________________
ESTIMATE OF KHĀRAVELA
367
name of king Khāravela-siri, is evidently a literary device to represent the sovereign lord of Kalinga as the noblest type of kingly personality and the greatest and best of earthly warrior heroes. He is styled Khemarāja'— the Lord of Security. He is styled “Vadharāja--the Lord of Prosperity. He is styled 'Indarāja'—the Lord of Kingly Power. He is styled 'Dhammarāja'—the Lord of Religion and Justice. He is represented as a person who had the ripeness of understanding and judgement of the nature of what is conducive to human welfare. He is represented as a person gifted with special qualities, as one who honoured all sects and denominations, and as one who repaired all religious temples. He is represented as a descendant of a family of royal sages. He is represented as the inost powerful king who maintained the prestige of his illustrious predecessors and who had the ability to protect his kingdom.
Having come to the office of Ruler at an early age of sixteen, Khāravela developed into an ideal king of the Hindu political philosophy. There is hardly any trace of despotism in his biography. A born soldier and a gifted general, yet he was always anxious to satisfy the condition of Hindu kingship. He was a king 'who pleased his people' (Pakatiyo cha rafijayati, Skt : prakritik cha rafijayati)., "It is an axion af the Hindu political philosophy”, writes K. P. Jayaswal, that a king is called king (rājan) because he has to please (rapija) his people." "He pleases his people' is, therefore, one of the proudest phrases in his Inscription. Himself a great master of music, Khāravela often entertained his people by arranging musical and dancing perfor
1, JBORS, III, p. 418.
Jain Education International
For Personal & Private Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
