The article includes a look at the respective meanings of two types of literary embellishments in the monumental inscriptions of the Gupta dynasty; namely poems praising kings in eight verses, or eight clauses, and a description of the conquest of India (digvijaya) by a king taking place in a counter clockwise direction. It is argued that the eight verses, or the eight relative clauses, represent a selection out of an endless list of the king´s good qualities: he is such a great person that, given the time, or space, the poet could have easily continued praising the king for hours. The counter clockwise direction of the digvijaya is explained by the fact that the king responsible for the conquest was no longer alive at the time of the composition of the inscription´s text and the erection of the monument. In the interpretation of these inscriptions, both features should be regarded as historical documents.