Bhoopasandra (Bengaluru) Inscriptions and Herostones

Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription. Picture Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription

Bhoopasandra is a sub-locality in Hebbal, Bengaluru. It is home to an idol of goddess Durga with a Kannada Inscription dated to 8th century CE, the oldest found in Bengaluru with a documented history of more than a millennium. The Durga sculpture, upon which the inscription is engraved, is partially damaged, with the first lines of the inscription now missing. From the visible lines, it is evident that the purpose of this inscription was to document a grant made to the Goddess Durga. The initial lines of the inscription mention four individuals— Padiltumbu, Manchageya, Karuveeda and Nallolamoleya—as witnesses to the grant. This idol is presently housed in a modest temple within the precincts of the Anjaneya Temple in Bhoopasandra. This idol is notably located in close vicintiy of the 750CE Hebbal-Kittaya herostone, the oldest inscription to be found in Bengaluru till date.

Dating and Discovery

Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription
Digital Image of the Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription
Material	Stone
Height	85 cm (33 in)
Width	79 cm (31 in)
Created	750CE
Discovered	2011
Discovered by	Department of Kannada and Culture and Tumkur University
Present location	13.044472°N 77.581056°E / 13.044472; 77.581056
Language	Kannada
https://mythicsociety.github.io/AksharaBhandara/#/learn/Shasanagalu?id=102750

According to historian and epigraphist, P V Krishnamurthy, he first saw this idol with inscription in the 1980s when it was initially placed in a modest, inconspicuous temple on the Hebbal lake bund, adjacent to Bellary road. Sometime in the late 1990s, during the construction of the Outer Ring Road, the temple and idol were disturbed and the idol pushed into one of the water inlets leading into the lake. The then Hebbal railway station master, Rao, noticed the discarded idol and promptly informed K Venkatesh, an active local citizen. Venkatesh, being a trustee at the nearby Anjaneya temple in Bhoopasandra, took the in it

iative to relocate the idol there. Subsequently, a dedicated small temple has been constructed for this 8th century Durga idol. The inscription was documented by P. V. Krishnamurthy in 'Shasana Manthana,' pages 11–14, published by the Department of Kannada and Culture and Tumkur University, 2011. The inscription is paleographically dated to the 750 CE.

Physical Characteristics

3D Scanning of the Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription. Picture Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

The inscription is 85 cm tall, 79 cm wide. The Kannada Characters are approximately 2.8 cm tall, 2.6 cm wide & 0.25 cm deep (very shallow). The deity is depicted with four arms, standing atop a buffalo's head. In her hands, she holds a sword, a trident, a conch and a bowl. This simplistic portrayal of Goddess Durga is commonly observed in idols dating back to the 7th and 8th centuries, found in the regions of Telangana, Southern Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Transliteration of the Inscription

The inscription was first documented in the Shasana Manthana published by the Department of Kannada and Culture and Tumkur University, 2011. The text below is the rereading published in the Journal of the Mythic Society.

Digital Images of the each of the characters of this inscription, images of the inscription itself, summary and the other information about the inscription have been shared via Aksharabhandara Software

Wide Angle View Photograph of the Bhoopasandra 750CE Durga Idol With Inscription. Picture Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

Line Number	Kannada	IAST
1	. . . . ಳುಬ	. . . . luba
2	. . . ಯಮ	. . . yama
3	ಪದಿೞ್ತುಮ್ಬು	padiḻtumbu
4	ಮಞ್ಚಗೆಯರು	mañcagĕyaru
5	ಕಱುವೀಡರು	kaṟuvīḍaru
6	ನಲ್ಲೊಲಮೊಳೆಯೊ	nallŏlamŏlĕyŏ
7	ರು ಸಾಕ್ಷಿ ಇದಾ	ru sākṣi idā
8	ನೞಿವೊನ್ವಾರಣಾಸಿ	naḻivŏnvāraṇāsi
9	ಯುಳು ಪಾರ್ವ್ವರು.ಕ	yulu pārvvaru ka
10	ವಿಲೆಯು ಮಾನ್ ಕೊನ್ದ	vilĕyu mān kŏnda
11	ಪಞ್ಚ ಮಹಾಪಾತ	pañca mahāpāta
12	ಕನ ಸನ್ದ ಲೋಕಕ್ಕೆ	kana sanda lokakkĕ
13	ಸನ್ದೊರಪ್ಪಾ .	sandŏrappā

Shapashaya

Shapashaya are final imprecatory verses found in many Kannada Inscriptions to sanctify records and protect them from harm. The inscription records one such Shaapashaya serving a cautionary warning, stating that anyone who violates the grant will suffer same fate as those who kill a Kapile (an orange-brown sacred cow) or a Brahmana in Varanasi or commit the panchamahapatakas, the five great sins. According to the Garuda Purana, the act of killing a cow is believed to result in rebirth of a person into a hunchback in their subsequent birth. Similarly, the Garuda Purana states that the act of killing a Brahmana leads to rebirth as a donkey, camel, or a female buffalo. The Pancha Mahapatakas, as listed in the Manu Smriti, are considered to be the five gravest sins or heinous crimes. These sins include: i) Killing a Brahmana. ii) Drinking intoxicating liquors. iii) Stealing gold. iv) Committing adultery with the wife of a guru. v) Associating with anyone guilty of these crimes. It's worth noting that various commentators of the Manu Smriti have provided slightly different variations of the aforementioned five sins.