The Pawāyā image inscription is an epigraphic record documenting the dedication of a Vaiṣṇava image. It dates to the ''circa'' fifth century CE.

Location

Padmavati (

Padmavati Pawaya Padmavati, identified with modern Pawaya in Madhya Pradesh, was an ancient Indian city mentioned in several classic Sanskrit texts, Malatimadhavam of Bhavabhuti, Harshacharita of Bana, and Sarasvatīkaṇṭhabharaṇa of Raja Bhoja. Bhavabhu ...

)was a large city-site located in Gwalior District,

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

, India. The current location of the inscription is not recorded.

Publication

The inscription was first published by M. B. Garde in 1914-15. It was subsequently listed by H. N. DvivedI and M. Willis.Gwalior State, Archaeological Report for VS 1971/AD 1914-15, number 31; ; Dvivedī, ''Gvāliyar rājye ke abhilekh'' (VS 2004): number 711;

Michael D. Willis Michael Willis is an Indologist and historian based in London, England. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia and raised in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, Willis took his B.A. degree at the University of Victoria where he studied with Siri Gunasinghe and ...

, ''Inscriptions of Gopakṣetra'' (London, 1996).

Description and Contents

The inscription is engraved on the pedestal of an image and records the dedication.

Metrics

The record is not metrical.

Text

Garde suggested the reading: namo bhagvate vi raima sthāpita bhagava(to).

Translation

Salutation to Vishnu, having installed the image.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pawaya image inscription Sanskrit inscriptions in India Gupta and post-Gupta inscriptions