History of Orissa from the Earliest Times to the British Period v1.c19.16

v1.c19.16

The Bhañjas came to the forefront for the first time in the beginning of the 9th century. The earliest known Bhañja Chief is Neṭṭabhañja I, who lived in the 8th century and is known only from one landgrant recently discovered in the Baudh State. There is no genealogy of the donor in this inscription and the legend of the birth of the ancestor from an egg is also omitted. By his charter king Neṭṭabhañja granted a field called Stamvakāra lauṇḍaka, in the district (vishaya) of Tulāśṛiṅga, to a Brāhmaṇa named Mādhavasvāmin of the Vājasaneya caraṇa of the Yajurveda, and the Kāṇva-Parāśara gotra for the merit of (his) deceased queen, Vāsaṭa, on Thursday the third tithi of the dark half of Kārttika of the 18th year of his reign. The next king of the Bhañja dynasty was most probably, Śatrubhañja, who is known to us from several landgrants, but it is also possible that his father Śīlabhañja I was also a king. A village called Śīlabhañja-pāṭi is mentioned as the place of residence of the donee of a Somavaṁśī grant.¹ The earliest inscription of this king is not dated and was discovered some time before 1898 in the State of Sonpur. According to this charter, Śatrubhañja was the son of Śīlabhañja. He was born of the family produced out of an egg (Aṇḍajavaṁśa-prabhava) and the only title used is Parama-vaishṇava. The charter records the grant of a piece of land called Milupadi in the district of Royarā to a Brāhmaṇa named Kṛishṇa of the Kāśyapa gotra who was an immigrant from the village of Ālāpa and belonged to the Sāmaveda. It was sealed with the Royal Seal by Śivanāga, son of Pāṇḍi.² Among the places mentioned, the name of the district, Royarā, is perhaps the same as that in the Sonpur State.³ The next inscription of Śatrubhañja was discovered in April 1916 in the village of Kumurukelā in the same State. The charter was issued on the 12th day of the bright half of the month of Kārttika of the 18th year of the reign of Śatrubhañja, and it records the grant of the villages of Jaintāmurā and Kumurukelā situated in the Uttarapallī to a Brāhmaṇa named Manoratha of the Kāśyapa *Gotra* and the Bahvṛcha *Charaṇa* who was an immigrant from Vaṅgakūṭi and an inhabitant of Gandhaṭāpaṭi.¹ In this record Śīlabhañja is not mentioned but another person named Angaṭi (perhaps Angaṭṭi) is brought in as the ancestor of the king. The mention of the name Gandhaṭāpaṭi as the name of a village in this inscription and of Gandhaṭa as the remote ancestor of Raṇabhañja I in the Baudh plates of the year 54 proves that Gandhaṭa was one of the remote ancestors of Śatrubhañja. The undated Sonpur plates show that the order was addressed to the officers of the *Maṇḍala* of both the Khiñjalis (*Ubhaya-Khiñjali-Maṇḍala*) but the Kumurukelā plates contain an order addressed to the officers of the *Maṇḍala* of Khiñjali. Both records were issued from the city of Dhṛtipura. A new record of Śatrubhañja has been discovered in Tekkali. This inscription, which is dated, contains the names of the father and grandfather of Śīlabhañja I. The legend about the birth of the ancestor from an egg is omitted in this record. By this charter Śatrubhañja, son of Śīlabhañja I, grandson of Pallagambhira and great-grandson of Yathā-sukha, granted the village of Kantamulla in the district (*vishaya*) of Salvadda to two Brāhmaṇas of the Vasishṭha *gotra* named Vishṇusvamin and Nārāyaṇaswāmin. The charter is dated [V. S.] 800 Kārātika Sudi 8 or October 744 A.D.