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No. 17]
KUDIYANTANDAL GRANT OF VIRA-NRISIMHA: SAKA 1429.
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plate grant, which belongs to the same matha, but is not included in Appendix A. . . . It is not clearly stated in the record if the matha presided over by the Sankarārya herein referred to was identical with the Sankaracharya matha at Conjeeveram."
In the first place, the Achāryas of the matha have each a proper name like Mabādēva, Sadāśiva and Chandrasekhara, while all of them are styled Sankaracharya by the people. This will be clear from the Guru-paramparā of the matha, extracts from which we reproduce below, and which must be at least three centuries old. Secondly, the attributes of the great Saikara such as parama-hamsa parivrajakacharya, eto., are found in these copper-plates. Thirdly, the plates make it clear that the donee was a great teacher of Advaitism : cf. line 68 fitoshnādi-dvandva-duhkha-vyatitāya mahatmans. Also, nigananta-rahasyārthan fishyebhyak suvitrinvatē in the grant of Vijaya-Gandagopala. The teacher is styled tapasvin in the present grant, and Siva-chētas and Yati-raja in the plates of Krishộadova-Raya, and also an exponent of the māya-vāda. Fourthly, the Acharya has his seat in Kalichi-puram, and the plate of Vijaya-Gandagopāla locates the matha as situated to the west of the temple of HastiSails-nătha. Unless the critio could prove the existence of another matha at Conjeeveram to which the above attributes can be applied, there seems to be no point in calling in question the identification of the matha to which the grants were made with the matha of Sankarschārya at Conjeeveram. As a matter of fact the matha owns, even at the present time, lands in Ambikapuram and various other villages granted in those copper-plates.
The date of the grant is Saka 1429, Sukla, Māgha, on the occasion of the Mahodaya, which is considered a very auspicious conjunction of constellations. The week-day is not mentioned, por is the tithi. But the mention of the cyclic year is important. It shows that Vira-Nrisimhendra must have ascended the throne at the latest by 1506 A.D.
The chief interest of the grant, however, is that, taken together with the copper-plates ot Krishnadēva-Rāya and Vijaya-Gandagopala, it enables us to determine approximately the date of the great Sankarāchārya. The Gurus of the Sankarāchārya matha named in the plates are-(1) Sri Sankara-yogin, 1291 A.D., (2) Sadasiva, Mahadeva and Chandrachida, and Sydasiva, contemporaneous with the Vijayanagara kings Vira-Nsisimhēndra and KrisboaRaya (1506 to 1527 A.D.). Fortunately for us, we find these names in the old list of the Acharyas preserved in the matha. One of the teachers, the third in apostolic descent from Sadasiva (1627 A.D.), composed NGuru-raja-ratna-mala-stava, of which the following are the closing stanzas :
निजनोहदवग्रहेतिखेदं त्यज नेपालनृपालपूज्यपादः । स पुरो मम साधु सविधत्तां विपुलानन्दसदाशिवी प्रमत्तः । बहुधाहितंसूत्रभाष्यशान्तिः बहुलामीदवहस्समग्रथान्तिः। . शमलं समुदस्य शं ममालं स महादेवगुरुर्दिशेमलीलम् । सतताहितचन्द्रमौलिसेवः शितकाचोपुर एव शहभावः। सृजतान्मम चन्द्रचूडमौनी स जयं सर्वत एव साधुमानी॥ अथ मे स सदाशिवः अषोष्ट:) प्रथमं बोधपदेन तवदेष्टा । कुपलं कुशलाग्रणी: प्रकामं प्रशमो ऽप्युज्ज्वलमूर्तिराप्तकामः ।
दये स पदं सदा विधत्तां सदयो मे प्रणुदन प्रमादवत्ताम । निगमान्तगुरुः परशिवात्मा सुगममाधुततेयमी महामा।
