________________
124
EPIGRAPHIA INDICA
(Vol. XXVII
villagers as also good Brāhmaṇas - assembled at the place of his initiation in the village of Dvärahaţāka situated in Purvakhâţikā which was acquired by the Pala family coming from Ayodhyā :
(Ll. 6-9) "Be it known to you all that this village of Dhamahitha -- shorn of all royal privileges over (its) mineral resources, having its four boundarios (clearly) distinguished and having (full rights over) all land and water, pits and wastes, trees and shrubs, mangoes and madhukas (existing or growing in the village) and having been closed to all chattas and bhatļas (of the king), having been made exempt from taxes and having been freed from all (manner of) oppression.
(LI. 9-11) "is granted by Us as freehold (land) to (Our) good friend Mahārāyaka Väsudovaharman, son of Purushottamdöva and grandson of Somadöva, who belongs to the Värdhinasa götra and is a student of the Kanva sākhā of the Yajurvēda, as a friendly gift which is to last as long as the sun and the moon and the earth.
(LI. 11-14). "Wherefore, this gift shall be approved and maintained by you all and by those coming in future, from fear of the sin involved in misappropriation of land (belonging to others). And all the resident cultivators in the village) shall continue to pay all rightful taxes, dues, etc.
(LI. 14-21). And here are the slokas, conforming to dharna : [six imprecatory verses). (L. 22). THE 9TH DAY of Vaisakha, Saka 1118. .
No. 22-SEALS OF TIRUPPUVANAM PLATES
(1 Plate)
K. V. SUBRAHMANYA AIYER, COIMBATORE Subsequent to my editing the inscriptions on the above plates, I happened to refer to the work entitled Coins of Southern India by Sir Walter Elliot, on p. 124 of which he writes "I have A drawing and a facsimile of the seal of another säsanam, which, to the best of my recollection, was deposited with the preceding (i.e. the seal of the Tiruppūvaņam plates of Jaţävarman Kulabēkhara 1) at Tiruppūvanam, and referred to the grant therein mentioned by the chief of Madacolam, a feudatory of Kulasēkhara. This seal differs somewhat from the above marginal woodcut in having the tiger and the Ash placed upright, opposite each other, in the middle of the field, with the bow transversely below them: round it a legend which has been read doubtfully as Pandya-Narendravarmmanah Samastalokāsrayah' i.e. "the Pandya Narendravarman, lord of the whole world”. To the above observation, I have only to say that there is nothing to doubt about the correctness of the legend on this seal. On page 123 4 of the book, the author carefully describes the scal of the Tiruppuvaņam plates of Jaţăvarman Kulasēkbara and makes his own observations as regards the king, his date, etc., which we reproduce here :
"Memorials of him (Kulabēkhara I) have been found in the shape of copper śāsanamus, the Beals of which have the fish symbol in the centre, flanked by the tiger and the bow, as represented in the annexed woodcut, showing that he had assumed the paramount position of the Cholas or in other words, of the whole of the Drärida. The copper plates to which the seals above described were attached were translated by Dr. Caldwell and purport to be issued in the " 13th year, 4364th day of the lord of the earth, Sri Köchchadei Varma, emperor of the three worlds. Sri Kulasēkhara Dēva,eto. "If this is the year of the Kaliyuga, it would correspond with
1 Dr. B. C. Sen rendered (1.H.Q., Vol. X, p. 330) mukti-bhumi as the place of salvation.' Dr. D. C. Sircar alued (Indian Owlture, Vol. I, p. 682) if this term indicated Madómmanapala's imminent death! Mr. J. Gbosh tbought (ibid, Vol. II, p. 139) of possible reference to Madommapapala's birthplace. I believe some kind of dikaha or initiation is moant by the word mukti here. This would at least furnish an occasion for the land grant.
* above, Vol. XXV, PP. 64 ff.
