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fo.. 35) NAYANAPALLE INSCRIPTION OF GANAPATIDEVA
193 No. 35-NAYANAPALLE INSCRIPTION OF GANAPATIDEVA
V. VENKATASUBBA AYYAR, MADRAS The subjoined inscription is found on a stone built into the back wall of the Chennakēsvara temple at Nāyanapalle, a village about 3 miles from Mötupalle in the Bapatla taluk of the Guntur District. The stone is fixed into the wall horizontally while the lines of writing are vertical, thus indicating that it must have been introduced in its present position sometime later when the temple was renovated; but in the attempt to fix the blab into the wall, its top and bottom portions have been chiselled away causing damage to a few lines at the beginning and end of the inscription. A big portion in the middle of the inscribed surface is also very much worn out. As it is, the record is incomplete; a few lines forming the concluding portion of the inscription are probably to be found on the other face of the stone not open to view now.' Since even in the present state, the inscription is of great value, I edit it with the permission of Rao Bahadur C. R. Krishnamacharlu, Superintendent for Epigraphy.
Owing to the damaged condition of the record, its importance has not so far been properly assessed ; but an attempt is now made to read the inscription in its proper perspective and interpret its historical significance.
The epigraph is in Telugu prose and is engraved in characters of the 13th century A.D. Its orthography does not call for any special notice. The word sèyumu used in 1.21 offers some difficulty, especially as the inscription is fragmentary. Whether it is used as an order of Ganapati to a subordinate official, or, whether the word has to be corrected into sēyimchi so as to accord with the sense conveyed by gānki-goni vachchi (11.15-16) and mathamu kattinchchi (11.18-19) is not evident. The interpretation of this word does not, however, alter the main historical bearing of the record.
The epigraph is not dated, but it states that the Kākati king Gapapatidēva-Maharafu, in the course of his victorious digvijaya campaign, (proceeded to the southern direction, killed Bayyana and Tikkana who had burnt Nellüru, and proceeding to Dravidamandala, won over Kulottumga-Rajēmdrachöda, received presents of elephants from the ruler of Nellūru, constructed a matha at Sriparvata, called Bhringi-matha, described as belonging to the lineage (santānamu) of Mallināthadēva and that he consecrated at Chaitrapura alias Mottupalli an image called Kumăra-Ganapēsvara, after his name.
It is to be regretted that the concluding portion is lost, but its purport can be easily guessed, It must have contained particulars of some grant of land at Nāyanapalle, made to god KumāraGanapēsvara set up by Ganapati at Möțupalle, a village close to Näyanapalle. Since the introduotory passage has not suffered any damage, the historical portion of the record may be said to be complete.
"The present inscription confirms and supplements the literary evidence available regarding * This is registered as No. 769 of 1922-23 of the Madras Epigraphical colleotion.
* Mr. H. K. Narasimhaswami who went to the village at my request to examine the other fact oould not dis lodge the stone from its present position in the wall.
[See below p. 197, n. 2-Ed.)
Since sending this article for publication, my friend Dr. N. Venkataramanayya of the Madras University has published his study of this inscription in the Telugu Journal Bharati (February, June and Jaly parts 1945) wherein he seeks to identify Kulottunga Rajendrachöda with a Velanändu chief of that name. I bave, however, to differ from the identification proposed by him. It may be pointed out in this connection that in an inscription from Srirangam (8.1.I., Vol. IV, No. 600) dated in the 9th year of Märavarman Sundara-Pandya (acoession A. 1216) the temple managers are said to have colluded with the Ottar to the detriment of the moome of the templo. Dr. Venkataramanayya takes the word 'Ottar' as Oddiyar, i.e., people of Orissa, and postulates a Kalinga invasion of the south as far as Srirangam about A.D. 1224. The inscription does not refer to any invasion or confusion consey quent on the inroad. The word • Ottar' must be taken to mean those who have undertaken to do a thing or given an agreement' (to the temple) and not as referring to the people of Orissa, for the latter are referred to in Tamil insoriptions as 'Oddiyar. The theory of Kalinga invasion as far as Brirangam based on the interprotation of this word by Dr. Venkataramanayya is therefore not acceptablo.
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