Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v2.c22.s3.63

v2.c22.s3.63

The endearment of the people to their rulers is seen chiefly in the numerous records which contain grants of land for charitible purposes together with the significant phrase " for the merit of the king ". These epigraphs range from the earliest age to the last decades of Vijayanagara history, and are to be read together with the remarks we have already made in regard to protection and Dharma in the previous pages. The influence exerted by the monarch in these times was purely personal; and it is not surprising that, instead of the notions of nationality of the later ages, the people should have prayed for the merit of the king or for the success of his arms, and identified the prosperity of the country with the personal well being of the ruler.