1862.] Vestiges of the Kings of Gwalior. 399 



Gopagiri. The king flourished in Gwalior in the year 876 i. e. much 

 more than a century before the great Bhoja of Dhara, predecessor of 

 Udayaditya and the hero of the Blioja-prabanclha, and three centuries 

 after the first (540) and two after the second Bhoja of Col. Tod (Jain 

 MSS. 665). He was different too from the Bhojas of Bengal recorded 

 by Tieffenthaler (Bernouli's Description historique &c. de l'lnde, 

 Vol. I. p. ), and that of the Thaneswara inscription noticed by me 

 (Journal Asiatic Society, Vol. XXII. p. 673). Almost every one of 

 these Bhojas, called himself a " Lord Paramount," and the genealogy 

 of several are wanting. It becomes, therefore, a matter of great concern, 

 how superficial antiquarians jump into conclusions as to the date of 

 any particular record from the mere name of Bhoja occurring in it. 

 Judging from the date the sovereign under notice would appear to be 

 one of the two Bhojas of Kanouj, whose supremacy is known to have 

 extended to the S. W., considerably beyond the boundary of Agra, 

 and Gwalior in their days was a part of that district. The date, 

 however, is open to question. The first figure is peculiarly formed 

 and may be taken for a 7, which would carry the prince to A. C. 676 

 (= S. 733) or within eleven years of the 2nd Bhoja of Col. Tod, with 

 whom he may be taken to be identical. 



For a long time after Bhoja, we know nothing of the history of 

 Gwalior. According to Tieffenthaler, 71 princes of the house of Pala 

 reigned for 860 years, at an average of 12 years per reign. If we 

 allow at that rate, 168 years to the remaining 14 princes of his list 

 whose reigns are not recorded, the era of the last would be brought 

 to the beginning of the 11th century (1303) — but it appears 

 from the inscriptions before us, that the supremacy of the Palas had 

 passed away in the middle of the 10th century, for we find Ma- 

 hendra Chandra son of Madhava on the throne of Gwalior in 958, and 

 Vajradama 20 years after him. Mahendra is noticed in an inscription, 

 (Plate I. fig. 5,) recorded on the pedestal of a Jain figure at Suhaniya 

 which was dedicated by him. His name, however, appears without 

 the usual regal titles and his claim to royalty may therefore be 

 questioned. The writing of the record is interrupted by Jain 

 emblems. The last word is incorrectly given ; it is evidently a cor- 

 ruption of pratisthita. It is dated Samvat 3013. 



Vajradama likewise appears on the pedestal of a Jain figure which was 

 consecrated on the 5th of the waxing moon in the month of Fais'dkha } 



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