ; by him, a very lion to (hostile) kings, the throne
was occupied. A spark of fire that had come by the road from (the city of) Dhârâ
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . the lord of the Andhras, wholly given over to fear,
took up (his) abode in the crevices of the Vindhya mountains ; . . . . . . . . . . . . went to
the Raivataka mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . among the warriors of the
Andhra army, who were spread out among the troops of elephants (and) whose arms were
studded with the lustre of (their) swords drawn out (from the scabbards), . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . bathed with the waters, fragrant with benzoin, of the torrents of
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . and cleansing the lands, full of cool waters, of (Himâlaya) the moun-
tain of snow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . with the pollen . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
disordered by the breaking of the waves of the swollen mountain-streams, (and) flowing
onwards, . . . . . . . . . . . . . whose day, even in the hours that come next after daybreak
¹ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita, and in the next three lines.
² Metre, Sragdharâ.
³ Metre, Śârdûlavikrîḍita, and in the next line.
⁴ lit. ‘the self-existent one;’ an epithet of Brahman, Vishṇu, and Śiva. From the mention of a
bow, it must here denote Vishṇu, who carries the bow of horn named Śârṅga.

CORPUS INSCRIPTIONUM INDICARUM.
Vol. III Plate xxxii

A.—Jaunpur Inscription of Isvaravarman

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [य]शोराशिरुदार-कीर्त्तिर्-भू[भृ]न्-नृपस्-सुचरितै-र्जग[तीं पुना]नः [।]
2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [दृप्त]-द्विप-घटा-विघटैक-शूरस्-तस्यात्मजो जयति भूपतिर-ईश्वर[वर्मा] [॥]
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [धारा-धरै]र्-गगन-सिन्धुरि-वान्ववाहि
4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [दिक्षु] विदि[क्षु] च ख्यात-शौर्यो यशोधर-[गिरिर्-यथा]
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [यस्यापि] द्यु-तरङ्गिणी-विम[ला] विस्तीर्[णा] गुण-सन्ततिः
6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [स्थिर]-कीर्त्तिर्-गुणी श्लाघ्य[स्-त]स्याभूत्-तनयः प्र[भोः] . . . . [प्रथित]-कीर्त्तिर्
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [वृतः ॥] विज्ञातुः शङ्कितस्य प्रतिभट-यशसां गामिवाम्भोधि-सीम्नि ध्वस्ते दैवे ततश्च
8 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [यो मौखरेः का]न्ता-कान्ति-पयोधरोन्नति-सुखं मुञ्चन्-द्विपद्रोहिणीं युद्धायाहव-रङ्गमूर्-
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [धनि नृप-पति]र्मत्तः-प्रभिन्न-द्विपस्-तिर्य्याङ्-निर्य्यद-सृङ्-निविष्ट-मधुप-व्रात-च्छलाद्-यत्-पदौ
10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [पूजारोचिषि राज]-मण्डलम-भवाद्-रक्त-प्रवाल-श्रिया धारिभ्यां भुवि रोपितौ रण-शिरो-विभ्राजि-
SCALE .25

B.—Sonpat Seal of Harshavardhana

(Seal legend - oval copper seal impression; inscription largely effaced in this facsimile reproduction)
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THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS; No. 52, PLATE XXXII B. 231
No. 52; PLATE XXXII B.
SONPAT COPPER SEAL INSCRIPTION OF HARSHAVARDHANA.
THIS inscription, which is now brought to notice for the first time, is from a copper
seal in the possession of Moharsingh Ramratan Mahajan, a merchant at Sônpat¹ or
Sônipat,² the chief town of the Sônpat Tahsîl or Sub-Division of the Dehli District in the
Pañjâb. I obtained the seal for examination through the kindness of Mr. J. D. Tremlett,
B.C.S., who, in fact, had the first information of it, and brought it to my notice.
The seal is oval, measuring about 5⅞″ by 6⅞″. All round it there runs a rim, about
½″ broad; and inside this there are, in rather shallow relief on a slightly countersunk sur-
face,—at the top, a bull, recumbent to the proper right; and below this, the inscription that
is given below. That it is only a seal, belonging to a copper-plate from which it has been
detached, is shewn by plain indications of soldering on the back of it, and also by the
spurious Gayâ plate of Samudragupta, No. 60 below, Plate xxxvii., which has a similar seal
attached to it. The letters of the inscription are worn down so much, that in many places
they can only be read by getting the light to fall on the surface at different angles; and in
some places they are entirely illegible. The only historical information, however, that seems
to be lost, is the completion of the name of Prabhâkaravardhana’s father, in line 4. I have
to acknowledge some assistance from Dr. Bhagwanlal Indraji in reading this inscription;
but, of course, without binding him to any of the details of it, as here published.—The
weight of the seal is 3 lbs. 6 oz.—The average size of the letters is about ⅛″. The
characters belong to the northern class of alphabets, and are of much the same type as
those of the Asîrgaḍh seal of Śarvavarman, No. 47 above, Plate xxxA.; but the forms are
rather more conservative in details.—The language is Sanskrit; and the inscription is
in prose throughout.—In respect of orthography, the only point that calls for notice
is the doubling of t, in conjunction with a following r, in puttra, lines 2 and 7.
The seal is one of Harshavardhana, king of Kanauj, who began to reign³ A.D.
606 or 607; and it is of peculiar interest, as being the first of his own epigraphical records
that has ever come to light. I have made every effort to discover the plate to which it
belongs; as the inscription on the plate would make the genealogy perfect, and also, if be-
longing to the early years of Harshavardhana’s reign, would probably shew what era was
used by him prior to the establishment of his own. But I have not succeeded in obtaining
any information about it; and it seems to have been hopelessly lost sight of. The pre-
sent owner of the seal states that there is no record of the plate itself having ever been in
the possession of his family; so it is very doubtful whether it is now in existence.
¹ The ‘Sonipat, Soonput, and Sunput,’ of maps, &c. Indian Atlas, Sheet No. 49. Lat. 28° 59′ N
Long. 77° 3′ E.
² Other forms of the name are Sônêpat, and Sunpat.
³ See Ind. Ant. Vol. XIII. p. 420, note 37.