|
PANDYAS
Abhimuktīśvaram-uḍaiyān. A donor to the temple in the time of Māravarman
Kulaśēkhara was Āṇḍapirān Tirunelvēli-uḍaiyān of Pālūr alias Rājakēsarinallūr
who presented to the god a paṭṭam of eight Kalañju of gold and endowed lands
for offerings and worship to the deity on the festival of Pushya in the month of
Tai (No. 171). During the War of the Pāṇḍya Succession, when the Singhalese
general Laṅkāpura-Daṇḍanāyaka is said to have occupied Tiruppattūr, the
worship in the temple should have been affected. It suffered a worse fate when
it was occupied by the Muhammadans in the 14th century. They struck panic
in the country, destroyed the temple and desecrated the images therein. A
certain Viśālayadēvar of Kunraikkuḍi (modern Kunnakkuḍi) repaired the
damages done and reconsecrated the images in the 46th year of Jaṭāvarman
alias Tribhuvanachakravartin Vīra-Pāṇḍya (Nos. 119 and 120 of 1908), for
which he earned the gratitude of the people of Tiruppattūr. They in recognition of his services, assigned him a specified quantity of corn from the harvest
reaped by each cultivator and also conferred on him certain privileges and
honours in the temple of Tiruttaḷiyāṇḍa-Nāyanar.
Jaṭāvarman Kulaśēkhara I.
49. Seven inscriptions (Nos. 167, 168, 185, 187, 188, 189 and 190) of Kulaśēkhara without any distinguishing epithets for their identification have been
secured from this place. The latest date for this king in the collection is 13 +
10th year (Nos. 187 and 188). From the astronomical details based on a single
record from this village (No. 101 of 1908), Sewell, following Swamikannu Pillai,
accepted A.D. 1161-62 as the date of accession for one Kulaśēkhara (Ind. Ant.,
Vol. XLIV, p. 255) and identified him with the ruler of the same name who
took a prominent part in the War of the Pāṇḍya Succession. But it is known
that this war arose about the 5th year of Rājādhirāja II (No. 20 of 1899) i.e.
about A.D. 1167 and that this Kulaśēkhara was deposed about the 12th year
of Rājādhirāja II i.e. about A.D. 1175 from the Pāṇḍyat throne
which he never got back (Ep. Ind., Vol. XXVI, p. 87). The Kulaśēkhara
of the present collection cannot be
I identified with this king since the
latter’s regnal year did not extend to 13 + 10th year or A.D. 1161 + 23
(= 1184 A.D.), but as pointed out above had ended by about A.D. 1175.
Further, the officer Kaṇḍan Ālvuḍaiyān alias Kalvāyil-Nāḍālvān (No. 187)
figures also in a record of the 3rd year of Jaṭāvarman Kulaśēkhara (acc. A.D.
1190) commencing with the introduction Pūvin-kilatti etc. (Inscriptions of the
Pudukkottai State, No. 246). Since the astronomical details given in two of the
records of thīs place (Nos. 188 and 189) point to A.D. 1190 as the initial year
of Kulaśēkhara, almost all the records of the king of this name secured this year
may be assigned to Jaṭāvarman Kulasēkhara I (acc. 1190 A.D.). In some of
these inscriptions, prominent mention is made of two of his officers viz., Kaṇḍan
Ālvuḍaiyān alias Kalvāyil-Nāḍālvān (Nos. 187 and 168) and Mummudiśōlan
Māḷavar-māṇikkam alias Māḷāva-chakravarti (Nos. 167 and 188). Besides
these, we already know of two officers of this king who served in the region
round about Tiruppattūr viz., Tiruvālandurai-uḍaiyān and Tirukkoḍuṅkunram-uḍaiyān alias Nishadarājan of Pon-Amarāvati (No. 100 of 1908) Kalvāyil-
Nāḍālvān of the year’s collection had his Kāṇipparru in Kaṭṭi-ēri (No. 187) and
Teṇvāy-Iḍaikkuḍi (No. 168), both situated in Pūngunra-nāḍu. Since he also
figures in an inscription of the 8th year of Sundara-Pāṇḍya “who presented the
Chōḷa country” secured from Tirumayyam in the Pudukkottai State (No. 269 of Pudukkottai Incrcs), he seems to have continued in power till about A.D. 1224
and had his jurisdiction in the regions round Tirumayyam and Tiruppattūr.
The other officer Mummuḍiśōlan Māḷava-māṇikkam alias Māḷavachchakravartti
is said to have had a share of the Kaṇippaṛṛu of Tenvāy-Iḍaikkuḍi, evidently
with Kalvāyil-Nāḍālvān mentioned above (No. 167).
Chiefs of Sembonmari.
The chiefs of Sembonmari in the Tiruppattur taluk seem to have been known
by the surname Māḷavachchakravartti. The Mahāvaṁśa states that the Singhalese general Laṅkāpura-Daṇḍanāyaka into whose hands fell the fortress of Sembonmāri subsequently gave it back to a certain Māḷavachchakravartti.
|
