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EPIGRAPHIA INDICA.
[VOL. VI
understand how Malla, who calls himself "the friend of eminent poets," could deviate from the ule laid down by Någavarma. Accordingly verse 302 of the Prosody will have to be interpreted differently. I would translate it thus: "Ajagana comes in the beginning without fail; then come) five ganas which are vishnu ; in the place called the end (i.e. at the end), the rudragana vill remain perinanently everywhere (i.e. in all the feet); in the foot counted the second, if in che sixth (place) the ajagana occurs in intimate connection, at the choice of the author,- we (then) have the wonderful (i.e. rarely used metre) Piriyakkara, 0 moon-faced one!" Thus we
ee that, the occurrence of the ajagana in the sixth place being left to the option of the author, Malla adopted the vishnugana throughout. As regards Lalitavritta, it may be noticed that the name given to it by Dr. Kittel's manuscripts, viz. Lalitapada, over verse 233 of the Prosody, is rather misleading. The name occurs as Lalitavsitta in the very verse which describes it, as well as in the subjoined inscription. If this pame is not given to the metre, it is likely to be confounded with other Sanskrit metres of the same name. It may be noted also that, according to a few manuscripts, Nagavarma claims to have been the inventor of these two metres; see Dr. Kittel's Introduction to Någavarma's Canarese Prosody, p. xix." To this I would add that there is one verse in the Piriyak kara metre in Argaladeva's Chandraprabhapurána (1189 A.D.), ásvâsa iv. v. 18. Other Piriyakkaras occur in the Pampabhurata edited by Mr. Rice, pp. 112, 116, 153, 343, and Akkaras on pp. 331, 343.
Verse 1 of the inscription contains the date,-a specified week-day and tithi in the Saka Sesr 973 (in words), the cyclic year Hêmalambin, and the sixth year of the reign of the Chôļa king Rajendradêva. Professor Kielhorn has calculated the details of the date and found that it corresponds to Monday, the 27th October A.D. 1057. A reference to Rajendradêva's predecessor Rajadhiraja is found in Jayangonda-Choa-Permadi-GÂvunda, a surname of Raviga of Nngunadu (v. 7), which is derived from Jayangonda-Chola, one of the names of Rajadhiraja. The same verse of the inscription mentions, among other kings, Silamégha who seems to be identical with one of the two Ceylon kings named Vira-Salâmêgaq. The first of them was killed by Rajadhiraja, and the second by Rajendradêva.
Two families of Kudiyas (sadras) (vv. 6, 8, 9 and 22) are named in the inscription, viz. the Avacba family of Nugunå du (vv. 2, 6, 17, 19 and 22) and the Kuruvanda family of Pervayal in Navalenádu (vv. 13 and 17). To the first one belonged Raviga (v. 4), who was raised by the Chôļa king to the rank of superintendent of a province (v. 8). Raviga's principal seat becamo Beļatúru (v. 11), and he married Ponpakka, the daughter of the headman of Nálgódu in Edenadu (v. 10), whose name is not mentioned. Raviga's daughter Dēkabbe was given in marriage to Echa of the Kuruvanda family (v. 13). When the king killed Echa ict Talekádu (v. 14), bis widow committed herself to the flames (vv. 15 to 20). Before her end she granted to Siva a garden for a perpetual lamp, and a paddy-field for oblations (v. 18 f. and 1. 33 f.). Dekabbe's father, Raviga, set up the stone which bears the inscription, as a memorial of his daugbter (v. 22).
Of the localities mentioned in this inscription, Beļatūru (v. 11) is identical with the village where the inscription exists. Talekadu (v. 14) is the old capital of the Western Gangas, at which the Chola king seems to have been staying at the time of the inscription. Nugunadu is, perhaps, named after the river Nugu (also called Bhrigu), a tributary of the
In my manuscript the verse reads thus :
Toreyal-endwirdda rajyaman enitirddu mareyal-end-idirdda bandha-samahaman nerapal-end=idda sat-av-vpittiya mapadestiriga-vihvaļsteyinden toregade mareyade nereyad=&yushyam pare paduvagale bercbehid-ante
maragava marulang-Arayvandf bhavan maru-bbaya Adeyum vyarttham alte . Above, p. 23, No. 36.
• South-Ind. Inser. Vol. III. p. 51. • Ibid. pp. 53 and 56.
Ibid. pp. 59 and 63. See Dr. Fleet's Dyn. Kas. Distr. p. 299 and note 2.
