Indian Antiquary Vol 53

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Stephen Meredyth Edwardes, Krishnaswami Aiyangar
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 54

48
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
food should gradually content himself with warm water; then, abandoning even warm water, should fast entirely, and thus, with mind intent on the five salutations, should by every effort quit the body." Presumably it was this method which the Mauryan emperor Chandragupta adopted after his abdication of the imperial throne and his journey to Sravana Belgola with the saint Badrabahu. Mr. Narasimhachar discusses at length the legend of Chandragupta's self-imposed death by starvation, and quotes the local inscriptions which refer to it. Though the evidence is somewhat conflicting, I agree fully with Mr. Narasimhachar that the legend rests upon a solid basis of fact, and that the emperor's journey to the south with Badrabahu and his subsequent death. in the manner described amply explain his sudden disappearance from the political arena.
The date, dimensions, characteristics and history of the colossal statue of Gommatesvara are thoroughly explored and explained by the author, who decides that this remarkable monument, which is 57 feet in height, was probably made by Chamunda Raya, minister of the Ganga king Rajamalla (974-84 A.D.) and must have been completed in A.D. 983. Some of the inscriptions give interesting side-lights upon individual rulers and ascetics. The Rashtrakuta king Indra IV, for example, is described as
[ FEBRUARY, 1924
extraordinarily expert at a game of ball, played on horseback, which Mr. Narasimhachar assumes, probably correctly, to be polo. "The ball may be bigger than a black pepper seed; the stick may be shorter than four fingers' breadth; the horse may be bigger than a mountain; the circuit may be larger than that of the earth; still Indra Raja will not be satisfied unless he makes eight or ten rounds under these conditions, though others, when they think of these, will not even make an attempt." Another inscription proves that in the eyes of some Jain ascetics dirt was as much a proof of holiness as it was among the saints and desert-dwellers of the early Christian church. One Maladhårideva is described as having "never once scratched the body when itching was caused by the dirt which covered the whole of it like armour." On the other hand, virtue could hardly be better expressed than in the brief descrip- " tion of one Isarayya, who died about A.D. 900, as "the elder brother to others' wives."
Space does not permit of further quotations from this important work. The book is well printed, contains many excellent plates and a good' index, and reflects credit upon both Rao Bahadur R. Narasimhachar and the Government of Mysore.
S. M. EDWARDES.
NOTES AND QUERIES.
On the analogy of this grant of the same queen,. it is reasonable to infer that the thirteenth year should be that of Divakarasena. But who was this Divakarasena? Was he the same person as Damodarasena or Pravarasena? Dr. Fleet has edited two grants of Pravarasena II, viz., Chammak and Siwani copper-plate inscriptions, both of (his) 18th year (Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Vol. III, pages 235-249). These grants were made at Pravarasena's command or instructions(). The present record is of his next year.
To judge from the wording of this grant, as also from the other, one is inclined to believe that Prabhavatigupta was more proud of her paternal relations, the imperial Guptas, than of her connection with the Vakataka family.
A GRANT OF THE VAKATAKA QUEEN PRABHAVATI-GUPTA, THE YEAR 19TH OF PRAVARASENA. When on a short visit to Poona, Sardar Abasahib Muzumdar on behalf of the Bharata. Itihasa-Samsodhaka Mandala, Poona, handed over to me four copper plates for decipherment and taking estampages, two for Mandala, one for my reading and two to illustrate my article in the Epigraphia Indica or elsewhere. On examining the plates measuring I found that they contain A most valuable grant of the Gupta period, viz., one of Prabhavatigupta, daughter of Chandragupta II and the chief queen of Sri Maharaja Rud. rasena (II) of the Vâkâṭakas. The most interesting point is that she calls herself the mother of Maharaja Sri Damodarasena Pravarasena. Another important point is that the record is dated in the 19th year of the reign of Pravarasena (ferred राज्यप्रशासत संवत्सरे एकोनविंशतिमे) the actual date being the 12th day of the bright fortnight of Kartika. In the grant of the same queen edited by Prof. Pathak and Mr. K N. Dikshit (Ep. Ind., Vol. XV, pp. 40), the date given is the 12th day of the bright-half of Kartika in the 13th year. The authors remark "This might be either from the accession of Rudrasena II, or from that of the young prince, in whose name the queen mother was ruling; the former supposition appears to be more probable."
The grant is issued from the feet of the god of Ramagiri, which appears to be Râmateka in the Central Provinces. Bhaktakabhogakshetra is conon the Brahmans of the Taittiriya Sakha of the Pârâs'ara gôtra. They are the inhabitants. of Asvatthanagara.
The dûtaka is Vevanda Swami and the writer of the grant Prabhusingha (Prabhûsimha).
I have given my preliminary readings of the text in my article read before the Bharata-ItihasaSaméôdhaka Mandala. The grant will be edited in full in the Epigraphia Indica or elsewhere. I am indebted to the Secretaries of the Mandala for kind permission to publish this summary of a. most valuable record. Y. R. GUPTE.