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No. 50] LODHIA PLATES OF MAHASIVAGUPTA ; YEAR 67
391 (Malava Bamvat) for king Süryavarman. Apparently king Suryavarman was living in the year 611 (Mälava Samvat) which is equal to A.D. 555. He is stated to have attained a position of pride hy bestowing his daughter, Vāsaţă, on Maha-Sivaguptarājadēva's father Harsbagupta whom thu Lakshman temple inscription describes as Prāk-parametara, 'the Lord of the eastern region'. Evidently Harshagupta ruled over the country known as Kdeala or Präk-Kosala, which probably comprised Dakshiņa Kõsala, East Kõsala with Tõsala, Utkala and Odra, extending it! limit up to the eastern sea-shore.' His uncle Maha-Siva-Tivararkja bad his capital at Sripura (now Sirpur) from which place his Baloda and Räjim plates were issued. He is described as praplasakala-Kösal-adhipatyah in the Baloda plates, the seal of which mentions him as Kosalādhipati. Maha-Sivaguptarājadēva must have succeeded his father or unclo and was, therefore, the supremo lord of Kõsala, apparently Maha-Kösala or Dakshiņa-Kosala.
In what part of India king Suryavarman was reiguing, and whether his son Bhāskaravarman succeeded him or not, cannot be definitely ascertained now for want of evidence. This muobis, no doubt, clear that Süryavarman's father was ruling over a kingdom within which was includod the Bäräbanki District in Oudh, where the Haraha stone inscription of king Suryavarman was found. The Asiragarh seal of the Maukhari king Sarvavarman might establish their conneotion with a part of the Central Provinces bordering on Mälava, i.e., the Nimar District, where the seal was found.
The present plates disclose the fact that, although king Maha-Sivaguptarāja was a devout worshipper of Siva (Parama-mähèsvara), he did patronise Buddhism and was a symbol of religious toleration, being averse to no other sects. As we know from the Mallär plates, he donated a village to the community of venerable (Buddhist) monks', residing in the small monastery (Viharika) situated in Taradambaka.
In his time, his mother Väsata constructed a superb temple of Hari (Vishnu) at Sripura, the capital town, and donated a number of villages to Vedic Brahmans engaged in the worship of the deity. This temple still stands at Sirpur.
In the present plates, he makes a donation of a village to a temple of Sive named Isānēsvars, probably consecrated by one of his forefathers, to wit, Isånadēva of the Kharod stone inscription. The donation was made in response to the request of a certain Saiva ascetic, & disciple of Pramathācharya whose preceptor hailed from the Panchayajña tapovana in the Dvaitavana forest.
The box-headed script as well as the Kuţila type of the Nagari characters were simultaneously in use during the reign of Maha-Sivaguptarāja as both his Mallär plates and the Lodhjā plates. together with Lakshman temple inscription (in the Kuțila script) belonging to his mother Väsata, show. It may be noted here that the Harābā stone inscription of king Suryavarman," father of Väsata, is also in the Kuțila variety of the Nägari script. Up till now not a single stone inscription
Close to Vidarbha was Präk-Koala as stated in the Mahabharala and the Harivamba. • Vijitya Parvambudhi-kala-pilih
pålih samadaya sa Kosalendrat niranlar -odväsita-vairi-dhama dham-adhipas khadga patir-ya dast |
Bilhari inscription. Hiralal: Inscription in the C. P. and Berar, 2nd ed. p. 24. In the prosent Ballora District (Orissa), there is a place called P&lis, about 8 miles from the sea-shore. It had an old templo with damaged in oriptions on the door.jambe, now deposited at Cuttack in the Ravenshaw College Museum. I have tried to identify this Palia with the Pal of the Bilhari insoription, in a paper published in the Hindi journal Budha of Lucknow, for May 1928.
OI1, Vol. III, pp. 210 fr. Altragarh in hill-fort formerly belonging to Soindia in the north-east of Bur. hanpur in the Nimar Distriot.
Hiralal's Inscriptions in the C. P. and Berar, 2nd ed., p 126. . Above, Vol. XIV, pp. 110 ff. XVI-1-25
