Epigraphia Indica Vol 18

Author(s): H Krishna Shastri, Hirananda Shastri
Publisher: Archaeological Survey of India

Page 45

EPIGRAPHLA INDICA.
[VOL. XVIIL
any longer, I am giving in this article what may be considered a preliminary notice, am aturer edition being reserved for my own publication, in the Travancore Archeological Series.
As has been already romarked, the six pillars are covered with writing from the top to the bottom. At first I conceived that the writing went round the pillar in a spiral; bat on closer examination it was discovered that each pillar consisted of two sections, one on the back face and another on the front. The inscription is continued from pillar to pillar in the following systematic order Ia, Ib, IIa, IIb, and so on, where I represents the first piller and a and i represent the back and front faces of the pillar. The language is mostly Sanskrit. At the end of the record occurs the grant portion beginning with the birudas of king ViraRajēndra, and giving his regnal year. The birudas and names of the king in this section are written in the Grantha alphabet, while the rest is in the Tamil alphabet and language. The Sanskřit portion of the record, giving the genealogy of the Cholas, is entirely in verse, whereas the Tamil portion is in prose. On the whole the epigraph consists of 444 lines.
In the first two verses the god Siva, and in the third Vishnu, are praised. The god of the Universe first created the Brahmånda, and then Brahma was ushered into existence for the purpose of creating all other things. Brahmå, in his turn, created several Rishis to assist him in his task. One of them was Marichi. The son of Marichi was Kaśyapa; his son was Vivasyān: the son of the latter was Manu; Manu's son was Ikshvāku; his son, Vikukshi. grave; Purai jaya, who obtained the title Kakutsthe, was the son of the latter. In the lineage of Kakutstha was born king Prithu ; in tbe same race arobe Kuvalāśva, Mandhatri. Muchukunde, Harischandra, Sagara, Bhagiratha, Rituparna and Dilipa. In this illustrious family was born the Lord (bhagavān) in the four aspects of Rāma, Lakshmana, Bharatx and Šatrughne, purposely to teach the world how each one has to conduct oneself towards others; that is, a son towards a father and mother, a younger brother towards his elder brother and so on. The verses describing Råma (vv. 25-26) are very beautiful. Up to this the genealogy is purely pauranic. Next follows what might be considered as legendary and semihistoric.
In the solar race was born a king named Chole. To this king, who ruled over the whole earth, the forests served as a sort of artificial garden. Once upon a time this king was sporting for some time in the forests inhabited by Rishis; with a small army be once proceeded on a hunting excursion in the adjoining forests. Then a Rakshasa who had assumed the shape of
deer appeared before him. Pursuing the animal he and his followers reached another forest, where he killed that deer. By this time he had reached the bank of the river Kāvēri; he went along its course, bathed in its water, which was as sweet as amrita; he looked all round for Brāhmaṇas and found none about the place. He then brought several Brāhmaṇas from the Äryävarta and settled them comfortably on the banks of the river Kåvori. Cutting down the forests on either bank of the Kåvēri, ho planted gardens containing creepers of betel leaves and areca palms.
Rājakēeari, the son of Cho!a, suoceeded him after his death. The son of Rajakesari was Parak @sari. The prasasti does not mention the fact that in the Chola dynasty the titles Räja. kësari and Parakesari were assumed by alternate kings, as is stated in the Leiden and the Tiruvălangadu grants. In this dynasty were born Mrityujit, who conquered Mrityu, the god of
[This has since been done by Mr. K. V. Subrahmanya Aiyar in Volume III of that series, pp. 85 to 158
Ed.)
* This is evidently an imitation of a similar occurrence in the life of Rå ms. areh. Survey of South India, Vol. IV, p. 204, and South Ind. Iners., Vol. III, p. 883.