JOURNAL 



ASIATIC SOCIETY. 



No. I. 1859. 



Decipherment of a Sanskrit Inscription dated in the fourteenth 

 century, with a translation and notes. — By Eitz-Edward Hall, 

 Msg[. M. A. 



The inscription here published was dug from the ruins of a temple 

 in the village of Harsauda, which lies about ten and a half miles 

 from the town of Gharwa, in the district of Hoshungabad. I am 

 indebted for it to Maulavi Muhammad Mazhar Jamil, the energetic 

 Assistant Superintendant of Hurda and Hindia. The stone on 

 which it is incised is now in my possession. A superficies measuring 

 about eleven inches by thirteen comprehends the writing; beneath 

 which are rude outlines of S'iva, and of seven other divinities, six 

 male and one female, supporting him on either side. 



Devapala, the ruler mentioned in this monument, does not seem 

 to be identifiable with any mediaeval prince of the same name, 

 hitherto discovered. Nor has it been ascertained whether he 

 belonged to the royal house of Malava which included the last 

 Bhoja and his son Udayaditya in its lineage. Erom the manner in 

 which he is spoken of it might, however, be inferred that his descent 

 was not a source of particular pride ; or it would have been detailed 

 with the usual degree of amplification. 



As the substance of this inscription is meagre, so is its language. 

 And it is not only meagre. A number of deviations from the 



No. XCVL— New Series, Vol. XXVIII. b 



