Temples in Kattumannargudi (Udaiyargudi)

Kattumannargudi is a village about 16 miles (25.75 km.) from Chidambaram and 8 miles (12.87 km.) from Gangaikonda-cholapuram, on the northern bank of the Kollidam, a branch of the Kaveri. It is famous in Vaishnavite hagiology as the birth-place of Nadamuni and of his grandson Yamunachariyar Alavandar, the spiritual preceptor of Ramanuja. It was due to the devoted efforts of Nadamuni that the works of the Vaishnavite Saint, Nammalvar, were recovered from oblivion. This feat of his is considered a miracle of as much importance as the recovery of the Devaram hymnsbyNambi Andar Nambi in the days of Rajaraja I.

Kattumannargudi was known to the Vaishnavites as Viranarayanapuram and in inscriptions it is called Vira-narayana Chaturvedimangalam. This place is really a creation of Parantaka I, whose surname ‘Vira Narayana’ it bears. The Kanyakumari inscription tells us that “the destroyer of his enemies, Parantaka brought into existence numerous villages of great wealth like Viranaraya-nam just as Brahma created and caused them to be enjoyed by learned brahmans”. This is the most celebrated of the villages created by him to be colonised by learned brahmans. By its side is the famous irrigation tank, also a creation of his and named after him as Vira-narayanan eri popularly known as Viranam It is one of the biggest of irrigation tanks in the Tamil country.

1. Viranarayanasvamin temple (Vishnu)
(Viranarayana Vinnagaram)

There are two temples in this place, one dedicated to Vishnu and the other to Siva. The Vishnu temple was called Viranarayana Vinnagaram and the presiding deity thereof Viranarayana Emperuman. This temple was repaired in the 13th century a.d. But, in this case, the traditional practice of preserving the old inscriptions by first preparing copies thereof and then re-engraving them on the walls of the newly-built temple had not been followed, with the result that the valuable old records are lost for ever and our knowledge of the local and dynastic history has greatly suffered. The chief inscriptions now found on the walls of the temple are those of Jatavarman Sundara Pandya surnamed Ponmeynda Perumal (acc. a.d. 1251), Maravarman Vikrama Pandya (acc. a.d. 1283), and the later Pallava king Kopperunjinga (acc. a.d. 1243). Sundara Pandya set up an image of himself calling it Ponmeynda Perumal, and instituted a service called Sundara Pandyan Sandhi. The main deity of this temple was called Madurapuri Emperuman by him, and the village renamed as Sundara Pandya Chaturvedimangalam.

2. Udaiyargudi, Anantisvarasvamin temple (Siva)

Udaiyargudi is a subrub of Kattumannargudi, and the presiding deity of this Siva temple is called Anantisvarasvamin. The original temple of the days of Paran taka I is preserved nearly intact, though with slight modifications due to later repairs and deterioration caused by the passage of time. There are eight inscriptions of Parantaka I ranging from his 33rd year to his 38th. How much prior to his 33rd (regnal) year the temple and the colony came into existence, we are not in a position to say. Most of the endowments recorded here are gifts of lands or money for feeding learned brahmans and for burning lamps in the temple. And the deity is referred to in them as Perumanadigal at Tiru Anantisvaram or as Anantisvaram Udaiyar at Viranara-yana Chaturvedimangalam. An inscription of his 38th year (604 of 1920) mentions that the Assembly of the village met in the hall built by Tennavan Yilupparaiyan, called by the king ‘NamMahanar’ (which expression may mean ‘our son’ or ‘our feudatory chief’). It registers a grant of three veil of land by a native of Devan Mangalam to meet the expenses of feeding 25 brahmans, and the king is said to have remitted the taxes on the land.

There are a number of Rajakesari inscriptions from the 2nd to the 12th regnal years, without distinguishing epithets. They should belong to Gandaraditya or to Sundara Chola and a few even to Rajaraja I. One such inscription of the 4th year and 20th day (580 of 1920) is interesting, as it gives an insight into the composition of local bodies in charge of village administration. The Government Epigraphist says that it may be an inscription of Gandaraditya or of Sundara Chola. The inscription is unfortunately worn out and incomplete. It registers an order of the body called the Perumakkal (=Great men or Elders) which looked after the gramakaryam (village affairs) for the year: it is said to have consisted of 120 members (‘samvatsa ram gramakaryam tiruttukinra 120-mar Perumakkal eluttu’).

A piece of land was endowed for daily offerings and worship to this deity by the Perunguri Perumakkal (General Assembly), but it was not in enjoyment for sometime. Meanwhile, there took place a re-formation of the village resulting in the creation of new wards (puduk-kudumbu ittuk-kondamaiyii). So there was need for an exchange (nilai-maraga)of a new piece of land for the land already gifted. This exchange was done by an order of the Perumakkal. That this village had wards (kudumbu) as at Uttaramerur, Sendalai and other places, and that the body called Perunguri Perumakkal consisted of 120 members are interesting details which give us a peep into the composition and working of local self-governing bodies in the 10th century a.d. It seems to be a real representative deliberative body with deep roots in the soil.

In some villages colonised by brahmans, there was a body of learned men; such a local body was called (585 of 1920) ‘Sasanabaddha Chaturvedi Bhattap Perumbadi Sahasradanap Perumakkal’: it was entrusted with the management of charitable endowments. One sekkilan Araiyan Sankaranarayanan alias Chola Muttaraiyan of Merppaluvur purchased ten plots of land from several persons and left them for charitable purposes to be managed by this body of Vedic scholars. The inscription may belong to the period of Sundara Chola. Similar bodies were in existence in other villages like Srinivasanallur and Sembiyan Mahadevi (588 of 1904 and 496 of 1925).

The mother of Parantaka (II) Sundara Chola and the queen of Arinjaya figures in three inscriptions of the 12th and 14th years of a Rajakesarivarman who may be identified with Sundara Chola (572, 587 and 589 of 1920). The first refers to a gift of land by ‘Viman Kundavaiyar, the mother of Parantaka (II), son of Arinjaya’ for providing the sacred bath with a thousand pots of water to Tiru Anantisvarattup-Para-masvami at Viranarayana Chaturvedimangalam on the sankranti day every month: “Sri Arinjaya Parantaka-devartangal achchiyar Udaiyapirattiyar Viman Kundavaiyar kondu kudutta bhumi”. The second records two royal gifts: Adittan Kodaip-Pirattiyar, queen of ‘Arinjigai-panmar who died at Amir’, makes provision for the sacred bath of the Lord with 108 pots of water and for offerings to Him; in the same inscription, an additional grant of land is made by Viman Kundavaiyar (above-mentioned) by way of supplementing her original endowment for the sacred bath of the deity with 1,000 pots of water.

A gift of a lamp-stand weighting 150 and of land for a lamp is made by one Adittan Bhattalakan in the 17th year of a Rajakesarivarman. One wonders whether this could be assigned to Sundara Chola despite the high regnal year.

There are a number of Parakesari inscriptions without distinguishing epithets. A few of them might belong to Uttama Chola.

An inscription of ‘Parakesarivarman who took the head of Vira Pandya’ (Aditya II: 2nd year, 555 of 1920) states that one Araiyan Geyavitankan of the ‘Taya-tongat Terinja Kaikkolar’ built shrines to Kuttap-Perumal (Nataraja) to the south of the stone-temple of Tiru Anantisvara-devar, and also to Gana-pati and Pichchar (=Bhikshatanar). Inthe same(second) year of the same king, a gift of three is made by a donor bearing the same name as above, but here he is described as a member of the ‘Singalantakat-Terinja Kaikkolar’-, out of the interest of the endowment, a pair of cloth was to be supplied to Kuttap-Perumal of the stone-temple of Tiru Anantisvaram (557 of 1920). There are a few more inscriptions of this ruler: they refer to gifts for lamps and for the sacred bath to the Lord after Tirup-palli-ezhuchi (the Lord’s ceremonial rising from bed).

In the 2nd year of a Parakesarivarman, perhaps Uttama Chola, a gift of 12^ kalanju of gold is made by Paluvettaraiyar Kodandanar Tappilidharman for a lamp in the central shrine of the temple (609 of 1920). Another inscription of the same second year (594 of 1920) refers to a gift of gold by Koyil Perral alias Vanavan Madeviyar, daughter of Pupala Sekharaiyar, for a lamp and mid-day offerings in the temple and for feeding once a day a brahman learned in the Vedas.

A gift of 96 sheep and a ram for a lamp is made in the same year to Tiru Anantisvarattu Alvar of Vira-narayana Chaturvedimangalam by Pirantakan Made-vadigal alias Sembiyan Madevadigal, the peerless philanthropist and queen of Gandaraditya (who is here called ‘Merkkelundarulina-devar’).^[1]

One Sembiyan Muvendavelan of Panippakkam made, in the 10th year of Parakesarivarman, a gift of 20 ilakkasu for a lamp (554 of 1920; also 593 of 1920). In the same year, one Nambi-enban built a feeding-house and made a gift of land for feeding 100 brahmans in it (578 of 1920).

In the 12th year of Parakesarivarman, to be identified as Uttama Chola, one Adigal Paluvettaraiyan Kandan Sundara Chola made a gift of land for feeding five brahmans every day and for burning a perpetual lamp in the temple for the merit of his younger brother, Kandan Satrubhayankaranar (592 of 1920). Another record of the same year and of the same king mentions a gift of 500 kalanju of gold for the consecration of an image of Surya-deva set up by Kundavaiyar, who is perhaps to be identified with the daughter of Sundara Chola and elder sister of Rajaraja I (606 of 1920). A further gift of 25 kalanju of gold for a lamp to be burnt in front of it is also mentioned.

Kali Karrali, a member of the Udaiyar Karikala-Solat-Terinja Kaikkolar (named after Aditya II alias Karikala), makes a gift for maintaining musicians to attend on Lord Tirumullur Udaiya Paramesvara of Tirumullur alias Simhavishnu Chaturvedimangalam (617 of 1920) in a record of the 14th year of a Parakesari-varman (Uttama Chola).

The vaniyars (oil-mongers) made a gift of land (and a further payment of gold for reclaiming it) in Vira-narayana Chaturvedimangalam and Nindanallur for feeding 100 brahmans for the merit of an uncle of the donors, in the feeding-house erected by them, in the 16th year of Parakesari Uttama Chola.

There are two important inscriptions of the days of Rajaraja I. An inscription of the 2nd year of a Rajakesari-varman (577 of 1920) should be assigned to him. The Emperor (Chakravarti) issued an order (Sri-mukham) to the Perunguri Perumakkal (Great men of the General Assembly) of Sri Vira-Narayana Chaturvedimangalam to confiscate the lands and houses not only of those guilty of treachery and treason (‘drohihal’), for complicity in the murder of ‘Karikala Chola who took the head of the Pandya’ (i.e., Rajaraja’s elder brother, Aditya II: ‘Pandiyanai talai konda karikala Cholanaik konru drohihalana’), but also of those near to them by blood. Two royal officers, Brahmasrirajan of Kottaiyur and Chandrasekhara Bhattan of Pullamangalam were sent by the king to secure the confiscated lands and houses. It was further stipulated that these properties were directed to be sold by the Assembly in consultation with the royal officers at the current normal rate adopted in the day-to-day transactions, and the amount thus realised was to be remitted into the treasury (talam). These lands (of total extent two and three-fourths plus 1/20th of a) and six residential houses were sold by the sabha to Bharatan alias Yyala Gajamalla Pallavaraiyan for 150 kalanju of gold. The purchaser then endowed these lands and houses for feeding one brahman who supplied water in the hall called the ‘Three-thousand and six hundred’ alias ‘Nilaiyambaram’ (perhaps the Brahmasthana of the village in front of the Alvar shrine in the temple of Tiru Anantisvaram in the village), ten other brahmans and five Sivayogins. Thus did Rajaraja avenge the dastardly murder of his brother; it may be added that retributive justice could not be meted out perhaps as long as Uttama Chola was alive.

An inscription of the 27th year of Rajaraja I mentions that the Assembly of Viranarayana Chaturvedimanga-lam met in the hall called Rajarajan and decided that a fourth share of all the lands and tanks within the hamlets of the village should be considered as belonging to the Tiru Anantisvaram temple. Perhaps this decision was called for in order to settle some long-standing disputes between the authorities of the two temples, of Siva and Vishnu.

Rajendra I calls the Lord of Anantisvaram ‘Our chief family deity’ (NamMula-daivam), and his queen, Tribhuvana Mahadeviyar Vanavan Mahadeviyar made provision for offerings and worship to the two images of Chandrasekharap-Perumaland his Consort—the images were also set up by her—at the time of their being taken out in procession during the Sribali ceremony and during festivals (624 of 1920: 8th year).

Another inscription mentions a gift, by certain Kaikkolars of the village, of an umbrella made up of a handle weighing 27-1/2 kalanju of gold and adorned with 19,908 pearls. The magnitude of the gift is an index of the hold of the temple on the affection and devotion of the people.

The garbhagriha is a square of side 20 ft. (6.10 m.). The devakoshtas project forward. There is an 31 ft. by 15 ft. (9.45 m. by 4.57 m.) between the garbhagriha and the ardhamandapa. The ardhamandapa extends forward 26 ft. 6 in. (8.08 m.). This is supported by four round pillars with bulbous capital (Pls. 77 to 80).

The pilasters have a hamsa-va the bhutaganas and the cornice are intact. The original sikhara is no longer there.

This city, with the two temples of Siva and Vishnu, was a creation of Parantaka I himself.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Epi. Rep. no 540 of 1920.1 do not feel fully satisfied by the explanation given for this title by the late A.S. Ramanatha Ay}ar, though I agree with him that “its significance is not quite clear”. “It is possible,” he says, “that he had lost his life in one of the skirmishes with Rashtrakuta Krishna III’s army in occupation that may have occurred in the western frontier, that this event was sought to be euphemistically expressed as a journey to the west from which, however, the king probably never returned alive.“

Gandaraditya was a saintly character and the author of devotional poems of some merit, in particular of the Tint Isaippa. He might have died of a fasting penance if ‘Merkkiruttal’, like ‘Vadakkiruttal’, can be taken to be a euphemistic Tamil idiom for death by fasting. We have to keep an open mind till we get more light on this expression (Epi. Indica, XXVI, No. 8, p. 84).