BHOPAL: The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) has completed restoration of a 1,600-year-old Shivalinga that carries one of the earliest recorded inscriptions of Sati. The Gupta-era site is situated in Eran village, around 75km north-west of Sagar district headquarters and 160kms from Bhopal.
This pillar-monument, commemorating Sati, is believed to have been discovered in 1838 by an Englishman named TS Bart. It was only in 1874-75 that an organized exploration was started by Major General Alexander Cunningham, who had excavated the Sanchi Stupa, ASI sources said.
The original monument was in the form of a Shivalinga, whose upper half bears the Sati inscription. “The Shivalinga was in three pieces for the past 70-80 years. We carried out conservation work and united the upper half with the pedestal, making it a complete Shivalinga,” said Dr Shivkant Bajpai, superintending archeologist, ASI Jabalpur.
The upper part is about 6ft long and weighs a ton. “It was a very challenging restoration and took great team effort to complete the unification,” Bajpai said.
The inscription speaks of a great battle that took place at Eran, where Goparaja, believed to be the chieftain, was killed and his wife committed Sati on his funeral pyre. It says Goparaja was accompanying his King Bhanugupta in battle, but doesn’t name his wife, ASI sources said.
The site has been revered for centuries. “For about 300 years, people have been referring to it as ‘Gopa Bai Ka Sati Stambh’. Folk songs are sung in the village on this,” said Dr Bajpai.
