Early South Indian Palaeography c16: Appendix II: The Brāhmī Inscription at Mālakoṇḍa
Early South Indian Palaeography c16
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Appendix II: The Brāhmī Inscription at Mālakoṇḍa
c16.2
The Māllakoṇḍa hill in the Kandukur Taluk of the Nellore District contains an early inscription in the Brāhmī characters attributable to the third century B.C. The record is engraved on the brow of a projecting boulder of rock on the hill. The over-hanging rock forms a large natural cavern below it. It is now called the *Parvati-guha*. It must have been occupied by Jaina or Buddhist monks. Though Jaina and Buddhist vestiges of a later date have been found in the Chingleput, North Arcot and South Arcot Districts, the discovery of this cavern with an inscription of the third century B.C. is of considerable value for the student of the early history of Jainism and Buddhism in the area. It has been seen that similar caverns have been found in the Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Tirunelveli Districts.
c16.3
The inscription¹ which is somewhat damaged appears to be in the Prākṛt language and registers the gift made by a certain Siri Vīri-Seṭhi, son of Nanda-Seṭhi of the *Aruva [ḷa] kula*. The gift was apparently the cavern over which it is engraved. The *Seṭhi* donor mentioned above probably provided the cavern with the drip-ledge and slightly smoothened out the rough walls of the cavern and provided other amenities, so as to make it fit for occupation.
c16.4
¹ No. 531 of 1937-38. See *Annual Report on South Indian Epigraphy* 1937-38. Part II, Para 1. It has been suggested that the Aruvāḷar are called the *Aruvāhila kula*, that this cave was made for the S'ramaṇas and that the Aruvāḷar were S'rāmaṇas in ancient times (Mayilai Seeni Venkatasami, *Samaṇamum Tamiḻum* (First Part), p. 39. Though it is probable that the cave was intended for the S'ramaṇas, it may not be possible to say that the Aruvāḷars were all S'ramaṇas.
c16.5
The epithet, [*Aruva (ha* or *ḷa) ] - Kulasa* i.e. who belonged to the *Aruva [ḷa] kula* applied to the donor is of interest. Probably it is connected with the *Aruvā-nāḍu* or *Aruvā-vaḍatalai* (the northern section of *Aruvā*) applied to the tract of land around Kāñcī and to the north of it up to Nellore and which is supposed to correspond to the country inhabited in the second century A.D., according to the Greek geographer Ptolemy, by the tribe named by him as *Aruvarnoi*. Evidently this formed the origin for the term ‘ *Aruvar* ’ applied to the Tamils by the Telugu people.
c16.8
Text :
c16.9
*A ru va [ḷa or ha] ku la sa Na ṁ da*
*Se ṭhi pu ta sa Si ri Vi ri*
*Se ṭhi [na or no] dā na.*
c16.10
The inscription may be translated as :
c16.11
Gift by Siri Viri Seṭhi, son of Nanda Seṭhi of the *Aruvaḷa (ha) Kula.*