________________
No. 26.]
Mr. Venkayya has discovered and sent to me a third date of the king Farantaka I., which should admit of verification, and which I have examined but do not venture to publish yet. I am also keeping back a number of dates of Kulôttunga-Chôla II. and Rajadhiraja II, because I am not fully convinced of the correctness of my general results. The discovery of additional dates of these kings is highly to be desired and would be of considerable importance. Mr. Venkayya has kindly checked the readings of the original dates here published, after they were in print.
DATES OF CHOLA KINGS.
A. PARANTAKA I.
101.-In the Sivalôkanatha templo at Grȧmam.1
nålu
16 Svasti śri [*] Kali[y]uga-varsham nâlayirattu når[pa]17 ttu Madiraikonda kb-Pparakiaripagmag[nra] nal [i]rattu
18 ku yându 36âvadu Kali[y*Ju 19 painingandry inatte elu[la] 20 muppattu êlu
22
23 [gara-nyagru-Chobani-kkilamai
i[v]v-âṭṭai MaIravadi-n[â!].
perra
"(In) the Kaliyuga year four thousand and forty-four, the 36th year (of the reign) of king Parakesarivarman who took Madirai, on the fourteen-hundred-thousand, seven[ty] .. [thousand] thirty-seventh day... .... Kaliyuga. . . the day of Revati, which corresponded to a Saturday of the month of Ma[kare] in this year."
. On
261
For the current year 4044 of the Kaliyuga this date corresponds to Saturday, the 14th January A.D. 943, which by the Arya-siddhânta was the 23rd day of the month of Makara, and on which [the 6th tithi of the bright half of Magha ended 18 h. 21 m., while] the nakshatra was Rêvati for 9 h. 12 m., after mean sunrise. The preceding Makara-sam krânti, according to the Arya-siddhânta, had taken place 8 h. 33 m. after mean sunrise of Friday, the 23rd December A.D. 942, when the ahargana, calculated by Warren's Table, was 1477014d. 8 h. 33 m. That Friday, therefore, was the 1477015th day of the Kaliyuga, and Saturday, the 14th January A.D. 943, the 1477037th day, the day which, without any doubt, was put down in the original date.
Above, Vol. VII. p. 1, I have stated that between A.D. 900 and 985 the Chola date No. 55, which is of the 40th year of the reign of Parântaka I., must correspond to either the 24th July A.D. 919 or the 25th July A.D. 946. The present dato No. 101, which is of the 36th year of the same reign and corresponds to the 14th January A.D. 943, shows that the second alternative given by me really furnishes the true equivalent of the date No. 55. And the two dates together prove that Parântaka I. commenced to roign between (approximately) the 15th January and the 25th July A.D. 907.
I may add that this is the earliest known Chôla date which can be verified, and that of the 136 dates hitherto examined it is the only one in which the era of the Kaliyuga is quoted. Among the same dates, 18 quote the Saka era; and of these, 12 are in Kanarese, 4 in Telugu, and only 2 (No. 6 of S. 1030, and No. 16 of S. 1119) in Tamil inscriptions. The Saka year 991 is quoted in the date of a Tamil inscription of Virarêjêndra, which does not admit of verification.
B.-RAJENDRA-CHOLA I.
102. In the Dârukávanésvara temple at Tiruppalâtturai,
śrî
[*] Tiru mann[i] valara
1 Sva[sti]
[Ppa][ra karipa[ama]r-âga ari-Rájéntra(ndra)-Chôļdēvaşka [hou
1 No. 735 of the Government Epigraphist's collection for 1905.
2 Read Irévadi..
* No. 275 of the Government Epigraphist's collection for 1903.
ko5ávads)
