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extended by the early chief of the place. It was soon realised that the guidance of these preceptors was not confined to religious matters alone and that their advice and assistance were equally effective for steering through the troubled sea of politics and other worldly affairs.
Bīķici INSCRIPTIONS: The Biļigi Ratnatraya Basadi inscription No. I furnishes interesting details regarding the religious and secular activities of some of the teachers of the Sangītapura line and it would be of help to notice them here. Vijayakīrti I, it is stated, earned great renown by securing the throne of Sangitapura for Indra Bhūpāla. This Indra Bhūpāla appears to be indentical with Indaradova Odeya of Hāļuvalli who figures in an epigraph from Kajkiņi' dated in Saka 1394 or A.D. 1471. It is possible to read through the inscription and make out the circumstances that led to the estrangement of Indra Bhūpāla from his royal authority and why he had to be reinstated into his own kingdom by Vijayakirti I as suggested by the Biligi record. 'The Kaikiņi epigraph informs us, though vaguely, that there was a dispute between the two brothers, which took a serious turn. These two brothers were possibly Indra and one of his younger brothers, Mallirāja or Sāluvöndra. This fratricidal conflict afforded an excellent opportun the neighbouring rival rulers of Nagire who were frequently at variance with the chiefs of Hāļuvalli. Mallirāya Odeya, one of the rulers of Nagire led an invasion against Hāduvalli. This must have proved a grave threat to the very existence of the Hūduvalli principality. In this critical situation Vijayakirti I appears to have mediated between the contending parties and effected a compromise by virtue of which Indra was restored to his chiefdom.
In regard to Srutakirti Il we are told that he established his disciple Sangirāya. In the absence of specific details and corroborative testimony of other sources it is difficult to interpret this statement properly in its historical setting. Sangirāya appears to have been one of the successors of Indra of the Hāduvalli family though his nunc finds no mention in its genealogical accounts, Either his rule was short-lived or he may be identical with Sāļuvöndra, one of the junior brothers of Indra. The inscription engraved on the Mānastainbha in the Hire Basti at Hāļuvalli introduces a teacher styled Panditarāya who is described as the Parama Guru or supreme preceptor of the Hüduvalli ruler Sāluvöndra. It is dated in Saka 1407 or a. D.
1 Karnātak Inscriptions, Vol. I, No. 61. 2 An. Rep. on Kan. Research, 1939-40, p. 47. 3 Karnātak Inscriptions, Vol. I, No. 65.