A New Copper Plate Grant from Chhattisgarh
By Moreshwar G. Dikshit
Summary
Moreshwar G. Dikshit publishes a copper‑plate charter recently found near Raipur in Chhattisgarh. The single preserved plate formed part of a triptych whose other leaves were melted down by villagers. Written in late Gupta Brāhmī and dated palaeographically to the mid‑6th century A.D., the inscription records a land grant to an official named **Ananta Svāmin**, a Brahmin of the Bhārgava gotra. Dikshit provides a transliteration of the six surviving lines, noting damaged letters and missing sections. The text mentions the donor as a Rājput king of the Sarabhapura dynasty, possibly Mahāśivagupta Bālārjuna, and gives the boundaries of the donated field near Pokhru. Dikshit compares the charter with other grants from Sarabhapura and argues that it sheds light on administrative practices in Dakṣiṇa Kosala. The article ends with a clean edition of the Sanskrit text and a brief commentary on unusual grammatical forms.
Conclusion
Though fragmentary, the Raipur plate enriches our knowledge of the little‑known Sarabhapura dynasty. Its precise boundary description and reference to an otherwise unattested Rājput king help locate settlements and officials in 6th‑century Dakṣiṇa Kosala. Publishing such records aids efforts to reconstruct local governance and land administration in early medieval India.