Jainism in Kalingadesa

Author(s): Bool Chand
Publisher: Jain Cultural Research Society

Page 14

( 12 ) Date of Kharavela
As regards the date of Kharavela there has been controversy among scholars. We have already stated how at one time the 16th line was thought to contain a clue to the date of the inscription, for it was read as पानतरिय मठिवससते राजमुरियकाले बोच्चिने च चोयठिअगसतिक (lit. in the time of King Moriya which had clapsed by a hundred and sixty five ycars). Dr. Bhagawanlal Indraji connected the words चोयठि अगसतिकं with वोच्छिने and translated it as 164 years, and argued that it gave the number of the clapsed ycars. Such an interpretation was later on fclt to be untenable, for the passage did not contain any word for ‘ycars' and anyhow the passage in the line was read as referring to the compilation of the fourth part of the Anga-Saptika, the Chosathi which had been destroyed during the rule of the Mauryas. The determination of the date of Kharavela was then made dcpcndcnt upon the reading of the 6th line, which rcfcrred to the year 103 of the Nandaraja. The argument was made that the fifth year of Kharavela's rcign to which the 6th linc rcfcrs coincides with the 103 counted cither from the beginning or from the end or from any intermediate year of King Nanda ; but on calculation such coincidence was found to be very improbable. Consideration of architectural and sculptural principles yiclded no more certain results, for Ferguson and Burgess state that the fashion of chisclling cells out of the living rock commenced with Asoka's reign and was continucd with continually increasing magnificence and claboration for nearly 1000 years after his time. Hathigumpha scems to be a natural cavern, little improved or enlarged by art, so that its date ought to he slightly bcforc Asoka's time; but that was felt to be impossible in vicw of several other
references in the inscription to certain contemporary | Tulcts or persons, to the analysis of whosc date recourse was now had in order to fix the date of the Hathigumpha inscription.
See The Cave Temples of India pp. 67-8.
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