________________
JULY, 1884.]
SANSKRIT AND OLD-CANARESE INSCRIPTIONS.
185
SANSKRIT AND OLD-CANARESE INSCRIPTIONS.
BY J. F. FLEET, Bo.C.S., M.R.A.S., C.I.E.
(Continued from p. 162.) No. CXLVI.
Tezt. ABOUT two miles to the north-west from
[ ] Namo Sri-jirņn-ôdhariA Bhêlsa, the chief town of the Tahsil of
[] Kamnha pranamati the same name in the Ísågadh District in the
[°] Vishọn-pådan nityam dominions of Scindia, there is the well-known
[] Samvat
1093 hill of Udayagiri, with a small village of the
['] Chaṁdraguptêna ki. same name on the eastern side of it. Among
[*]rtanaṁ kirtîtamh the numerous cave-temples on this hill, there
['] paéchât Vikrais one which General Cunningham has named
i] maditya-rajyamh "No. 9; the Amrita Cave." There are four
Translation. pillars inside this cave. And, on the north Reverence! Sri-Kanba, the restorer of that face of the pillar that is immediately on which has become decayed, perpetually does he left as one enters the cave, there is a short obeisance to the two foet of the god) Vishņu. inscription which may be of some interest in The year 1093. (This) temple was caused to connection with the controversy regarding the be made a temple by Chandragupta. establishment of the Vikramaditya era. The Afterwards there was) the reign of Vikram - characters are Devanagari, of the period to ditya. which the inscription belongs, viz., the eleventh
No. CXLVII. centary A.D., as recorded in the upper part of The original plates, from which the present it. The language is Sanskrit, and it is very inscription is published, belonged to Sir Walter corrupt; I give the text just as it stands in Elliot, K.C.S.I., and were obtained from the original.
Ahadanakaram' in the Madras Presidency. The first three lines are evidently intended They have been presented by him to the to record the visit of a pilgrim nained Kanha British Museum. They are five in number, to this save. The fourth line contains the each about 84" long by 2 broad; one of them, date of Samvat 1093, or A.D. 1036-7, which however, is quite blank, having no writing on is evidently the year in which he visited the either side of it; it must have been intended as cave. And the remaining four lines contain a guard-plato, though it was not needed, as the really interesting part, vis. a statement that neither the first nor the last plate has any the cave was made by Chandragupta, writing on the outer side. The edges of the and that the reign of Vikram Aditya came plates were raised, so as to serve as rims to after that event.
protect the writing; and the inscription is in a There can hardly be any doubt that the state of perfect preservation throughout. The Vikramaditya here referred to is the great ring is a plain copper ring, about " thick and Vikramadity, after whom the era which 39" in diameter: it had been cut when the grant bears that name was named. And the other came into my hands; it probably had originally inscriptions at Udayagiri shew that the Chan- a seal attached to it; but none is forthcoming dragupta here spoken of is Chandragupta
now. The language is Sanskțit down to line II., the son of Samudragupta, of the Gupta
17. From there to the end, it is Old-Telugu. family. We seem, therefore, to have here & The orthography is rather inaccurate; and I record of tradition of the eleventh century, A.D., do not feel quite sure that this a genuine to be taken for what it may be worth, to the grant. It also seems to have been left effect that the reign of the Vikramaditya
unfinished. after whom the era was named, was at least
The inscription is, or purports to be one of subsequent to the time of Chandragupta
the Eastern Chalukya king Vis hộuII. of the Gupta family.
vardhana IV. or V.; but there is nothing
Archmol. Surv. of India, Vol. X. p. 52.
. From the original stone.
