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EPIGRAPHIA INDICA
[VOL. XXXIII
The object of the record is to register a gift of a piece of land to the goddess Kuruva-bhaṭṭārika by king Vankeya-chōla-mahārāja in his fortyfirst regnal year. The eulogy Charana-saroruha-vihita-vilochana, etc., with which the record commences, clearly indicates that the king belongedto the Telugu-Chōda lineage. This is the earliest of the known Telugu-Choda records with the Charaya-sarōruha eulogy and happens to be the only record mentioning Vankeya-chōlamahārāja.
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Two inscriptions1 copied from Mannepalli in the Darsi Taluk of the Nellore District mention Venka-bhūpāla, son of Pottapi Nanne-choda, as the grandfather of Balli-choḍa-mahārāja. They are dated in Saka 1067 and 1088 respectively. On the basis of these dates for Balli-chōda, we can assign Venka-bhupala, the former's grandfather mentioned in the records, to a period not earlier than Saka 1000. As has been discussed above, the record in question is palaeographically earlier by at least two centuries than the approximate date of Venka-bhūpala of the Nellore epigraphs. Therefore Vankeya-chola of the Dongalasani inscription under study cannot be identified with king Venka-bhūpāla of the Mannepalle records."
Two more records from Boppuḍi and Konidena in the Narasaraopet Taluk of the Guntur District give the genealogy of the Telugu-Chōdas who ruled from Koņidena. We gather from these that Dasavarman, the son of Mahimana-chōda, conquered Paka-rashția and ruled over Rēnāņḍu from his capital at Pottapi (in Pullempet Taluk of the Cuddapah District). The Chodas of Konidena, Nellore and Pottapi, all claim Daéavarman as their ancestor; but so far none of his records has come to light and little is known about him. The record from Boppüḍi mentions king Venka as the son of Dasavarman. It is tempting to identify the chief Vankeya-chōla-maharaja of the record under review with Venka, the son of Dasavarman. But his relationship with the later menibers of the family is not clear.
Tenkanaditya occurs as one of the epithets of Vanke ya-chōla-mahārāja. Nanne-chōḍa, author of the Kumarasambhavamu (Telugu), also claims this title. He is assigned by scholars to about the end of the 11th century. The poet-king must have derived this epithet from his ancestor of the record under study.
The early Chodas of Renaṇḍu, whose territory appears to have extended over almost the whole of the Cuddapah and Kurnool Districts and parts of the Chittoor District, seem to have ruled undisturbed for more than two centuries from about the last quarter of the 6th century. Afterwards their territory was subjected to the incursions of the Banas and the Vaidumbas. By about the 9th century they appear to have been pushed northwards by the latter and later still we find records of a branch of this family as far east and north as Nellore and Guntur.
NDI, Part I, Darsi Nos. 48 and 49: Srimat-Pollapi-Nannechoda-tanayaḥ śri-Venka-bhüpalakas-tat-putro-ripad-achal-paha-pavih Kama-kshiti-nayakah [*] sünuh Surya-kul-anvay-ambudhi-sasi ri-Balli-bhūpālakö Gauri-natha-pad-abja-nandita-gunaḥ saujanya-rain-akarah [*].
A. R. Ep., 1939-40 to 1942-43, Part II, para. 65.
SII, Vol. VI, Nos. 651 and 628.
Ibid., No. 651: Tesham trayanam Dasvarmma-dhatri-patih sva-bauryyad-atha Paka-rashtram [*] äkra. mya tira-pravaro raraksha kshamamzimam Pottapi-rajadhānyam [*].
The published text (SII, Vol. VI, No. 651, text lines 33-34) gives the name as [Pam]ka; but a re-examina. tion of the impressions shows that the correct reading is Vemka.
Canto I, verse 54: boluchun-Orayurik-adhipatin-alaghu-parakramuda-Deṁkanädityumdan.
*JAHRS, Vol. XXIII, p. 52 ff.
Above, Vol. XXIV, p. 186 ff. A. R. Ep., 1935-36, Part II, para, 8.
