Discovered in a field near Nalasopara railway station, Palghar district, Maharashtra, this stone inscription dates to the reign of the Śilāhāra ruler Haripāladeva. Though weathered, it has been engraved in the Nāgarī script. The language of the text is Sanskrit mixed with Marathi. The stele features a maṅgala-kalaśa flanked by the sun and moon at the top, while the bottom bears a square panel depicting the ass-curse.
The primary purpose of the inscription was to record the donation of an orchard in the coastal village of Rāñjalī. The recipient of the donation was Vishṇu Upādhyāya, a brāhmaṇa who had emigrated from the coastal town of Māhara to live in the major administrative center of Śūrpāraka (modern Nalasopara). This land transfer was ratified by the local inhabitants led by Devalanāyaka. An earlier gift of 10 drammas made for the donee's maintenance by an individual named Visaladeva in Śaka 1059 (1137 CE) was also formally recorded in this inscription.
1. siddham | svasti | jayaścābhyudayaśca |
2. śakanṛpakālātītasaṃvatsare
3. daśaśate 1070 samasta rājā-
4. valīsamalaṅkṛtamahāmaṇḍaleśvarādhi-
5. patiśrīmat haripālarājyakā-
6. lavijayarājye śrīśūrpāraka dvisahasrā-
7. ntaḥsthitasāmānyasāgarakāṭī-aparataḥ
8. bhāge śrīdevala nāyakapramukha samastalo-
9. kaekasamatadata rāñjalīcā ārāmu
10. śāsenena pradataḥ śrīmāharavinirgatasūrpā-
11. rakapuravāsi viṣṇu upādhyāya rāñjalī
12. ārāmadharmapatī śrī…… sākṣī | tathā
13. … vṛttya nimita dra 10 cāṭasa visaladeva
14. sakasaṃvat 1059 prapiṅgalasaṃvatsaram |
Success! Hail! May there be victory and prosperity!
In the expired year ten hundred increased by seventy—in figures 1070—by the era of the śaka king, during the victorious reign of the mahāmaṇḍaleśvarādhipati, the illustrious Haripāladeva, an orchard at Rānjalī in the western part of the seashore, which is situated in Śūrpāraka—two thousand, has been granted by a royal charter with the approval of all people headed by the illustrious Devalanāyaka. Viṣṇu Upādhyāya, who has emigrated from Māhara and is now staying at the town of Śūrpāraka is the religious owner of the orchard at Rānjalī. The illustrious… … is the witness.
For his maintenance 10 drammas were donated by cāṭasa Visaladeva in the śaka year 1059, the cyclic year being Prapiṅgala.
| Dynasty: | Śilāhāra |
| Ruler: | Haripāladeva |
| Date: | 1137 CE (Śaka 1070) |
| Place: | Ranjali (coastal sector of Śūrpāraka i.e. Nala Sopara) |
| Donee: | Viṣṇu Upādhyāya |
| Language: | Sanskrit mixed with Marathi |
| Nature of grant: | Land donation, Monetary donation |
| Purpose: | To provide support for the religious owner of the Rānjalī ārama. |
| Provenance of inscription: | Ranjali, Nala Sopara |
| Type of Inscription: | Stone inscription, Gadhegal or Ass-curse Inscription |
| Source: |
