Sanskrit inscriptions in Maritime Southeast Asia

A good number of inscriptions written in Sanskrit language have been found in Malaysia and Indonesia: the Indo-Australian archipelago.

The spread of these north Indian sacred languages thus provides no specific evidence for any movements of South Asian individuals or groups to Southeast Asia.

They are written in the early Pallava script, in the Sanskrit language, and commemorate sacrifices held by a king called Mulavarman.

The Tugu inscription was written in Pallava script arranged in the form of Sanskrit Sloka with Anustubh metrum, consisting of five lines that run around the surface of the stone.

On the inscription there is an image of a staff crowned with Trisula straight to mark the separation between the beginning and the end of each sentence.

[6] Srivijaya is the name of a kingdom whose centre was located in the modern city of Palembang in South Sumatra province, Indonesia.