North Indian Inscriptions

INSCRIPTIONS OF THE CHANDELLAS OF JEJAKABHUKTI

latter by Kīrtirāja, who vanquished the countless army of the king of Mālava and also built a Śiva temple at Siṁhapānīya which is the modern town of Suhāniyā in the Mōrēna District near Gwālior (vv. 8-11). Kīrtirāja’s son was Mūladēva, who was also known as Bhuvanapāla and bore the title of Trailōkyamalla. His wife was Dēvavratā (vv. 12-13), and the son of this union was Dēvapāla (v. 14). Dēvapāla’s son was Padmapala who, in a poetic language, is described as valorous, munificent and an able ruler (vv. 14-24). The we are told that “considering fortune and life unsteady as the flood of a river and setting his mind on the performance of pious deeds, Padmapāla, the supporter of the subjects caused the temple of Hari to be built”. The temple is further on described to be “sky-kissing,” and it is also stated that “its white banner suspended from the staff and fluttering on its golden egg-shaped kalaśa resembled the Ganges descending from the sky on the tawny matted hair of Śambhu, whose body is smeared with ash” (vv. 25-29). The next two verses state that through the adversity of fortune Padmapāla deceased, and his brother Mahīpāla who was the son of Sūryapāla, occupied the throne at Gōpādri.

Here ends the first part of the inscription, and the only historical information that can be gathered from it is that Mahīpāla’s great-grandfather Kīrtirāja achieved a crushing victory over the king of Mālwā, who has been identified with the Paramāra Bhōjadēva.¹ This statement appears to have a reference to Bhōja’s defeat in his expedition of the Chandēlla kingdom when the Chandēlla ruler Vidyādhara foild his attempts, as recorded in the Mahōbā inscription stating that “Bhōjadēva, together with the moon of the Kalachuris, worshipped, full of fear like a pupil (this master of warfare (i.e., Vidyādhara).² And it is possible that Kīrtirāja who was then a feudatory of the Chandēlla Vidyādhara, may have inflicted a crushing defeat on the Paramāra army.³ The gravity of the reverse sustained by Bhōja on this occasion is graphically described in v. 10 of the present record, telling us that “when the Mālava army had dispersed, the villagers thatched their houses with multitudes of spears which through fear had fallen from the hands (of the soldiers) in every direction.” And if this account be not a poetic panegyric, it can hardly be believed that such a crushing defeat on the Paramāra army would have been inflicted by the Kachchhapaghāta ruler unilaterally.

The second part of the inscription refers to the coronation of Mahīpāla and states that he was panegyrised by bards in their lofty strain when his coronation was performed and when he was seated on the throne. This long panegyric, to which many as thirty-three stanzas (vv. 35-67) are devoted, described his valour, fame, glory, benefactions and religious merit, instituting his comparison with deities like Brahmā, Vishṇu, Śaṅkara and their various incarnations, with Indra, Kuvēra, the Sun and the moon, with legendary kings and sages like Yudhishṭira, Bhagīratha, Māndhātā and the Pāṇḍavas, and with objects like the ocean, lotus and the sandle tree etc. This account is all void of historical interest, except that it shows that Mahīpāla was the son of king Sūrya, i.e., Sūryapāla (vv. 51 and 58) that he belonged to the family of the Kachchhapaghātas (v. 57), his title was Bhuvanaikamalla (vv. 49 and 63), and that he vanquished an army of a king of the Gandharvas (v. 50) about which nothing is so far known.

Following this long bardic account is a mention of Mahīpāla’s religious and charitable works ; and here it is also stated that he completed the construction of the temple which was begun by his brother Padmapāla and which was an ‘imperishable embodiment of his fame’ (vv. 68-70). He also established a Brahmapurī, i.e., a settlement for Brāhmaṇas, and selected the other (in addition to those already settled there by Padmapāla) occupants. He also established a sattra (charitable feeding hall) where dainty food and drink were distributed (vv. 70-71). He made donations for the cooking of the naivēdya of the glorious Padmanātha and for lights, and divided the sanctuary of the temple into two parts, assigning one-half to the glorious Padmanātha and the other half to Vaikuṇṭha (vv. 72-73), and also arranged suitably for the maintenance of dancing girls, musicians, singers and the rest for public performances (v. 74).

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¹ See Ind. Ant., Vol. p. 824.
² See No. 113, n. 22.
³ Also see S. K. Mitra, F. R. K., pp. 83-84.