Indian Epigraphy c15.t3.3

c15.t3.3

A system developed in South India was called Kaṭapayādi. In this, the 10 letters from *ka* to *ña* had the value respectively of the numbers 1 to 9 and 0. The same was the case with the following 10 letters from *ṭa* to *na*. The five letters from *pa* to *ma* indicated the numbers 1 to 5, and the 9 letters from *ya* to *la* had the value of the numbers 1 to 9 respectively. In the formation of chronograms, vowels were added to the consonants without affecting the numerical value of the letters and two or more consonants could be combined in conjuncts in which only the last consonant of a ligature had the numerical value. But the principle of *vāma-gati*, i.e. the turning round of the sum, was observed in the determination of the value of a word. Thus *ga*=3 and *ja*=8; but the word *gaja*=83 and not 38. The chronogram *khago=ntyān=meṣam=āpa* would give *kha*=2, *ga*=3, *ya*=1, *ma*=5, *ṣa*=6, *ma*=5 and *pa*=1, i.e. 1565132.¹