History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v3.c41.s21.10

v3.c41.s21.10

The king was thus not assisted in the administration of the country, by any popular assembly or constitutional ministers, but by ministers appointed by him and holding office during his pleasure. How many these were and what were their functions, it would be interesting to find out, not from Niti-śāstras (books on polity) whose dates of compositions are yet unsettled, but from inscriptions recorded in this sub-period. And curiously, inscriptions usually recording grants of inam villages do contain the names of all the ministers as well as local and provincial officers. This list is generally most detailed in Bengal inscriptions and we find the following ministers mentioned therein: 1 Rājāmātya 2 Purohita 3 Mahādharmādhyaksha, 4 Mahāsāndhivigrahika 5 Mahāsenāpati 6 Mahāmudrādhikrita (Great Keeper of the Seal) 7 Mahākshapaṭalika, 8 Mahāpratihāra 9 Mahābhogika and 10 Mahāpilupati (E. I. XIV p. 159).* The word Mahā attached to these names showed that there were officers subordinate to them while they personally waited upon the king and were the head of their departments. (This word Mahā was first added to these names by a Kashmir king Vol. I p. 209). Besides these there were the chief queen, the chief prince (heir apparent) and subordinate kings who are also mentioned in inscriptions; but these were probably not always consulted though the land grants required to be brought to their notice also. In Gāhadavāla grants we have mention of the following officers: 1 Mantrī 2 Purohita 3 Pratihāra 4 Senādhipati 5 Bhāndāgārika and 6 Akshapaṭalika, besides 7 the Physician, 8 the Astrologer and 9 the Master of the Household (Antahpurika). The Dūta is mentioned also and the queen and the Yuvarāja or heir apparent (Govindachandra's inscriptions I. A. XVIII p. 15 and E. I. IV p. 101). In a Chedi inscription of Karṇa are mentioned: 1 The great queen 2 The great prince 3 Mahāmantrī 4 Mahā-Sāndhivigrahika 5 Mahāmātya 6 Mahā-Dharmā-dhikaraṇika 7 Mahāpratihārī 8 Mahākshapaṭalika 9 Mahā-bhāndāgārika 10 Mahāsāmanta 11 Mahāpramattakarī and 12 Mahāśvasādhanika (E. I. XI p. 41). Unfortunately we have no mention of court officers in grants of the Paramāra, Chandella and southern Chālukya kings. But as already stated (p. 247) Thana Śilāhāra grants not only contain the mention, but also the consent-signatures, of 1 Mahāmātya, 2 Mahāsāndhivigrahika, 3 Śrīkaraṇa and two Bhāndhāgārikas. The Bhadan plates (E. I. XII p. 251) in addition to these, mention 1 Rājaputra 2 Mantrī 3 Purohita and 4 Amātya. The chief minister is further described as 'bearing the burden of the care of the whole state.' From these descriptions not differing much from one another in the several states, we will try to find out what and how many ministers assisted the kings in this sub-period of mediæval Hindu history.