The Gwalior Inscription of Mihirakula is a Sanskrit inscription recording the construction of a Surya temple from stone on the Gopa hill of Gwalior. Though now referred with the name of Mihirakula, the temple and the inscription was commissioned by Matricheta. The original temple is lost, and the inscribed red-sandstone slab was found in 1861 by Alexander Cunningham in the porch of another temple, and published in 1861. This inscribed stone from Gwalior was moved shortly after its discovery to the Kolkata museum for preservation. Several translations of it have been published thereafter. It is damaged, its script is the northern class of ancient Gupta script and the entire composition is in poetic verse.[1]
Gwalior inscription of Mihirakula
Gwalior inscription of Mihirakula. Actual photograph
Gwalior is located in northern Madhya Pradesh, India. The shrine probably stood on the edge of the tank known as Surāj Kuṇḍ on Gwalior Fort. The inscription is in the Indian Museum.
Publicationedit
The inscription was found by Cunningham, who published it in 1861. Rajendralala Mitra published its first interpretation and translation in 1862. At this time, nine lines of text were extant on the broken slab. The inscription was damaged, with first 2-3 characters of every line lost. After its discovery, more lines were lost before the slab was removed and shifted to the Imperial Museum at Calcutta (Indian Museum, Kolkata). Now only seven lines can be studied.[1]John Faithfull Fleet published an interpolated version of this inscription, and a translation of the reconstructed inscription in 1888.[3] It was subsequently noted by Bhandarkar, Garde, Dvivedī and Willis in their respective epigraphic lists.[4] An edition was published by D. C. Sircar in his Select Inscriptions.[5]
Description and contentsedit
The inscription is on red sandstone, written in Sanskrit and mostly a poetic verse about god Surya, suggesting it originated in the Saura tradition of Hinduism. The purport is to record that a stone temple was built for the god on the Gopa hill in the month of Kārttika, a hill that is now found in southern part of the Gwalior Fort. The stone temple is now missing. It mentions the name of the sponsor to be Matricheta, the son of Matridasa, was the patron.[1][4]
It does not mention the year or era, but mentions the 15th year of Mihirakula, giving this inscription a part of its name and making it a significant historical record.
Inscriptionedit
Siddham has published the critically edited version of the inscription as:[6]
Portrait of Mihirakula from his coinage. He is mentioned in line 3 of the Gwalior inscription.The name "Mihirakula" (Gupta script: , Mi-hi-ra-ku-la) in line 3 of the Gwalior inscription.
John Fleet in 1888 interpolated and translated the surviving portions of the inscription as follows:
"[Ôm!] May he (the Sun) protect you, who is victorious,-dispelling the darkness of the banks of clouds with the masses of the multitude of his rays that light up the sky; (and) decorating the top of the side of the mountain of dawn with (his) horses, which have the tossing ends of (their) manes deshevelled through the fatigue (induced) by (their) startled gait;-(and) who,-having (his) chariot-wheels (?) swallowed (?)…………. The mountain of dawn; dispelling distress; (being) the light of the house which is the world; (and) effecting the destruction of night,-creates the fresh beauty of the waterlilies by (his) rays which are of the colour of molten gold!
Portrait of Toramana, mentioned in line 2 of the Gwalior inscription.
(Line 2.)-(There was) a ruler of [the earth], of great merit, who was renowned by the name of the glorious Tôramâna; by whom, through (his) heroism that was specially characterised by truthfulness, the earth was governed with justice.
(L. 3.)-Of him, the fame of whose family has risen high, the son (is) he, of unequalled prowess, the lord of the earth, who is renowned under the name of Mihirakula, (and) who, (himself) unbroken, [broke the power of] Pasupati.
(L. 4.)-While [he], the king, the remover of distress, possessed of large and pellucid eyes, is governing the earth; in the augmenting reign, (and) in the fifteenth year, of (him) the best of kings; the month Kârttika, cool and fragrant with the perfume of the red and blue waterlilies that are caused to blossom by the smiles of the rays of the moon, having come; while the spotless moon is shining; and a very auspicious day,-heralded by the chiefs of the classes of the twice-born with the noise of the proclamation of a holy day, (and) possessed of the (proper) tithi and nakshatra and muhûrta,-having arrived;-
(L. 5.)-The son’s son of Matritula, and the son of Mâtridâsa, by the name Mâtrichêta, an inhabitant of ………… on the hill, has caused to be made, on the delightful mountain which is speckled with various metals and has the appelation of Gopa, a stone temple, the chief among the best of temples, of the Sun, for the purpose of increasing the religious merit of (his) parents and of himself, and of those who, by the ……… of the king, dwell on this best of mountains.
(L. 6.)-Those who cause to be made an excellent house of the Sun, like in lustre to the rays of the moon,-their abode is in heaven, until the destruction of all things!
(L. 7.)-(This) very famous proclamation of the true religion has been composed through devotion to the Sun, by him who is renowned by the name of Kesava and by…. ditya.
(L. 8.)-As long as the moon shines on the thicket that is the knot of the braided hair of (the god) Sarva; and as long as the mountain Mêru continues to have (its) slopes adorned by the feet of the nymphs of heaven; and as long as (the god) Vishnu bears the radiant (goddess) Srî upon (his) breast which is like a dark-blue cloud;-so long (this) chief of [stone]-temples shall stand upon the delightful summit of the hill!"
^ abcdJohn F Fleet, Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Vol.3 Part 2: Texts & Translations: No. 37, pp. 161-164, This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^The dates of Mihirakula are not known but he can be assigned to early sixth century; Richard Salomon, "New Inscriptional Evidence for the History of the Aulikaras of Mandasor," Indo-Iranian Journal 32 (1989): 1-39.
^J. F. Fleet, Inscriptions of the Gupta Kings and their Successors, Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, vol. 3 (Calcutta, 1888), pp. 161-164, This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^ abBhandarkar, Epigraphica Indica 19-23 (1927-36): appendix, number 1869, 2109; Gwalior State, Archaeological Report for VS 1986/AD 1929-30: number 43; Dvivedī, Gvāliyar rājye ke abhilekh (VS 2004): number 616; Michael D. Willis, Inscriptions of Gopakṣetra (London, 1996).
^Sircar, Select Inscriptions Bearing on Indian History, pp. 424-26.
^Gwalior Inscription of Mihirakula 2017-12-23 at the Wayback Machine, Siddham, British Library
External linksedit
British Museum Research Project : Politics, Ritual and Religion : Epigraphic Findspots
October 27, 2023
gwalior, inscription, mihirakula, gwalior, inscription, mihirakula, sanskrit, inscription, recording, construction, surya, temple, from, stone, gopa, hill, gwalior, though, referred, with, name, mihirakula, temple, inscription, commissioned, matricheta, origin. The Gwalior Inscription of Mihirakula is a Sanskrit inscription recording the construction of a Surya temple from stone on the Gopa hill of Gwalior Though now referred with the name of Mihirakula the temple and the inscription was commissioned by Matricheta The original temple is lost and the inscribed red sandstone slab was found in 1861 by Alexander Cunningham in the porch of another temple and published in 1861 This inscribed stone from Gwalior was moved shortly after its discovery to the Kolkata museum for preservation Several translations of it have been published thereafter It is damaged its script is the northern class of ancient Gupta script and the entire composition is in poetic verse 1 Gwalior inscription of MihirakulaGwalior inscription of Mihirakula Actual photographMaterialRed sandstone slabWritingSanskritCreated6th centuryPeriod cultureGupta Empire eraDiscoveredGwalior FortPlaceGwalior FortPresent locationKolkata MuseumGwaliorGwalior India Show map of IndiaGwaliorGwalior Madhya Pradesh Show map of Madhya PradeshGwaliorGwalior Asia Show map of AsiaIt is notable for mentioning a Sun temple in the first part of the sixth century CE and the rule of the two Huṇa kings Toramana and Mihirakula 2 Contents 1 Location 2 Publication 3 Description and contents 4 Inscription 5 Translation 6 See also 7 Notes 8 External linksLocation editGwalior is located in northern Madhya Pradesh India The shrine probably stood on the edge of the tank known as Suraj Kuṇḍ on Gwalior Fort The inscription is in the Indian Museum Publication editThe inscription was found by Cunningham who published it in 1861 Rajendralala Mitra published its first interpretation and translation in 1862 At this time nine lines of text were extant on the broken slab The inscription was damaged with first 2 3 characters of every line lost After its discovery more lines were lost before the slab was removed and shifted to the Imperial Museum at Calcutta Indian Museum Kolkata Now only seven lines can be studied 1 John Faithfull Fleet published an interpolated version of this inscription and a translation of the reconstructed inscription in 1888 3 It was subsequently noted by Bhandarkar Garde Dvivedi and Willis in their respective epigraphic lists 4 An edition was published by D C Sircar in his Select Inscriptions 5 Description and contents editThe inscription is on red sandstone written in Sanskrit and mostly a poetic verse about god Surya suggesting it originated in the Saura tradition of Hinduism The purport is to record that a stone temple was built for the god on the Gopa hill in the month of Karttika a hill that is now found in southern part of the Gwalior Fort The stone temple is now missing It mentions the name of the sponsor to be Matricheta the son of Matridasa was the patron 1 4 It does not mention the year or era but mentions the 15th year of Mihirakula giving this inscription a part of its name and making it a significant historical record Inscription editSiddham has published the critically edited version of the inscription as 6 nbsp Portrait of Mihirakula from his coinage He is mentioned in line 3 of the Gwalior inscription nbsp The name Mihirakula Gupta script nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Mi hi ra ku la in line 3 of the Gwalior inscription 1 ja ya ti jaladavaladhvantam utsarayan svaiḥkiraṇanivahajalair vyoma vidyotayadbhiḥu daya gi r i taṭagra ṃ maṇḍaya n yas tura ṃ gaiḥcakitagamanakhedabhrantacaṃcatsaṭantaiḥ udayag i r i 2 gra stacakro rttiharttabhuvanabhavanadipaḥ sarvvarinasahetuḥtapitakanakavarṇṇair aṃsubhif paṃkajan a mabhinavaramaṇiyaṃ yo vi dhatte sa vo vyaT sritora m aṇa i ti yaḥ prathito 3 bhu ca kra paḥ prabhutaguṇaḥsatyapradanasauryad yena mahi nyayata sa statasyoditakulakirtteḥ putro tulavikramaḥ patiḥ pṛthvyaḥmihirakuleti khyato bhaṅgo yaḥ pasupati m a 3 4 tasmin ra jani sasati pṛthviṃ pṛthuvimalalocane rttihareabhivarddhamanarajye paṃcadasabde nṛpavṛṣasya sasirasmihasavikasitakumudotpalagandhasitalamodekarttikamase prapta gagana 5 patau ni rmmale bhati dvijagaṇamukhyair abhisaṃstute ca puṇyahanadaghoṣeṇatithinakṣatramuhurtte saṃprapte suprasastad i ne matṛtulasya tu pautraḥ putras ca tathaiva matṛdasasyanamna ca matṛcetaḥ parvva 6 ta pu ra vas t av y aḥnanadhatuvicitre gopahvayanamni bhudhare ramyekaritavan sailamayaṃ bhanoḥ prasadavaramukhyaM puṇyabhivṛddhihetor mmatapitros tathatmanas caivavasata ca girivare smi rajnaḥ 7 pa denaye karayanti bhanos candraṃsusamaprabhaṃ gṛhapravaraṃteṣaṃ vasaḥ svargge yavatkalpakṣayo bhavati bhaktya raver vviracitaṃ saddharmmakhyapanaṃ sukirttimayaṃnamna ca kesaveti prathitena ca 8 di tyena yavaccharvvajaṭakalapagahane vidyotate candramadivyastricaraṇair vvibhuṣitataṭo yavac ca merur nagaḥyavac corasi nilaniradanibhe viṣṇur vvibharty ujvalaṃsriṃ s tavad girimurdhni tiṣṭhati 9 sila pra sadamukhyo rame Translation editJohn Fleet in 1888 interpolated and translated the surviving portions of the inscription as follows Om May he the Sun protect you who is victorious dispelling the darkness of the banks of clouds with the masses of the multitude of his rays that light up the sky and decorating the top of the side of the mountain of dawn with his horses which have the tossing ends of their manes deshevelled through the fatigue induced by their startled gait and who having his chariot wheels swallowed The mountain of dawn dispelling distress being the light of the house which is the world and effecting the destruction of night creates the fresh beauty of the waterlilies by his rays which are of the colour of molten gold nbsp Portrait of Toramana mentioned in line 2 of the Gwalior inscription Line 2 There was a ruler of the earth of great merit who was renowned by the name of the glorious Toramana by whom through his heroism that was specially characterised by truthfulness the earth was governed with justice L 3 Of him the fame of whose family has risen high the son is he of unequalled prowess the lord of the earth who is renowned under the name of Mihirakula and who himself unbroken broke the power of Pasupati L 4 While he the king the remover of distress possessed of large and pellucid eyes is governing the earth in the augmenting reign and in the fifteenth year of him the best of kings the month Karttika cool and fragrant with the perfume of the red and blue waterlilies that are caused to blossom by the smiles of the rays of the moon having come while the spotless moon is shining and a very auspicious day heralded by the chiefs of the classes of the twice born with the noise of the proclamation of a holy day and possessed of the proper tithi and nakshatra and muhurta having arrived L 5 The son s son of Matritula and the son of Matridasa by the name Matricheta an inhabitant of on the hill has caused to be made on the delightful mountain which is speckled with various metals and has the appelation of Gopa a stone temple the chief among the best of temples of the Sun for the purpose of increasing the religious merit of his parents and of himself and of those who by the of the king dwell on this best of mountains L 6 Those who cause to be made an excellent house of the Sun like in lustre to the rays of the moon their abode is in heaven until the destruction of all things L 7 This very famous proclamation of the true religion has been composed through devotion to the Sun by him who is renowned by the name of Kesava and by ditya L 8 As long as the moon shines on the thicket that is the knot of the braided hair of the god Sarva and as long as the mountain Meru continues to have its slopes adorned by the feet of the nymphs of heaven and as long as the god Vishnu bears the radiant goddess Sri upon his breast which is like a dark blue cloud so long this chief of stone temples shall stand upon the delightful summit of the hill John F Fleet 1 See also editIndian inscriptions Eran boar inscription of ToramanaNotes edit a b c d John F Fleet Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Vol 3 Part 2 Texts amp Translations No 37 pp 161 164 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain The dates of Mihirakula are not known but he can be assigned to early sixth century Richard Salomon New Inscriptional Evidence for the History of the Aulikaras of Mandasor Indo Iranian Journal 32 1989 1 39 J F Fleet Inscriptions of the Gupta Kings and their Successors Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum vol 3 Calcutta 1888 pp 161 164 nbsp This article incorporates text from this source which is in the public domain a b Bhandarkar Epigraphica Indica 19 23 1927 36 appendix number 1869 2109 Gwalior State Archaeological Report for VS 1986 AD 1929 30 number 43 Dvivedi Gvaliyar rajye ke abhilekh VS 2004 number 616 Michael D Willis Inscriptions of Gopakṣetra London 1996 Sircar Select Inscriptions Bearing on Indian History pp 424 26 Gwalior Inscription of Mihirakula Archived 2017 12 23 at the Wayback Machine Siddham British LibraryExternal links editBritish Museum Research Project Politics Ritual and Religion Epigraphic Findspots Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Gwalior inscription of Mihirakula amp oldid 1128894424, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
