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Who among the following rulers in ancient India had assumed the titles 'Mattavilasa', Vichitrachitta' and 'Gunabhara'?
Explanation
Mahendravarman I had titles such as Mattavilaasa, Vicitra-citta and Gunabhara[4]. Mahendravarman I was a Pallava king of ancient India who ruled during the 6th-7th century CE. He was the author of the play Mattavilasa Prahasana which is a Sanskrit satire[5], and one of his titles was derived from this literary work. The title "Vichitrachitta" (or Vicitra-citta) means "curious-minded" or "one of varied interests," reflecting his multifaceted personality as both a ruler and artist. "Gunabhara" signifies "one endowed with virtues." Mahendravarman was succeeded to the throne by his more famous son Narasimhavarman I[6], which helps distinguish him from option C. The other rulers mentioned—Simhavishnu, Narasimhavarman I, and Simhavarman—were also Pallava dynasty rulers but did not hold these specific titles.
Sources- [1] http://andhraportal.org/history-pallava-dynasty/
- [2] http://andhraportal.org/history-pallava-dynasty/
- [3] http://andhraportal.org/history-pallava-dynasty/
- [4] http://andhraportal.org/history-pallava-dynasty/
- [5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahendravarman_I
- [6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahendravarman_I
PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
Guest previewThis is a classic 'Sitter' from Static Ancient History, specifically the Pallava dynasty chapter. While the automated scan flagged it as web-heavy, every serious aspirant knows 'Mattavilasa' links directly to the famous play 'Mattavilasa Prahasana'. The strategy is simple: Map King ↔ Title ↔ Literary Work.
This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.
- Statement 1: Did Mahendravarman I of ancient India assume the titles "Mattavilasa", "Vichitrachitta", and "Gunabhara"?
- Statement 2: Did Simhavishnu of ancient India assume the titles "Mattavilasa", "Vichitrachitta", and "Gunabhara"?
- Statement 3: Did Narasimhavarman I of ancient India assume the titles "Mattavilasa", "Vichitrachitta", and "Gunabhara"?
- Statement 4: Did Simhavarman of ancient India assume the titles "Mattavilasa", "Vichitrachitta", and "Gunabhara"?
- Directly states Mahendravarman I 'had titles such as' the three names in question.
- Lists the three titles (Mattavilaasa, Vicitra-citta, Gunabhara) together, matching the claim.
- Confirms use of 'Mattavilasa' in association with Mahendravarman I via the title of his authored play.
- Supports at least one of the claimed titles (Mattavilasa), though it does not list the other two.
Mentions Mahendravarman I's Mandagappattu inscription and that he made specific claims there — showing he used inscriptions to record royal claims or achievements.
A student could check inscriptions attributed to Mahendravarman I (e.g., Mandagappattu) to see whether such honorifics appear there.
Explains the general practice that Indian kings adopted formal titles and epithets (e.g., maharajadhiraja, parama-bhattaraka) to indicate rank and divine connection.
Use this pattern to treat 'Mattavilasa', 'Vichitrachitta', 'Gunabhara' as plausible royal epithets and search for their occurrence in Pallava-era records.
Gives an example of a ruler (Dandidurga) assuming several grand titles after conquests, illustrating the wider practice of adopting multiple honorifics.
Apply the same reasoning to Mahendravarman I — if he proclaimed victories or achievements, he might also have used multiple titles; verify in contemporary records.
Shows another example (Dharmapala) using several high-sounding titles, reinforcing that regional rulers commonly assumed multiple epithets.
Treat the queried names as candidates for similar epithets in Pallava inscriptions and check epigraphic lists or colophons from the period.
Notes that royal titles often include meaningful morphemes (e.g., 'pati' = lord), indicating titles can be compound, descriptive and culturally patterned.
Analyze the lexical components of 'Mattavilasa', 'Vichitrachitta', 'Gunabhara' (if familiar) and compare with known naming conventions to assess plausibility before checking sources.
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This statement analysis shows book citations, web sources and indirect clues. The first statement (S1) is open for preview.
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This statement analysis shows book citations, web sources and indirect clues. The first statement (S1) is open for preview.
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