1917.] Bardic and Histl. Survey of Kajputana. 221 



Manika Rava who was married to kavara Sado of Pugaja, and 

 that she became sail on the spot where her husband was slain 

 by Araka Mala. The talava of Kodamadesara, according to 

 this legend, was dug from the proceeds of Kodama De's bangles 

 and named after her to perpetuate her memory. As regards the 

 connection of Kodama De with rava Rina Mala, it is interest- 

 ing to note that the Bikaneri legend indirectly admits it bv 

 representing her as having been betrothed to Rina Mala before 

 being married to Sado. Curiously enough, the later Bikaneri 

 chronicles have lost any notion that the mother of Jodho was 

 a Bhativani Kodama De : the Khyata of Dayala Dasa, for 

 instance, believes that Jodho was born of a Parihara Ham- 



samati. 1 



Thus Kodamadesara was founded by rava Jodho in Sam- 

 vat 1516 Needless to say, the excavating of the tank and 

 the founding of the village were simultaneous, and the reason 

 is obvious to anybody who has any knowledge of the con- 

 ditions of a village in the desert, which cannot exist without a 

 tank or well The fact that a great number of names of 

 villages end in -sara, meaning "tank", is significant enough. 

 The village, as founded bv rava Jodho, was undoubtedly much 

 larger and more important than the present village is, and the 

 place must have possessed some attractions, for all the chro- 

 nicles agree in stating that when rava Jodho's son Viko came 

 to colonize the Jagalu country, he first chose Kodamadesara 

 as the best place to build a fort, and actually started building 

 it and would have established his capital there, if it was not 

 for the opposition raised against him by the Bhatls of Pugaja. 

 It was only in consequence of this opposition, according to the 

 chronicles, that rava Vlkd left Kodamadesara and went and 

 built his fort on the spot where now Bikaner is Whether tin 

 above account bv the chronicles is accurate or not. it is dim- 

 cult to say. but the villagers of Kodamadesara still point to 



the visitor a long mound of earth running in two perpendicular 

 directions, to the north-east of the talava, and identify it with 

 •lie remnants of rava Vlko's fort. In fact, on the_top of th. 



levation, there are in places some traces of a pakka vrall. 



The other three inscriptions, which I have found at Koda- 



nadesara, are of little interest. The oldest of the three is 



incised on a marble >'evati, preserved in the house of the Sadhu 

 jagirdar of the place. It is dated Samvat 1529. the 5th day of 

 Me bright fortnight of Magha, Monday, and records the death of 

 a saba KapS(?V son of saha Ruda(?), and his wife the sati 

 Kautiga De. An interesting particular in this inscription is 

 fckat it gives the name of the village as Kodamadesara (A oda- 

 madesara madhye). The second inscription is on a red sand- 

 tone di rail near the mound of the old fort, and records the 



I Descr. Cat., Sect. i. pt. ii. MS. 1, p. 123a. 



