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No. 42)
TELUGU CHOLA RECORDS FROM ANANTAPUR AND CUDDAPAH
227
ment generally. In Tamil inscriptions and literature the word kogtam conveys the meaning of a territorial division larger than a small settlement. The word sakshi in line 8 clearly stands for sākshi or witness.
The inscription records the grant of a pannasa of 24 marunturs of land in the territorial division (kottam) to a Brāhmaṇa (pāra) during the reign of Erikal-Mutturāju at the instance of (or by ?) Kundikāļļu, the witnesses to the deed being Dujayarājula Mutturājulu, Navapriya Mutturajulu and Vallava Dukarajulu.
The identification of the persons mentioned in the inscription presents much difficulty. It is not possible to state definitely whether the king Erikal-Mutturāju of this record is to be taken to be identifical with Erikal-Mutturāju Dhanañjaya of ins. A above, although the palaeography and the provenance of the record may render it plausible. Dujayarājula-Mutturājulu may be taken to refer to the official Mutturāju who was either called Durjayarāju himself or was a subordinate under the latter whose name or Surname was Dujayarāju. The identity of Dujayarāju is not easy to establish. It is perhaps to the point to recall here the descent claimed by some later royal lines of the Telugu country; the Kākatiyas, Kondapadumatis and the Velanāņdu kings claimed descent from a certain Durjaya of the Chaturthakula. It is possible that our Dujaya has greater claims to be considered as identical with this remote ancestor of the later Telugu monarchs than the Ranadurjaya of the Tändivāda grant to whom this position has been assigned by Mr. R. S. Panchamukhi, for the evidence is by no means clear that Raņadurjaya was a Chola monarch of the line of Karikāla.
Vallava Dukaraju was the Yuvarāja of the Pallavas) who must have been one of the contemporary Pallava princes of Kāñchi which was at this time ruled over by Simhavishņu (c. 575-600 A.D.). Navapriya Mutturāju may be identical either with Navarāma, the son of Sundarananda mentioned in the Madras Museum Plates of Srikantha-Chola or Navarāma Chola-Maharāja Mahendravikrama, the son of Dhanañjaya (of the Mälēpādu plates). It is more likely that he was the latter in view of the fact that he figures along with Vallava Dukarāja and bears the name Mahendra vikrama wbich was also borne by the contemporary Pallava prince Mahendravikrama I, son of Simhavishnu.
The mention of the Pallava prince in an inscription of the Telugu Chola may be taken to indicate political alliance either as between a subordinate and overlord or on equal terms.
B. TEXT
First side 1 Svasti Sri [li*] Erika
2 Imutturājulla 1 Above, Vol. V, p. 142; SII. iv, No. 692. * Above, Vol. XXIII, p. 96.
It may be asked whether Vallava Dukaraju may not, instead, stand for Vallabha Yuvarāju, Vallabha being a dynastic name indicating the Western Chalukya. Pulakēbin I calls himself Chalikya Vallabhēsvara (An. Rep. of Kannada Research in the Bombay Province, 1940-41, p. 9), and is also referred to as Vallabhs in the later Chalukya records (Fleet; Bom. Gaz. Vol. I, Pt. II, p. 344; Chiplun Plates of Pulakësin II, Ep. Ind. III, p. 51, 1. 3). Likewise, Pulakēsin II is referred to as the Vallabha king in Pallava records (Fleet; Bom. Gas. Vol. I, pt. II, pp. 324, 326, 361, 377) and also in his own records (Nerur Grant, Ind. Ant. Vol. VIII, p. 43, 1. 3; Kopparam Plates, E.I.XVIII, pp. 259, 260). Kirtivarman II is spoken of as Vallabhs in the Samangad grant of Dantidurga (Ind. Ant. Vol. XI, p. 112) as also, probably, in the Dasavatara Cave Ins. (Arch. Sur. of W. India, Vol. V. p. 88). While it is not im. possible that Vallava Dukaraju of the present record may be a Chilukya prince, it would seem more likely that he was a Pallava prince in view of the close political relationship that existed between the Pallaves and the Cholas of the early period as indicated by the close correspondence in their names and titles. There is however a atray instance of the Pallavas being called Vallabhas (Othgodu grant of Simbavarman II: Ep. Ind. Vol. XV, p. 256, 1. 17).
