Bārdūlā Plates of Śivagupta, Year 9 EpiDoc Encoding Natasja Bosma intellectual authorship of edition Natasja Bosma DHARMA Berlin DHARMA_INSDaksinaKosala00033

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Seal rājña śrīharṣaguptasya sūno sadguṇaśālina śāsanaṁ śivaguptasya sthitam ā bhuvanasthite
Plates

svasty aśeṣakṣitiīśavidyābhyāsaviśeṣāsāditamahanīyavinayasampatsampāditasakalavijigīṣuguṇo guṇavatsamāśraya prakṛṣṭataraśauryyaprajñāprabhāvasambhāvitamahābhyudayaḥ kārttikeya Iva kṛttivāsaso rājña śriīharpadevasya sūnuḥ somavaśasambhava paramamāheśvaro mātāpitṛpādānudhyātaḥ śṛīmahāśivaguptarājaḥ kuśalī kośīranandapuraviṣayīyavaṭapadrake brāhmaṇāṁ sampūjya sapradhānān prativāsinoyathākālādhyāsinas samāhartṛsannidhātṛpramukhān adhikāriṇas sakaraṇān anyāś cāsmatpādopajīvinas sarvvarājapuruṣān samājñāpayati

viditam astu bhavatāṁ yathāsmābhir ayaṁ grāmas sanidhiḥ sopanidhiḥsadaśāparādhaḥ sarvvakarasametaḥ sarvvapiīḍāvarjjitaḥ pratiṣiddhacāṭabhaṭapraveśaś cchātranāṭāsīmanīivīiṣṭacchāndogacchātranārāyaṇopādhyāyatrailokyahansopādhyāyavidyādharahasopādhyāyaparamahasopādhyāyanakṣatrarūpasaloṇavidyādharavidagdhāsurapṛthiviīrūpadurgakalaśapodavarāhatālarūpamadhyāhnarūpebhyo dvādaśeabhyas tathārddhāśabhājase trayodaśam avigrahacaritāya ca kārttikaśukladvādaśyāṁ mātāpittror ātmanaś ca puṇyābhibvṛddhaye tāmbraśāsanenācandrārkasamakālopabhogārtham udakapūrvvaṁ pratipādita Ity

ato vidheyatayā Ebhyaḥ samucitaṁ bhogabhāgādikam upanayadbhiḥ bhavadbhi sukhaṁ prativastabvyam iti bhāvinaś ca bhūmipālān uddiśyedam abhidhīyate

bhūmipradā divi lalanti patanti hanta hṛtvā mahīṁ nṛpatayo narake nṛśaT Etad dvayaṁ parikalayya calāñ ca lakṣmiīm āyus tathā kuruta yad bhavam abhiīṣṭaṁ Api ca rakṣāpālanayos tāvat phalaṁ sugatidurggatī ko nāma svarggam ucchitsṛjya narakaṁ pratipadyate

vyāsagītāś cātra ślon udāharanti

Agner apatya prathamaṁ suvarṇṇaṁ bhūr vvaiṣṇavī sūryyasutāś ca gāva dattās trayas tena bhavanti lokā ya kāñcanaṁ gāñ ca mahīñ ca dadyāT ṣaṣṭīivarṣasahasrāṇi svargge modati bhūmida Ākṣetpptā cānumantā ca tāny eva narake vaseT vbahubhir vvasudhā dattā rājabhi sagarādibhi yasya yasya yadā bhūmis tasya tasya tadā phalaṁ svadattā paradattām vā yatnād rakṣa yudhīiṣṭhira mahī mahīmatā śreṣṭha dānāc chreyo 'nupālanamM iIti

pravarddhamānavijayarājyaesamvatsare 9 kārttikaśukladi 10 2

Seal
Plates °harpadevasya °harṣadevasya °harpadevasya cā° ca° cā° °pittror °pittror °pitror lakṣmiīm lakṣmīm lakṣmiīm °durggatī °durggatī °durgatī vvaiṣṇavī vaiṣṇavī vvaiṣṇavī °sutāś °sūutāś °sutāś yudhīiṣṭhira yudhiṣṭhira yudhīiṣṭhira kārttikaśukla kārttikaśukla kārtikaśuklā
Seal

The charter of Śivagupta, son of the illustrious king Harṣagupta, who is possessed of good qualities, endures as long as the existence of the earth.

Plates

Success! Hail! The illustrious and great king Śivagupta who has been born in the Lunar Dynasty as the son of a king, the illustrious Harṣadeva, like Kārttikeya is of Kṛttivāsas i.e., Śiva; who is entirely devoted to Maheśvara; who is favoured by his father and mother; and who is in good health: He has acquired all the qualities of a conqueror through the perfection of praiseworthy discipline, effected in particular by implementing all the "political sciences"; he is a refuge for the virtuous; and his great prosperity has been brought about by his superior valour, intelligence, and strength! After having saluted the Brahmins in the village of Vaṭapadraka situated in the Kośīranandapura viṣaya, the king issues the following command to all royal officers who are dedicated to our service, to the governor and other local council, headed by the collector and the receiver, to those who are temporarily posted in the village, and to the residents of the village with their headman:

Let it be known to you that by means of this copperplate charter and preceded by a libation of water, this village has been granted by us for the increase of religious merit of father, mother, and ourselves, to a group of twelve students of the Chāndoga Sāmaveda who are settled in the outskirts of Chātranāṭā, namely, Nārāyaṇopādhyāya, Trailokyahaṁsopādhyāya, Vidyādharahaṁsopādhyāya, Paramahaṁsopādhyāya, Nakṣatrarūpa, Saloṇavidyādhara, Vidagdhāsura, Pṛthivīrūpa, Durgakalaśa, Podavarāha, Tālarūpa, and Madhyāhnarūpa; and to Avigrahacarita, who receives half a share as thirteenth donee. The grant of the village, which is meant to be enjoyed as long as the moon and the sun will endure, took place on the twelfth day of the bright fortnight of the month of Kārttika and comes along with the right to hidden treasures and deposits; the right to punish and realise fines for the ten offences; the right to collect all taxes payable to the king; the exemption from all kinds of unpaid labour; and the exemption from being entered by irregular or regular troops.

Therefore, you should render the proper prescribed shares of periodical offerings, produce, and the like to these donees, while living happily in this village. And this is said for the instruction of the future kings:

Kings who donate land sport in heaven, but look, kings who have taken land fall into hell for their wickedness. After having taken to heart these two rules and taken hold of Lakṣmī, you should live you life as you wish!

And also:

Fortune and misfortune are truly the fruit of protecting and not protecting the land; who then discards heaven and resorts to hell?

And in this respect they quote the following stanzas sung by Vyāsa:

Gold is the first child of Agni, land is born of Viṣṇu, and cows are the offspring of Sūrya: Therefore, whoever would give gold, a cow, and land would give the three worlds

A giver of land rejoices in heaven for sixty thousand years; he who confiscates it or allows another to confiscate it will dwell for the same period in hell!

The earth has been granted by many kings, beginning with Sagara; whoever possesses the land at any time, to him belong the fruits at that time!

O Yudhiṣṭhira, zealously protect the land which was given by yourself or by others! O best of kings, protection is superior to giving!

The copperplate charter has been engraved on the day 12 of the light half of the month of Kārttika, in the year 9 of the increasingly victorious reign of Śivagupta.

First edited by Desai from the original plates; published again by Shastri 119-123; re-edited here by Natasja Bosma based on the published photographs.

119-123 99, 249-250