Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East (Vol. I: Champa; Vol. II: Suvarnadvipa) v2.c13.s2.t2.128

v2.c13.s2.t2.128

¹ Since the publication of my paper on the Śailendras in B.E.F.E.O., Vol. XXXIII, pp. 121 ff—of which this appendix is the English original—several views have been put forward regarding the origin of the Śailendras. Dr. Coedès suggested that they were kings of Funan, and being evicted therefrom, carved out a kingdom in Java in the 8th century A.D., and claimed back their own possessions in the 9th cent. A.D. (J.G.I.S., Vol, I, pp. 66 ff.). Dr. J. Przyluski opposes this view and holds that Śailendravamśa derives its origin from ‘Śailendra’, originally an Indonesian deity of the Bataks, enthroned upon a high mountain, who has been successively identified with Śiva Giriśa and the supreme Buddha (J.G.I.S., Vol. II, pp. 28 ff.). Prof. K. A. Nilkanta Sastri infers from some expressions in the Cangal Ins. of Sañjaya that the Pāṇḍyan country was the original home of the Hindu-Javanese immigrants and their rulers, and he thinks it possible that Sañjaya himself was a member of the Śailendravamśa. (T. B. G., 1935, pp. 610-11). The last two views do not appear to me to be even plausible. The view of Coedès is not in conflict with my theory. As regards Prof. Sastri’s criticism (op. cit.) of this theory, it is partly based on misunderstanding of my arguments. For the rest, I may point out to him that my view is a tentative one, and is not to be regarded as one that can be definitely proved. Indeed this was quite clearly stated in my paper, and has been properly understood in this spirit by others.