78 Pa;pers. [Novemuek, 1904.] 



9. Ashrafpur Plates of Devakhadga — By Ganga Mohan Laskar. 

 Communicated by the Philological Secretary. 



(Abstract.) 



The two copper plates referred to were found in 1884 or 1885 in the 

 Dacca District. A description of the plates is given, and a translation 

 of as much of the inscription on them as is preserved. The plates relate 

 to the gift of land to Buddhist monasteries by King Devakhadga to se- 

 cure the longevity of his son Rajaraja Bhatta, and by the said son. 

 Who these princes were is not known. The line seems to have reigned 

 in the eight and ninth centuries of the Christian era. 



Prof. Vidhyabhusana thought that the characters in which the in- 

 scription is written belong to Western Bengal and that the plates there- 

 fore must have been brought over from that part of the couutry to 

 Eastern Bengal. A glance at the tables appended to Blihler's Grun. 

 driss, Vol. II, would show any one tiiat the letters in which the inscrip- 

 tions are written are the ordinary Gupta characters which were com- 

 mon not only in Western Bengal but all over North India at a certain 

 period. Mr. Harinath De gave the following additional reasons for 

 coming to the conclusion that the plates must have belonged to Eastern 

 Bengal : — 



(1) The identificati(m of Talapataka in Plate B with Talpara a 



village near Ashrafpur where the plates were found. 



(2) The mention of drona — a very common land-measure in Eastern 



Bengal. 



(3) The fact that the plates were found deep under ground, beneath 



a huge mound which must have marked the site of the Mon- 

 astery of Sanghamitra to which the lands were conveyed. 



In conclusion he differed from Babu Ganga Mohan Laskar with 

 respect to the status of the Khadga Dynasty. In Plate B mention is made 

 of vatsandga pdfaka conveyed by the Vrihat parameshwara ? What did 

 this last word mean P He thought it must refer to the father of Rajaraja 

 and not to any over-lord^ in which case the name of the monarch would 

 have been mentioned. It seemed probable that the usual oriental sense 

 of decorum prevented the crown-prince from needlessly naming his 

 royal father. King Devakhadga being therefore mentioned as the 

 Vrihat-parameshivara, the dynasty therefore must have been of consider- 

 able importance. 



The President brought the discussion to a close by making some 

 observations as to the probability of the plate belonging to Eastern 

 Bengal. 



