Coins Of The Malavas Of Rajasthan - Book Summary

This document, titled "Coins of the Malavas of Rajasthan" by Kalyan Kumar Dasgupta, is a scholarly exploration of the coinage issued by the Malava tribe in ancient India. Here's a comprehensive summary of the provided pages:

1. Origins and Migrations of the Malavas:

The Malavas are identified with the Malloi mentioned in classical (Greek) accounts.
They were a prominent tribe in ancient India, known for their fierce resistance to Alexander the Great in the 4th century BCE.
Initially, they resided in the Central Punjab, between the Chenab and Ravi rivers, a region still bearing the name Malwa.
The dialect "Malawai" in the Ferozepur to Bhatinda region further hints at their early Punjab association.
Due to pressure from Greek invasions (Demetrius, Apollodotus, Menander), they likely migrated to Rajasthan.
In Rajasthan, they became active, with a region named "Malavagana-vishaya" in the 3rd century CE, covering parts of Udaipur, Jaipur, Tonk, and Ajmer.
Later, they occupied northwestern Central India, which subsequently became known as Malava after them. In the early medieval period, Malwa generally referred to the region between the Gangetic Valley and the Vindhyan mountains, and Bundelkhand and the Aravalli range.

2. Malava Coinage: Extent and Significance:

The Malavas are credited with issuing extensive coinage, being one of the few tribal peoples of ancient India to do so.
Over 6,000 Malava coins have been recovered, primarily from eastern and southeastern Rajasthan, with significant find spots at Karkotanagar (Nagar) and Rairh.
Remarkably, one recovered coin weighs only 1.7 grains and has a diameter of 0.2 inches, making it one of the smallest coins globally.

3. Legends and Iconography on Malava Coins:

Tribal Name: Most coins bear the tribal name, such as "Jaya Malavana" or "Jayah Malavānām," signifying "Victory of the Malavas."
Enigmatical Legends: A distinct group of Malava coins features peculiar legends like "Bhapamyana," "Mapojaya," "Magajaśa," among many others. The interpretation of these legends has been a long-standing scholarly puzzle.
Seals: A lead seal from Rairh bears the legend "Malavajanapadasa," similar to the "Sibijanapadasa" legend on coins of the Sibi tribe, another Rajasthan tribe.
Shape: Malava coins are generally round, but rectangular pieces are also found.
Devices and Symbols: Common devices include a human bust (notable as it's often found on Satrapal coins but rare on tribal issues), a squatting male figure, a bull, a peacock, a lotus flower, a pinnate palm leaf, a vase (with or without foliage), an undulating line (prominent on Rairh specimens), and the "cross and ball" or Ujjain symbol.

4. Dating of Malava Coinage:

The coinage dates range from the 2nd century BCE to the 4th century CE.

5. Interpretation of Enigmatical Legends:

Early Interpretations:
- R. O. Douglass suggested "Malaya" as the earliest form of the tribal name.
- He also considered "Mala" on some coins to be the name of a king, the tribe's founder, though likely intended as "Malaya" or "Malava."
The "Malavānām jayah" Legend: This common legend is also found on coins of the Arjunayanas and Yaudheyas, clearly indicating victory. Shortened forms like "Malava jaya," "Malavana jaya," and "Malavahna jaya" are also observed due to limited space.
Scholarly Debate on Enigmatical Legends:
- Carlleyle & Smith: Carlleyle discovered thousands of Malava coins and interpreted the enigmatic legends as names of approximately forty Malava chiefs. Smith identified nineteen or twenty such names, considering them of foreign origin due to their "un-Indian" sound.
- Allan's Criticism: Allan questioned the foreign origin theory, noting the lack of resemblance to Saka or Hūņa names and the absence of genitive suffixes, suggesting these were "meaningless attempts to reproduce parts of Malavānāṁ jaya." He attributed the letter 'ma' to abbreviations and the limited consonants to the difficulty of reproducing the full legend.
- Jayaswal & Bhandarkar's Suggestions:
  - Jayaswal: Interpreted the legends as personal names, suggesting abbreviations like "Mahārāja" (Maraja) and expansions like "Maharaja-aya" (Mapojaya).
  - Bhandarkar: Proposed 'ma' as an abbreviation of the tribal name "Malava," and other letters as contractions of words like "gana" and "jaya," for example, "Magaja" as "Malava ganasya jaya."
- Critique of Abbreviations: While the small size of the coins supports abbreviation theories, Allan raised objections. He pointed out that even with 'ma' as "Maharaja," the remaining letters don't form intelligible names, and there's no definitive precedent for such contractions in Indian numismatics. However, the author notes that while definite instances are rare, the probability of abbreviations cannot be entirely dismissed.
- Allan's View Challenged: The author criticizes Allan's "meaningless attempts" theory, pointing out the difficulty of systematically producing such errors. Crucially, a coin in the Indian Museum bears the tribal name "Malava" alongside the legend "Majupa," demonstrating that "Majupa" is not a meaningless reproduction but likely a name.

6. Conclusion on Enigmatical Legends:

The author reverts to the interpretation that these legends represent the names of Malava chiefs.
While these names sound non-Indian, a foreign origin is not definitively proven. The possibility of their belonging to a non-Aryan stock is considered.
Analogous examples of non-Sanskritic words on coins (e.g., negama coins from Taxila) are cited, supporting the idea of proper names, possibly of persons or places.
Non-Sanskritic personal names found in ancient Indian literature (e.g., Magasa, Mankana, Majjala) further bolster the argument that these legends are personal names.
The author dismisses the theory of Saka domination in Malwa during the 2nd century BCE based on similar legends found on coins from Ujjayini and Vidisa, attributing them to Saka chiefs, as lacking definitive evidence and being chronologically problematic.
The absence of a genitive suffix in these names is not a disqualifier, as other coin legends (like Naga coinage) also exhibit this feature.
The author concludes that the coins with enigmatic legends should be attributed to Malava chiefs, with some possibly dating to pre-Christian centuries and others to the 3rd-4th century CE, emphasizing the need for chronological differentiation rather than assigning them to a single period.

In essence, the text meticulously traces the historical journey of the Malava tribe, details the characteristics of their coinage, and delves into a complex scholarly debate surrounding the interpretation of the enigmatic legends found on many of their coins, ultimately favoring the conclusion that these represent the names of Malava chiefs, possibly of non-Aryan origin.