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No. 43–KALAHANDI PLATES OF ANANTAVARMAN VAJRAHASTA,
GANGA YEAR 383
(1 Plate)
P. BANERJEE, NEW DELHI
This set of three copper plates belongs to the Maharaja of Kalahandi in Orissa. The plates were published by Mr. Satyanarayana Rajaguru in the Journal of the Bihar Research Society, Vol. XXXV, pp. 10-27. According to Mr. Rajaguru, they were originally found in a village called Chipurupalli about sixteen miles to the east of Parlakimedi in the Ganjam District, Orissa. The plates were received for examination by the Government Epigraphist for India from the Maharaja of Kalahandi in 1962-53. I edit them from a nice set of inked impressions kindly supplied to me by the Government Epigraphist for India,
The plates measure 71'>2f' each. They were strung originally on a ring with a seal; but the ring had already been cut open before the inscription reached the Government Epigraphist for India. The seal attached thereto is very much obliterated. Of the three plates, the first and third are written on their inner side only, while the second contains writing on both the sidos. There are altogether 24 lines of writing in the inscription. The last line contains only three akaharas.
The characters belong to the Kalinga alphabet of about the 9th century A.D. and resemble those of the Alamanda plates of Anantavarman (Ganga year 304), Indian Museum' plates of Dēvēndravarman (Ganga year 308), Chicacole plates of Satyavarman (Ganga year 351), Tekkali plates of Anantavarman (Ganga year 358), etc. Some of the letters show varying forms ; of.k in okārinah in line 1, sakala in line 3, and kamalao in line 4; m in Amara' in line 1, Mahendra in line 2, Bhupendravarmma' and Anantavarmma in line 11, vālmikao in line 17, and Mahavagrama in line 23 ; r in guro in line 3, vara and charana in line 7 and taruh in line 16, etc. The script is a curious admixture of northern and southern forms. The letters b and v are denoted throughout by the same sign. The language of the inscription is corrupt Sanskrit. The whole of it has been composed in prose. As regards orthography, the anustara and visarga have very frequently been omitted. There are mistakes such as the use of i in the place of i, of ri in the place of ri, of 6 in the place of sh, etc.
The object of the inscription is to record a grant of some land to a Brāhmaṇa called Nārāyana Jadyālākshētra, son of Nārāyaṇa probably belonging to the village of Mahāvagråma. The donor was Anantavarman Vajrahasta, son of Bhūpēndravarman of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. The charter is dated in the year 383 of the augmenting and victorious reign of the Ganga dynasty. There is a good deal of controversy regarding the initial year of the Ganga era. But several scholars now hold that the Ganga era started sometime between 494 and 498 A.D. If this view is accepted, the date of the present inscription would fall in the period 877-81 A.D.
No other inscription of Anantavarman Vajrahasta, the donor of the present grant, has come to light as yet, nor is his name mentioned in any other grants known so far. Regarding his
1 Above, Vol. III, pp. 17 ff.
Ibid., Vol. XXIII, pp. 73 ff. • Ind. Ant., Vol. XIV, pp. 10 ff. • Above, Vol. XXVI, pp. 174 ff. *[Boe below, p. 392, note 8.-Ed.)
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