Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c28.s2.t17: XXVII. Nekanurpatti

Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c28.s2.t17

Language: English

XXVII. Nekanurpatti

c28.s2.t17.1

L. 1 **pe¹ ru m² po ka l³** L. 2 **ce k ka n ti tā yi ya ru⁴** L. 3 **ce k ka n ta ṇ ṇi ce** L. 4 **yi vi t ta pa ḷ⁵ ḷi**

c28.s2.t17.2

**B.** L. 1 *perumpokaḻ*⁶ L. 2 *cē-k-kanti*⁷ *tāyiyaru*⁸ L. 3 *cē-k-kant*⸗*aṇṇi*⁹ *ce*- L. 4 *yivitta*¹⁰ *paḷḷi*

c28.s2.t17.3

L. 1 பெரும்பொகழ் L. 2 சேக்கந்தி தாயியரு L. 3 சேக்கந்தண்ணி செ L. 4 யிவித்த பள்ளி

c28.s2.t17.4

The hermitage was caused to be made by **Cēkkant(i)-aṇṇi**, the mother of **Cēkkanti of Perumpokaḻ.**¹¹

| **ILL.** | Tracing: Fig. 8.39. Estampage: Pl. 38. |
| **Locus** | On the south face of the rock (known as Aṭukkaṅkal) outside the cave. The inscription is enclosed within a rectangular border; weather-beaten and worn thin, but legible. |
| **No. of lines** | 4 |
| **Size** | 55 x 44 cm. (rectangular border); each line is approximately 50 cm. in length. |
| **Date** | ca. 4th century A.D. |
| **Publ.** | *Dinamani*, Chennai, March 26, 1992 (with Pl.). I. Mahadevan 1994a: pp. 116-134 (with Pl.). M.D. Sampath 1994: pp. 91-95 (with eye copy). S. Rajavelu 1995a: pp. 7-8 (with eye copy). K. Rajan 1997: pp. 289-290. |
| **Notes** | |
| 1. | A circular depression preceding the first letter was earlier mistaken by me for the symbol *siddham*. |
| 2. | The inscription is notable for the occurrence of the *puḷḷi* with all the nine basic consonants. |
| 3. | Sampath reads *l* and Rajavelu *y*. |
| 4. | Sampath reads *ū* and Rajavelu *ru*. |
| 5. | A late form of *ḷ* (not reversed as I thought earlier). |
| 6. | Lit., '(of) great fame', but here a place name (same as modern Perumpugai near the site, with Jaina stone beds on the local hillock) (K. Rajan 1997: p. 290). See Table 4.3. |
| 7. | A personal name (fem.). The suffix *-kanti* denotes that she was a Jaina nun. The expression *kanti* (*ganti*) occurs frequently in early Kannada inscriptions. See section 4.9.4 (ii). |
| 8. | Note the occurrence of Ka. *tāyiyaru* corresponding to Ta. *tāyar*, *tāyār*. See section 3.2.4. |
| 9. | *cēkkantaṇṇi* is construed as *cē-k-kant(i)* + *aṇṇi*. Cf. *cēkkanti* in L. 2. Apparently mother and daughter, both Jaina nuns, had the same name. *-aṇṇi*: honorific suffix (fem.). |
| 10. | Cf. LT *ceyvitta*. The donor was a Jaina nun. See No. **41** for another instance. |
| 11. | Cf. Nos. **49**, **115** & **116** for early contacts with Jainism in Karnataka. See section 3.2.4. |

c28.s2.t17.6

Figure 8.40. XXVIII. AMMANKOVILPATTI Inscription No. 84 Tracing. Scale: one-eighth.