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No. 16.]
A KALACHURI STONE INSCRIPTION FROM KASIA.
129
the first 29 stanzas indicating the metre of each and the number of the line of the inscription in which each verse ends or would have ended had the document been better preserved. As to the metres of these stanzas, I agree to Professor Kielhorn's list, except in regard to the 28th verse, where he doubtfully makes the metre Vamiastha, though it is more probably Rathoddhata, the space being just enough for 44 syllables and the scheme of the extant last pāda as read by me being that of the Rathoddhata metre.
In respect of its contents the document is divisible into three portions, namely, (1) the invocations of deities (vv. 1-5), (2) the mythical and legendary portion of the genealogy (vv. 6-12), and (3) the historical portion. In connection with verses 4 and 5 it is interesting to observe that the two Nandi verses of the Buddhist drama, the "Nāgānanda ", also invoke the Buddha under the epithets of Jina and Munindra, the appellations in our inscription being Tathagata and Munindra. In connection with the second section, it is to be observed that in v. 8 the marriage of Badha with Ila, the daughter of Mana, is also mentioned though it is overlooked in Prof. Kielhorn's résumé. It is also noteworthy that while the Kahla plate inscription of Sodhadoval of another branch of the Kalachuri dynasty mentions Kpitavirya after Haihaya the Harivarhsa has as many as seven kings between Haihaya and Kritavirya. The names of these seven kings are (1) Dharmanētra, (2) Kartta, (3) Sahañja, (4) Mahishman, (5) Bhadraérēnya, (6) Darddama and (7) Kanaka.
The historical portion of the genealogy begins with v. 13 and embraces the rest of the preserved portion of the document. The founder of the branch of the Kalachuri dynasty represented by the present epigraph was Sankaragana as was Lakshmana-raja of the other branch referred to in the preceding paragraph. My text of the Kasia inscription elucidates two or three obscure points in the summary of Prof. Kielhorn, and furnishes the names of one or two other kings which are omitted by him. In the first place Prof. Kielhorn was doubtful about the relationship of the third king Lakshmana (I) (v. 16) to his predecessor Nannarāja. My reading of the verse clearly makes him a son of Nanna-raja. The same remark applies to the next king Siva-rāja (I) (v. 18) who must bave been a son to Lakshmana (I). Again Prof. Kielhorn's summary makes Rajaputra (v. 20) the son of Bhimata (I) mentioned in v. 19. It now appears that the term rajaputra is only a title of Lakshmana (II) not mentioned in Prof. Kielhorn's notes, who was in all probability the son of Bhimata. The last king (v. 27) mentioned in the extant portion of the record is Bhimāta (II), son of Kanchanā probably the wife of Lakshmanarāja II or of another king whose name may have disappeared in v. 26. It is impossible to ascertain whether the inscription was set up in the time of this prince (Bhimata II) or whether the missing portion contained the names of one or more other princes, Nor is it possible, for the same reason, to say what the object of the inscription was.
The only place mentioned in the epigraph is Saivayas (verse 17) to which Lakshmana resorted after having entered & fort whose name is missing. The verse mentioned above describes it as a mountainous district (fikhari-vishayah) which was the residence of Sibi the son of Usinara. Prof. Kielhorn proposed to identify this locality with Seweya, sitasted a few miles south or south-east of Kasia. I have nothing to say against this suggestion, for the place must have been situated somewhere in the vicinity of Kasia where the inscription has been found, though it must be observed that the village Seweya, which I personally inspected, is situated on perfectly level ground and not in a mountainous region. In an interesting article on the Shorkot inscription of the year 83, Dr. Vogel has discussed the history of the Sibi tribe
1 Epigraphia Indica, Vol. VII, pp. 86 seq.
Haridania, Calcutta edition of 1889, adhyaya 38, v. 1845-50.
Saivaya appears to be a mistake for Saivya ( Sini + the safix aya), i.e., the country or city of the sibis (The metre requires such a form which might be nidha.-Ed.]
• Epigrapbia Indica, Vol. XVI, pp. 15-17.
