Inscription number 44.
Urlam Plates of Hastivarman (Ganga or Gangeya) Year Eighty (576 AD.)
Hastivarman was also called Rajasimha and Ranabhita.
Eastern Ganga kings maintained a strong hold on Kalinga, for close to five centuries. Consequently Vajra-hasta, abolished Ganga era, and instituted saka era, which was subsequently accepted by Ganga kings.
In this inscription, Hastivarman, claimed that he had crushed the many enemies by strokes of the point of his scimitar. Both his Narasimhapalli plate and Urlam plates he claimed to be the lord of Sakala-kalinga. The early eastern Gangas were surrounded by Sailodbhabas of kongoda in the north and eastern chalukyas in the south. The emblem found in Early Ganga inscription is saiva bull motif. Indravarman in his prasasti his says–he is that king whose sins have been removed as a result of his accumulation of religious merit by worshipping the supreme lord, which is Siva King.
Provenance: Obtained from the Raja of Urlam, chikakole taluk, Ganjam district, Andhra Pradesh.
Script: Early Southern Brahmi of early 4th century A.D.
Language: Sanskrit.
References: E. Hultzsch, Ep.Ind, XVI,
pp. 330-34.
Footnote 1.
The Ganga era commenced with the accession of Indravarman 1,
who founded the Eastern Ganga dynasty. The first year of this era appears to correspond to 496 A.D.
Footnote 2.
1. From the facsimile in Ep.Ind between pp. 332-333.
2. Expressed by the usual spiral symbol.
3. Kalinganagara is identified with modern Mukhalingam.
4. The mark of punctuation is superfluous.
English Translation of the inscription.
Om Hail ! From Kalinganagara, the city of victory, which is pleasant on account of the simultaneous presence
of the comforts of all seasons, the illustrious Maharaja Hastivarman, a fervent worshipper of Mahe svara (siva) who is in the thoughts of his respected father and mother, whose feet
are tinged with the beams of rays of light emanating the crest-
jewels of all the feudatories subdued by his excessive valour, who is the support base of the prestige of the flawless family of the Gangas, who has elicited slogans of victory in the meleces
of many battles, whose flawless fame has spread on the surface
of the entire earth girdled by the waves of the four oceans, who acquired the overlordship of entire Kalinga by the
flourish of his own sword, who is the support of the base prosperity,
righteousness and discipline, who has been absolved from the
vices of Kali age in consequence of obeissance to the pair of
the lotus-like feet of the holy Lord gokarna, the sole architect
of creation of the entire universe; comnands all the ryots in
the Hondevaka village, situated in the Kroshtuka district. (Varttani.)
Be it known to you that having purchased two and a half
ploughs (halas) of land from the residents of the agrahara and
demarkating it (as a separate section), exempting it from all
taxes and making it an agrahara to last as long as the moon and the sun we have granted it , for the increase of religious merit of our Parents and of ourselves on the eighth ( tithi)
of the dark fortnight of Karttika, with libation of water, to
Jayasarman who is a resident of Uramalla and is of Vatsa gotra
and a student of the Vajasaneya (sakha of the white Yajurveda)
Knowing this nobody should cause obstruction (to them) while
looking after their land.
And boundary marks hereof are to the east, an anthill
then the bank-line of a field, then the western bank-line of
the Ghoshana tank, then again the bank of a field. To the
south, Only the boundary of Hattaravanna,
To the west, the bank of a field, then an anthill, then an artificial row of
stones. Also to the north, the bank of a field, then an anthill
again an anthill then (the boundary) reaches the eastern anthill dnd future kings, should preserve this meritorious
gift. Moreover, there are (verses) sung by Vyasas;
Here follow three of the customary verses).
Eighty, 80, years of the reign of increasing Victory, the day 8 of Karttika.
This charter of the lion, among kings has been written on his verbal order by vinayachandra the son of Bhanuchandra.
This is an edict of the glorious Ranabhita, whose
commands are irresistible, and who has crushed the collection
of (hi s) enemies by the crash of the edge of (his) scimiter.