Epigraphia Indica Vol 13

Author(s): Sten Konow, F W Thomas
Publisher: Archaeological Survey of India

Page 18

No. 1.)
TRIPLICANE PLATES OF PANTA-MAILARA.
belonged, is described in the Tottaramīļi platest and he Konkuduru grant' as belonging to the fourth caste (ie, the Südra caste). The name Panta-kala is mentioned therein as composed of several branches, of which the most important were the one of the Reddis ruling independently over the south Telugu country with Kondavidu as its capital, and another of the same kings ruling over the north Teluga country with Rājamahēndrapura (Rajahmundry) as the capital, In the genealogical portion of neither of these families do we come across the names Süra, Pota or Mammadi, the ancestors of Panta-Mailāra. Perhaps this chief belonged to a minor branch of the Panta-kula. The Teluga poet Srinātha, who was the Vidyadhikärin of the Kondavidu chiefs, laments the death of a Mailāru in a verse' which is quoted by Rão Babador Virosslingam Pantula in his 'Lives of Telugu Poets.' This Mailära was, perhaps, the same as the Papta-Mailēra of the document under consideration who is said to have served Dövarāya II. in his campaigns against his enemies, and pleased his lord by paying him rich tributes of invaluable gems and other costly articles. On the whole, he seems to have been in the good graces of Dovarīya II. Nothing further is known of Panta-Mailāra.
The donee, singarārya, belonged to the Srisaila-vanía. The family derives its name from Periya Tirumalai-nambi, the maternal uncle of the great Visishţădvaita teacher, Sri-Ramanuja. He was one of the five important disciples of Yamunārya (alias Alavandār), and was an authority in the exposition of the Rāmāyaṇa, in which his descendants also became famons. The members of this family are better known by the sitle Tātāchārya. It is said that the god Venkatēs of Tirupati was very pleased with Periya Tirumalai-nambi for the parental care he was taking of his image at Tirumala, and on one occasion the god is said to have addressed him as mama tāta' (my father); and ever since Periya Tiramalai-nambi came to be recognised by the name Tātāchārya, a title which his descendants also, began to assume. The Tātachāryag became the gurus of the kings of Vijayanagara; the way they succeeded in bringing the emperors of Vijayanagara to their faith is narrated in the Prapannamsitam, a summary of which has been given in my paper on the Daļavāy Agrahāram plates of Venkatapatidēvaraya 1.6 The Tātāchāryas are found among the Vadagalais and the Tengalais alike, but the majority are only Vadagalais ; the name Tātācharya has therefore almost exclusively become a Vadagalai one at the present time, and I ain told the Tengalai Tātāchāryas despise this Vadagalai appellation, Tātāchārys, and hence the paucity of the suffix among the Tengalai members of the Srisailavan a. The owner of the copper-plate grant under consideration is a Tengalai Tātāchārya belonging to the Addańki branch of the family and is in all probability the lineal descendant of the donee of the document. There are Tengalai Tātācāryas residing in Sriinusbņam, srivilliputtar, etc.
Above, Vol. IV, p. 322, v. 6.
1 Above, Vol. V, p. 57, v. 4. Compare the genealogy given in the Karikhandam of Srinatha, an abstract of which has been given by Mr. G. V. Rimamurti Pantula, at ibidem, p. 56.
Kailasagiri bande Mailarw-vibhudeegi dina vechchamaraju .. .. Srinatha is said to have been a contemporary of Sarvajia Singama-Nayaks, for whose paternal unclo Madhava-Nayaks, we get the date s. 1343, from the Srirangam plates (see Ep. 4.. Rep. for 1908, p. 9). He survived Richavēns and was afterwards patronized by the Reddis of Rajamahēndrapurs (see Ep. Ind., Vol. XI, p. 315), and it is possible that he lived long enough to survive Panta-Mailara as well. The time of his death has not yet been settled.
* In the 1911 edition, p. 132.
There in every probability that the donce of the inscription under discussion is the Addanki Sincaricharve given in the list of the Periya Tirumudiyadaipu; but there is this difference between the plates and the book. that while the former give the names Venkatáchårys and Tātacharya as those of the grand father and the father respectively, of singarärya, the latter mentions Venkatichárys as the father of Singaracharya. It is very probable that the printed copy of the book which contains this pedigree is wrong, a pone of the maud. scripts of the work in my possession makes any mention of this line at all.
See above, Vol. XII, p. 162.