Assignment

Group-B (Epigraphy and Numismatics)

Paper-III: AIH 031 (C): Palaeography
and Epigraphy
Topic:- Hathigumpha
Inscription of
Kharavela

Name- Akhil Kumar

Class roll no. 2
Class- MA 4th semester
Department- Ancient India
history, culture and
archaeology
Session- 2019-20
Submitted to Dr. Jappen Oberoi
Hathigumpha Inscription of
Kharavela
Introduction
The Hathigumpha inscription is the most
important record regarding the history and
achievements of king Kharavela. This
inscription together with many others
belonging to his chief queen, son and grandson
as well as some high officials are found
engraved in many caves of the Udayagiri hill.
The Udayagiri hill is one of the twin hillocks
near Bhubaneswar which formed an important
seat of Jainism in ancient period. The other
hillock is called as Khandagiri. Udayagiri and
Khandagiri are also called locally as Kumari and
Kumara Parvata (hill) respectively. The
inscription is dated 13th year of Kharavela's
reign, which has been dated variously by
scholars from the 2nd century BCE
Paleographically, the inscription dates from
mid-1st century BCE to early 1st century CE. It
contains seventeen lines of writing. The
inscription was first discovered by A. Sterling in
1820 and was copied by Colonel Mackenzi. But
credit goes to James Prinsep who succeeded for
the first time in deciphering the inscription from
a fresh facsimile prepared by Lieutenant Kittoe
in 1837. The result was published in the Journal
of the Asiatic Society of Bengal.
Importance of the inscription
The Hathigumpha inscription contains
detailed account of Kharavela from his
childhood to the thirteenth year of his reign
in perfect chronological order. No
epigraphical record so far discovered in India
maintains such chronological sequence
about a ruler and his achievements. Besides,
the most important aspect of the record is
that it refers to a number of kings and
dynasties of both earlier and contemporary
period which throw lights on the history of
early India. The inscription is the earliest to
refer to Bharatavarsa and mentions many in
places of importance such as Gorathagiri,
Rajagriha, Mathura, Pithunda and so on. It
seems that the composer of the record had
a remarkable sense of history, topography
and chronology. In a sense the record has
often been christened as an eulogy of the
king.

Language and script

The Hathigumpha or Elephant Cave inscription
is engraved on the ceiling of the cave. It is
heavily damaged and some of the letters are
completely defaced. It contains seventeen lines
of writing. The inscription was first discovered
by A. Sterling in 1820 and was copied by
Colonel Mackenzi. But credit goes to James
Prinsep who succeeded for the first time in
deciphering the inscription from a fresh
facsimile prepared by Lieutenant Kittoe in 1837.
The result was published in the Journal of the
Asiatic Society of Bengal.
Date of Kharavela
The Hathigumpha inscription furnishes the
names of four important rulers of ancient
India such as Satakarni, Nandaraja,
Yavanaraja, and Brihaspatimitra in
connection with the activities and
achievements of Kharavela. Besides, the
expression ti-vasa-sata showing the time gap
between Nandaraja and Kharavela throws
lights on the determination of the
chronological position of the king. While
Satakarni has been identified with the
Satavahana king Satakarni I who ruled in the
middle of the first century BCE, Nandaraja is
identified with Mahapadmananda, the king of
Magadha who ruled in the middle of the
fourth century BCE. The latter was the king
of Magadha some three hundred years (ti-
vasa-sata) before Kharavela. King
Brihaspatimitra of Magadha who was a
contemporary of Kharavela is no other than
Bahasatimitta of the Pabhosa inscription and
of the Kausambi and Ahichhatra coins. He
was ruling over an extensive territory
stretching from Anga to Panchala in the
second half of the first century BCE. All
these information give strength to the
argument that Kharavela belonged to the
first century BCE.

Early career of the king

The inscription states that Kharavela as a
young prince was physically handsome and
was brown complexioned. He had many
auspicious marks on his body. In his
childhood, he received proper training in
the field of writing, coinage, accountancy,
legal and administrative procedures (lekha-
rupa-ganana-vavahara-vidhi). He further
obtained proficiency in the art of dancing
and music, and military techniques. When
he attained fifteen years of age, he
assumed the responsibility of administration
as a crown price and then on completion of
his twenty-fourth year of age, he was
anointed as the king of Kalinga. He assumed
the title of aira maharaja which has been
rendered as an Aryan king and lord of
Kalinga (Kalingadhipati).

Kharavela as a benevolent king

In the very first year of his reign he
repaired the gates, ramparts and structures
of Kalinganagari, his capital, which was then
severely damaged by a cyclone. He caused
to have built flight of steps for the cool
tanks and laid out all gardens at the cost of
thirty-five hundred thousand coins and thus
pleased his subjects. Kalinganagari has been
identified with modern Sisupalgarh in close
vicinity of Bhubaneswar. It was excavated by
the Archaeological Survey of India in 1948-
49. A fortified citadel with a huge mud
rampart has been discovered from the site.
Apart from this many terracotta objects,
potteries including roulette wares, war
implements, seals, silver punch marked
coins, etc., have been discovered. In the
third regnal year he made arrangements of
festivals and gatherings and organized
performances of acrobatics, dance and
music. The sculptural embellishments of the
numerous caves in the Khandagiri and
Udayagiri hills are mute witnesses to the
claim made in the inscription. The right wing
of the lower storey of the Ranigumpha
presents a scene of graceful dance
performed by a girl on a pillared pavilion to
the tune of concert played by four female
musicians. King Kharavela accompanied by
his queens and courtiers is found to be
enjoying the performances. This indicates
that the king was a great patron of dance
and music. From the line 16 of the
inscription it is further learnt that the king
had revived the tauryatrika or performance
of dance, song and concert included in the
sixty-four branches of art that had been
suspended during the time of the Mauryas.
In the fifth regnal year Kharavela had
renovated the aqueduct that had been
originally excavated some three hundred
years before by Nandaraja
Mahapadmananda, and extended its flow up
to Kalinganagara. From the excavation at
Sisupalgarh, archaeologists could trace the
evidence of a moat surrounding the fortified
area. The benevolence of the king is further
attested by the act of remitting taxes and
cesses for both the urban and rural
population of his kingdom. This had cost the
exchequer many hundred thousands of
coins. This was apparently an attempt to
display the regal wealth and general
prosperity of the kingdom.
Kharavela as a conqueror
Kharavelas was a great military genius. The
prevailing political situation demanded
military preparedness not only to check the
impending danger from different corners
that was threatening the newly acquired
independence of Kalinga but also to launch
an offensive strategy to demonstrate the
military might of the kingdom of Kalinga.
The rise of the Satavahanas in the Deccan
and assumption of the title daksinapathapati
by Satakarni I was a major challenge. The
rising strength of Magadha under
Brihaspatimitra after the fall of the Sunga-
Kanva rule was a major source of danger
for Kalinga. The presence of the IndoGreeks
in the north and north-west of India and
their repeated attempts of establishing
political suzerainty over the region was the
most disturbing element of the time. The
Tamil confederacy in the south consisting of
the Ceras, Colas, Pandyas, Satyaputras and
Keralaputras with their superior military and
naval power was a serious threat to the
emerging power of the Mahameghavahanas.
In these circumstances the young and
ambitious king Kharavela launched a career
of conquests and reorganized the military
strength of the kingdom. Line 4 of the
Hathigumpha inscription points out the fact
that he had a vast army consisting of the
infantry, cavalry, elephantry and chariots.
From line 17 it is evident he assumed the
proud epithet of apratihata caka vahana
valo or the possessor of a large and
invincible army. In his second reganl year,
Kharavela disregarding Satakarni, mobilized
his vast army to the west and marched up
to the river Krishna and stormed the city of
Asika. This city was very likely the capital of
Assaka, the territory located between the
Godavari and the Krishna. The result of the
fight has not been recorded and it seems
that it was indecisive or there was no
directed fight between the two adversaries.
In the fourth regnal year Kharavela again
directed his army to march against the
Satavahana territory. This time he took the
assistance of the resources of the
Vidyadhara territory, which was then
considered as invincible. The rulers of the
Rastrikas and Bhojakas were crushed, their
crowns were cast off, their umbrellas and
other royal insignia were throw aside and
their jewellery and wealth confiscated and
they were made to pay obeisance to the
king of Kalinga. The discomfiture of the kings
of Rastrikas and the Bhojakas made Kalinga
a great power and its sphere of political
influence extended from the eastern sea to
the western sea. The next military
expedition of the king was directed against
the kingdom of Magadha. In his eighth
regnal year, the king marched to the north,
demolished the hill fortress of Gorathagiri
guarding Rajagriha. Gorathagiri has been
identified with the modern Barabar hill.
Rajagriha near Pataliputra was the capital of
Magadha. At this critical juncture, the Indo-
Greeks who had already taken possession of
Mathura advanced to towards Pataliputra.
But the news of the destruction of
Gorathagiri and the success of Kharavela
against Magadha created consternation in
the camp of the Yavanas or the Indo-Greeks
and they retreated to Mathura. Kharavela
diverted his plan of besieging Rajagriha and
chastised the Yavanas up to Mathura, drove
them from there and saved the city which
was then a famous stronghold of Jainism. In
order to commemorate his victory against
the Yavanas, in the very next year he
constructed a huge victory palace in
Kalinganagari at a cost of thirty-eight
hundred thousand coins. In the tenth regnal
year Kharavela again marched through
Bharatavarsha for conquest. This is the first
epigraphic reference to Bharatavarsha which
probably denoted north India in general. No
details about the campaign have been
mentioned in the record, except that the
king secured jewels and precious stones
from the retreating army. It seems that the
retreating army referred to in the record
could be the Indo-Greeks. In the eleventh
regnal year Kharavela fought a war with the
forces of the confederated Tamil states
including the Ceras, Colas, Pandyas,
Satyaputras and Karalaputras. The
confederacy existed for 1300 years prior to
his time. It had a large number of village
settlements. Line 13 of the Hathigumpha
inscription states that Kharavela lost his
strange and wonderful elephants and ships
but obtained horses, elephants and
jewelleries. The reference to loss of ships in
the battle apparently point to a naval battle
between the two. Rivalry in maritime
activities in the Bay of Bengal could be one
possible reason for this naval battle. The
confederacy was shattered and in the very
next year the king of Pandya, one of the
members of the confederacy, surrendered
and was forced to attend the court of
Kalinganagari with various pearls, jewels and
precious stones as a token of allegiance. In
the 12th regnal year Kharavela proceeded
with a vast army as far as Uttarapatha or
northwest India where he terrorized many
kings to submission. Although the inscription
is silent on the kings and kingdoms subdued
by the king yet it appears that the Indo-
Greeks were compelled to submission. On his
return from Uttarapatha, he planned to
invade Magadha and encamped on the banks
of the river Ganges, not far from
Pataliputra. The people of Magadha were
struck with terror at the sight of the vast
army of the Kalinga. Brihaspatimitra, the king
of Anga and Magadha, did not offer any
resistance and was forced to surrender.
Kharavela brought back the Kalinga Jina as a
trophy of victory along with the wealth
plundered. The Kailinga Jina was taken away
from Kalinga by Nandaraja in the 4th
century Thus, within a brief span of ten
years Kharavela could achieve a series of
victories extending his suzerainty from the
north-western part of India to south India.
The army of Kalinga under his command
marched through the territories of the
Satavahanas, subdued the Rastrikas and the
Bhojakas, chastised the Yavanas, terrorized
the people of Magadha and destroyed the
Confederacy of the Tamil states. These
military exploits did not aim at establishing
a political empire for Kalinga engulfing all
the conquered territories but to exhibit the
power and prestige of Kalinga by humbling
the rising powers of his time. In this respect
he fully justified the claim of the title
Cakravartin given to him in the inscription
of his chief queen.
Kharavela as a patron of Jainism
Unlike Asoka who was a convert to
Buddhism, Kharavela was a Jaina by birth.
The opening line of the Hathigumpha
inscription reads namo arhamtanam namo
sava sidhanam, saluting the Arhats and all
the Siddhas. His military campaigns were
often linked with his religious zeal for
heightening the prestige of the Jaina faith.
In his 8th regnal year he rescued Mathura,
the famous pilgrim centre of Jainism from
the Yavanas and brought from there a
sapling of the Kalpa tree with a
ceremonious military procession to Kalinga.
In the eleventh regnal year Kharavela is said
to have reclaimed the ancient metropolis of
Pithumda by ploughs drawn by asses.
Pithumda, the ancient city was once the
capital of Kalinga. It was located near
modern Srikakulam and Kalingapatnam in
north Andhra Pradesh. The reclamation of
the city by the use of asses in place of bulls
indicates that the king was a devotee of
first Tirthankara Adijina Risabhanatha. It
may be noted here that the bull is
associated with Risabhanatha. After defeating
the king of Magadha, Kharavela brought
back the Kalinga Jina to Kalinga. It was taken
away by Mahapadmananda some three
hundred years back from Kalinga. The king
is called as an upasaka or devotee of the
Svetambara system and bestowed royal
endowments to the monks of that sect. For
the rainy season retreats of the Jaina
monks, the king had excavated a number of
cells for resting of their bodies in the
Udayagiri hill. Officers and noblemen of the
time of Kharavela as well as his chief queen
and son emulated the example set by him
and extended patronage to Jainism by
excavating caves and making endowments to
the monks and sramanas.
Kharavela’s ideals of kingship
The Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela
does not explicitly refer to the pattern of
administration prevalent then but indirectly
refers to it on many occasions. Kharavela
seems to have emulated the ideals of
kingship as envisaged by Kautilya in his
Arthasastra. He had studied all branches of
knowledge required for a king to run the
administration. He had equally received
training in warfare. In line 10 of the
inscription he is represented as an
embodiment of the principles of politics,
diplomacy, peace and equity (danda-
samdhisamayo). He assumed the title of
Aira-Maharaja which has been rendered by
many scholars as the king of the Aryan
race. The coronation of the king is
compared with that of Prithu, the son of
Vainya. He was a just and benevolent king
who pleased his subjects through his
administration. He turned the life of a
Rajarsi and declared himself the worshipper
of Rajarsi Vasu. In the last line of the
inscription he is described as an upholder
of law (Cakadharo), the protector of law
(Gutacako) and the executor of law
(Pavatacako) aiming at the highest benefit
on man. In the Mancapuri cave inscription
Kharavela is called as Cakravatin or an all
powerful king. The inscription further
reveals at many places that he had under
his command an invincible army consisting of
infantry, cavalry, elephantry, chariots and
navy. The king possessed an invincible army
which is called as mahati-sena, sena-vahini
and apratihata-cakra-vahini-vala. The army
which is considered as an important element
of the state was vast, well organized and
invincible. It not only defended the fortified
townships of Kalinga but also defended the
kingdom and established law and order of
the kingdom. The offensive strategy of the
king to exhibit the military might of Kalinga
is manifest in the number of campaigns
which he had successfully undertaken in
different directions. From the building
activities initiated by the ruler either in the
renovation of canals, repair of the
devastated township of Kalinganagari,
excavation of caves and erection of dwelling
houses in the twin hills, maintenance of a
huge armed force, or construction of a
beautiful victory palace in his capital city, it
is apparent that he had used the state
resources for all these accomplishments. The
state treasury was replenished by revenues
collected from different sources. The war
booty and gifts in the forms of coins, pearls,
jewels and precious stones from the subdued
rulers and subordinates also added to the
treasury. The financial stability of the
kingdom is further attested to by the
remittance of taxes from the general public
living both in the rural and urban areas. In
short, Kalinga was prosperous kingdom under
Kharavela. Although nothing is known about
the administrative system Kalinga under
Kharavela, yet the short commemorative
inscriptions in the numerous caves of
Udayagiri bear ample testimony to the well
organized administration. The reference to
mahamada (same as mahamattra), nagara-
akhadamsa (same as nagara vyavaharika or
city administrator), kamma or cula kamma
(same as karma-saciva), etc., in these
records clearly proves the existence of a
council of ministers and a powerful
bureaucratic machinery to run the
administration. The sculptural panels
depicting the war scenes and court lives of
the time further corroborate the evidence
gleaned from the inscriptions. There is no
doubt about the fact that the military
organization was also headed by the
Commander in Chief as well as adhyaksas or
superintendents for each division of the
army.

Conclusion
Thus, the Hathigumpha inscription offers a
fair idea about the career and achievements
of the king Kharavela in an eulogistic
manner. But at the same time it reflects of
the political and religious climate of Kalinga
and the whole of India. In the post-Maurya
period the kingdom of Kalinga reasserted its
independence under the Mahameghavahanas
and attempted to avenge the defeat and
discomfiture against Magadha. The text of
the inscription further supplements the
process of state formation in Kalinga in the
post-Maurya phase. The primary state of
Magadha had cast its impact on Kalinga and
its subsequent interaction with the pristine
state supplied necessary ideas and idioms
for development of a state apparatus with
all its essential elements.
 Bibliography

Sources- EPG pathshala

Wikipedia

Kant, S. :- The Hathigumpha Inscription

of Kharavela and The Bhabru Edict of
Aśoka, D.K. Printworld, New Delhi, 2000

Remarks