North Indian Inscriptions

INSCRIPTIONS OF THE KALACHURIS OF RATANPUR

(V. 17) From him were (born) four sons—Tējalladēva being the first, (then) the illustrious Ulhaṇadēva,^¹ Gōpāla and Vikannadēva.

( V. 18) Among them [Ulhaṇadēva]^² (who was) brave in the assemblies of the brave, and had a mass of bright fame . . . . . became enriched with all excellences.

(V. 19) . . . . . surrounded by elephants resembling those (stationed) in the quarters, multitudes of best horses (and) warriors whose [might of] arms had crushed the conceit of haughty foes . . . . . . .

(V. 20) Seeing that his handsome form gave greater delight to deer-eyed (women) than his own, the fish-bannered god (of love) lost his body as if through shame !

(V. 21) Like the goddess of fortune incarnate, like Gaurī . . . . .

(V. 22) Seeing that life on the earth is transitory like the red colour of a twilight, . . . . he, who concentrated his mind on the splendour of Śambhu and whose doings were solely enlivened by piety, fixed his thoughts on meritorious deeds.

(V. 23) [Śiva] . . . . . dwells here, delighted to obtain a new habitation.

(V. 24) . . . . . . of him possessed of great lustre, who was thus intensely pious in speech, mind and body and who exceedingly pleased suppliants with heaps of wealth . . . . . . .

(V. 25) [On the field of battle] resembling an ocean which had beautiful wave-like rows of horses (and) mountain-like excellent elephants as huge as the elephants of the quarters and which was being filled with thousands of stream-like battalions—

(V. 26) When the illustrious Jaya[siṁhadēva], the lord of Chēdi. . . . . . . .

(V. 27) . . . . . [the field of battle] which was exceedingly dreadful with the splendour of . . . . . and was a home of joy to crowds of crows, goblins, female jackals and vultures.

(V. 28) Mounted on the elephant Mānasiddhi, he, who wielded in his hand a dreadful bow, routed the army of the King of Chēdi with (his) arrows.

(V. 29) Slaying multitudes of excellent horses with the edge of the sword grasped in his fist . . . . . together with elephants, (making) the ground strewn with the cut-off heads of the enemies as with the fruits of palm (trees) and killing a host of foot-soldiers, he made the regions (full of) the dancing headless trunks.

(V. 30) Seeing that his forces were thus reduced to corpses, the King of Chēdi himself advanced, being more enraged (than before), like a snake trodden under foot.

(V. 31) ‘This death is difficult to avoid; it is not easy for life to depart on the battlefield, while a brave man desiring (in his mind) the highest bliss, is facing (the enemy)’— Thinking so the hero,^³adhering to the warrior’s duty, commenced to do that, seeing which the crowd of heavenly damsels felt surprised.

(V. 32) Having observed his prowess which caused surprise to the three worlds, and having remarked his handsome from which defeated the god of love, the wives of gods took him to their homes from ( the field of) battle, their minds being attracted by and becoming fond of his excellences.

(V. 33) Three queens, being solely devoted to (him), their husband, followed
______________________

¹ The name of this prince occurs as Ûlhaṇadēva in this verse and as Ulhaṇadēva in v. 39, below.
² See above, p. 521. Verses 19—32 describe the same prince Ulhaṇadēva.
³ I.e., Ulhaṇadēva