Konerirajapuram Temple

Introduction

An inscription from Konerirajapuram dated in the 14th year of Parakesari (No. 672) records an agreement of five persons belonging to the temple of Tirunallam, a Brahmadeya in Vennadu to provide for food offerings and worship to god Ganapatibhatarar during the 3 sandhis in the temple from out of the grant of 7 ma of land endowed by paramesvara-Perilamaiyar of the village. Ilamai, also termed elame in the Kannada inscriptions, is a group or body which seems to have taken part in the land transactions of the temple, as is evident from the present record. They are like the urar, Nagarattar, the nattar and the sabhaiyar. The Parakesari[8] of this record has been identified with Uttamachola.

Two of his records dated in the 11th (No. 673) and 26th (No. 666) years from Konerirajapuram in Tanjore District refer to the perunguri sabhai of Triunallam, a Brohmadeya in Vennadu who met in the tirukkavanam in front of the srikoyil in the temple of Tirunallam-unaiyar and received the order (srimugam) from Udaiyapirattiyar, same as queen Udaiyapirattiyar Sembiyan-Madeviyar who built a stone temple in the name of Gandaradityar for god Mahadeva at Tirunallam before the 3rd year of the reign of Uttamachola, (No. 680).

The next king is Rajendra I who is represented in this volume by 14 inscriptions ranging in date between the 5th and 31st years of his reign. No.684 from the Umamahesvara temple at Konerirajapuram, Tanjore Taluk and District dated in the 5th year of his reign refers to a grant of land as Atularbogam (for medical relief) by the queen AIvar Parantakan Kundavaipirattiyar, while staying in her palace at Palaiyaru. The queen purchased the lands and the house-sites through the sabhai, who made them tax-free (iraiilichchi) from the residence of the Tirunallam, like Vaiyan Satan Kunran and his wife (brahmani), Vadugan Nakkarpiratti, etc. We have a record of this king dated in his 3rd year [14] making a reference to the establishment of a free medical dispensary or hospital by the same queen and the gift of 9 ma of land, made after purchase for 70 kasu, for its maintenance. She made another grant in the 7th year of the king, of a house-site of 11/4 ground, bought from a resident of Kalakarachcheri of the village Rajakesarichaturvedi marigalam to make up the shortage of the Vaidyabhaga (charity for medical relief) provided by her earlier, for the relief hospital called Sundarasola-uinnagar-Atulasalai at Tanjavur, which must have been named after the queen’s father Sundara-Chola. Two years later than the institution of the hospital and two years prior to the above-mentioned additional gift for its maintenance, she made the gift, recorded in the present epigraph for the people of Tirunallam, a brahmadeya in Vennadu in Uyyakkondar-valanadu and entrusted to a certain Vannakkannuvan Araiyan Pasuran-ambalavan Mangalapper and his descendents who were natives of Pudannur in Marusal-nadu, a brahmadeya in Kshatriyasmani-vala-nadu who were to enjoy the endowment by rendering medical service to the people of the place. It is mentioned that the queen seemed to have ordered the sabhai from her palace, for the transactions to be engraved in this temple.

No. 667 from Konerirajapuram of the reign of Parakesari rajendra II states that an order under the rule panip-pani passed by the Perungurisabhai of Tirunallam, a brahmadeya in Uyyakkondavala-nadu which met in the Munnurruvan-madam of the place on Friday, the 1st of the bright fortnight of Mesha (Chittirai) in the 5th year of his reign and received 128 (?) kasu from the temple treasury of the god Tirunallamudaiya-mahadevar of the same place, for the land granted as iraiyili, to provide for the three sandhi lamps with 1 kalam and 3 nali of paddy and for feeding two ascetics (adiyar) with padakku-nali of paddy in the aforesaid temple.

No. 730, from Tirunedungalam, Lalgudi Taluk, Tiruchchirappalli District dated in the 4th year of Rajarajadeva is an interesting record which states that a certain Aludaiyapillaiyaradiyan Idaragalaivan alias Anapayamuttaraiyan son of Vilambikkudaiyan Tillai Tirunattapperumal alias Visaiyalaya Muttaraiyar of Vilambikudi in Pandikulasani-valanadu set up a linga called Ulaganadisvaram Udaiyar in the first prakara of the temple of Tirunedungalam Udaiyar, for the merit of the latter (the donor’s father) and perission was obtained by the donor from Tribhuvanaviradeva described as Periyadevar. Tribhuvanaviradeva, as we know from a number of records of Kulottungachola, was a title assumed by him in the latter part of his reign. He is also referred to as Periyadevar in the records of his successor Rajaraja III (A.R. Ep., 1912, part II, para 30). It is evident from this, that Periyadevar (see Ep., Ind., Vol XXXIV, p.159) must be taken in indicate a predecessor who is respected by his successor in his records (i.e., Rajaraja III). It is further stated that Tribhuvanaviradeva granted in Lalgudi permission while he was staying in the Rajaraja-manadapa at Urrattur, which is the same as Uttattur, Lalgudi taluk of the same district. Only one record of Rajendrachola III is found in this year’s collection. This record from Konerirajapuram (No. 688) dated in his 11th regnal year refers to a certain lady named Kuttadu-Nachchiyar, the wife of a chief Sri Vanakovaraiyar of Karaikkadu, whose identity is not known. She is different from a queen of the same name mentioned in No. 522 of 1902 (S.I.I., Vol., VIII, No. 112) from Tiruvannamalai. The attribute Tribhuvanachakravartti borne by him clearly indicates that he is a later king i.e. Rajendra III.

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