The Antiquities of Orissa v2.c17.20

v2.c17.20

**Yajati Kesari:**—The family history of Yajāti is unknown. In a copper-plate grant lately found in the Cuttack Collectorate, Yajāti calls himself the son of Rājā Janamejaya, and assigns to himself the higher title of Mahārājā, and to Bhava Gupta of Magadha the imperial title of Mahārājādhirāja. He also acknowledges vassalage to the sovereign of Magadha in whose name he makes grants of land to Brāhmaṇs. He was probably a Hindu of the north,⁸ perhaps of Oudh, who, either as a free lance, or as a lieutenant of the Gupta king, heading a Brāhmaṇical [59] revival, first established himself at Jājapura which was for a time his capital, and where, according to the local legends, he settled ten thousand Brāhmaṇs brought from Oudh, and endowed them with rent-free lands for their support⁹. Starting from this base, he gradually pushed on, overthrowing the Buddhists everywhere, and gave permanency to Hindu rule and Hindu institutions by reviving or establishing the worship of Viṣṇu on the ashes of Buddhism at Puri, and that of Śiva at Bhuvaneśvara. The last-named place he must have secured about the close of his long and prosperous reign, for the Records mention that he made preparations for the erection of the great temple there, but did not live long enough to complete it. A heap of ruins is now shown near the Temple of Rāmeśvara, which is said to be the remains of his palace; but it is doubtful if he ever established his capital there. His successors, however, for twenty-four generations held their court in the great city of the Lord of the Universe (*Bhuvana*, "World" and *Iśvara* "lord") until Nṛpati Keśarī, in 940-950, founded Cuttack, and removed the seat of Government to the new capital.