The inscription is engraved around the four sides of a stone seat (gal–āsana), which was discovered in 1921 in the village of Kantaläi on the Trincomalee Railway and afterwards removed to Anurādhapura. The text identifies the stone seat as the one that king Nissaṅka-Malla, after returning from his Indian campaign, used to occupy whilst witnessing the various diversions such as alms-giving, dancing, singing, etc., in the Pārvatī-satra erected at his request in Caturveda-Brahmapura, ‘the city of the Four-Vedic Brahmans’. By way of an introduction, the inscription also includes a bombastic account of Nissaṅka-Malla’s military achievements and charitable acts. Virtually identical accounts are commonly found in other gal-āsana records of this king. The Kantaläi inscription is not dated but, since it references his tours of inspection and his expedition to India, it was probably composed towards the end of his short but eventful reign, which spanned nine years, beginning in 1187 and terminating in 1196. If Kantaläi was the original site of the seat, then this locality must once have been the town called Caturveda-Brahmapura, which was probably occupied mostly by Brahman families for whose benefit an almshouse called Brāhmaṇa-satra was also established by Nissaṅka-Malla.
[Lines 1–4] The illustrious monarch Kalin̆gu Perakumbā, abounding in a multitude of virtuous qualities which are pre-eminent in the boundless world; lord by (right of his) lineal descent from the lords of the soil of the Island of Laṅkā, who were descended from the race of King Vijaya, that threw into shade the other Kṣatriya races of Dam̆badiva, and that made Laṅkā a habitation for man by extirpating the yakṣas; [His Majesty] who is gloriously endowed with qualities which are manifold, deep, majestic, unchangeable and gentle, [rich as] the Lord of wealth (Kubera), of kingly mien, floodlike in gifts and sympathetic for the happiness of living beings, was pleased to make tours throughout prosperous Laṅkā, inspect it thoroughly as if it were a ripe nelli fruit on the palm of his hand and free it from the thorns of lawlessness.
[His Majesty, moreover], gave security to animal life in great tanks, remitted for all times the taxes pisam̆buru–vata and käti–ada and enacted that taxes should not be levied exceeding one amuṇa and three pǟḷa [in grain] and six maṇ̆ḍa–ran (in coin) for an amuṇa [sowing extent of land] of the utte (uppermost) tract, one amuṇa and two pǟḷa and four maṇ̆ḍa–ran for an amuṇa of the mände (middle) tract, and one amuṇa and one pǟḷa and three maṇ̆ḍa–ran for an amuṇa of the passe (lowermost) tract.
His Majesty presented also five tulābharas every year [to the people] and with the bestowal of gifts of the nine precious gems and of divers kinds of clothes and ornaments, he conciliated the Church and the State.
Further, when bestowing perpetual grants (pamuṇu) to those who have performed loyal services, His Majesty gave these grants [engraved] on copper plates in order that both the royal donor’s name and the donee’s name may last for a long time.
[Lines 4–7] From various countries Kalin̆ga, Ven̆ga, Karṇṇāta, Nellūru, &c., His Majesty had queens brought to him, together with large retinues of elephants and cavalry. True to his title Niççaṅka–Malla (dauntless warrior), he dispatched champions to [the Courts of] various kings and sought single combats. Finding none, and yet being desirous of martial contests, he crossed over the sea, accompanied by his fourfold army. When on the second occasion he entered the Coḷa and the Pāṇḍya countries with intent to conquer them, the owners of the two countries gave up their territories through fear and took to flight. So, His Majesty remained three months in the Pāṇḍan kingdom, and, not finding an adversary that would be his match [in a contest], he mounted the scale-pan and, giving away his weight of various kinds of wealth, filled [with satisfaction] the hearts of the poor that thronged from various quarters. Moreover, he had pillars of victory set up there and caused also a temple (dēvālaya) named Niççaṅkēçvara to be built.
[Lines 7–11] From the Pāṇḍyan king who was frightened by the heroic deeds thus performed, His Majesty accepted [tributes of] elephants, horses, queens with large escorts, endowments of a village income and the like to alms-houses, as well as the [peace] offerings sent from the Coḷa country. He established friendly alliances also with such of the princes as were desirous of his goodwill; but crushed the arrogance of those princes who did not wish such friendship. Then, accepting the many peace offerings sent from each of them, he returned to the Island of Laṅkā.
Thereafter, he proceeded to witness [the distribution of] alms in the Pārvatī alms-hall erected in [the town called] Caturveda–Brahmapura. And this stone seat does His Majesty occupy whilst engaged in witnessing the various diversions [that take place therein], such as dancing, singing, and the like.