Two Tamil Inscriptions in Mahakoshal
By N. Lakshminarayan Rao
Summary
N. Lakshminarayan Rao reports on two short Tamil inscriptions carved on tombstones at Sleemanabad in the Jabalpur district of Madhya Pradesh. Copied during an official tour in 1951, the inscriptions were brought to the Epigraphical Department by Muni Kanti Sagar. They commemorate two Tamil soldiers who died during the Indian Mutiny: Ramasami, a gun lascar of the Madras Artillery, killed on 6 November 1857 at the battle of Muruvada, and Sepoy Daniel of the First Martin Madras Native Infantry, who died of fever on 29 May 1858. Rao provides Tamil transcriptions and English translations, noting orthographic peculiarities and offering brief linguistic commentary. He discusses the regiments mentioned, the circumstances of the soldiers’ deaths and the presence of Madras units in central India during the rebellion. The article highlights the cultural significance of Tamil soldiers erecting monuments far from home and serves as a source for military and linguistic history.
Conclusion
The two tombstone inscriptions supply rare evidence of Tamil soldiers serving in central India during the 1857–58 uprising. They illustrate the geographic reach of Madras units and preserve the personal histories of men who fought and died far from their homeland.