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No. 17.]
NAVALAKHI PLATES OF SILADITYA I.
175
This inscription is one of the Paramamāhēsvara sri-śiaditya I. alias Dharmāditya, the son of sri-Dharasēna, and grandson of sri-Guhasēna who belonged to the royal family founded by Bhatārkka. It is dated in the year 286 (A.D. 605) on the 8th day of the dark half of Ashādha. The date furnishes the numerical symbols for 200, 80, 6, and 8. The preamble of this grant, including the description of each one of the kings, is, as is quite natural, exactly the same as that of the grant of 290, referred to above. A comparison of the copper-plate records of the family shows that Silāditya I. was the first king who omitted the Dames of the kings intervening between Bhatarkka, the founder, and Guhasēna, the grandfather of the present donor, a practice which was subsequently adopted in all the later grants of this 'family.
The subjoined inscription records the gift of a village called Bhöndānaka, situated within the provincial limits of Vatanagara. I am not certain whether this Vatanagara is the same as Vadnagar in the Baroda State, or is the Vatapadra which Dr. Bühler took to be the modern Vadodrá or Baroda. In any case, the village cannot be identified. The gift was made to forty-four Brāhmaṇas who had emigrated from Samgapuri, which is believed to be the sam: as the present Shahāpür near Junagadh. The cause of the immigration is not recorded. Probably they were induced to settle in this place by the present gift.
The names of the Brāhmauas are curious. Some look like surnames or family names while others are clearly the names of particular individuals. The name Boppabvāmi may show that he was very likely a Tailanga Brāhmaṇa. Some are Prākṣit forms of Sanskrit names, e.j. Khanda-Skanda, Sina-Sinha, Nattaka-Nartaka, Gorusarmma-Gõpasarmmā, as also Bhatti which seems to be derived from Bhartri. The last name is familiar as the one borne also by the author of the Bhatti-kāvya. It is probable that the names Bappataka, Nāvuvaka, Khokkhaka, Gimjaka, and Goggaka are also similar in origin, though I am unable to suggest the precise derivation. Other names are pure Sanskrit. Vatsa is götra or family name of several Brahmanas even at present. The names Dröna, Bhatti, Aditya, Bhadra, Bappataka and Gopa appear to belong to more persons than one among the donees of the present grant, and hence the individual of the same name subsequently mentioned is distinguished from the first named person, by prefixing dvi, tri as may be required. The prefixes mean, I believe, the second and the third.
The following officials are mentioned in the grant : (a) Ayuktaka. This word appears to be very old being found in Påņini 11. 3, 40, where
it signifies a person appointed to some small work of a special character, and from the nature of the example given in the Kaumudi to illustrate the rule, it seems probable that these may be Brühmanas employed for religious or charitable purposes, such as the pūjāris or the worshippers at temples, etc., or the asritas, i.e. the learned men patronised by the king for holy merit.
[The text follows more closely the Walā plates of Siladitya I. dated in Gupta-Sarhvat 286.-Ed.]
The fact that the grant of 290 records the names of several villages ending in anaka, gives greater probability to the second alternative. The fame, however, of Vanager as an early residence of Brahmansa is yet preserved in the name of the local caste of Brahmanas, and hence ono fools inclined to the first supposition. I cannot decide the matter for want of more accurate information.
. Compare the name of Bopadēvs, the granimgrisn.
* It is not unlikely that they are derived from the names of the villages to which their families originally belonged. The name Guhilabhati (1. 20) may be traced to Gohilwad-pranta of Kathiawad.
This leads to the inference that these may be family names. It is worthy of remark that among these names we recognise two of the modern ones of the Kökanastha families, vit. Bapat and Bbånu. These are now met with only amongst the so-called Dakshini Brahmanas and I believe are not to be found amongst the original residents of Gujarat or Kathiawad at present. [In luter inscriptions, e.g., the Mudbåtá plates (inbove, Vol. IX, p.1106), the abbreviations dei and tri stand for dritēda and trivēda.--H. K. S.]
