SHASTRI INDO-CANADIAN INSTITUTE 156 GOLF LINKS, NEW DELHM10003. INDIA CD CO CO PERSONAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES IN THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS Personal and Geographical Names in the Gupta Inscriptions TEJ RAM SHARMA CONCEPT PUBLISHING COMPANY DELHI 05^3 First Published 1978 IV* Tej Ram Sharma 1976 Tej Ram Sharma (b. 1941- ) Published by Naurang Rai Concept Publishing Company 65-F, Anand Nagar DELHI-1 10035 (India) Printed by Malik Composing Agency at Mayur Press G.T. Karnal Road DELHI-1 10033 (India) IN THE MEMORY OF MY MOTHER LATE SHRIMATI SHAHNI DEVI Foreword 'What is there in a name?' There is definitely much more in a name than may appear to be the case on a superficial survey. Names may appear to be quite casual, so much so that the man bearing them has hardly any say in the matter. We find some people adopting new names or adding aliases. In many cases the name does not have any equation with the personal qualities of the man concerned. The titles assumed by a man may reflect something of his inner personality, his ambitions, and his emotional complexes; the epithets bes- towed by others, if not created by greedy flatterers, reveal his assessment in the eyes of others. Whereas the surnames or may often depend on the accident of birth in a given family a social group, the personal names are labelled long before any of the recognisable attributes begin to emerge. The story of names would have assumed a highly romantic colour if the names had been assumed by people and had not been thrust upon them. The names may not reveal the man, but they do provide penetrating peeps into his family, his society and his times. The name-patterns have a vital connexion with the social realities and cultural values of the group to which they belong. There is a distinct individuality in them and they reflect in a microscopic miniature the traditions and values of the people concerned. Poeple do not take to names in as casual a manner as they are sometimes taken to do. Of all-the people the Indians seem to show a much serious concern for the question of names and to have set down definite rules governing their formation. These rules are not mere grammatical ones to cover the linguistic forms of the names. There are prescriptive norms and prohibi- tive rules in accordance with the socio-cultural traditions and the advancements made in various fields of knowledge. Not many Vlli PERSONAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES nations of antiquity can claim a parallel progress in this area of culture. These elaborate rules did not result merely from the typically Indian genius for systematisation and elaboration of its fund of knowledge in all spheres. It arose out of a cons- cious appreciation of the significance of names and their great relevance for the cultural traditions. The rules about names prescribed in the grammatical works and the Grhyasutras and the Smrtis were elaborated in subsequent times and led to the composition of separate treatises on various aspects and problems connected with the giving of names. The names can provide a reliable clue to the understanding of the socio-cultural life. They can serve as a barometer for recording the historical realities of culture in a particular period. A study of the name-patterns can be a useful measuring rod for a historian; but, it has been rarely used. A name can reveal the personal equipment of the bestowing parents and also their emotional concern for their child. Above all, it tells us about the gods and goddesses and their comparative popularity, the religious ideas and beliefs current among the people, the social structure and the differences in the various social groups, and the realities of the linguistic phenomenon. In view of the elaborate rules about the grammatical, astronomical, religious and social considerations, an analysis of the pattern of names in different historical periods can give us a vital indication of the extent to which the traditional rules were respected and of the influences which were introducing changes in the traditional beliefs and systems. Considering the rich possibilities in a historical and com- parative analysis of the name-patterns, it is surprising indeed that, with a few singular exceptions, historians have not paid to this area of study the serious attention it deserves. Obviously this type of study is more demanding in respect of the discip- lines involved. The historian, who undertakes the work, has to possess a comprehensive knowledge of different aspects of an ancient society. He has to combine a knowledge of Sanskrit grammar and linguistics with a proficiency in palaeography and competence to handle the original texts bearing on the subject. Happily Dr. Tej Ram Sharma, one of my early research scholars, assiduously cultivated the qualities and acquired the IN THE GUPTA INSCRIPTIONS ix necessary command over the concerned disciplines. It is gratify- ing to find that Dr. Sharma has produced a first-rate study on the subject and has covered himself up with glory. The study of the Gupta period of Indian history has been enriched by the contributions of many a competent scholar. But, without there being any significant addition to the original sources, some of the many publications have only been reproducing already well-known material. The approach adopted in these studies being regularly repetitive has acquired a chilling monotonousness. Dr. Sharma deserves commenda- tion for attempting an analysis of the culture of the Gupta period from an altogether new angle. His fresh approach has imparted a living warmth to the socio-cultural life of the period. Dr. Sharma has definitely made signficant improve- ment upon our understanding of the Classical Age of Indian history. In introducing the present study to the world of scholars 1 must express my fervent desire and sincere hope that the pre- sent publication will be followed by many other scholarly studies by Dr. Sharma. Banaras Hindu University, LALLANJI GOPAL VARANASI, U.P. Contents Foreword vn Preface xiii Coded Abbreviations xvii Code of Inscriptions xxiii Transliteration Table xxvii PART ONE PERSONAL NAMES Prologue 3 Names of the Gupta Kings and Queens 14 Names of Feudatory Kings and High Officers 38 Names of Local Officers 56 Names of Householders and Traders 71 Names of Brahmanas ; Jainas and Bauddhas 87 Epic and Puranic Names 96 Names of Women 103 Conclusion 106 PART TWO NAMES OF THE TRIBES Prologue 121 Tribes 125 Conclusion 176 PART THREE NAMES OF PLACES, RIVERS AND MOUNTAINS Prologue 203 Place-Names and their Suffixes 209 Names of the Rivers and the Mountains 293 Conclusion 305 Xii PERSONAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES APPENDICES I A Note on the King Candra of the Meharaull Iron Pillar Inscription 309 II A Note on the Name of the Mother of Budha- gupta and Narasirhhagupta 314 III Explanation of the Passage "Paistapuraka- Mahendragiri-kautturaka-svamidatta" 316 IV Explanation of the Expression "Daivaputrasahisahanusahi" 318 V The Rivers of Junagarh 321 Bibliography 324 List of Plates 360 Index 361 MAPS AND PLATES India in the Gupta Age xxviii The Rivers of Junagarh 322 Plates Facing page 360 Preface It may be pointed out at the outset that the inscriptions included in the list could not be arranged in chronological order as they were included during the work as and when noticed and found available. We did not like to disturb the order as arranged by J.F. Fleet in his Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum, Vol. Ill and further added to the list the other inscriptions which he could not include in his work due to their non-availability and non-publication at the time when he published his work. The criterion for the selection of the inscriptions and the seals has been the relevance with the Gupta history and the area suppo- sed to be under the direct rule of the Guptas. The present work, to some extent, is a break-away from the traditional type of research. This work follows the lines set in by F.T. Wainright and Dr. H.D. Sankalia in their works Archaeology and place-names and History and Studies in the Historical and Cultural Geography and Ethnography of Gujarat respectively. Some people may ward off the idea in a name by saying merely "what is in a name?" But we find even now the people taking time to give a name to their child. They may even sometime talk about the justification of the name by the child which is expressed by a Sanskrit dictum yathd ndma tathd gunah. A person is identified by his name by the family members as well as by others. Man lives with his name in this life and even after death the name survives. There is a taboo about the secret name not to be disclosed or made known to others for fear of sorcery or black-magic or ill-effect by the spirits. It may also be mentioned that some people may give the names to their children quite thoughtfully it may be after a god, a hero, a character from some fiction, while others may Xiv PERSONAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES imitate them without knowing or understanding any meaning or thought pregnant in the names. It may be argued whether the names are connotative or not but who can refuse their cultural significance or their bearing on the cultural life of society. The bulk of a particular type of names may signify the preponderance of certain customs or predominance of some cults and traits in a society. We are primarily concerned with this factor in our study on the per- sonal names in the Gupta inscriptions.