Bhubaneswar/Jeypore: A groundbreaking discovery by epigraphist Bishnu Mohan Adhikari is set to transform the historical understanding of the Chindaka Naga dynasty, a dominant 11th-century ruling clan.
During a visit to the Jeypore Museum recently, Adhikari, accompanied by Sarat Routray and Himansu Sekhar Sadangi, deciphered a previously undocumented inscription on a stone pillar. This finding offers fresh insights into the history of southwestern Odisha and the broader Chakrakota (Bastar) region in present-day Chhattisgarh. Adhikari, a renowned epigraphist with 124 decipherments to his name, spotted the inscribed pillar in the museum’s verandah, which remained unnoticed since the museum’s founding in 1976 by IAS officer Jiban Pani. After gaining permission from the museum authorities, the team took an estampage of the 16-line inscription.
According to Adhikari, the stone is a fragmented pillar bearing the inscription. The pillar, measuring approximately 7 feet 4 inches in base with a height of 26 by 7 inches, was originally brought from the Bhairabsinghpur-Kumli-Kamta region in the Indravati valley. Interestingly, it also features an engraved erotic picture of an ass and a pig on its left side – an artistic motif Adhikari noted is also found in other inscriptions and copper plates of the same dynasty. The inscription itself contains the ‘Raja Prasasti’ (royal eulogy) of a Chindaka Naga king, identified by the title ‘Madana Nrpa kula kamala bhaskara tilaka’. While some lines (5, 9, 10, and 16) are illegible, Adhikari suspects more lines lie beneath the concrete plinth, as the existing inscription provides incomplete information at its conclusion. Adhikari said the inscription belongs to the Nagavanshi rulers of Chakrakota (present-day Bastar region of Chhattisgarh), who held sway over the Indravati river valley, encompassing parts of Kalahandi and Koraput during the 11th century. He drew parallels with similar inscriptions of Someswara Deva (1069-1110), son of Dharavarsha and Gunda Mahadevi, found in the Kuruspal region of Chhattisgarh.
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Adhikari highlighted that the inscription is in a corrupt Sanskrit form with Odra Nagari characters, closely resembling the evolving Odia script. He pointed out words like ‘Bikantha Sri Karana’, ‘Kasa Dasa’, and ‘Damodara’, which exhibit typical Odishan writing peculiarities. This suggests the Jeypore inscription could be considered one of the early examples of evolving Odia script from the Koraput region. Further enhancing the inscription’s historical value, Adhikari revealed that it contains identical names that connect to other inscriptions of King Someswara, strengthening the narrative of this dynastic relations.
Meanwhile, the significance of the findings has resonated within the historical community. Dr Raj Kumar Rate, a history lecturer at Khariar Autonomous College, hailed it as a ‘monumental finding for Odisha’. He emphasised that this is the first Chindaka Naga dynasty inscription discovered in Odisha, and it will be considered the oldest inscription from present-day Koraput district, predating the Khechela copper plate grant of Raghunath Krushna Deva of the Surya Sankara dynasty. The Naga dynasty rulers are considered an early age ruling clan in India. In Koraput, the Chindaka Nagas rose to prominence after the Nala dynasty.
Their establishment in Chakrakota was supported by the Somavanshi rulers Janmejaya and Udyotakeshari. Historically, during conflicts between the Eastern Gangas and the Kalachuris of Ratnapur, the Chindaka Nagas allied with the Eastern Gangas. This newly deciphered inscription, therefore, promises to shed new light on the history of the tribal-dominated regions of Koraput district and Bastar region of Chhattisgarh, offering crucial insights into the political and cultural landscape of 11th-century India.
