Ratanpur

Author: Laxman Burdak IFS (R)

Ratanpur on Map of Bilaspur district

Ratanpur Fort

Ratanpur (रतनपुर) is an ancient historical village in Kota tahsil of Bilaspur district in Chhattisgarh.

Variants

Ratanapura रतनपुर = Ratnapura रत्नपुर (AS, p.776)
Ratnapura रत्नपुर (AS, p.776)

Location

Ratanpur is in east of Kota town, situated about 25 km from Bilaspur on the Katghora Road.

Origin of name

Ratanpur derived its name after it was colonized by King Ratandev I. It is site of The Ratanpur fort built in Ratanpur, which is looked after by the Archaeological Survey of India.

Ratanpur in epics

Ratanpur city has been mentioned in Ashwamedha Parva of Mahabharat, links with Ramayana and has also been mentioned in Satyanarayan Katha.

There are many mythological stories connected to Ratanpur –

a) Kapardidev, husband of Ravana’s sister Surpanakha was ruling from this place in Treta Yuga. He kidnapped devi Parvati and consequently was killed by lord Shiva. Surpanakha wept so much on her husband’s bereavement that tears rolling from her kajal decorated eyes formed a pond of dark coloured water. This pond is known as Kajal Talab of Ratanpur.

b) This place is considered birth place of Kaushalya, mother of Lord Rama.

c) During Mahabharata period King Mordhwaj was ruler of Ratanpur. His son prince Tamradhwaj stopped the horse of Ashwamedha Yajya of Pandava King Yudhisthira and defeated great warrior Arjuna in following battle.

d) Mythology also has it that the shoulder of Lord Shiva’s consort Sati fell at Ratanpur making it one of the Shaktipeeths.

History

Ratanpur Fort

For some period in Fifth-Sixth Century A.D., Nala kings dominated this area followed by Kalchuri Kings of Tumman who had Ratanpur as their capital.

Ratanpur, originally known as Ratnapura, was the capital of Kalachuris of Ratnapura, who were a branch of the Kalachuris of Tripuri. According to the 1114 CE Ratanpur inscription of the local king Jajjaladeva I, his ancestor Kalingaraja conquered Dakshina Kosala region, and made Tummana (modern Tuman) his capital. Kalingaraja's grandson Ratnaraja established Ratnapura (modern Ratanpur).^[1]

In 1407, the Kingdom of Ratanpur was divided into two parts, with its junior branch ruling from Raipur.[2] It continued as the capital of Haihaiyavansi Kingdom until the 18th century, when it ruled large areas of Chhattisgarh, until the area passed to the control of the Bhosle and later the British.^[2]

British India controlled Ratanpur from Bilaspur which was part of The Central Provinces. The Central Provinces covered part of Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra states and its capital was Nagpur. It became the Central Provinces and Berar in 1903.

After independence of India, Ratanpur became part of Madhya Pradesh with Bhopal as its capital. On formation of Chhattisgarh state the capital city of Chhattisgarh shifted to Raipur.

Ratanpur was once an important seat of power. Kalchuri Kings commanded Dakshin Koshala, area covering major part of Chhattisgarh state today, from Ratanpur. Thus Ratanpur was historic capital of Chhattisgarh and as such it has an important place in history and culture of Chhattisgarh state. In fact, even before Kalachuri Kings started ruling from Ratanpur, it has its own importance of being a city having its existence in all four yuga. It was known as Manipur in Stya Yuga and Dwapar Yuga, as Heerapur in Treta Yuga, as Ratnapur in early Kaliyuga and as Ratanpur in modern times.

Major role of Ratanpur in history started with Kalachuris. Kalachuris were one of the most prominent Kshatriyas of Medieval India. They ruled in various parts of India between 7th century to 18th Century. They had many branches. Most prominent ones are known as

Near 1000 AD prince Kalingaraja of Tripuri branch established his capital at Tamman and thus founded Ratanpur dynasty of Kalachuris. This branch of Kalachuris also called themselves Haihaiyas. Around 1050 AD King Ratandev shifted capital of Kalachuri kingdom from Tumman to Ratanpur. Various Kings of this dynasty ruled over Dakshin-Koshala (the area now known as Chhattisgarh) for over 700 years from Ratanpur.

Archaeological Survey of India, Report

Source - Archaeological Survey of India, Report of a Tour in Bundelkhand and Malwa, 1871-72 and in the Central Provinces, 1873-74 by J D Beglar, Assistant Archaeological Survey, Vol. VII, Calcutta, 1878, p.214-216

Ratanpur or Ratnapur is now a decayed city, full of dirty pools, marshes and decaying vegetation of all sorts, and must be very unhealthy : the remains here are few, and date mostly to recent times ; the earliest remains here consist of the ruins of one or more temples whose pillars and sculpture have been utilized in the adornment of the gates and posterns of the fort, and of the buildings in the palace known as Badal Mahal ; the sculptures are of the Khajuraha type, and in two kinds of stone, one a reddish sand-stone, and one a dark variety ; the door-frame of a temple, richly carved, does duty as a postern in the fort walls ; within the fort, a colonnade abutting against the interior

[p.215]: face of the fort wall is composed entirely of ancient pillars, and the hack wall is encrusted with ancient sculpture ; all these are of the style of the Khajuraha sculptures, and there is no want of indecency among them. Within the fort, was discovered an inscription, now partially broken, at the right-hand edges, but still tolerably entire and in good preservation; the stone lies exposed to the weather in the compound of the police station ! It is dated Samvat 1207, and opens with an invocation to Shiva. I infer, therefore, that the temples which furnished materials for adorning the present fort walls, &c., dated to about the middle of the 12th century, A. D., thus agreeing with the presumed date of the ruins at Kotgarh and Janjgir; but as Ratna Deva who, is, supposed on good grounds, to have founded Ratnapura, certainly lived prior to the end of the 10th century, it is possible that some of the remains belong to his period. What particular fragments of the sculpture belong to his time is, however, now not possible to tell, nor is it of any importance ; this much is certain, that no structures of his period or even of the period of the later temple-building Rajas in the middle of the 12th century exist now at Ratnapur ; archaeologically, apart from the inscription and the fragments of sculpture that still exist, Ratnapur is of no interest.

The great inscription, dated 919, which was at Bilaspur when I saw it, and is now probably at Nagpur, may have been found here, but I could get no information regarding its having been sent from here to Bilaspur. Dhangaon, however, is said to have yielded inscriptions which were brought here and subsequently sent off to Bilaspur.

The existing temples are entirely modern. I mention the principal ones :

First, the temple on the hill : this is a white-washed structure, avowedly modern, and of the style of the temples at Rayapura ; it may be occupying an ancient site, and is possibly built of ancient materials ; the materials, however, are quite plain, and there is nothing to show they are ancient ; in the temple are two inscriptions, one scratched on the doorstep in two lines, and one on a pillar, of five lines in modern characters. In the temple is a statue of Bimbaji Bhonsla, to whom the temple is ascribed.

There are some minor temples and ruins of modern temples on the bill .

In the city, the oldest temple is that known as the Mahamai temple ; this is also modern, and built in the style of

[p.216]: the modern temples ; here are two inscriptions, from one of which I infer the temple to belong to about the time of Bahirsahi Deva, whose probable period of reign the Gazetteer gives as from 1506 to 1536, A.D. ; the other and larger one opens with a Saivic invocation, and is dated Samvat 1552.

Close to the Mahamai temple is the Kanthi Dewal, with an inscription which is in modern characters, and opens with an invocation to Siva. There are numberless other temples in various stages of decay : all modern, all very dirty, and all devoid of interest and unworthy of visit ; dirty tanks, one or two lined with masonry and stone revetments, are scattered everywhere, full of foul-smelling greenish water and weeds ; near the Mahamai temples are a few fragments which appear Jaina ; of these, a large seated figure has the snake symbol. In the city I saw two fine small statues, which may have been Saivic or Vaishnavc : probably the latter.

Ratnapur is said anciently to have been known as Manipur, and Manikpur, and to have been the scene of some of the stories related in the Mahabharata : it need not be added that this is an assertion utterly devoid of foundation. There is not the least evidence that Ratnapur as a city was even in existence before the end of the 9th century or before Ratna Deva ; the place is said to have contained 1,400 tanks, and this tradition may be correct, as the so-called tanks are some of them merely duck ponds; the inhabitants are severely afflicted with goitre and swellings in various parts of the body, and it is rare indeed to see a permanent resident of the place with a healthy look ; all are sickly, and the town wears a look of decay and squalid wretchedness unrivalled in the district, and only parallelled by Wyragarh in the Chanda district.

रतनपुर

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर ^[3] ने लेख किया है ...1. रतनपुर (AS, p.776) = रत्नपुर : रतनपुर बिलासपुर से 10 मील दूर, छत्तीसगढ़ के हैहय नरेशों की प्राचीन राजधानी है। 11वीं शती ई. के प्रारंभिक काल से ही प्राचीन चेदि राज्य के दो भाग हो गये थे- 'पश्चिमी चेदि', जिसकी राजधानी त्रिपुरी में थी और 'पूर्वी चेदि' या 'महाकोसल', जिसकी राजधानी रत्नपुर थी। कहा जाता है कि रत्नपुर में पौराणिक राजा मयूरध्वज की राजधानी थी। छत्तीसगढ़ के प्राचीन राजाओं का बनवाया हुआ एक दुर्ग भी यहां स्थित है। रत्नपुर में अनेक प्राचीन मंदिरों के अवशेष हैं। मंदिरों की संख्या के कारण स्थानीय रूप से इस स्थान को छोटी काशी भी कहा जाता है। यह स्थान दुल्हरा नदी के तट पर है।

2. रतनपुर (AS, p.776) = रत्नपुरी (जिला फैजाबाद, उत्तर प्रदेश). सोहावल स्टेशन से 1 मील पर स्थित इस ग्राम को जैन तीर्थंकर धर्मनाथ का स्थान माना जाता है (देखें रत्नवाहपुर)

रतनपुर परिचय

रतनपुर: छत्तीसगढ़ राज्य के बिलासपुर ज़िले में स्थित एक ग्राम और नगर पंचायत है। यह बिलासपुर शहर से 25 किलोमीटर की दूरी पर स्थित है। रतनपुर विभिन्न राजवंशों के शासकों द्वारा लाये गए विशाल ऐतिहासिक बदलावों का साक्षी रहा है। यहाँ प्रवेश करते ही हैहय राजवंश के बाबा भैरवनाथ क्षेत्रपाल सिंह की एक नौ फुट लंबी मूर्ति देखने को मिलती है। मंदिरों की संख्या के कारण स्थानीय रूप से इस स्थान को छोटी काशी भी कहा जाता है। यह स्थान दुल्हरा नदी के तट पर है।

इतिहास: रतनपुर और रायपुर राज्य क्रमशः शिवनाथ नदी के उत्तर तथा दक्षिण में स्थित थे। प्रत्येक राज्य में स्पष्ट और निश्चित रूप से अठारह-अठारह ही गढ़ होते थे। गढ़ों की संख्या अठारह ही क्यों रखी गई थी, इसका निश्चित पता तो नहीं है, किन्तु रतनपुर से सन 1114 ई. के प्राप्त एक उल्लेख के अनुसार चेदि के हैहय वंशी राजा कोकल्लदेव के अठारह पुत्र थे और उन्होंने अपने राज्य को अठारह हिस्सों में बाँट कर अपने पुत्रों को दिया था। सम्भवतः उसी वंश परंपरा की स्मृति बनाये रखने के लिये राज्य को अठारह गढ़ों में बाँटा जाता था। प्रत्येक गढ़ में सात ताल्लुके और प्रत्येक ताल्लुके में कम से कम बारह ग्राम होते थे। इस प्रकार प्रत्येक गढ़ में कम से कम चौरासी ग्राम होना अनिवार्य था। ताल्लुके में ग्रामों की संख्या चौरासी से अधिक तो हो सकती थी, किन्तु चौरासी से कम कदापि नहीं हो सकती थी। चूँकि राज्य सूर्यवंशियों का था, अतः सूर्य की सात किरणों तथा बारह राशियों को ध्यान में रखकर ताल्लुकों और गाँवों की संख्या क्रमशः सात और कम से कम बारह रखी गईं थी। इस प्रकार सर्वत्र सूर्य देवता का प्रताप झलकता था।

महामाया मंदिर: रतनपुर में 'महामाया मंदिर' बहुत प्रसिद्ध है और राज्य भर से पर्यटकों को आकर्षित करता है। कलचुरियों के राजा रतनसेन ने इस मंदिर का निर्माण करवाया था। यहाँ पर तालाब व उसके तट पर स्थित कुछ प्राचीन मंदिर भी हैं। भक्त श्रद्धालु मंदिर में प्रार्थना करने एवं आशीर्वाद मांगने यहां आते हैं। 'बुद्ध महादेव', 'रत्‍नेश्वर महादेव मंदिर' और 'लक्ष्मी मंदिर' रतनपुर के अन्य मंदिर हैं।

प्राचीन दुर्ग: रतनपुर में एक प्राचीन दुर्ग भी है, जो एक महत्त्वपूर्ण पर्यटन स्थल है। दुर्ग अभी भी अच्छी स्थिति में है और पर्यटक यहां पर आकर इतिहास के बारे में जानकारियां बटोर सकते हैं। गणेश गेट काफ़ी लुभावना है। गंगा-यमुना नदियों की मूर्तियों के अलावा गेट पर एक प्राचीन पत्थर की मूर्ति क़िले के सबसे आकर्षक हिस्से के रूप में बनी हुई है। क़िले में प्रवेश करते ही ब्रह्मा, विष्णु, शिचोराय, जगरनाथ मंदिर और भगवान शिव के तांडव नृत्य की मूर्तियां हैं।

कैसे पहुँचें: रतनपुर जाने के लिए रायपुर से बस सेवा आसानी से उपलब्ध है। रतनपुर पाली और कोरबा के निरधी से 15 से 30 किलोमीटर की दूरी पर है।

संदर्भ भारतकोश-रतनपुर

List of Kalachuri rulers

The following is a list of the Ratnapura Kalachuri rulers, with estimated period of their reigns:^[4]

Kalinga-raja (1000-1020 CE)
Kamala-raja (1020-1045 CE)
Ratna-raja (1045-1065 CE), alias Ratna-deva I
Prithvi-deva I (1065-1090 CE), alias Prithvisha
Jajalla-deva I (1090-1120 CE)
Ratna-Deva II (1120-1135 CE) (declared independence)
Prithvi-deva II (1135-1165 CE)
Jajalla-deva II (1165-1168 CE)
Jagad-deva (1168-1178 CE)
Ratna-deva III (1178-1200 CE)
Pratapa-malla (1200-1225 CE)

The next Kalachuri inscriptions are from the reign of the 15th-16th century king Vahara, whose relationship to Pratapa-malla is not clear. The following genealogy can be reconstructed from these records:^[5]

Lakshmideva
Simhana
Danghira
Madana-brahman
Rama-chandra
Ratna-sena
Vahara (attested by 1494 and 1513 CE inscriptions)

No records of Vahara's immediate successors are available. However, according to local traditions, the later rulers of Ratanpur descended from Bahar Sahai, who can be identified with Vahara. The last of these rulers were Raja Raj Singh (c. 1689-1712) and Mohan Singh (c. 1745-1758).^[6]

Ancestry of Ratanpur Kalachuri rulers

Source - Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD)

The Ancestry of Ratanpur Kalachuri rulers was as under:

Kartavirya (Haihayas) →

Kokalla (lord of Chedi). He had eighteen sons, of whom the eldest became the lord of Tripuri.

Kalingaraja who leaving the ancestral country (Tritsu) conquered Dakshina Kosala. He resided at Tummâna as the place was previously the capital of his ancestors. From him was born Kamalaraja →

Kamalaraja →

Ratnadeva (I) (adorned Tummâna with several temples, founded Ratanpura and adorned it with many temples). Ratnadeva (I) married Nônallâ (नोनल्ला) the daughter of Vajjûka (वज्जूक), the lord of the Kômô-mandala. She bore to him a son name Prithvideva (I) who succeeded him. →

Prithvideva (I) constructed several temples such as that of Prithvishvara at Tummâna and excavated a large tank at Ratanpura. He married Rajalla (राजल्ला) from whom he had a son named Jajalladeva (I).

Jajalladeva (I) → He defeated Someshvara (सोमेश्वर) of Chakrakota. Jajalladeva (I) founded a town named Jajallapura (जाजल्लपपुर) (modern Janjgir),

Ratnadeva (II)

Among later kings Kalyan Sai was most prominent who was contemporary of Mughal King Jehangir.

During their long rule Kalachuris left various powerful imprints in the area, which can be traced in and around Ratanpur.

History of Ratanpur Fort

Ratanpur Fort in Bilaspur, India is an old fort whose exact date of construction is shrouded in mystery. There is no historical evidence to dispel the haze that blurs the construction of this once impressive fort. There is also not enough information that could make it clear as to who commissioned the construction of this fort.

Ratanpur Fort, at present, lies in a dilapidated state. Due to the absence of proper maintenance, the fort has lost its grandeur and splendor. It is not difficult to form a conception as to how the fort looked during its prime. Dereliction with regard to its proper maintenance and preservation has stripped off the fort of its former magnificence. Here you can marvel and appreciate the exquisite stone sculpture over the frame of the Ganesh Gate. Take a close look at the idols of Ganga and Jamuna that grace the gate. At the entrance, Lord Shiva, in his Tandav Dance pose is bound to grab eyeballs.

Temples at Ratanpur

Ratanpur is also dotted with a number of temples among which mention must be made of the following temples:

Mahamaya Temple Ratanpur

Mahamaya Temple: Mahamaya Temple is a temple dedicated to Goddess Durga, Mahalaksmi located at Ratanpur of Bilaspur district in Chhattisgarh, India and is one of the 52 Shakti Peethas, shrines of Shakti, the divine feminine, spread across India. Goddess Mahamaya is also known as Kosaleswari, presiding deity of old Daksin Kosal region (modern Chhattisgarh state). Built in the 12–13th century, the temple is dedicated to the Goddess Mahamaya.^[7] It was built during the reign of Kalachuris of Ratnapura. It is said to be located at the spot where king Ratnadeva had a darshan of goddess Kali.^[8]

Originally the temple was for three goddesses viz Maha Kali, Maha Lakshmi and Maha Saraswati. Later, Maha Kali left the old temple. Still later, a new (current) temple was built by king Bahar Sai which was for goddess Maha Lakshmi and goddess Maha Saraswati. This temple was built in vikram samvat 1552 (1492 AD).^[9] There are ponds near the temple. There are also temples of Shiva and Hanuman within the campus. Traditionally Mahamaya is the Kuldevi of Ratanpur state. The temple has been renovated by the architecture department. Mahamaya temple is situated at Ratanpur, 25 km from district headquarters Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh.

Bilaspur – 25 km on Korba main road, The ancient and glorious history of the holy mythological city of Ratanpur is the Adishakti Mahamaya Devi situated on the banks of the river. Kalchuris of Tripuri made Ratanpur its capital and extended it for a long time ruled. It is also called Chaturugi Nagri. Which means that its existence has existed in four eras. Raja Ratnadeva I settled in the name of Ratanpur.^[10]

Sri Adashakti Maa Mahamaya Devi: – The divine and magnificent temple of Mahamaya Devi is about nine hundred years old. It was built in the eleventh century by Raja Ratnadeva I. In 1045 AD, King Ratnadeva first came for hunting in a village named Manipur, where he did a night stay on a tree. When the king’s eyes opened in the middle of the night, he saw a supernatural light under the tree. It was miraculous to see that a meeting of the Adi Shakti Shri Mahamaya Devi is engaged. Seeing this, they lost their consciousness. On the morning they returned to their capital, Tumman and decided to make Ratanpur their capital, and in 1050 AD. In the grand temple of Shri Mahamaya Devi was built. Within the temple is the statue of Mahakali, Mahasaraswati and Mahalakshmi Swarup Devi. It is believed that there will be a center for yantra mantra in this temple. The right hand of Goddess Sati was dropped in Ratanpur. Lord Shiva gave himself the name of the Kumbari Shakti Peeth by being self-realized. Due to which, virgin daughters get good fortune from mother’s philosophy. The shade here is visible at the Navaratri festival. On this occasion, the number of thousands of Manashakumna Jyoti Uphras is lit by devotees here.^[11]

Baba Bairavnath Temple,
Bhuddeshwar Shiva Temple,
Ekbira Temple,
Ratneswar Mahadev Temple.
Girijabandh Hanuman Mandir is an ancient shrine located at Ratanpur.

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD)

Source - Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

No. 77 , Plate LXVA Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I : (Kalachuri) Year 866

This inscription is incised on the beautifully polished surface of a red sand-stone which was found at Ratanpur, 16 miles north of Bilaspur , the headquarters of the Bilaspur District in Madhya Pradesh. It is now deposited in the Central Museum, Nagpur. The record was edited, with a translation and a lithograph, by Dr Kielhorn in the Epigraphia Indica, Vol. I, pp 35 ff. It is edited here from the original stone and the lithograph accompanying Dr Kielhorn's article.

The inscription consists of 31 lines.....The characters are Nâgari......

[p.410]: ......The inscription refers itself to the reign of Jâjalladêva (I) (जाजल्लदेव)) of the Kalachuri Dynasty of Ratanpur. His genealogy is traced from the moon, the mythical ancestor of the family. The first historical personage named after the legendary Kartavirya and his sons, the Haihayas, is Kokalla, the lord of Chedi. He had eighteen sons, of whom the eldest became the lord of Tripuri. He made his brothers lords of mandalas. The family of one of these younger brothers produced in course of time Kalingaraja, who leaving the ancestral country,¹ conquered Dakshina Kosala by his arms. He resided at Tummâna as the place was previously the capital of his ancestors. From him was born Kamalaraja who had a son named Ratnarâja (I). The latter adorned Tummâna with several temples such as those of the gods Vankêsvara and Ratnesvara, orchards and palatial buildings. He also founded Ratnapura and adorned it with many temples. The inscription then mentions the Srêshthin Yasha², the Mayor of Ratnapura, who, as already seen, has also been named in the Amôdâ plates of Prithvîdêva I. Ratnadëva (I) married Nônallâ (नोनल्ला) the daughter of Vajjûka (वज्जूक), the lord of the Kômô-mandala. She bore to him a son name Prîthvïdëva (I) who succeeded him. He constructed several temples such as that of Prithvïsvara at Tummâna and excavated a large tank at Ratnapura. He married Râjallâ (राजल्ला) from whom he had a son named Jâjalladêva (I). The latter's friendship was sought by the lord of Chëdi. He was also honoured with presents of wealth by the kings of Kanyakubja (कान्यकुब्ज) and Jejabhukti (जेजाभुक्ति). He defeated Sômësvara (सोमेश्वर) and imprisoned him together with his ministers and wives, but afterwards released them as desired by his mother. The kings of Kosala (कोसल), Andhra (आंध्र), Khimidi (खिमिडी), Vairagara (वैरागर), Lanjika (लान्जिका), Bhanara (भाणार), Talahari (तलहारी), Dandakapura (दण्डकपुर), Nandavalï (नन्दावली) and Kukkuta (कुक्कुट) paid annual tributes or presents to him.

Jajalladëva I seems to have founded a town named Jâjallapura, where he con- structed a monastery for ascetics, raised a garden, planted a grove of mango trees and excavated a tank. The object of the inscription is evidently to record the king's donation of the villages Siruli (सिरुली), Arjunakônasarana (अर्जुनकोणसरण) and some others, whose names are lost, to the deity installed in a temple, apparently at Jâjallapura, and of a group of pâtala trees to the monastery.

The inscription mentions Rudrashiva, a Saiva ascetic who was Jâjalladëva's spiritual preceptor. He was conversant with the logical Systems of Dinnâga and others as well as with Saiva and other siddhântas Vigraharâja, the king's minister for peace and war, is next mentioned, but in what connection it is not clear.³ The name of the poet who composed

1. Kielhorn, who in his text separated yen=āyam from trita-saurya in L.7, thought that Tritasaurya was the ancestral country, from which Kalingaraja proceeded to conquer Dakshina Kôsala. Hiralal, following Kielhorn's reading, suggested that Tritasaurya was derived from Tritsu, the well known Vedic tribe and that Tritasauryas were the enemies of the Kalachuris (Ind Ant , Vol LXIII, pp 269 ff). Both these interpretations appear to be wrong. While it is possible to take Tritasaurya as the name of a country in L.7, such a construction is impossible in L. 4 where also a similar expression seems to have originally occurred, but is now damaged. Besides, no such country is known from any other Kalachuri record. I, therefore, prefer to make the pada-chehhëda as yèna āyatrita-sau(shau)rya-kôsa in both the passages. See my article in the Kane Festscbrift, pp 290 ff

2. Kielhorn took yashah in v 12 in the sense of 'famé'. But the word occurs also in v 16 of the Amôdâ plates of Prithvîdêva I (No 76, above), and is there clearly the name of a srështhin (banker)

3. His name occurs also in the Raipur and Amôdâ plates of Prithvîdêva I (Nos 75 and 76, above)

[p.411]: the prasasti is lost, but he was in some way related to a personage of the Kâyastha caste who belonged to a Gauda family and was a minister of the king Karna. This Karna is clearly the well-known Kalachuri Emperor Karna. His Kayastha minister is probably identical with the one who put up the Rewa stone inscription. The writer o£ the present prasastî may, therefore, have been his son or some near relative. If the next verse also refers to him he seems to have owned the village Garbha¹. The prasasti was written by a person who seems to hâve belonged to the Vâstavya family. His name which is partly mutilated ended in -dhara.²

The inscription is dated, in the last line, in the year 866 (expressed in decimal figures only) on Sunday, the 9th tithi of the bright fortnight of Mârgasïrsha. This date must, of course, be referred to the Kalachuri era and regularly corresponds, for the expired Kalachuri year 866, to Sunday, the 8th November 1114 A.C. On that day the 9th tithi of the bright fortnight of Mârgasïrsha ended 20 h. after mean sunrise.³

As for the geographical names in the present record, Tummâna, as already shown, is identical with Tumân, 26 m north-east of Ratanpur.

Kômô-mandala has already been identified.

Kanyakubja is, of course, the well-known city of Kanauj, for a long time the imperial capital of North India, and

Jejabhukti is Jajjhauti, the capital of the Chandellas.

Andhra is the country between the Gôdâvarï and the Krishna

Khimidi is probably identical with the Zamindari named Kimidi in the Ganjam District. It is mentioned with Kosala (modem Chhattisgarh) in the Dïrghâsi (दीर्घासि) stone inscription.⁴

Vairagara is, as shown by R. B Hiralal, identical with Vayiragaram mentioned in the Chôla records and is plainly identical with the modern Vairâgarh in the Chanda District, 80 m noirh-east of Chanda.

Lanjikâ is clearly Lânji and

Bhânâra Bhandara, the chief town of the Bhandara District of Madhya Pradesh.

Talahâri is the name of the territory round Mallâr as appears from the description in a record found at Mallâr (No 97, below)

Dandakapura may be the capital of Dandabhukti which evidently comprised some portions of the Midnapur and Balasore Districts. The place may be identical with Dantan in South Midnapur District as suggested by Mr R D Banerji.⁵

Nandâvalï and Kukkuta cannot be identified.

Jâjallapura, which was evidently founded by Jâjalladëva, may be identical with Jânjgir (Jâjallanagara), the headquarters of a tahsil of the same name in the Bilaspur District.

Sirulî, which was donated to the temple in Jâjallapura, is probably represented by Sirli, 8 m south-west of Jânjgir.

Arjunakônasarana may be Arjuni, 14 m west of Jânjgir.

Two other place-names Garbha and Haladi are mentioned in L.30 of the present record. Of these, the former is also mentioned in the Raipur and Amôdâ plates of Prithvïdëva I and may be identical with Gôbrâ in the Jânjgir tahsil, while the latter is perhaps Haldi in the Bilaspur tahsil, 35 m south-west of Jânjgir.

1. The writer of the Raipur and Amôdâ plates of Prithvïdëva I also was the owner of the same village. See above, No 75, L.15 and No 76, L.39

2. He may have been Kîrtidhara, who wrote the Sarkhô plates of Ratnadëva II

3. According to Kielhorn's calculation, it ended 19 h 54 m after mean sunrise on that day

4. Ep Ind, VOL IV, pp 314-18

5. M A S B, Vol V, No 3, pp 71 and 89, see also Ep Ind, Vol XXII, pp 153-54

6. From the original stone and the lithograph facing p 34 in Ep Ind , Vol I

7. These aksharas are completely broken away, but can be easily supplied from other Kalachuri records

p.411
p.412
p.413
p.414

English Translation Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD) [p.414]

[ Ôm ! Adoration to Shiva ! ]

(Verse.1) May that Isha (Shiva) grant (you) well-being ! — he, (about the object) on whose head (various doubts are entertained, such as) — Is it the crescent portion of the moon, [or , is it] not [a pièce of mother-of-pearl] lying on the bank of the celestial river, the writers of which are augmented by the flood of the nectar-fluid, or is it, oh, a fish . . . gone to heaven...!

(V.2) This highest lght, dispelling darkness, which has the lustre of the eye of the three worlds — (the people) call it the Being who is a mine of nectar... (who is) not the last from whom (proceeded) a line of universal sovereignty, the progenitor of the Kshatriyas, — in his race was born on the earth the illustrious Kârtavîrya.

(V.3) In his race (there) was Haihaya, from whom were born the Haihayas being the beloved of [Adi]tyasèna (?).

(V.4) In the race of those Haihayas was born that ruler of Chêdi, the illustrious Kôkalla, an image of the god of love, in whom the whole world found delight — (he), who with his unimpeded valour, [treasure and might], sent forth his own glory to measure how much the universe was above (and) below the earth.¹⁰

1. The lithograph shows प- clearly before दिग्नागादि. The akshara has since been broken away

2. Metre of verses 28—31 Anushtubh

3. The missing letters were evidently नृपस्य

4. Kielhorn. read सौडाान्वे, hut the letters are clearly गौडाान्वे in the original. As shown above, this Kâyastha minister of Karna is probably identical with him who put up the Rewa inscription (No 51, above). The latter traced his descent from the sage Kachara (काचर) of Kulancha (कुलांचा) which K N Dikshit places in Bengal.

5. Mètre sârdûlavikrïdita.

6. Mètre of this and the next verse Anushtubh

7. Read कीर्तिधारो See above, p 411, n 2

8. Read वास्तव्यस्यनुजो

9. The màtrâ on ज appears to have been cancelled.

10. Kielhorn, who made the pada-chchbèda as yéna ayam. Tritasaurya-, translated, 'by whom, (being) on earth, in order to measure his own fame, how much it might be, this of(?) Tritasaurya was sent up high into the universe.' But the construction ayam prësbitam is grammatically indefensible. I would, therefore, take the words as yêna a-yamtrita-sau(shau)rya-, see above, p 410, n 1

[p.415]

(V.5) He had eighteen sons who destroyed his enemies as lions slay elephants (and) who augmented [the treasury of their family]. The eldest of them afterwards became the lord of Tripuri. He made the remaining brothers the lords of mandalas

(V.6) The race of one of these younger brothers obtained, in the course of time, the matchless son, Kalingaraja, a tree of prowess grown large by the water of the eyes of the wives of his enemies , who, in order to augment his unimpeded prowess and treasure,¹ left his ancestral country and acquired by his two arms the country of Southern Kosala.

(V.7) Since Tummâna had been made a capital by his ancestors, he, residing there and destroying his enemies, increased his fortune.

(V.8) As the moon (was produced) from the ocean, so was born here from him Kamalaràja, lovely by his wide-spread spotless fame , who destroyed hostile people and augmented the splendour and beauty of men's minds even as the moon dispels blinding darkness and makes the night-lotuses look more lovely.

(V.9) As the ocean (produced) the Kaustubha for the decoration of the supporter of the earth² (Vishnu), so he begat Ratnarâja (I), who surpassed the radiance of the Sun to be an ornament of kings.

(V.10) Tummâna, with its temples of the holy Vankêsa and other (gods) and also (those of) Ratnësvara and others, with a garden containing innumerable flowers and good fruits and a beautiful high mango-grove and crowded with mansions and decorated with charming beauty, was made, by Ratnësha, delightful to the eyes, when viewed by the people.

(V.11) This extensive and glorious Ratnapura which Ratnêsvara established has its fame known in (every) quarter , with a great lord residing (in it), it resembles the city of Kubëra (occupied by Mahësha, ie, Shiva), being decked with many-coloured wonderful jewels, it looks like the ocean, and decorated as it is with many temples, it appears like heaven (graced by many families of gods)

(V. 12) On all sides this Ratnapura says "Since Ratnarâja ordered me to be established on the earth, and since the banker Yasha³ has been in charge of me, may the fame of these two spread in the three worlds on account of me !"

(V.13) Nônallâ (नोनल्ला), the famous daughter of Vajjùka (वज्जूक), the ruler of the Kômô-mandala was married by Ratnarâja together with royal fortune.

(V.14) From her was born Prithvîsha (I), endowed with the qualities of righteousness and valour. He led to heaven his relatives by (his) righteousness and his enemies by (his) valour in fighting.

(V 15) When Ratnarâja, who by his valour and other (qualities) vanquished his enemies, had gone to heaven for work in heaven, his son Prithvïdêva (I), the royal hero, became king after him. He was a guardian of the world with his hundreds of excellent qualities, the foremost of which were his lordly nature, munificence and valour. The frightened princes bowed to him since he was (verily) a god on the earth.⁴

(V.16) With Prithvîdëva (I) ruling over it, the earth became heaven itself. This marvel was clearly manifest since (the earth) was everywhere occupied by heroes, spread

1. Here again, Kielhorn, taking Tritasaurya-kôsa (sa)m as separate from yêna ayam, translated, 'who in order not to impoverish the treasury of Tritasaurya etc ' But the intended reading is clearly _ yena- ayamtrita-sau(shau)rya-kôsa(sha)m etc.

2. There is a play on the "Word mahibhartri

3. Kielhorn, not knowing that Yasha is a proper name here, translated 'if the foreman of the guild acquired fame' But see above, p. 403

4. Prithvidëva, the king's name, literally means 'a god on the earth'.

[p.416]

over with abundant fortune, and covered with a hundred sacrifices , since it had a splendid great lord and was (in consequence) firm , since the wise men living on it caused joy to all people , since it had extensive mansions and was matchless (even as heaven is resorted to by valiant men, looks splendid, is chosen by Indra, has the Sun, Mahesha and Achyuta, and (also) Budha who delights the world, and is inhabited by the moon, the abode of nectar who moves about, in it¹)

(V.17) For religious merit and fame, (the temple of) Prithvïdëvêshvara and others were erected at Tummâna and a tank resembling the ocean was excavated by him at Ratnapura.

(V.18) He married Râjallâ (राजल्ला) , who by het loveliness looked resplendent like the moon, who was steadfast in her love like Lakshmï (who loves Achyuta, i.e,, Vishnu), and who by her happy wifehood resembled Parvati.

(V.19) As Indra (begat) Jayanta on Sachi, and the ocean the moon in the beauty of heaven, even so Prithvïdëva (I) begat the famous Jajalla (I) (जाजल्ल) on her.

(V.20) What a wonder ! His fame, shining like the lustre of the cool-rayed (moon) rendered in every direction a hundred women red² and the world white, while it made the enemies black (with shame). The illustrious Jàjalladêva, who uses up as a hero day by day, was, on account of the abundance o£ his prowess, induced to become his (intimate) friend by the lord of Chêdi forming an alliance of princes.³

(V.21) As he was valiant, he was, on account of his prowess, honoured like a friend with (presents of) fortune by the king of Kânyakubja (कान्यकुब्ज) and the ruler of Jêjâbhuktika (जेजाभुक्तिक).

(V.22) He who is possessed of all the seven kinds⁴ of fortune, (by whom) was seized in battle Someshvara.... was burnt by him after slaying (his) immense army , and by whom was captured and then released at his mother's words, the group of {(his) ministers and wives; — say, have you seen or heard of (another) such prince on earth?

(V.23) To whom the princely rulers of these mandalas, viz , [Dakshi]na-Kôsala (कोसल), Andhra (आंध्र), Khimidî (खिमिडी), Vairâgara (वैरागर), Lanjikâ (लान्जिका), Bhânâra (भाणार), Talahâri (तलहारी), Dandakapura (दण्डकपुर), Nandàvalî (नन्दावली) (and) Kukkuta (कुक्कुट) — some out of friendship, some in order to please, gave him .... fixed year after year,

(V.24) While he is shining, the sole umbrella held over his head, while causing coolness to (his) people, strange (to say), may well oppress the hearts of his enemies!

(V.25) "Nobility, valour, serenity . . are in him."— Thus has the Earth proclaimed with her uplifted excellent arms m the form of the temples of gods extremely white like his fame !

(V.26) "Is this that god of love possessed of a lovely⁵ form who has not been seen by the eye of the three-eyed (Shiva) ? Is it [the god of] Vaikuntha (i e , Visnnu) [joined] by Sri {(the goddess of fortune) ?^ Is tins the sun on account of his radiance, (or) the moon by his mighty splendour, (or) the bestower of wealth (Kubera) dear to suppliants ?" — The people, thus reflecting, came to know him as Jàjalladêva after a long time

1. There is a play on several words, in consequence of which the several adjectives of lôka-sthits can also be construed with svarga

2. There is a play on the word rakta which means also 'fallen in love'.

3. Following Kielhorn, I take aina as an adjective derived from ina 'a lord', 'a king' etc.

4. These are probably identical with the seven constituents of royalty (râjy-ângas)

5. See above, p 413, n 17

[p.417]

(V.27) That famous Jàjallapura (जाजल्लपुर). . . .a monastery for ascetics ; a mango grove with a garden , a beautiful lake equal to the lake of heaven, which the illustrious Jâjalladëva caused to be made. May that be lovely like (his) fame .... !

(V.28) His religions preceptor was the holy Rudrashiva who knew .... the authoritative works o£ Dinnâga and others and knew the established doctrines of his own and others-' (systems)

(V.29) His minister for peace and war also was Vigtaharaja....

(V.30) To the god the king Jâjalla (जाजल्ल) gave the excellent village of Siruli (सिरुली) (and) to the monastery a groups of pâtalà (trees) as a perpetual gift.

(V.31) Arjunakônasarana (अर्जुनकोणसरण)

(V.32) The Kâyastha, the illustrious . . . born in the Gauda family, the foremost of those whose counsel vies with (that) of the preceptor of gods, [who -was the councillor] of the illustrious Karna, whose excellent intellect is unrivalled in (the grasp of) the essence of sâstras .... (His son ?) composed this matchless eulogy on Jâjalladëva.

(V.33) The lord o£ the village Garbha has brought his spotless merits into the eulogy. . , of the excellent Haladî (हलदी) [village ?]

(V.34) . . . the learned [Kïrti]dhara, the younger brother of [him who was] born in the Vâstavya (family) wrote (this) eulogy which has reached all directions.

(In) the year 866, (the month) Marga[shîrsha] {and) the bright (fortnight), on the (lunar) day 9, on Sunday. Jaja (जाज) ....

Wiki editor notes :

Gobara (Jat clan) = Gobra () is a village in Dabhara tahsil of Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh. Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD) mentions this place as Garbha (गर्भ) in Verse.33. (p.417).^[12]

Jajja (Jat clan) = Jajalladeva I (1090-1120 CE) was Kalachuri King of Ratanpur in Bilaspur District, Chhattisgarh. Jajalladeva (I) founded a town named Jajallapura (जाजल्लपपुर) (modern Janjgir), in Chhattisgarh. ^[13]

Kachara (Jat clan) = Kachara (काचर) of Kulancha (कुलांचा) is mentioned at fn-4 of page-414.^[14]

Kamal (Jat clan) = Kamalaraja, Kalachuri King of Ratanpur.^[15]

Khimivia (Jat clan) = Khimidi mentioned in V.23 of Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD).^[16]

Kim (Jat clan) = Kimidi in Ganjam district of Orissa. Khimidi mentioned in V.23 of Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD).^[17]

Kok (Jat clan) = (V.4) In the race of those Haihayas was born that ruler of Chêdi, the illustrious Kôkalla. (p.414)Khimidi mentioned in V.23 of Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD).^[18]

Nalla (Jat clan) = Ratnadeva (I) married Nônallâ (नोनल्ला) the daughter of Vajjûka (वज्जूक), the lord of the Kômô-mandala. She bore to him a son name Prithvideva (I) who succeeded him.Khimidi mentioned in V.23 of Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD).^[19]

Nandilaya (Jat clan) = Nandghat, a village in tahsil Nawagarh of Mungeli district in Chhattisgarh. It is probably same as Nandavali (नन्दावली) mentioned in Verse-23 of Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD) p.416.^[20]

Sarali (Jat clan) = Sirli village in Pamgarh tahsil of Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh. Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD) mentions a place Siruli (सिरुली) in Verse.30. Sirulî, which was donated to the temple in Jâjallapura, is probably represented by Sirli, 8 m south-west of Jânjgir (p.411).^[21]

Tamana (Jat clan) = Tumanaka (तुमाणक) Mentioned in L.28 of Amoda Plates Of Prithvideva I (Kalachuri) Year 831 (=1079 AD).^[22] Tuman was the capital of Kalingaraja, the founder of Kalachuri dynasty in Chhattisgarh. Around 1050 AD King Ratandev of this dynasty shifted capital of Kalchuri kingdom from Tumman to Ratanpur.

Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD)

No. 93 ; Plate LXXVI Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD).

Source - Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490

[p.483]: This inscription is incised on a slab of polished black stone which is said to have been discovered within the fort of Ratanpur⁵ and is now deposited in the Central Muséum, Nagpur. The inscription was referred to by Sir Alexander Cunningham's Assistant, Mr. Beglar in the Archaeological Survey of India Reports, Vol VII (1873-74), p 215. It bas been edited before, first by Dr. Rajendralal Mitra in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Vol XXXII, pp 277-78 and again by Dr. Kielhorn in the Epigraphia Indica, Vol I, pp 45 ff. The record is edited here from the original stone.

The inscription consists of 24 lines.....The characters are Nâgarï....

1. See above, page 482, note 2

2. Loc cit, n 1

3. Loc cit, n 9

4. The figure of the tithi has not been engraved

5. The record may have been put up originally at Sâmbâ where the temple of Shiva, mentioned in it, was erected. Later on, it seems to have been removed to the fort at Ratanpur where it was found by Cunningham's Assistant, Beglar. See his A S I R , Vol VII, p 215

6. Ep Ind , Vol I, p 45

[p.484]: ....The language is Sanskrit and except for the introductory obeisance and the date at the end, the record is metrically compose d throughout. The verses are all numbered and total 30. They were composed by Dêvagana, the son of Ratnasimha. The record was written by Kumârapâla¹ and incised by Sâmpula.......

The inscription refers itself to the reign of Prithvïdëva, who, as we shall see below, was the second prince of that name in the Kalachuri Dynasty of Ratanpur. The object of it is to record the erection of a temple of Shiva at the village Sâmbâ by one Dêvagana.

After the customary obeisance to Shiva, the inscription has two verses in praise of Siva and Ganapati. It then states that in the race of the moon was born Jajalladeva (I). His son, whose name is lost,² is described as the submarine fire to the ocean of the invincible army of the Chedi king. He is also said to have destroyed, like Râhu devouring the full moon, the brave warriors of the proud Chôdaganga.³ This last named prince is evidently the well-known Ganga king Anantavarman, who was called Chôdaganga, because he was the son of a Ganga king by a Chôla princess. The son of Jajalladeva whose victory over Chôdanganga is spoken of here is, therefore, Ratnadeva II. This victory of Ratnadëva II, though not referred to in his own records, is mentioned with pride in several records of his successors⁴ His defeat of Chëdi forces, however, is not alluded to elsewhere. The contemporary Chëdi king was probably Gayâkarna who, we know, was ruling in K 902⁵. The present inscription next mentions Prithvïdëva (II), the son of Ratnadëva II, during whose reign it was set up.

After this introductory account of the Kalachuri dynasty, the record devotes as many as fifteen verses to the glorification of Dêvagana who erected the afore-mentioned temple of Shiva, his ancestors, wives and children. His great-grandfather Gôvinda of the Vâstavya family had come down to Tummâna (तुम्माण) from the Chëdi country (V.8). He had two sons, Mâmë (मामे) (V.9) and Râghava (राघव) (V.10). The former had, from his wife Rambhâ (रम्भा) (V.12), a son named Ratnasimha (रत्नसिह) who was the father of Dêvagana (देवगण) (V.13). We are next told that Dêvagana had two wives Prabhâ (प्रभा) (V.16) and Jâmhô (जाम्हो) (V.17), two sons Jagatsimha (जगत्सिह) (V.19) and Râyarasimha (रायरसिह) (V.20) and a daughter Bhôpâ (भोपा)(V.21). Next are mentioned Vâlhû (वाल्हू) and Dëvadâsa (देवदास) (V.22), whose relation to

1. His name appears in v 27 as Kumampàla due to the exigencies of the mètre

2. The name shri-Ratnadëva was clear when Rajendralal's rubbing were taken. See below, text, p. 486, n 6.

3. Kielhorn understood this personal name in the sensé of Chôda and Ganga champions (Ep. Ind , Vol I, pp 46 and 49). Though he corrected himself later on, the mistake has been repeated by Hiralal in his Inscriptions in C. P and Berar (second ed , p 117)

4. See Nos 97, 100and 101.

5. See the Tewar stone inscription of Gayâkarna, No. 58, above.

[p.485]: Devagana (देवगण) is, however, not clear. The temple of Shiva under the name of Bilvapani/Vilvapani (बिल्वपाणि), which Devagana (देवगण) erected at Sâmbâ (सांंबा)/Sava (सावा), is described in verses 23-24. As stated before, it was Devagana himself who composed this prasasti.

The date of the inscription, which is expressed in decimal figures only, was read as Samvat 1207 by Mr. Beglar¹ and Dr Rajendralal Mitra² and as Samvat 1247 by Dr. Kielhorn. As remarked by Dr Kielhorn, the figures are scratched on the stone, rather than properly engraved. The date must, of course, be referred to the Vikrama Samvat. As this is the only Kalachuri inscription of the time from Chhattisgarh which is dated in this era, it seems probable that the figures were substituted in later times. In the place of the original date in the Kalachuri era³.....It is certainly not the latter. We have, therefore, to take the date to be 1207 (1149-50 A C) as read by Beglar and Rajendralal. It remains to add that the Pëndrâbandh plates,⁶ dated K 965, show that Ratnadëva III was not by Prithvïdëva III, but by Pratâpamalla

Sâmbâ, where the temple of Siva was erected, still remains unidentified.

Wiki editor Notes:

Bilvan (Jat clan) = Bilvapani (Name of Shiva]]). Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD) mentions in verses 23-24......The temple of Shiva under the name of Bilvapani (बिल्वपाणि) was erected at Sâmbâ (सांंबा) by one Devagana (देवगण). ^[23]

Dev (Jat clan) = Devagana (देवगण) (person who erected temple of Shiva at Samba). Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD) mentions in verses 23-24......The temple of Shiva under the name of Bilvapani (बिल्वपाणि) was erected at Sâmbâ (सांंबा) by one Devagana (देवगण). ^[24]

Samba (Jat clan) = Sâmbâ (सांंबा) (place where Devagana erected temple of Shiva). Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD) mentions in verses 23-24......The temple of Shiva under the name of Bilvapani (बिल्वपाणि) was erected at Sâmbâ (सांंबा) by one Devagana (देवगण). ^[25]

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD)

No. 95 ; (No Plate) Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD)

Source - Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[p.495]: This inscription was first brought to notice by Sir A. Cunningham who gave a transcript of its date accompanied by a photozincograph of the corresponding portion of the record in his Archœologîcal Survey of India Reports, Vol XVH (1881-82), p. 76 and pl. xx. The record was subsequently noticed very briefly by Rai Bahadur Hiralal with the remark that 'it is fragmentary and is almost wholly effaced'.² It is edited here for the first time from the original stone which is now deposited in the Central Museum, Nagpur.³

The inscription is incised on a slab of black stone which is said to have been found at Ratanpur in the Bilaspur District of Madhya Pradesh. It is fragmentary.....contains twenty-eight lines. ... The inscription has, however, been almost completely obliterated on the middle of the surface of the stone, only about half a dozen aksharas on either side being still legible in lines 3-23. The preserved portion shows that the present record had many verses in common with three other insciiptions,⁴ but as these latter also are fragmentary, they do not afford much help in the restoration of the lost aksharas.

1. Rather, Pavana (fire) See above, p. 477, n 8.

2. I C P. B (first ed ), p 121, (second ed ), p 134

3. Its estampages are not sufficiently good for plating.

4. Viz, Nos 84, 85 and 87, above.

[p.496]: The characters ate Nâgarî, and the language Sanskrit. The record originally contained thirty verses, all of which except the last two were numbered, and some portion in prose in lines 24-27. The orthography does not present anything calling for special notice.

The inscription refers itself to the reign of the king Prithvîdëva (II) of the Kalachuri Dynasty of Ratanpur. The object of it seems to be to record in one place all the religious and charitable works which Vallabharâja, a feudatory chieftain of the Kalachuri kings Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II, did from time to time. It is dated in the year 910 (expressed in decimal figures only) which is expressly referred to the Kalachuri era. The date corresponds, for the expired year 910, to 1158-59 A.C. It does not admit of verification in the absence of the necessary details.

The first two verses, which, to judge from the Akaltara inscription of the same chieftain,¹ were probably in praise of Siva and the moon are completely lost. The third verse describes the Kalachuri family. The next five verses, of which four are common to the Akaltarâ inscription, eulogize Ratnatâja (I), Ptithvîdéva (I), Jâjalladëva (I), Lâchchhalladëvï, the queen of Jâjalladëva (I), and Ratnadëva (II).

Verse 9 seems to hâve described Prithvïdêva II,² but it is almost completely effaced. It was followed by a description of Vallabharâja's ancestors as in the Akaltarâ inscription, but only the name of Harigana the father of Vallabharâja can be read in the preserved portion. The eulogy of Vallabharâja seems to have commenced in verse 13 and to have contained inter ala a description of the town he founded and the tank he excavated.

The name of Devapani (देवपाणि) (L.23), who composed the prasasti, occurs in line 23. Then comes enumeration, in prose, of the religious and charitable works of Vallabharaja (वल्लभराज) (L.24). He made a lake to the east of Ratnapura (रत्नपुर) (L.24) , using the range of hills near the village Khada (खाडा) (L.24) as a dam. He dug another small tank, raised a grove of three hundred mange trees at the foot of the hill near the village Sadavida (सडविड) (L.25), and excavated a large lake Ratneshvarasagara (रत्नेश्वरसागर) (L.25), named evidently after his earlier suzerain Ratnadeva II. On the outskirts of Vikarnapura (विकर्णपुर) (L.26) he made a tank, raised a garden containing many temples and monasteries, erected a temple of Revanta (रेवन्त) (L.26) and dug a very deep well near a hill called Devaparvata (देवपर्वत) (L.26). Another tank was excavated in a village, the name of which appears to be Râthëvaisamâ (राठेवैसमा) (L.26). To the east of the town called Bhaudâ (भौड़ा) (L.27), on the way to Hasivadha (हसिवध) (L.27), he excavated a tank, full of water-lilies. Finally, we are told that the work was done at the instance of Vallabharâja's pious wife Svetalladevi.³

As for the geographical names occurring in the present inscription, Ratnapura has already been identified with Ratanpur.

The village Khâdâ, near which a lake was formed, taking advantage of the position of the neighbouring hills, is probably identical with Karrâ, about a mile and a half to the east of Ratanpur, near which there is still the extensive Khârung Tank (खारुंग).

Vikarnapura (विकर्णपुर) was probably the old name of Kôtgadh, 1-1/2 miles north of Akaltarâ.

Hasivadha (हसिवध) may be Hasod in the Janjgir tahsil, about 22 miles east of Sheorinarayan.

The hills Bijjala (विज्जल) (L.27) and Devaparvata (L.26) cannot be definitely located. The former may, however, be connected with Baijalpur, a village in the Jânjgir tahsîl. The remaining places I am unable to identify.

1. No 84, above

2. It occurs near the end of the Raipur Muséum stone inscription (No. 85, L.22, above)

3. The first akshara is slightly damaged. Her name may have been Svitalladëvï

Wiki editor Notes

Bijala (Jat clan) = Bijjala (विज्जल) (L.27) hill mentioned in Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) ...The hill Bijjala may, however, be connected with Baijalpur, a village in the Jânjgir tahsîl (now in Baloda Janjgir tahsil in Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh).

Bhodya (Jat clan) = Bhauda (भौड़ा) town mentioned in Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) ...To the east of the town called Bhauda (भौड़ा), on the way to Hasivadha (हसिवध), he (Vallabharaja, a feudatory chieftain of the Kalachuri kings Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II) excavated a tank, full of water-lilies. ^[26]

Dev (Jat clan) = Devaparvata (L.26) hill mentioned in Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) ...Devaparvata (L.26) cannot be definitely located. ^[27]

Haselia (Jat clan) = Hasivadha = Hasaud is a village in Jaijaipur tahsil in Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh. Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) mentions ...To the east of the town called Bhaudâ (भौड़ा), on the way to Hasivadha (हसिवध), he (Vallabharâja, a feudatory chieftain of the Kalachuri kings Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II) excavated a tank, full of water-lilies. ^[28]

Khada (Jat clan) = Karra (कर्रा) is a village in Kota tahsil in Bilaspur district in Chhattisgarh. Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) mentions that Vallabharaja, a feudatory chieftain of the Kalachuri kings Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II, made a lake to the east of Ratnapura, using the range of hills near the village Khada (खाडा) as a dam. ....The village Khâdâ, near which a lake was formed, taking advantage of the position of the neighbouring hills, is probably identical with Karrâ, about a mile and a half to the east of Ratanpur, near which there is still the extensive Kharung Tank (खारुंग).^[29]

Rathi (Jat clan) = Rathevaisama (राठेवैसमा) town mentioned in Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD) ...To the east of the town called Bhauda (भौड़ा), on the way to Hasivadha (हसिवध), he (Vallabharaja, a feudatory chieftain of the Kalachuri kings Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II) excavated a tank, full of water-lilies. ^[30]

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II - (Kalachuri) Year 915 (=1163)

Being Improved No 96, Plate LXXVIII Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II - (Kalachuri) Year 915 (=1163)

Source - Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.501-511

[p.501]: This inscription was brought to notice as early as 1825 by Sir Richard Jenkins who published a short account¹ of it in the Asiatic Researches, Vol XV, pp 504-5. It has since been referred to twice by Dr Kielhorn in the Epigraphia Indîca² and has also been briefly noticed by Rai Bahadur Hiralal in his Inscriptions in C P and Berar³. It is edited here from the original stone which is now preserved in the Central Muséum, Nagpur.⁴

According to a manuscript history of Ratanpur, the stone bearing this inscription was discovered within the Bâdal Mahâl⁵ of the fort at Ratanpur, 16 miles north of Bilaspur in the Bilaspur District of Madhya Pradesh. More than 75 years ago one Rêva Ram Kayastha of Ratanpur prepared a transcript of the inscription for the Chief Commissioner.

1. Jenkins' account of this record was based on the report of his Sâstrî Vinayakrao Anandrao Aurangabadkai who examined this and some other records at Sirpur, Raipur and Ratanpur. The manuscript of his report written in Môdi characters is still preserved in the India Office Library. A photographic copy of it was kindly supplied to me by the Librarian, Dr H N Randle. As shown below, the report is incorrect in several places

2. Vol I, p 33 and Vol V, Appendix, p 60, n 1

3. Second ed , pp 127 ff. This is also probably the inscription mentioned by Cunningham's Assistant, Beglar in C A S I. R. , Vol VII, p 214, though he says that it is dated in 979, for his description of it fits the présent record 'The centre of the slab which is a large one', says he, 'is worn quite smooth, it opens with an invocation to Siva '

4. This inscription was edited for the first time by me in Ep Ind ,Vol XXVI, pp 255 ff

5. Jenkins also says that the stone was 'within the fort of Ratanpur, near the Bâdal Mahâi,' Asiaitc Researches, Vol XV, p 505. Beglar, however, was told by some people at Bilaspur that the slab originally came from Dhangaon i e , Dhanpur, a village in the former Pendra Zamindârï in the Bilaspur District, which contains several ruins). If the object of the inscription was to record the gift of a village in honour of Siva under the name Sômanâtha installed at Kumarâkôta (see vv 36-39), the inscription may have been originally put up at that place and later on removed to Ratanpur

[p.502]: of the Central Provinces, which is now included in the aforementioned MS history of Ratanpur.¹ The stone was then apparently in a state of good preservation, for Rêva Ram's transcript has no lacunae. It has since then suffered in a most deplorable manner especially in the middle of lines 5-55,wherefrom 3 to 39 aksharas hâve been lost in each line. Lines 13 and 14 hâve been completely effaced except for a few aksharas at one end. In the extant portion also, several letters hère and there hâve become partly or wholly illegible. ....contains 36 lies. The characters are Nâgarî. ....The language is Sanskrit. Except for om namah Sivâya in the beginning and the date at the end, the record is metrically composed throughout. It contams 45 verses, all of which seem to hâve been numbered. The orthography does not call for any notice except that the consonant following r is generally reduplicated and v is throughout used for b.

The inscription is one of Brahmadeva, a feudatory prince of Prithvïdëva II, of the Kalachuri Dynasty of Ratanpur. The object of it is to record the religious and charitable works of Brahmadeva at several places. It is dated in the year 915 (expressed in decimal figures only) of an unspecified era. This date must, of course, be referred to the Kalachuri era. The year, if expired, would correspond to 1163-64 A.C. This is the last known date³ for Prithvïdëva, for the next certain Kalachuri date 919 belongs to the reign of his successor Jâjalladëva II.

The inscription opens with the customary obeisance to Siva, which is followed by three verses invoking the blessings of the deity. The next verse (v.4) describes Shesha, the lord of serpents. Verses 5-8 eulogise the 'Talahari-mandala which is called an ornament of the earth. Then begins a description of the family of Brahmadeva who put up the present record. His father Prithvipala is eulogised in verses 8 and 9 as a very valiant and famous personage. His son Brahmadeva was the foremost of the feudatories (mandalik-àgrani) evidently of the contemporary Kalachuri king of Ratanpur (v. 11). The next nine verses (12-20)

1. Drug District Gazetteer (1909), p 47. This is referred to below as the Ratanpur MS

2. Jenkins' account of the contents of this inscription, which was based on the report of Aurangabadkar, is equally incorrect, for according to him 'the présent inscription contains a list of nine Râjâs in the order of succession from father to son, including the one by whose order the inscription was engraved ' Aurangabadkar's MS mentions five of thèse, viz, , Prithvipala, Brahmadeva, Rudradeva, Prithvideva and Shrideva. The extant portion shows the names Prithvîpàla, Brahmadëva and Prithvïdëva only. The other names seem to be due to misleading, for they do not occur in the manuscript history of Ratanpur also. Further, Jenkins speaks of Prithvideva as a fortunate prince who in his old age resigned his kingdom called Kosaladesha to his son. This is evidently an incorrect interpretation of verse 21 of the present inscription "What the verse really means is that Prithvïdëva, who is identical with the Kalachuri king Prithvideva II of Ratanpur, called Brahmadeva to his capital, and entrusting the government of the kingdom to him, led a life free from care

3. Hiralal read the date of the Amoda plates of Jâjalladëva II (below. No 99) as 912, but his reading of the third figure of it is probably incorrect in view of the date of the present inscription which belongs to the reign of his father Prithvideva II See below, p 529

[p.503]: describe bis valour, handsome form, learning and chanty. The only point of historical interest mentioned in the extant portion is that he obtained a victory over Jatesvara who is evidently identical with the homonymous son of Anantavarman Chôdaganga. We are next told that Prithvïdêva, the lord of Kôsala, called him from the Talahari-mandala, and entrusting the government of his country to him, obtained peace of mind. This Prithvideva is evidently the second prince of that name in the Kalachuri dynasty of Ratanpur.

The next eighteen verses (22-39) describe the benefactions of Brahmadeva. He constructed a temple of Dhurjati (Siva) at Mallâla and excavated a tank, evidently at the same place. The religions merit of the former he assigned to his lord, Prithvïdëva. Besides these, he built ten shrines of Tryambaka (Siva) and dug two lotus-ponds at some place, the name of which is lost.

At Varelupura (वरेलापुर) he constructed a grand temple of Srîkantha and at Ratnapura he built nine shrines of Parvati. At the latter place he excavated also a large step-well and two tanks, one on the north and the other on the south of the City.

Several other religious and charitable works of Brahmadeva are next mentioned, viz , a tank at the village Gôthâlî (गौठाली), a temple of Dhûrjati at Nârâyanapura, tanks at Bamhani, Charauya and Tejallapura, a temple of Siva at Kumarâkôta (कुमराकोट) and a mango-grove as well as a charitable feeding house evidently at the same place. Verse 39 records that he donated the village Lônâkara (लौणाकर) to the god Sômanâtha who is probably identical with the deity installed in the temple at Kumarâkôta.

The next two verses (40-41) are devoted to the description of Anantapâla of the Gauda lineage, who was a keeper of records, and his son Tribhuvanapâla who composed the present prasasti. Then are mentioned the scribe Kumârapâla¹ and the engravers Dhanapati and Ishvara (vv 43-44). The prasasti closes with a verse expressing the hope that the kirti (evidently the temple of Sômanâtha at which the present prasasti was originally put up) may last for ever.

As for the localities mentioned in the present inscription,

Mallâla (मल्लाल) is evidently modem Mallâr (मल्लार), 16 miles south-east of Bilaspur.

Varelapura (वरेलापुर) or Barelapura (बरेलापुर) is Barela (बरेला), 10 miles south of Ratanpur.

Nârâyanapura (नारायणपुर) and Bamhani (बम्हणी) still retain their names , the former is situated on the Mahànadi in the Raipur District, while the latter is 4 miles north by east of Akaltarâ.

Rai Bahadur Hiralal identified Kumarâkôta with Kôtgadh, ² but from some other records the old name of the latter appears to have been Vikarnapura. ³

Gôthâlî, Charauya and Tejallapura cannot now be traced, but the last of these may have been situated not very far from Shëormârâyan, for it seems to have been founded by Tëjalladeva, a Kalachuri prince of a collateral branch, who is mentioned in an inscription at Shëormârâyan. ⁴ Finally, Talahâri mandala is probably

1. See below, p 507, n 14. Kumârapàla belonged to the race of Sahasrârjuna from whom the Kalachuris also traced their descen.t He is mentioned as the scribe in some other records also such as the Ratanpur stone inscription of the reign of Prithvïdëva II, dated V 1207, above, N0.93, and the Mallâr stone inscription of Jâ]alladëva II, dated K 919, below, No 97. He had also considerable poetic talent, for he composed the Shëormârâyan stone inscription of the reign of Jâjalladëva II, dated K 919 (below, No 99) and the Kharôd stone inscription of Ratnadëva III, dated K 933 (below. No 100) 2. J C P B (second ed ), p 127. The name of the place is not Kôtapattana as stated by Hiralal but Kumarâkôtapattana. 3. A stone inscription, which was originally found at Kôtgadh and is now at Akaltarâ (above. No 84), records the construction of a tank and a temple of Rëvanta by Vallabharâja, another feudatory of Ratnadëva II and Prithvïdëva II. Another stone inscription of the same feudatory found at Ratanpur (above. No 95), while enumerating the benefactions of Vallabharâja, mentions the same tank and temple of Rëvanta as situated at Vikarnapura. This shows that Vikarnapura was the ancient name of Kôtgadh Is Kumarâ-kôta identical with Dhangaon? See above, p 501, n 5 4. Below, No 98 [p. 504]: identical with the ancient Taradamsaka bhukti (तरडंशक भुक्ति) mentioned in the Mallâr plates of Mahâ-Siva- gupta ¹. It is highly glorified in the present inscription probably because Mallâr and other places, where Brahmadëva constructed his rejigious and charitable works, were included in it. It seems thus to have comprised the southern portions of the Bilaspur and Jânjgir tahsils and the northern portion of the Raipur District.

[p.5o8] Translation

Success ! Ôm! Adoration to Siva !

(Verse.1) May the divine half-moon-crested (Siva) increase your welfare! — [he) who has three eyes as if because of his desire to see simultaneously, at the time of playful amorous enjoyment, the pair of gold-pitcher-like breasts and the lotus-like face of (Pârvati) the daughter of the lord of mountains!

(V. 2) May that Nîlakantha (ie , Siva) grant your fortune! — (he), whose throat with a white surrounding on account of [the smearing of] ashes, imitating the beauty of collyrium, a row of blue lotuses, a line of bees, a sapphire, wild buffaloes and a mass of darkness, appears like the slope of a ridge of the snow-mountain covered with a cloud, dark with the surcharge of water!

(V. 3) May that lover of Pârvatî remove your sin! — seeing in the nails of whose lotus-like feet as in the surface of a mirror the reflection of the universe in the forms of Brahmà, Indra, Vishnu, the moon, the jewel of heaven (i e , the sun), the principal mountains, the earth, the oceans and others, (Pârvatî) the daughter of the lord of mountains was struck with wonder, her moon-like face being bent down in bashfulness!

(V. 4) May that lord of serpents Shesha grant the happiness of the worlds ! — (he) on whose lap there sleeps for a long time Nârâyana, in the unique cavity of whose belly as in a cottage there rests the universe and whose feet are caressed by the lotus-like hands of Lakshmi, and on account of the precious stones in whose numerous hoods the océan came to be the store of jewels!

(V. 5) This famous province (mandala) of Talahâri is the ornament of the earth — which is surrounded on all sides by tanks with full-blown lotuses and humming bees and is adorned with gardens which appear beautiful with plantain trees shining [in the groves of mangoes and other trees] and to which the god of love is attracted by the excessive warbling of cuckoos,

(V. 6) Where the regions are noisy [with the humming of bées hovering on] blooming, fresh, blue lotuses [in the desire for honey], where the teachers, the cavities of whose ears are, in admiration, filled with the musical sound, do not mark the faulty (pronunciation) of the crowds of pupils reciting (their texts)

(V. 7) Here while its fair fame, resembling the lord of serpents, [the moon, camphor-powder, silver, milk, pearl-necklace and others] is roaming in all directions, the chakora birds even now eagerly fly (after it), mistaking it for the rays of the moon.

(V 8) In the sacrificial enclosures in it, the line of smoke, as it speedily touches the expanse of the sky, . . . is looked at by the peacocks which scream in joy, mistaking it for a multitude of clouds

(V. 9) Then there was born Prithvïpâla. From the necks of the hostile princes struck by him with the sharp sword grasped in his hand .... for half a moment subjects himself to apprehension

(V. 10) [Whose fame of bright lustre resembling lighting] and wearing a white necklace of spotless pearls scattered from the large frontal globes of the best éléphants of his enemies, cleft by the strokes of his sword . . . has gone from the earth to the région of the sky in order to divert itself.

(V. 11) From him was born the illustrious Brahmadeva, the foremost of feudatories, the play-house of famé white like the moon (and) the resting place of valour, — (hé) who is to the parting line of hair of the wives of hostile warriors struck by his sword what a cloud is to the moon ¹

i.e. as the moon hidden behind a cloud is not visible, so the parting line of hair of those ladies is not seen, they being too full of grief to attend to then toilet

[p. 509]

(V. 12) [The heavenly damsels] gathering together again and again on the path of the gods (i e , in the sky) and conversing with crowds of hostile warriors killed on the battlefield as they speedily became gods .... rumbling out of season

(V. 13)…… like the man-lion, he was the best of men, like Achyuta (Vishnu) wielding his uplifted discus, he leads a victorious army , like Vishnu who is fond of the bird (Garuda) and reclines on the best of serpents, he is fond of the Brahmanas and lives in the Company of the best of¹ Nâga princes

(V. 14) (This verse is completely effaced )

(V. 15) Who accepted a beloved clad in a black garment who had lovely, compact and large breasts, and who just then fell in love with him . . . Taking of of the sheath of (his sword)

(V. 16) In the fight, in which the strokes of his creeper-like sword appeared like (flashes of) lighting and in-which it was difficult to move about on account of multitudes of streams of blood gushing forth from the necks of crowds of wrathful foes, he having attacked the hostile king Jateshvara (जटेश्वर) ….

(V. 17) He is to his enemies as the sun is to a mass of darkness , he is Pradyumna to women (and) the preceptor of gods (i e , Brihaspati) in the right judgment of speech , being well-known for imprisoning (his) mighty (foe), ² he resembles Krishna (who in his Dwarf incarnation imprisoned Bali), (but unlike Krishna) he is not dark-complexioned³

(V. 18) Though like the ocean he is . . . . dear to all creatures, appears charming with his great vitality (as the ocean does with its abundant store of water), has attained a supreme position by his command of all armies (as the ocean has by its lordship over all rivers), and is a receptacle of precious things (as the ocean is a treasure of jewels), he does not (unlike the ocean which gives shelter to water) give refuge to dullards

(V. 19) The régions at the extremity of the earth . . . which appear beautiful with the magnificent bridge of Râma (and) those, the water of the océan in which is absorbed by the navels of the women in the city of Varuna, have been resorted to by his fame. ⁴

(V. 20) ‘This [Brahmadëva who is the sun to] the lotuses which are the faces of the excellent ladies who come out of eagerness to see his handsome form [may come] to our world to give away wealth to suppliants in charity.'— Being as it were urged by gods through such apprehension⁵ the sun moves continuously round the regions on the slopes of the golden mountain (Meru).

(V. 21) Consigning the yoke of the government to him who, being a treasure of merits, had been brought over with great favour from the Talahâri-mandala and who killed hostile kings with the strokes of the sword grasped in his hand, the king Prithvïdëva (II), the lord of the famous Kôsala country, obtained great mental happiness

(V. 22) [Seeing that] on the orb of the earth , , . . is like dew-drops on (the

1. There is a play on the words chakra meaning (1) a discus and (2) an army, dvijâti meaning (i) the bird Garuda and (ii) a Brâhmana, and bhôgin meaning (i) a serpent and (ii) a Nâga prince or an officer in charge of a bhôga or bhukti (sub-division)

2. This may refer to the imprisonment of Jatesvara

3. There is contradiction here, since the prince Brahmadëva is said to be Krishna and still not to have the complexion of Krishna, but the contradiction is only apparent as the intended meaning is that he was not infamous. The figure is Virôdhâbhâsa,

4. The regions in all the four directions were described in this verse. The first hemistich which described the northern and eastern regions is almost completely lost. The description in the second hemistich refers to the southern and western regions 5. The idea in this verse occurs also in verses 7 and 17 of the Mallâr stone inscription, below. No 97

[p.510]:

petal of) a lotus shaken by wind, that wealth is unsteady resembling mostly the flashes [of lightning] and that man's youth imitates (in fickleness) the shining of the fire-fly, he who had acquired abundant wealth [by valour] exerted himself for piety

(V. 23) In this¹ Mallâla, which lenders the circle of regions fragrant with abundant [full-blown] lotuses, he constructed a temple of Dhûrjati (Siva) while like lavala flowers and (distinguished) by these banners set in motion by wind, which remove the perspiration, caused by fatigue, of the horses of the sun

(V. 24) [And he constructed] a tank, which appears beautiful with clusters of full-blown lotuses, the rows of the waves of which are broken by the protruding breasts of town-ladies and which is crowded on all sides with multitudes of swans sporting in water

(V. 25) The religious merit of this temple, the splendour of which is beautiful like that of the moon's rays and kunda flowers, he assigned to the king Prithvïdëva (II) of pious nature

(V. 26) He constructed ten large and beautiful temples of Tryambaka (Siva), [bright] like moon-light, full-blown night-lotuses, kunda flowers and the mountain of crystals (i e , Kailasa).

(V. 27) At this very place he [made] two beautiful lotus-pools which delighted the ears of travellers with the sweet humming [of bees]

(V. 28) He erected at the famous Varelâpura, a temple of Srikantha (Siva) white like the lustre of the moon, and covered with flags fluttering in the wind ; having received habitation in which, the god (Siva), the lord of Ambikâ, has given up completely his longing for living on Kailâsa . , . .

(V. 29) By him there were built at Ratnapura nine cloud-kissing excellent temples of Parvati, the daughter of the Himalaya, (which are) white like night-lotuses, the moon, kunda flowers, snow, pearl-necklaces and lavali (flowers) (and) the flags of which flutter in the wind.

(V. 30) He made here a large and beautiful well, with wonderful steps, the waves of which were stirred by the plump breasts of town-ladies sporting (in its water)

(V. 31) In the northern and southern directions of Ratnapura he made two beautiful tanks which are rendered noisy by the buzzing of the swarms of bees humming on clusters of full-blown lotuses and the banks of which are crowded with numerous swans sporting (in their water) and [in which garments slip down from the bodies of] extremely libidinous women.

(V. 32) At the village named Gôthâlî he made a pleasant tank which is occupied by crowds of fishes as heaven is by gods ²

(V. 33) He constructed at Nârâyanapura a temple of Dhûrjati (Siva), white like the moon, which with its flags scrapes the sky.

(V. 34) He made a tank near the village Bamhanî (बम्हणी), which, like the story of the Bhârata³, is . , .

1. The wording of verse 23 may be taken to signify that the inscription originally came from Mallâla, but notice a similar wording in v 30.

2 There is a play on the expression animêsha-drish (ht , having unwinking eyes). It signifies (i) fishes and (ii) gods.

3. The verse apparently contained an expression which, by means of double entendre, described both the tank and the story of the Mahâbhârata. ---

[p.511]

(V. 35) He made a large and lovely lake at the village called Charauya (चरौया) and [a beautiful temple o£ Siva] at Tejallapura (तेजल्लपुर).

(V. 36) At the town of Kumarâkôta (कुमराकोट) he made another lovely temple of (Siva) the husband of Parvati, resplendent like the mass of his own fame

(V. 37) He himself planted a grove of mango trees which, with their very dense shade, removes the heat (of the sun) and with its multitude of fruits reached by the hand, pleases travellers, and where the knot of stubborn reserve of proud young ladies gives way at the imperious command of the god of love, which is begun (to be communicated) by the mingling sweet notes of the warbling cuckoos

(V. 38) Having partaken, to their hearts' content, of the various kinds of foods and drinks as desired in the charitable feeding house of the great sacrificer, such loud cries of pilgrims daily make the circle of regions resound (viz,) . .

(V. 39) To the god Sômanâtha (सोमनाथ) the pious one granted this [village] Lônâkara (लोणाकर) together with all taxes . ...

(V. 40) There was the learned [Ananta]pâla of extensive fame, born in the Gauda lineage, who mastered the paths of poets, who always secured a place at the head of good people, whose thoughts were rendered pure by his knowledge [of the contents of the Vëdas], who was clever in [literary] discussions, who attained renown in the department of records (and) was the play-house of fortune

(V. 41) [From him] was born Tribhuvanapâla who gives shelter to all Brâhmanas and who, being a treasure of arts, has (all) his desires completely fulfîlled, even às from the milky ocean is produced the moon which, being the repository of digits, exceedingly adorns all quarters and maintains all (chakôra) birds. ¹

(V. 42) The learned Tribhuvanapâla has composed this prasastî (eulogy) resembling a lake, — which is full of flavour (as a lake has abundant water )", is profound (as a lake is deep) and clear, and is pleasing to the thoughts of poets

(V. 43) The wise Kumârapâla who has attained excellence in learning and fine arts, has with eagerness written this prasasti resembling a necklace of pearls, — which has the merit of (being composed in) good metres (as the necklace has that of having well-rounded pearls), which is rich in merits (as the necklace is in threads), which (like the necklace) appears brilliant and is full of deep sentiments (as the necklace is possessed of great charm)²

(V. 44) This pleasant praiasti, abounding in sentiments, is incised in beautiful letters by the skilful and best sculptors named Dhanapati and Ishvara.

(V. 45) As long as the moon, the gem of the sky and the crest-jewel of (Siva) the lord of Chandi, makes the orb (of the earth) white with its dense rays, as long as the lotus-dwelling (goddess of fortune) rests on the breast of the god who is distinguished by the (mace) Kaumôdaki (कौमोदकी) (i,e , of Vishnu),— even so long may this bright temple³ shine on the orb of the earth !

The Year 915.

1. There is a play on three expressions here which are intended to be construed with Tribhuvanapâla and the moon

2. The expressions in the first hemistich of this verse are, on account of double entendre, intended to be construed with the prasasti (eulogy) as well as the hâr-âvalï (pearl-necklace)

3. The text has kïrti which means 'any work of public utility, calculated to render famous the name of the constructor of it' See C I I , Vol III, p. 212, n 6. It probably refers here to the temple of Sômanâtha mentioned in verses 36 and 39.

Wiki editor Notes:

Jat Gotras Namesake

Bare (Jat clan) = Barela (बरेला). Barela is a village in Mungeli tahsil of Mungeli district in Chhattisgarh. Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II - (Kalachuri) Year 915 (=1163) mentions that Brahmadeva, a feudatory of Kalachuri king Prithvideva II, At Varelapura (वरेलापुर) he constructed a grand temple of Srikantha and at Ratnapura he built nine shrines of Parvati. Varelapura (वरेलापुर) or Barelapura (बरेलापुर) is Barela (बरेला), 10 miles south of Ratanpur. (p.503)^[31]

External links

http://10december.wordpress.com/2010/01/28/ratanpur-a-pictorial-journey/

References

↑ F. Kielhorn (1888). "Rajim stone inscription of Jagapala of the Kulachuri year 896". The Indian Antiquary: 138.
↑ Jha, Makhan (1997). Anthropology of ancient Hindu kingdoms: a study in civilizational perspective By Makhan Jha. p. 65. ISBN 9788175330344.
↑ Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.776
↑ V. V. Mirashi 1957, p. 503.
↑ R. K. Sharma 1980, p.
↑ Mishra, P. L. (1969). "Mohansingh (The Last Kalachuri King)". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 31: 207–213. JSTOR 44138363.
↑ [https://web.archive.org/web/20130123092228/http://www.cgculture.in/ArchaeologyCPMMahamayaTempleRatanpur.htm MAHAMAYA TEMPLE, Ratanpur (District Bilaspur)". Govt of Chhattisgarh, Archaeology.
↑ Makhan Jha (1998). India and Nepal: Sacred Centres and Anthropological Researches. M.D. Publications. pp. 78–79. ISBN 978-81-7533-081-8.
↑ Makhan Jha (1998). India and Nepal: Sacred Centres and Anthropological Researches. M.D. Publications. pp. 78–79. ISBN 978-81-7533-081-8.
↑ https://bilaspur.gov.in/en/tourist-place/ratanpur/
↑ https://bilaspur.gov.in/en/tourist-place/ratanpur/
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.401-409
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490
↑ orpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501
↑ orpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501
↑ orpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501
↑ orpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501
↑ orpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501
↑ Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.501-511

Back to Inscriptions

[1] F. Kielhorn (1888). "Rajim stone inscription of Jagapala of the Kulachuri year 896". The Indian Antiquary: 138.

[2] Jha, Makhan (1997). Anthropology of ancient Hindu kingdoms: a study in civilizational perspective By Makhan Jha. p. 65. ISBN 9788175330344.

[3] Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.776

[4] V. V. Mirashi 1957, p. 503.

[5] R. K. Sharma 1980, p.

[6] Mishra, P. L. (1969). "Mohansingh (The Last Kalachuri King)". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 31: 207–213. JSTOR 44138363.

[7] [https://web.archive.org/web/20130123092228/http://www.cgculture.in/ArchaeologyCPMMahamayaTempleRatanpur.htm MAHAMAYA TEMPLE, Ratanpur (District Bilaspur)". Govt of Chhattisgarh, Archaeology.

[8] Makhan Jha (1998). India and Nepal: Sacred Centres and Anthropological Researches. M.D. Publications. pp. 78–79. ISBN 978-81-7533-081-8.

[9] Makhan Jha (1998). India and Nepal: Sacred Centres and Anthropological Researches. M.D. Publications. pp. 78–79. ISBN 978-81-7533-081-8.

[10] ttps://bilaspur.gov.in/en/tourist-place/ratanpur/

[11] ttps://bilaspur.gov.in/en/tourist-place/ratanpur/

[12] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[13] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[14] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[15] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[16] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[17] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[18] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[19] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[20] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[21] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.409-417

[22] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.401-409

[23] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490

[24] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490

[25] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 483-490

[26] rpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[27] rpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[28] rpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[29] rpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[30] rpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p. 495-501

[31] Corpus Inscriptionium Indicarium Vol IV Part 2 Inscriptions of the Kalachuri-Chedi Era, Vasudev Vishnu Mirashi, 1955, p.501-511

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Ratanpur

Contents

Variants

Location

Origin of name

Ratanpur in epics

History

Archaeological Survey of India, Report

रतनपुर

रतनपुर परिचय

List of Kalachuri rulers

Ancestry of Ratanpur Kalachuri rulers

History of Ratanpur Fort

Temples at Ratanpur

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Jajalladeva I - (Kalachuri) Year 866 (=1114 AD)

Ratanpur Stone Inscription of Prithvideva II (Vikrama) year 1207 (=1150 AD)

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II: Kalachuri Year 910 (=1158 AD)

Ratanpur Stone Inscription Of Prithvideva II - (Kalachuri) Year 915 (=1163)

Jat Gotras Namesake

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