Who among the following rulers advised his subjects through this inscription ? "Whosoever praises his religious sect or blames other sects out of excessive devotion to his own sect, with the view of glorifying his own sect, he rather injures his own sect very severely."

Identifies the Prayaga Prashasti (Allahabad pillar inscription) as a pillar inscription praising Samudragupta composed by the court poet Harisena.

A student could check whether the quoted sentence appears in the Prayaga Prashasti or other inscriptions attributed to Samudragupta by comparing texts/translations of that inscription.

Explicitly notes the Prayaga Prashasti is composed by Harishena and is an example of inscriptions praising Samudragupta (context about such inscriptions being crafted by court poets).

Use this to focus textual searches on Harishena's Prayaga Prashasti as the most likely epigraphic source to check for the sentence.

Contains an excerpt from 'the inscription' in Sanskrit listing social/occupational virtues — showing inscriptions sometimes include moralizing or descriptive general lines.

Compare the style and subject‑matter of this excerpt with the style of the quoted sentence to judge whether such didactic moral sentences commonly occur in royal inscriptions.

Lists epigraphical sources for the Guptas and specifically cites the Allahabad/Prayaga pillar inscription as describing Samudragupta's personality and achievements in composed lines by Harisena.

Narrows the search to standard epigraphical compilations and editions of the Allahabad inscription to verify presence/absence of the sentence.

Describes intense sectarian rivalry in the period and gives examples of religious texts ridiculing other sects, showing the historical context for sentences condemning sectarian praise/attacks.

A student could reason that such a sentence (condemning sectarian praise) might plausibly appear in contemporary texts or inscriptions and so should be checked across both epigraphic and religious literature of the period.

Shows an excerpt from an inscription in Sanskrit that contains moralizing descriptive lines about different human qualities—demonstrates that inscriptions of the period sometimes include general, ethical statements in similar style.

A student could compare the language and formulaic style of this inscription excerpt with known Harsha-period inscriptions or texts to see if the phrasing matches Harsha-era epigraphy.

Notes that Harshacharita is a Sanskrit biography of Harshavardhana written by his court poet Banabhatta, indicating Harsha's court produced Sanskrit literary works.

Use this to check whether such a moralizing sentence appears in Harshacharita or other Harsha-era court compositions, or whether inscriptions associated with Harsha are in Sanskrit.

Gives an example (Prayaga Prashasti) of inscriptions/compositions being attributed to court poets and associated with powerful rulers, showing a pattern of royal inscriptions being composed in Sanskrit and attributed to royal courts.

Investigate whether an inscription containing the sentence is listed among known royal inscriptions of Harsha or his court poets, following the same attribution pattern.

Describes intense rivalry among religious sects in the period and examples of sectarian polemic in Buddhist and Jaina texts, providing context for why admonitions about sectarian praise/blame might appear in contemporary inscriptions or texts.

Use this contextual fact to assess plausibility that a ruler or his court would compose or endorse an inscription condemning sectarian excess—then check Harsha-era records for such anti-sectarian statements.

Shows that inscriptions in Sanskrit sometimes contain moralizing, descriptive passages listing virtues and activities of people — i.e., royal or public inscriptions can include general moral maxims.

A student could check whether Krishnadeva Raya's known inscriptions or court-records follow this same literary/moral style and language to see if the quoted sentence fits that inscription genre.

Gives an example (Ashoka) of a king using inscriptions to address conduct among sects and to promote moderation among religious groups.

A student might use this pattern (kings issue inscriptions about inter-sect behaviour) to hypothesize that a Vijayanagara ruler could likewise have issued such a statement and then search Krishnadeva Raya’s epigraphic corpus for similar content.

Documents the intense rivalry and polemical content among heterodox sects in religious texts, showing historical context where admonitions against sectarian excess would be meaningful.

Given this background, a student could reason that admonitions against sectarian rancour might appear in contemporary royal or public inscriptions (so check Vijayanagara-era inscriptions for similar admonitions).

Records conflicts between major religious traditions and instances of royal intervention or statements concerning sectarian disputes.

A student could extend this by looking for inscriptions from rulers active in periods/regions of such conflict (e.g., South India/Vijayanagara) to see if rulers made conciliatory or prescriptive remarks about sectarian conduct.

Places the sixteenth century as a period of intense sectarian religious activity (Bhakti, Vaishnavism), which is the era of Krishnadeva Raya; this temporal context makes it plausible such inscriptions addressing sectarian behaviour would be produced then.

A student could combine this chronological hint with a catalog of sixteenth-century inscriptions (or known Vijayanagara records) to test whether the sentence appears in Krishnadeva Raya’s corpus.