The State in Ancient India: A Study in the Structure and Practical Working of Political Institutions in North India in Ancient Times c18.109

c18.109

We meet with essentially the same system in distant Orissa, though, here, the number of chief officers and departments is smaller. In the ninth century Talcher Grant of Kulastambha the king has the three grand titles. He has big feudatories, Mahāsāmantas, under him. He addresses his command also to Rājaputras. Then there are the Daṇḍapāśikas, Niyuktakas, Cāṭas, Bhaṭas and "others." Maṇḍala is used for Viṣaya.³ The Neulpur Grant of Subhākara (8th century A.D.) was issued by an hereditary Mahārāja who was thus a feudatory. He addresses Mahāsāmantas and Mahārājas which shows that he had big sub-feudatories under him. The mention of Rājaputras shows that princes were employed in high offices. Kumāra is probably a mistake for Kumārāmātyas, counsellors of princes. The Uparikas, Daṇḍapāśikas, Taḍāniyuktakas are there as usual. The Antaraṅgas are clearly household officers. The Mahākṣapaṭalādhikaraṇādhikṛta who acts as the Dūtaka is primarily an officer of the Record Department. So, too, the Pustapālas, keepers of books. Another officer is designated as Mahākṣapaṭalika-Bhogika which shows that he combined the offices of a provincial governor and a record-keeper. Perhaps, he was in charge of the records of his province. Viṣayapatis, district officers, are there as usual. The reference to two villages as situated in two Viṣayas in North Tosali indicates that the last was the name of a province. The occurrence of the term Bṛihadbhogika shows that the governors of the major provinces might have enjoyed this higher title. There is another officer Sthānāntarika but his functions are not clear. From the analogy of other inscriptions he appears to be a police-officer.¹