Between A.H. 644-656 (A.D. 1247. Ditto, pp. 762-3.
1258).

of Bengal

by Jāj-nagar forces, and their

arrival opposite Lakhanawati. Three battles

with Malik

Ikhtiyar

ud-din

Yūz-bak-i

First and last years.

No regnal years being available, the year of reign has been deduced from the figure given in Puri and Kendupātnā Plates, viz., 33, which as anka is

equal to 24th year. See remarks under Rājarāja III [supra p. 117].

Relationship.

The king was son of Ananga-Bhima Dēva by his wife Kastūrā Dēvi. In Ep. Rep., No. 307, he is also described as born of the king Ananga-Bhima.

The name is generally written as Narasimha.

Historical Facts.

The copperplates speak of the king's invasion of Rarha and Varēndra and the defeat of Yavanas there. This fight with Bengal Mahomedans is corrobo

rated by Tabakat-i-Nasiri. I quote the passages in full, as being

J. 1. 16

the statements of a contemporary, and, in one instance, of an eyewitness :

"In the year 641 H., the Rae of Jāj-nagar commenced molesting "the Lakhanawati territory; and in the month of Shawwal, 641 H. "Malik Tughril-i-Tughan Khan marched towards the Jaj-nagar coun"try, and this servant of the State [Minhaj-i-Sarāj, Jürjāni] accom"panied him on that holy expedition. On reaching Katāsin, which was "the boundary of Jāj-nagar [on the side of Lakhanawati], on Saturday "the 6th of the month of Zi-ka'dah 641 H., Malik Tughril-i-Tughān "Khan made his troops mount, and an engagement commenced. The "holy-warriors of Islām passed over two ditches, and the Hindū infidels "took to flight. So far as they continued in the author's sight, except "the fodder which was before their elephants, nothing fell into the "hands of the footmen of the army of the Islām, and moreover, Malik "Tughril-i-Tughan Khan's commands were that no one should molest "the elephants, and for this reason the fierce fire of battle subsided."

66

"When the engagement had been kept up until midday the footmen of the Musalman army-everyone of them-returned [to the "camp ?] to eat their food, and the Hindus, in another direction stole "through the cane Jangal, and took five elephants; and about two "hundred foot and fifty horsemen came upon the rear of a portion of "the Musalman army. The Muhammadans sustained an overthrow, "and a great number of these holy warriors attained martyrdom; and "Malik Tughril-i-Tughan Khan retired from that place without having "effected his object, and returned to Lakhanawati." (p. 738).

"In the same year likewise [642 H.], the Rãe of Jāj-nagar, in order to avenge the plundering of Katāsin, which had taken place the preceding year, as has been already recorded, having turned his face towards Lakhanawati territory, on Tuesday, the 13th of the month of Shawwal, 642 H., the army of infidels of Jāj-nagar, consisting of elephants, and pāyiks [foot-men] in great numbers, arrived opposite Lakhaņawați. Malik Tughril-i-Tughan Khan came out of the city to confront them. The infidel host, on coming beyond the frontier of the Jāj-nagar territory, first took Lakhan-or; and Fakhr-ul-Mulk, Karim-ud-din, Lāghri, who was the feudatory of Lakhan-or, with a body of Musalmāns, they made martyrs of, and after that, appeared before the gate of Lakhanawati. The second day after that, swift messengers arrived from above [the Do-abah and Awadh, &c.], and gave information respecting the army of Islam that it was near at hand. Panic now took possession of the infidels, and they decamped." (pp. 739-40).

This inroad up to Lakhanawati is also indicated in the following :"The leader of the forces of Jāj-nagar was a person, by name, Sāban-tar[Sāwantara ?], the son-in-law of the Rae, who during the time of Malik 'Izz-ud-din Tughril-i-Tughan Khan, had advanced to the bank of the river of Lakhanawati, and having shown the greatest audacity, had driven the Musalman forces as far as the gate [of the city] of Lakhanawati." (pp. 762-3).

"In the year 642 H., the infidels of Jāj-nagar appeared before the gate of Lakhanawati." (p. 665).

Other fights with a succeeding Bengal ruler also took place during this king's time.

"After he" [Malik Ikhtiyar-ud-din Yüz-bak-i-Tughril Khan] “went to that part, and brought that country" [Lakhanawati] "under his jurisdiction, hostility arose between him and the Rae of Jaj-nagar. The leader of the forces of Jāj-nagar was a person, by name, Saban-tar"... [see above). In Malik Tughril Khan-i-Yüz-bak's time, judging from the past, he [the Jaj-nagar leader] manifested great boldness, and fought, and was defeated. Again, another time, Malik Tughril Khan-iYūz-bak fought an engagement with the Rae of Jāj-nagar, and again *came out victorious.

"On a third occasion, Malik Yüz-bak sustained a slight reverse, and a white elephant than which there was no other more valuable in that part, and which was ruttish, got out of his hands in the field of battle, and fell into the hands of the infidels of Jāj-nagar.

"The following year, however, Malik Yüz-bak asked assistance from the court of Delhi, and then marched an army from Lakhanawati into the territory of Umurdan, and unexpectedly reached the Rae's capital, which city they style Umurdan. The Rae of that place retired before Malik Yüz-bak, and the whole of the Rae's family, dependants, and followers, and his wealth, and elephants, fell into the hands of the Musalman forces." (p. 763).

Minhaj-i-Sarāj gives the dates of the fights with Malik Tughril-iTughân Khân (A.H. 641-2); but gives no dates of the fights with Malik Tughril Khān-i-Yūz-bak. The latter could not have got Bengal before Malik Tamur Khan-i-ki-ran who died on "Friday, the end of the month of Shawwal," A.H. 644, or A.D. 1247, March (p. 741); and he must have ceased to rule before the capture of Lakhanawați by Malik Tāj-ud-din Arsalan Khan Sanjar-i-chast, in 657 A.H. or A.D., 1259, when Malik 'Izz-ud-din Balban-i-Yūz-baki is said to have been the feudatory in charge of Lakhanawati (pp. 769-70).

In J.A.S.B., LXV, 1896, pp. 232-4, Babu N. N. Vasu has argued that the "Saban-tar" who led the forces of Jāj-nagar was probably Narasimha Dēva I, and "that Minhaj, by mistake has described the son to be the son-in-law." Now that the fights have been in this

,

article shewn to have taken place in the time of Nrsimha Dēva himself he will not, I trust, be identified with his son-in-law, the satrā (lit. Samanta-Rāya).

Nrsimha Dēva I will be remembered, however, by posterity, as the king under whose orders the great temple of Kanārka was built. All the copperplates agree in ascribing to him the erection of the sun Temple at Kōņākoņa.

In Çrikūrmam temple no inscription of the king himself has been found. No. 307 records a grant by one Sabasa-malla during this king's reign. In No. 352 is recorded a grant by one Vijayāditya whose father Rājarāja was a minister (mamtri) of this king, Vira Nrsimha I; [see Dr. Hultzsch, Ep. Ind., Vol. V., p. 33].

Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar has discovered an Alaņkāra work, Ēkāvali, whose author Vidyādhara flourished in the court of a Narasimha Deva, king of Utkala and Kalinga, (Narasimha II., according to Dr. Bhandarkar), [Report on Sanskrit MSS., 1887-91, pp. LXV-LXIX]. This king I am inclined to identify with Nrsimha Dēva I, from the mention in the poem of the poet Harihara and his patron king Arjuna of Malwa (whose latest known date is 9th September, A.D. 1215), and from Vidyādhara's description of the Utkala king as having humbled the pride of Hammira, this being a title of the early Sultans of Delhi. [See Thomas, Chron. Path. kings, pp. 15, 16, 20, 50, 70, 71, 75, 90, 91, 103, 108, 119, 123, 127, 137; Ind. Ant., Vol. XX., p. 208 et seq.; J.A.S.B., Vol. XLIII, p. 108].

[Since writing this, the Ēkāvali has been printed in the Bombay Sanskrit Series under the editorship of Mr. K. P. Trivedi; and thanks to Dr. Bhandarkar I have just got a copy of it. In the introductory note (pp. xxxiii-xxxvii), Dr. Bhandarkar is still inclined to take the king to be Narasimha Dēva II, chiefly from the fact that he is described in the Puri copperplates as "kavi-priyah"” (A. IV. 42), and "kavi-kumuda-candrō" (A. V. 3). This identification, however, does not explain the specific mention of the fights with "Hammira, " "Yavana" and "Çaka" kings in Bengal, (cf. pp. 176, 177, 202, 203, 257, 260, 326). Nrsimha Deva II has nowhere been credited with any invasion of Bengal or with any war against the Mahomedans. For a fuller discussion, see Appendix II.]

Ēkāvali is fortunate enough to have got a commentary named Taraļā from the great commentator Mallinātha. It has been several times quoted in the citra-mimāṁsā and kuvalayānanda of Appaya Dikşita

The following two inscriptions of this king's time are known :

Regnal years wanting, the year of the Kendupātnā copperplates

First and Last year.

has been accepted, viz., 18 ankas, equal to fifteenth year. The last year of this king

is ascertained from the initial year of his successor, as 1200-1 Çaka. Bhānu Deva was son of Nrsimha Dēva I by Sitā Dēvi, daughter of Mālacandra. He is also called Vira-Bhānu Relationship.

Dēva.

In the copperplates he is said to have given one hundred grants of lands with houses and gardens to good Crōtriya Brāhmaņas, written on copperplates.

X. Nrsimha Dēva II,

[Çaka 1200-1 - Çaka 1227-28].

A considerable number of inscriptions of this king's time has been brought to light :

1

Çaka-varuşambulu 1201 gunēmți Pra- Ep. Rep., No. 356, of Verified.

Т.

tāpa-Vira - Çrī - Narasimhya - dēvaru

Çrikūrmam.

(ra?) pravarddhamāna-vijaya-rājya