kAyastha records

Source: TW

The Ajaygarh fort inscription from Panna, MP, circa 11th century CE records the grant of a village and the authority of the famous Kalanjar fort to a Srivastava Kayastha named Maheswara by Kirttivarman Chandela. Maheswara belonged to a long line of Srivastavas who served as administrators and warriors in the Chandela kingdom.

One of his ancestors was Thakur Jajuka Srivastava, a warrior who was the contemporary of Ganda Chandela in the 10th cen. The 7th verse of this inscription records that Jajuka ushered in the Golden Age by establishing ‘मानवाचारविधि’ ie the Laws of Manu in the Chandela realm. Thakur Jajuka wasn’t just an ordinary warrior. He also had impressive scholarly credentials. In another inscription from Ajayagarh he is mentioned as having mastered “विद्याचतुर्दश” or the 14 sciences, viz, the 4 Vedas, 6 Vedangas, Nyaya, Mimansa, Dharmashastra and the Puranas.