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EPIGRAPHIA INDICA
[Voi.. XXVII
donated village, was situated to the south-east of the river Krish vavēni in a territorial division (bhõga) whose name is lost. It was bounded on the north-east by Machhadaryā, Devabhirya and Sēnavarya, on the south-east by the village Kolika and on the west by Malakhotaka. The grant was made on the occasion of Mahāvaisakhi or the full-moon day of Vaisakha. No year of any era, not even a regnal yoar, is mentioned in connection with it. The donces were two Brahmanas, viz., Bõlasvāmin of the Salankāyana götra and Kosavasvamin of the Bhāradvāja gotra. Bõlasvāmin is described as a very pious Brāhmaṇa engaged in the six duties laid down for the members of his caste and intent on the performance of religious rites of the Sanatanadharma enjoined in the Srutis and Smritis. This is the earliest epigraphical mention of the term Sanātanadharma which is so commonly used in these days. The charter was written by Sripala who is described as a devout Kayastha. This is perhaps the earliest mention of the Kayastha caste.
Though the present plates were discovered twenty-two years ago, no satisfactory attempt has yet been made to identify this Madhavavarman. The first plate which probably contained the name and description of the family and some of the immediate ancestors of the king has been lost. This makes the task of his identification very difficult. The description in the extant portion of the grant, however, affords a clue. It shows that this Madhavavarman was a very pious king who performed, inter alia, Pundarika, Bahusuvarma and eleven other sacrifices whose names have, inadvertently been omitted. He is also said to have attained the position of Sürabharma. Thu characters of the present grant show that this Madhavavarman flourished in the sixth century A.D. The only king in this period to whom this description could be appropriately applied was Madhavavarman I of the Vishņukundin dynasty who flourished from about A.D. 510 to A.D. 560. From the description of this king in his own grants and in those of his descendants, we loarn that he was a staunch supporter of the Vodic religion. He performed a thousand Agnishtömas, eleven den mēdhas as well as several other srauta sacrifices such as Bahusuvarna, Pundariku, Purushamedha, Vājapēya, Shodasin, Rājasuya, Prājāpatya, Prādhirajya and others and attained svārājya. A comparison of this description with that in the present plates would show that the sacrifices Pundarika and Bahusuwarna are common to both the lists. Again, the eleven sacrifices which are
1 According to D. R. Bhandarkar, the Sanjan grant of Amoghavarsha I (A.D. 871) and the Gurniha grant of Jayadityadeva (A.D. 870) are the earliest records mentioning the Kayastha caste. [There is no indication in the present record that the term Kayastha here stands for the caste of that name. Dr. D. C. Sircar draws attention to the five Damodarpur copper charters, four of which mention, among other officials, a Prathama hayotha se above, Vol. XV, pp. 130, 133, 139 and 142. The earliest of these records refers itself to the reign of Kuimaragupta and is dated in the Gupta year 127 (=A.D. 446-7). I may add that the writer of the Gunaighar plate, of the Gupta year 188 (=A.D. 507–8), is one Kayastha Naradatta, attached to the office of the external affairs (sandhivigrah-adhikarana); IHQ, Vol. VI, p. 55. Here the term most probably denotes writer'. -Ed.)
[See below p. 315, a 10-Ed.]
* Mirashi at first conjectured that he might have been of the Early Rashtrakūta dynasty of Mänapura. ABORI. Vol. XXV, p. 46. Ho had then no access to the text of the record. Subsequent study of the text suggested to him the identification stated here.
• Both the Ipur and Pulomburu plates of Madhavavarman I mention his performance of thousand Aynish. pomas and elven Abwamedhas; above, Vol. XVII, p. 336, and JAHRS, Vol. VI, p. 20. These criticus aro aldo mentioned in the granta of his grandsons Madhavavarman II and Indravarman, above, Vol. XVII, p. 33, suc Vol. XII, p. 134. Finally, the Chitkulla plates of his great-grandson Vikramendravarman II give a long list of the morifoon performed by Madhavavarman I, viz., sloven Afvamedhos, # thousand Agnishlomas, Bathur a, Poundarika, Purushamedha, Vajapeya, Rajasdya and others; ibid., Vol. IV, p. 196.
