orissa review june - 2004 - magazines.odisha.gov.in

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Orissa Review June - 2004

The extant epigraphic records as well asnumismatic evidences belonging to the

period from the 5th to the 14th century A.D.testify to the wide prevalence of theBrahminical religion in the upper Mahanadivalley. Most of the kings of this region weredevout worshippers of Siva but epigraphicrecords reveal that they were catholic intheir approach towards all religions andtolerant to the believers of other religiousfaiths. Some of the rulers were staunchVaisnavites.

Vaisnavism prophecised bythe rulers as well as the commonpeople can be studied from thecopper-plate charters issued by kings ofvarious dynasties ruling the upperMahanadi valley of Orissa and stoneinscriptions as well as numismatic studyof the coins circulated by those royalhouses.

The earliest inscription recordingthe Vaisnava religious affiliation of aking is the Podagad Stone Inscriptionof the Nala king Skandavarman(Reigning Period : Circa 480-515A.D.) who was ruling from his capital Puskari,identified with Podagad in the Umerkot tahasilof the present Nawarangpur district of Orissa.

Both Bhavadattavarman and his sonArthapati were devout Saivite but Arthapati's

younger brother and successor Skandavarmanwas a worshipper of Hari. He is known fromhis Podagad Stone Inscription1 to have

enshrined the foot-print of Vishnu with thehope of obtaining religious merit for hisfather, mother and other ancestors, as wellas for himself. He also founded anAgrahara for carrying on the worshipof Vishnu and endowed a Satra attached

to the temple for feeding theBrahmanas, the ascetics, the poorand the destitute. The inscription hasthirteen verses, most of which arecomposed in the AnusthupChhanda.

The inscription starts with (Verse-1)Victory. The praise of (His) qualities (in)such (words) as "Hari was victorious,is victorious (and) will be victorious",is not that (i.e. appropriate). For, verily,the Divine (Hari) is himself theconquest, the object to be conquered andthe conqueror."

This statement is comparable withthe description of Vishnu as "VijayoJeta" given in Verse-16 of the

Vishnusahasranama.

In Vrs.2 to 5 it has been mentioned thatthe foot-print (Padamula) was made by theillustrious king Skandavarman, the noble sonof king Bhavadatta.

Vaisnavism in Upper Mahanadi Valley

Sasanka Sekhar Panda

Viranchi Narayana,Salebhata, Circa 9th

century A.D.

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In Vrs.5 and 6 -"And for his worshipin this (temple), with(liberation of) waterand with abundantdakshina .... aholding (pura) forthe Supreme Being(Purusha) to last aslong as ........ the Sunand the stars. Theproceeds have to beused entirely for the

(free) feeding in a Satra of Brahmanas,especially of ascetics, of the poor and of thedestitute .....

King Tustikara of the Parvatadvarakadynasty was ruling from Tarabhramaraka,identified with village Talbhainra on the bankof river Tel in Kalahandi district. A copper-plate grant discovered at Teresingha villagein 1947 was deciphered by the learnedepigraphist late Pandit Satyanarayan Rajaguru,from which it is known that the doner kingTustikara was a devout worshipper at the feetof the goddess Stambhesvari, but we also getthe mention of names of gods like Aditya (Sun)and Sulapani (Siva) in this Charter, andreligious rituals like the Agnistomas and Yajna,observed during the time of granting of landby the king.2

The Parvatadvarakas were ousted fromtheir capital Parvatadvara (most probablyMaraguda in Nawapara district) by theSarabhapuriyas or kings of the Amararyakulasometime in the first half of the 6th centuryA.D. As recorded in their copper platecharters, the Sarabhapuriyas were ParamaBhagavatas. They patronised Bhagavata Cultof Vaisnavism in a strong way. The royal seal

attached to the copper-plates of theSarabhapuriyas bears the figure of two-handedgoddess Laksmi standing in the Samabhangaposture, being flanked by two elephants pouringwater in their raised trunks on her head. Theleft hand of the goddess of wealth is inKatyavalambita, while the right hand is raised-up.

The repousse gold coins issued by thembear the emblems of a front-faced Garuda birdflanked by a Sankha and a Chakra.

Two copper-plate grants, one of kingMahajayaraja and the other of Mahasudevarajaof the Amararyakula have been discovered sofar in western Orissa, both in the Nawaparadistrict of Orissa. In both the charters, PuranaDharma Slokas from Vyasa's Bhagavat Gitahave been quoted to make the subjects awareof the Dharma.3 & 4

Towards the beginning of the seventhcentury A.D. a dynasty called Panduvamsaemerged in the scene. The founder of thisdynasty was Mahasiva Tivara, who was theson of one Nanna. Nanna was a very highofficial in the service of the Sarabhapuriyak i n gMahasudevaraja II.Mahasiva Tivarawas a devoutworshipper of Visnuand the royal sealattached to hiscopper-plate charterbear the emblems ofa Garuda, aChakra, a Sankhaand a flower device.Panduvamsi kingslike MahasivaTivara, his son

Laksmi Narayana,Narsinghanath, Circa 12th

century A.D.

Laksmi Narayana,Belkhandi, Circa 8th

century A.D.

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Nanna II and grandson of his younger brother(Harsagupta) were all Parama Vaisnava. Along stone inscription, now known as theLaksmana Temple Stone Inscription, havingtwentysix verses in the 6th-7th century Nagaricharacters was discovered by Mr. HenryCousens in 1904 while clearing debris of theMandapa of Laksmana temple at Sirpur.5 Thisinscription starts with salutation to LordPurusottama Nrsimha. (Om NamahPurusottamaya).

Towards the first half of the 9th centuryA.D., the Panduvamsis left their capital Sripuraand moved furthereast towardsSuvarnapura tocarve out akingdom forthemself in theupper Mahanadivalley of Orissa, inwhich venture theysucceeded. The newdynasty came to beknown as theSomavamsa insteadof Panduvamsa.

All the kings of this dynasty wereParama Mahesvara, but the royal sealsattached to their copper-plate grants bear theVaisnavite emblem of seated Gajalaksmi.From the Vakratentuli grant6 of the founder kingof Somavamsi rule, MahabhavaguptaJanmejaya, it is known that the names of godslike Aditya (Sun), Varuna (Water God), Visnu,Brahma, Soma (Moon) and Hutasana or Agni(Fire) are still quoted in the Purana section ofthis one and all his land grants. This traditionwas followed by his son Yayati-I and grandsonBhimaratha also.

From the Sonepur Plates of the 17thRegnal Year of Janmejaya-I, issued from

Arama, it is known that the KamalavanaVanikasthana (a merchant association) boughtGettaikela village from the king and donatedthe same for charity, oblation and offerings aswell as for repairing wear and tear in thetemples of Kesava and Aditya, situated atSuvarnapura.7

Three sets of copper-plate grants of theSomavamsi king Mahabhavagupta Janmejayawere discovered at Gopalpur village in theLoisingha police station area of Balangirdistrict in around 1990. Those are collectedand preserved in the Orissa State Museum

now.8 In Verse-4 ofthe grant issued inthe 1st Regnal Yearof the king, his fatherSvabhavatunga hasbeen comparedwith god Visnu(Hari) in the form ofa boar (Varahai n c a r n a t i o n )supporting the earthon his arms. InVerse-6, we find the

mention of the birth of his illustrious sonJanmejaya who assumed the viruda Sriyovasa(Abode of Fortune). He is also compared to awish-fulfilling tree (Kalpataru).

In the 2nd Gopalpur Grant issued in the10th Regnal Year of the king, it has beenrecorded that the said grant was declared byBhatta Sadharana for donation of three-eighthpart of the donated village Jollamura to meetthe cost of the offerings of Bali, Charu andNaivedya as well as services and repairs ofthe temple and for worship of Jalasayana formof Narayana Bhattaraka, constructed by himat Suvarnapura. This is the only land-grant ofthe Somavamsi period, which closes with the

Sesasayi Visnu from Ranipur Jharial, now in Collector's Res.Office, Balangir, Circa 9th century A.D.

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Vaisnava sectarian formula, Namo BhagavateVasudevaya.

Bhatta Sadharana was a high officialunder king Janmejaya, who has been mentionedas the sole abode of Dharma, and "wasforemost among the intelligent people andhaving risen to the office of Amatya (minister)protected and maintained his subjects even asthe divine preceptor Brhaspati had done forSakra (Indra) and Vasistha had done forDasaratha (Vrs. 8-9 of 1st Gopalpur Grant).

The Patna Museum Plates9 ofMahabhavagupta Yayati-I, issued in his 8thRegnal Year speaks in Line-43 ofSvabhavatunga, themost powerfulSomavamsi king'svictory over theChaidya (Chedi)and again in Lines48-50 about his(Svabhavatunga's)sonborn like Visnu whokilled the epicChaidya or Sisupalain the RajasuyaYajnya performedby Yudhisthira. TheChedis mentioned inthis copper-plate grant are the Kalachuris(Chedis) of Jabalpur region (Dahala Mandala)with whom the Somavamsis were at warconstantly, due to the fact that the growingpower of the Kalachuris forced their ancestorsto leave their capital Sripura and movedtowards the upper Mahanadi valley in Orissa(the present western part of Orissa state.)

In the Brahmesvara Temple Inscriptionof Kolavati,10 the mother of king Udyotakesari,it has been mentioned in Verse-1 and 2, 'Let

the full-moon which was born with Sri fromthe midst of the ocean called Ksirodadhi(Ocean of Milk) when it was churned with theMandara Mountain, encircled by the king ofserpents, serving the purpose of the churningrope and pulled by Brahma, Upendra (Visnu),Mahesvara, Indra and Bali, spread over thethree regions with the light as sweet as nectar.In his (moon's) family was born Raja Janmejaya....... whose bright fame was incomparableamong kings.' It has been further mentioned inVerse-11 of this stone inscription that 'His(Udyotakesari's) mother, Kolavati by name,was the daughter of the Solar race and the chiefqueen of the Lunar race (of Yayati-II) and was

like Durga andLaksmi in beauty andaction.

In Lines 22-23of the NarasinghapurPlates11 ofMahabhavaguptaUdyotakesari, issuedin his 4th Regnal yearfrom the capital cityYayatinagara, kingYayati-II (thepredecessor ofUdyotakesari) hasbeen mentioned as

Vidyanidhih Pratinidhi-rmadhusudanasya. Inthe Ratnagiri Plates12 of MahasivaguptaKarnadeva also Yayati-II has been mentionedas the 'Representative of Madhusudana Visnu'in the Line-18. In his Jatesingha - DungriPlates,13 issued from Pattana Suvarnapura,Mahasivagupta Yayati-II Chandihara has beenmentioned as a king, whose characterresembles such renowned kings as Nala,Naghusa, Mandhata, Dilipa, Bharata andBhagiratha.

Stone Panel depicting the Holy Trinity : Siva Linga, Jagannathand Mahisamardini Durga

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The Rastrakuta feudetories(Mahamandalika, Ranaka) likeMahamandalika Mugdhagondaladeva14 (of thereigning period of Somavamsi king Janmejaya-I), and Ranaka Parachakrasalya15 wereParama Mahesvara like their overlords, butthe royal seals attached totheir copper-plate grantsbear the conventionalVaisnavite symbol ofGaruda with a snake whichwas also the dynasticemblem of the Rastrakutasof the Deccan. In the royalseal ofMugdhagondaladeva, theemblem of Garuda withoutstretched wings andbeak-nose have been carvedin low relief. It is in therunning posture with its lefthand extended to the frontas if to catch the snakewhich is also depictedbelow. But in the seal ofRanaka Parachakrasalya,the upper part of Garuda isshown with folded hands inobeisance and a crown onthe head as well as twooutstretched wings on theback. Ranaka Devapya ofthe time of the Somavamsiking Janmejaya16 and Ranaka Jayarnnama ofthe time of the Somavamsi king Karnadeva17

were Parama Vaisnava (great devotees ofVisnu) and simultaneously were worshippersof goddess Stambhesvari.

The Bhanjas of Khinjalimandala weredriven out by the Somavamsi kingMahabhavagupta Janmejaya who finally

established the Somavamsi rule at Suvarnapurasometime in the 2nd half of the 9th century A.D.The Bhanjas of the Vasistha Gotra were rulingthe upper Mahanadi valley in Orissa in the lastquarter of the 8th century A.D. and first half ofthe 9th century A.D. forming the Ubhaya

Khinjalimandala lying inboth banks of riverMahanadi from the presentSonepur to Dasapalla.

In all the copper-plategrants issued by the Bhanjaking Satrubhanja and hisson Ranabhanja, LordBhairava (the Ugra aspectof Siva) has beenworshipped in theinvocatory verses, except inone case, i.e. theKumurakela Plates18 of the15th Regnal Year ofSatrubhanja, where LaksmiNarayana have beenworshipped at thebeginning : AnabarataBahala PulakaLaksmikuchapidanenaDuritambah / ApaharataS u r a b h iParimalasusatapadamurasthalam Visnuh // (Tr. Prof.Rajkishore Mishra - Laksmi

in constant caress of Lord Visnu appears to betrans and drops of sweat coming out of herbreast with all its ardour, wipe out sins andcleanse the Universe). Bhanja king Satrubhanjawas a devout worshipper of Lord Visnu(Parama Vaisnava). He seems to havepatronised the Laksmi Narayana Cult in the lastquarter of the 8th century A.D. In Lines 21-22of the Singhara (Sonepur) Plates,19 issued in

Stone Panel from Konark, now in theNational Museum, New Delhi depicting King

Narasimha-I worshiping MahisamardiniDurga, Jagannath and Siva Linga as Holy

Trinity, Circa Mid-13th century A.D.

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the 9th Regnal Year of Ranabhanja, we findmention of 'Sri Narayana BhattarakaMuddisya.' In the Patna Museum Plates,20

issued during the 22nd Regnal Year of kingRanabhanja, the names of Aditya, Varuna,Visnu, Brahma, Soma, Hutasana and LordSulapani (Siva) have been mentioned in theDharma portion.

An image of Laksmi Narayan in the samestyle of Uma-Mahesvara image is found atBelkhandi along-with images of Saptamatrkas,Bhairava, Surya and others. From stylisticground, it can be dated to the second half ofthe 8th century A.D. or first half of the 9thcentury A.D. Another Laksmi-Narayan imageis found at Narsinghnath, which can be datedto around 12th-13th century A.D. The LaksmiNarayan image of Belkhandi has been taken asthe earliest of its kind by learned scholar J.P.Singh Deo.21

In the Baud Plates22 of Ranabhanja,issued in his 58th Regnal Year there is mentionof gods like Aditya, Varuna, Brahma, Soma,Hutasana and Sulapani as found in theSomavamsi copper-plate grants. (AdityoVaruno Visnu Brahma Soma Hutasanah /Sulapanistu Bhagavan Abhinandati-bhumidam //) Bhanja king Ranabhanja mighthave followed this style of mentioning namesof gods including Visnu from such mention inthe Somavamsi land grants of MahabhavaguptaJanmejaya, his contemporary and alsoadversary. As this sloka mentioning Visnu hasbeen mentioned in the Patna Museum Plates.23

issued by queen Vijaya Mahadevi, during the22nd Regnal year of Ranabhanja and as VijayaMahadevi was a devout worshipper of LordVisnu, she might have influenced her husbandto change her religious faith from Saivism toVaisnavism.

It seems that the Nalas, Parvatadvarakas,Sarabhapuriyas, Panduvamsis, Bhanjas and theSomavamsis, who were ruling the upperMahanadi valley in Orissa from around 5thcentury A.D. to the 11th century A.D.patronised Vaisnavism in the same spiritalthough most of them were staunch Saivite(Parama Mahesvara). The Bhanja kingRanabhanja was a Parama Mahesvara, but fora pretty long period (32 years : From his 22ndRegnal Year to 53rd Regnal Year) he was aParama Vaisnava due to the influence of hisqueen Vijaya Mahadevi, who was an ardentworshipper of Lord Visnu.

In around 1070 A.D. the Telugu Chodascaptured power at Suvarnapura ruled foraround 44 years upto 1114 A.D.

In the Mahada Plates24 of another TeluguChoda king Somesvara II in Line-35, Mukunda,a name of Lord Visnu has been mentioned,although Somesvara was a ParamaMahesvara. Similarly in the Patna MuseumPlates,25 the Telugu Choda king SakalaKosaladhisvara Mahavyuhapati RanakaSrimadraja Somesvaradeva III has declaredhimself as a devout worshipper of both Sivaand Visnu (Parama Mahesvara ParamaVaisnava). In Line-24 of this grant occursNarayana Bhattarakasya Pritaye (to pleaseLord Narayana). It is worth-noting here thatall the Telugu Choda kings, ruling fromSuvarnapura during the period from 1070-1114A.D. have mentioned themselves asBaidyanatha Pada Pankaja Bhramarah (ABee on the Lotus Feet of Lord Baidyanatha).

Jajalladeva, the Kalachuri king ofRatanpur Branch defeated the king ofSuvarnapura in around 1114 A.D. and the upperMahanadi valley went to the hands of theKalachuris. The Kalachuris had prolonged

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warfare with the Gangas of Kalinganagara.During the rule of the Ganga kingAnangabhimadeva III (1211-1238 A.D.), theyultimately captured this region, which wasamalgamated into their empire, but stillremained a neglected border region. During thetime of the Ganga king Bhanudeva-II (Circa1306-1328 A.D.), a Samanta was posted atSunapura to administer that region as knownfrom the Khambhesvari Temple StoneInscription.26 When the Ganga power wasweakened, Sonepur region was captured by aBhanja royal house of the Kasyapa Gotra inthe 14th century A.D. as evidenced from theBaud Plates of Solanabhanja, a ParamaVaisnava with capital at Suvarnapura. In thischarter the invocatory verse starts with prayerof Lord Visnu, 'Namoh Narayanaya'. Anotherking of this dynasty Kanakabhanja also issueda land grant called Baud Plates27 issued in his8th Regnal year. Kanakabhanja has describedhimself as 'Vikramena Visnu' (Like Lord Visnuin valour) in this copper plate grant.28 But takingadvantage of the distance of this place fromthe capital of the Gangas there emerged a royalpower, i.e. of the Chauhans in the Balangir-Patna region of Orissa also. From legends it isknown that the Chauhans patronised theJagannath Cult in a strong way. Ramaideva,the first Chauhan king constructed a temple atPatnagarh where the Holy Trinity, Jagannath,Balabhadra and Subhadra were enshrined. Asenumerated in the District Gazetteer, there arearound thirty Jagannath temple in Balangirdistrict. Even for Balabhadra there are seventemples and for Dadhibaban or Dadhibaman,sixteen temples in Balangir district alone.29 TheDadhibaban or Dadhibaman is a strange cult,centering around the worship of Jagannath idolonly. The Dadhibaban temple constructed byRamaideva in the 14th century is still standing

at Berhampura near Patnagarh town of Balangirdistrict.

The Gond tribals, who arepredominantly inhabitating central Indiastretching from Orissa state to Maharastra state,worship two major gods called Bad Deo (Dev)and Jangha Deo (Dev). Are they Bada Devataor Balabhadra and Lord Jagannath ? If so thenthe tribal origin of these two gods can beestablished. The cult of Stambhesvari or theworship the Goddess of Pillar or Post can betraced back to the 5th-6th century A.D. atParvatadvara, the capital of king Tustikara'sfore-fathers. It is really astounding to be notedthat during excavations in 1983, late Prof. N.K.Sahu, the Archaeological Advisor to theGovernment of Orissa discovered an image ofMahisamardini Durga, having an inscription onthe pedestal, which has been deciphered as'Mahesvari Bhadeidam' (From This GrowsMahesvari) by learned epigraphist PanditSatyanarayan Rajaguru. The Dumals, who arebelieved to be of the tribal origin, live in theupper Mahanadi valley in large number, witha major concentration in Anugul, Sonepur,Baud, Balangir, Sambalpur and Bargarhdistricts. Their supreme goddess is Mahesvariwho is taken as co terminus with Khambesvarior Khamsiri or Stambhesvari. Therefore, theStambhesvari worship which has its originatleast in the 5th century A.D. was found in theform of Mahesvari worship at Maraguda. TheSomavamsi king Mahasivagupta Yayati-IIChandihara (Circa 1023-1040 A.D.) was agreat monarch who was made the ruler of theentire region comprising of Kosala and Utkala.Mahesvari who was later on known asgoddess Bhagavatya PanchambariBhadrambika and was enshrined at PattanaSuvarnapura30 might have been introduced asSubhadra (Bhadra Ambika who is having the

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Pancha Ambara) into the Jagannath Cult. DoesBhagavatya means a goddess related to theBhagavata cult of Vaisnavism ? A sculpturalpanel on the southern Jangha portion of theMukhasala of the Surya temple at Konarkdepicts the Linga-Purusottama (Jagannath) -Mahisamardini Durga clearly suggesting thatin the 13th century A.D.,31 during the reigningperiod of the Ganga monarch Narsimhadeva-I(Circa 1238-1264 A.D.) the Holy Trinity wasrepresenting Siva in Linga form, Jagannath inthe present form and Mahisamardini Durgarepresenting Panchambari Bhadrambika of theSomavamsi period (Circa 11th century A.D.).Similar panel also from Konark is found32 inthe National Museum at New Delhi also. Thegreat Vaisnava saint Chaitanya Das33 wasthriving during the ruling period of the sixthChauhan king Prataparudradeva of Bolangir -Patna line (Circa 1455-1480 A.D.). Hecomposed two epoch-making Vaisnava texts,called Nirguna Mahatmya and VisnugarbhaPurana. Another great king of the Chauhandynasty was Vaijal Dev-I (Circa 1410-1430A.D.) who constructed a temple for LordNarasimha in the feline form at Narsinghnathin around 1413 A.D as known from the Proto-Oriya Narsinghnath Temple Stone Inscription.34

'Namah Sri Nrusinghaya ..... PatanaNagarasthita Vatsarajadeva Rajankara PutraVaijaladeva Manohara PutrartheGandhamardana Parvate ViralaNarasinghanatha Svaminkara Deula Tolaila. . . . Prasastikara Agha NarasinghasyaPritaye.' His wife Rani Durlabha Devi alsoconstructed a temple for Lord Harishankar(Hari-Hara) at Harishankar, both placessituated in the Gandhamardan mountain rangeon the border of the present Bargarh andBalangir districts.

During the time of the Chauhan kingNarasingha Deva his younger brother BalaramaDeva carved out an independent kingdom.35 Hewas the founder-king of the Chauhan rule atSambalpur (called Humadesh). The Chauhansof Sambalpur Branch also patronised JagannathCult in a strong way. Balarama Deva defeatedthe king of Sarguja in a battle as a result ofwhich truce occurred and the king of Sargujagave her daughter in marriage to BalaramaDeva, the king of Sambalpur. The princess ofSarguja brought an image of AnantasayanaVisnu, which was installed by Balarama Devain a temple constructed by him. That temple isknown as Anantasajja temple which is situatedin the Old Fort area of Sambalpur town nearthe Jemadei Mahal at Kamli Bazar.36 Hisgrandson Balabhadra Deva (Reigning Period: Circa 1561-1591 A.D.) was a great devoteeof the Holy Trinity, who constructed the oldestJagannath temple called Brahmapura temple inSambalpur town.37 The third son of kingMadhukar Deva of Sambalpur, and grandsonof Balabhadra Deva, Vansagopal was a greatVaisnava. He renounced the worldly comfort,established Gopalji Math in the old fort areanear the Samlei temple38 at Sambalpur andspent his entire life worshipping Lord Gopaljias well as Radhakrishna and the Holy Trinitythere.

It seems that when the Bhanja rulers ofSuvarnapura shiefted their capital to the Baudregion, Sonepur area was captured by a tribalchief of the Gond tribe named Dom Gond,whom prince Madan Gopal, the youngerbrother of Baliar Deva, the fourth Chauhan kingof Sambalpur defeated in around 1650 A.D.and started Chauhan rule at Sonepur.39

King Baliar Dev was a great devotee ofLord Lagannath. His court poet Pandit

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Gangadhar Mishra composed the great Sanskritwork Kosalananda Kavyam in around 1664A.D. where Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath atPuri has been described vividly in 17 verses.40

A later ruler Chhatra Sai (Reigning Period :Circa 1657-1695 A.D.) also built a temple forthe worship of the Holy Trinity, which is calledHutapada Jagannath temple in Sambalpurtown.41

Vaisnava images as sculpturaldecorations are many, although not plenty innumber in the temples of western Orissa. Theworship of Kesava, Aditya and Sesasayi Visnuat Suvarnapura has been mentioned in theSonepur Plates and 2nd Gopalpur Plates of thetime of the Somavamsi king MahabhavaguptaJanmejaya (Circa 850-885 A.D.) A beautifulViranchi Narayana image has been shifted fromSalebhata in the Balangir district and is nowkept in the Sambalpur University Museum.Also, an exquisitely carved Sasasayi Visnupanel has been shiefted from Ranipur Jharialand fixed to the outer wall of the residentialoffice chamber of the Collector of Balangirdistrict.42 Description of such Visnu image isfound in the ancient texts like Tantrasara ofMadhavacharya.43

King Mahabhavagupta Janmejaya hasbeen taken as the founder of the Somavamsirule in the upper Mahanadi valley of Orissa.His father Svabhavatunga has been comparedwith 'Bhu Varaha' in the 1st Gopalpur Platesof Janmejaya. A profile figure of four-handedBhu Varaha of the height of around four feetand breadth of two feet and a half is carved onthe huge boulder of ten feet in height and twentyfive feet in length, situated on the south-easternembankment of the Samiabandh tank at RanipurJharial.44

As mentioned above, the Somavamsiking Mahasivagupta Yayati II Chandihara

(Circa 1023-1040 A.D.) has been mentionedas the 'Representative of Madhusudana' in thecopper-plate grants of Udyotakesari andKarnadeva. A four-handed image ofMadhusudana Visnu is found inside theGarbhagrha of the Indralath brick temple atRanipur Jharial.45 The iconography of thisimage is that of Madhusudana, one of thetwenty-four aspects of Visnu, which is foundmentioned in the ancient texts like PadmaPurana, Chaturvarga Chintamani,Dharmasindhu, Vriddharahita Smriti andAbhilasa Chintamani.46

Epigraphic evidences on Vaisnavismshould be studied in the right perspective toknow more about the origin and evolution ofJagannath cult in the western highland ofOrissa.

References :1. Epigraphia Indica (E.I.), Vol.XXI, pp.153-157 ff.

(edited by C.R. Krishnamacharlu); Inscriptions ofOrissa (I.O.), Vol.I, Part-ii, pp.94-97 ff, (edited byS.N. Rajaguru).

2. Journal of the Kalinga Historical ResearchSociety, Vol.II, No.2, pp.107-110 ff. (edited bySatyanarayan Rajaguru); E.I., Vol.XXX, pp.274-278ff (re-edited by Dr. D.C. Sircar).

3. Sircar, D.C. and Singh Deo, J.P., 'Amgura Platesof Jayaraja of Sarabhapura, Regnal year - 3' IndianMuseum Bulletin, Vol.IX, Vol.1, January, 1976,Calcutta, pp.57-59 ff. and S. Tripathy, 'Amguraplates of Maha-Jayaraja, Year-3, Journal of theEpigraphical Society of India, Vol.IV, 1977, pp.70-75 ff.

4. E.I., Vol. IX, pp.170-173 ff. (Khariar Plates ofSudevaraja, year-2), edited by Sten Kenow.

5. E.I. Vol.XI, pp.184-201ff. (edited by Rai BahadurHiralal); I.O., Vol.IV., pp.69-80 ff. (re-edited bySatyanarayan Rajaguru).

6. E.I., Vol.XI, pp.93-95 ff. (edited by Mazumdar);I.O., Vol.IV, pp.96-99 ff (re-edited by SatyanarayanRajaguru.

7. E.I., Vol.XXIII, pp.248-255 ff. (edited by B.C.Chhabra); I.O., Vol.IV, pp.130-137 ff. (re-edited bySatyanarayan Rajaguru).

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8. Shastri, Ajay Mitra and Snigdha Tripathy, 'ThreeCopper-plate Charters of Mahabhavagupta IJanmejaya From Gopalpur, Years 1, 10 andO.H.R.J., Vol.XXXIX, No.1-4, 1994, pp.92-161ff.

9. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal (J.A.S.B.)Vol.I (1905), New Seriesl pp.14-16 ff (edited byGanga Mohan Laskar); I.O., Vol.IV, pp.167-175 ff.(re-edited by Satyanarayan Rajaguru).

10. J.A.S.B., Vol.VII, June 1837, pp.557-162 ff.(edited by James Princep; I.O., Vol.IV, pp.244-252ff. (re-edited by Satyanarayan Rajaguru).

11. Journal of the Bihar-Orissa Research Society,Vol.XVII, pp.1-15 ff. (edited by Pandit BinayakMishra); I.O., Vol.IV, pp.225-234 ff. (re-edited bySatyanarayan Rajaguru).

12. E.I., Vol.XXXIII, pp.263-74 ff. (edited by Mrs.Debala Mitra).

13. J.B.O.R.S., Vol.II (1916), pp.45-55 ff. (edited byB.C. Mazumdar).

14. Journal of the Orissan History (J.O.H), Vol.III,No.1, January 1982, pp.19-22 ff. (edited by Smt.Snigdha Tripathy).

15. E.I., Vol.XXX, pp.136 ff. (Burda Plates of RanakaParachakrasalya), edited by D.C. Sircar.

16. Sahu J.K., Sambalpur University Museum Platesof the time of Janmejaya I, J.O.H., Vol.II, No.1,January 1981, pp.1-5 ff.

17. Panigrahi, K.C., 'Kamalpur Copper-plate Grant ofthe Reign of Karnadeva', J.O.H., Vol.I, No.1,January 1980, pp.1-5 ff.

18. J.B.O.R.S., Vol.II (1916), pp.429-435 ff. (editedby B.C. Mazumdar), pp.429-435 ff; I.O., Vol.VI,pp.58-64 ff. (re-edited by Smt. Snigdha Tripathy).

19. J.B.O.R.S., Vol.VI, pp.481-486 ff. (edited by B.C.Zamumdar).

20. E.I., Vol.XX, pp.100-104 ff. (edited by R.D.Banerji).

21. Singh Deo, Jitamitra Prasad, 'Contribution ofKalahandi District to Vaisnava Tantra in Orissa',O.H.R.J., Vol.XLV, No.1-4, p.50 f.

22. Indian Historical Quarterly, Vol.X, pp.473-477 ff.(edited by Adris Banerji); I.O., Vol.VI, pp.112-118ff. (re-edited by Smt. Snigdha Tripathy).

23. E.I., Vol.XX, pp.100-104 ff. (edited by R.D.Banerji).

24. E.I., Vol.XXVIII, pp. 285-292 ff. (Edited by D.C.Sircar); E.I., Vol.XII, p.220 (edited by B.C.Mazumdar).

25. E.I., Vol.XIX, pp.97-99 ff.26. E.I., XXXII, 325 ff.; O.H.R.J., Vol.X, No.4, pp.1-

11 ff.27. E.I., Vol.XXVI, pp.276-279 ff. (edited by Dr. K.C.

Panigrahi).28. J.B.O.R.S., Vol.II, p.367 ff. (Edited by B.C.

Mazumdar).29. Orissa District Gazetteers (O.D.G.), Balangir,

Chief Editor : N. Senapati and State Editor : Dr.N.K. Sahu, Cuttack, 1968, pp.455-467 ff.

30. J.B.O.R.S., Vol.II (1916), pp.45-55 ff., Jatesinghaand Dungri Plates of Mahasivagupta Yayati, editedby B.C. Mazumdar, I.O., Vol.IV, p.219 f.

31. Donaldson, Thomas Eugen, Hindu Temple Art ofOrissa, Vol.III, Leiden : E.J. Brill, p. (Note on Fig.No.3842)

32. Ibid, Note on Fig. No.3843.33. Op.cit., Orissa District Gazetters, Balangir, p.51.34. Misra, Binayaka; Narasimhanath Stone

Inscription of Vaijaladeva, I.H.Q., Vol.XII, No.1,March 1936, pp.485-486 ff.

35. Orissa, District Gazetteers, Sambalpur, ChiefEditor : N. Senapati and State Editor, BhabakrushnaMahanty, Cuttack, 1971, p.61 f.

36. Dash, S.P., Sambalpur Itihas (in Oriya), 2ndEdition, pp.235-236 ff.

37. Ibid., pp.242-243 ff.38. Ibid, pp.251-253 ff.39. Dash, S.P., Sambalpur Itihas (in Oriya), 2nd

Edition, pp.250-251 ff.40. Sahu, Dr. J.K., Sambalpur University Journal, I,

p.142 f.41. Dash, S.P., Sambalpur Itihas (in Oriya), 2nd

Edition, p.270 f.42. Panda, Sasanka Sekhar; Some Archaeological

Remains of Balangir District, O.H.R.J., Vol.XL,Nos.1-4, pp.59-60 ff.

43. Rao, T.A. Gopinatha, Elements of HinduIconography, Vol.I, part-i, Varanasi IndologicalBook House, 1971 (2nd Edition), pp.132-134ff.

44. Ibid, p.58 f.45. Ibid, p.55 f.46. Gupta, R.S., Iconography of the Hindus,

Buddhists and Jainas, Bombay : D.B.Taraporevala Sons & Co. Pvt. Ltd., 1972, p.95f.

The writer lives at VR-23, Unit-6, Bhubaneswar

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