The Vishnu Hari inscription (or Hari-Vishnu inscription) is the name given to a Sanskrit language inscription found in the Uttar Pradesh state of India. It records the construction of a temple by Anayachandra, a feudatory of the king named Govindachandra, and also contains a eulogy of Anayachandra's dynasty. Its date portion is missing, and its authenticity has been a matter of controversy.
The inscription is said to have been found among the debris of the Babri mosque in Ayodhya when a group of Hindu activists demolished the mosque in 1992. They had long claimed that the mosque was constructed after destroying a Hindu temple marking the birthplace of the Hindu deity Rama (an incarnation of Vishnu). Those who believe that a temple existed at the Babri mosque site consider the inscription as evidence of their claim, identifying the king as the 12th century Gahadavala king Govindachandra.
Others have claimed that the inscription was planted at the Babri mosque site by Hindu activists. According to one theory, the inscription is actually the Treta Ka Thakur inscription, which was found at another mosque in Ayodhya by Alois Anton Führer in the 19th century and later transferred to the Lucknow State Museum. The theory posits that it was brought to Ayodhya from Lucknow museum, and planted at the Babri mosque site. Yet another theory claims that it is a 17th-century inscription that was later planted at the site.
Physical features
The Vishnu-Hari inscription contains 20 lines with several Sanskrit language verses. It is written in Nagari script, inscribed on a 1.10 m x 0.56 m sandstone. It is said to have been embedded in the lower portion of a wall of the demolished Babri mosque.
Language
The language of the inscription is Sanskrit. It has 29 verses, which feature the following metres:
Content
Archaeological Survey of India epigraphists K. V. Ramesh and M. N. Katti have translated the inscription based on its widely circulated photographs. Kishore Kunal (2016) came up with another translation, with support from the Sanskrit scholars Govind Jha and Bhavanath Jha.
The inscription starts with obeisance to gods, and then describes a glorious dynasty. Verses 6-18 narrate the heroic exploits of the dynasty's members including Karna or Mame, Sallakshana, and Alhana. According to Kishore Kunal, these appear to be Gahadavala subordinates who preceded Anayachandra as governors of the Saketa mandala (region). Verses 19-21 describe the activities of Alhana's successor Anayachandra, including the construction of a Vishnu-Hari temple at Ayodhya. The rest of the verses describe his successor Ayushchandra.
Verse 1: Obeisance to Shiva
The only surviving portion of the first verse is "Namah shiva[ya]", which means "Obeisance to Shiva". The damaged portion has enough space to accommodate a verse in the Shardulavikridita metre. It presumably contained a verse praising Shiva.
Verse 2: Obeisance to Vamana
This verse praises Vishnu's dwarf avatar Vamana, calling him as Trivikrama (the one who strode over the three worlds in three steps). It describes him as the embodiment of the sixteen branches of knowledge (mahavidya).
According to K. V. Ramesh's translation, the next part of the verse states that Vamana holds the universe in his palm "like (holding) the Moon, whose kulagiri, whose falling rocks (while striking one another) create noise had, out of arrogance...". According to Ramesh, Kulagiri here refers to the seven great mountain ranges described in the ancient Indian literature: Mahendra, Malaya, Sahya, Śuktimat, Riksha, Vindhya, and Páripátra.
According to Kishore Kunal's translation the verse states that Vamana, in his palm, holds the universe "which gets distributed by cloud Samvarta and Pramad, as they strike against the rocks of Kulagiri and create echo".
Verses 3-4: Praise of the dynasty
The third verse cannot be read clearly. K. V. Ramesh translated the surviving portion as "The illustrious Bhargava (Parashurama)... an ornament of the earth... like insects... with firm hands upraised... having increased, events brought into existence, barren faces...". K. V. Ramesh's reading includes the word "sanklimiriva", which is not a familiar Sanskrit word. According to Kishore Kunal, this is a misreading: the actual word appears to be "panktibhirinas".
Kishore Kunal reconstructed the verse as describing a dynasty praised as "ornament of the world", and counting Bhargava among its long line of powerful kings. According to this interpretation, the verse further states that blessings were showered on this dynasty by "the Sun and a galaxy of kings". It ends with the claim that a number of heroes, who were always eager to help others, were born in this dynasty.
Verse 4 describes the aforementioned dynasty as determined to protect (or resurrect) the Kshatriyas who had been weakened in the battles against Bhargava (Parashurama).
This verse refers to the tandava (violent dance) of the god Shiva, who is described as the Lord of the goddess Chandi. According to K. V. Ramesh's interpretation, during this dance, "from the rocking head jewel... [incomplete] genuine reputations which emanated from the opening in the skull-shaped spherical half of the universe". Kishore Kunal's reconstruction states that the fame of the dynasty's members emanated through the upper cavity in the skull-shaped world egg (brahmanda), which was "placed like the gem on the matted hair of the dancing Shiva".
Verse 5: Apratima-vikrama
The first line of verse 5 contains the expression vaṃśyan-tad-eva-kulam. K. V. Ramesh has translated the word "kulam" as "dynasty" or "family". According to his translation, the first line of the verse states that the noble family (the aforementioned dynasty) was "the birthplace of valour" which had erased the sufferings of the others (i.e. the other Kshatriya clans).
Kishore Kunal rejects this translation as inaccurate, because the preceding word "vaṃśa" also means "family" or "dynasty". Here, the word "kulam" refers to the residence of the family. This second meaning of the word is attested in Sanskrit dictionaries, ancient Sanskrit thesauruses such as Amarakosha and Haimakosha, as well as ancient texts such as Raghuvaṃśa. According to Kishore Kunal's translation, the first line describes the place of the inscription as "the abode of the dynasty which had succeeded in ending all anxiety" (about Parashurama's war). It further describes the place as the birthplace of apratima-vikrama ("the man with unmatched valour"). Kishore Kunal identifies the man described in this phrase as Rama, and the place of the inscription as his birthplace (janmabhoomi). According to Ramayana, Rama had forced Parashurama to retreat to Mahendragiri after his marriage with Sita. Also, Rama has been given similar epithets in other texts: for example, in Rama-raksha-stotram, he has been called Aprameya-vikrama; in the Ramayana (Kishkindha 11.93), he has been called Vikrama-vare ("first in heroic worth").
K. V. Ramesh reads an expression in the second line as Mame-ऽ-janiṣṭa. Based on this reading, he interprets the expression to mean that the hero referred to in this expression was named "Mame". This hero was "the abode of thousands of perfect and valorous deeds", and "the utmost favourite of the world".
Kishore Kunal reads this expression as ma-no-janiṣṭa ("may not generate"). In the inscription, the two letters preceding "no" (Ramesh's "me") are "ma" (म). According to Kishore Kunal, a comparison of these three letters makes it clear that the third letter is "no", not "ma". Based on this reading, Kishore Kunal translates the line as: "Here resides the person who is illuminous with glory on account of thousands of valorous deeds. He may not generate greed in us even for the most sought after wealth by the world."
Verses 6-7: Karna or Mame
The verse describes a hero as praying daily to overcome his desire for material wealth and sensual pleasures. The hero is described by the epithet dinesh-vatsa ("the son of the Sun"), a synonym of "Karna", which is a common Sanskrit given name. According to K. V Ramesh, this expression refers to the king "Mame" described in the previous verse. According to Kishore Kunal, it refers to another king whose name was Karna.
The verse states that the hero described in the previous verse fought sportive battles. As a result of these battles, the women of the rival Meda and Bhilla tribes had to take refuge in the forests. There, the thorny trees wrote on (scratched) their breasts, hips and loins, as if imitating amorous activities.
Verses 8-14: Sallakshana
Verse 8 describes the transfer of power from the aforementioned hero to his son Sallakshana. It is said that the heroic father first sent his fame to the heaven. When he himself wished to go to heaven, he gave his throne and his wealth to his son Sallakshana, just like the Sun gives his lustre to the Fire.
Verse 9 eulogizes Sallakshana, stating that he acquired super-human valour. According to K. V. Ramesh's translation, this happened because of "some unknown power of the gift of that realm, which had no bounds and was other-worldly". According to Kishore Kunal's translation, Sallakshana's "boundless glory was beyond anybody's tolerance", as this was because of "the power of that gift" (the bequeathal from his father).
Verse 10 states that Sallakshana's hand was a sword, his arm was his great army, and his fame was always palatable, just like lavish delicacies. (K. V. Ramesh translates the first part as "the sword was at the tip of his fingers"). The verse further declares that these personal instruments allowed him to spread an empire without obstructions or worries, even without inheriting a kingdom ("even without a kingdom to rule", according to Ramesh).
Verse 11 states that Sallakshana could fight battles for long durations, holding his ruthless sword which quickly ended the lives (of his enemies).
Verse 12 states that Sallakshana's eulogies were sung in the tranquil surroundings of the Malaya Mountains, on the banks of the heavenly Ganga river, at the Himalayan cave-entrances and the cave residences of the hunter-tribes. According to Ramesh's translation, these eulogies were first composed by "the semi-divine beings moving about in the skies", and sung by "accomplished womenfolk". According to Kishore Kunal's translation, the eulogies were first composed by the Siddhas (accomplished spiritual masters), and sung by "the band of the wives of the air travellers" (the apsaras).
Verse 13 boasts that on the advice of the elders, the divine damsels sculpted his images and worshipped his arms to get (matching) husbands. Such worship took place in several regions, including the Himalayan terrains, the pristine Malaya Mountains, and the banks of the heavenly Ganga river.
Verse 14 has multiple interpretations. K. V. Ramesh read a word used to describe Sallakshana as ejyagva, but this word has no meaning. Kishore Kunal read this word as rajyaddār ("one who has pleasing wives"). Ramesh translated the first part of the verse as "He who is to be offered oblations... by the beautiful for the realization of their desires... himself by the worlds". Kishore Kunal reconstructs this part to mean that Sallakshana "deserved oblations from handsome persons who concealed themselves from the world to oobtain desired things". The last part of the verse describes Sallakshana's residence as full of wealth and comforts, and where many sing his glory.
Verses 15-17: Alhana
Verse 15 states that when Sallakshana started enjoying the company of the heavenly damsels (i.e. died), his son succeeded him. This son looked like his father, was wise and free from sins, and pleased his excited subjects.
Verse 16 names the son as Alhana, describing him as beloved of the good people and like a sharp saw to the warmongers. It states that Alhana "retrieved the splendour of the habitually fickle-minded Goddess" using fair means.