Temples in Tondaimanad

Tondaimanad is about 6 miles (9.66 km.) from Kalahasti in the Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It was formerly called Tondaiman Arrur (or Perarrur) in Arrur-nadu, a division of Tiruvengadakkottam in Tondainadu. Here is a temple called Kodandaramesvaram or Adityesvaram. This is said to be a pallip-padai, a memorial sepulchral (or tomb) temple, erected in honour of Kodandarama alias Aditya I. At Tirumal-puram, there is an inscription²⁷ of the 14th year and 211th day of a ‘Konerinmai-kondan’ (230 of 1903: SII, III, no 142), which should be ascribed to Uttama Chola and which mentions an earlier gift of the 21st year of ‘Tondaiman Arrurttunjiya udaiyar’ (=He who died at Tondaiman Arrur’), i.e., Aditya I. The Kanya-kumari inscription of Vira Rajendra says inter alia: “The son of Vijayalaya was Aditya Varman, better known by the name of Kodandarama.” Thus it is clear that Aditya I had such a surname; the temple is thus named after both the names.

Kodandaramesvaram (Adityesvaram)

There is an inscription of the 34th year of Parantaka I (=a.d. 941) on the north base of the central shrine of this temple whose opening lines are: “Madiraikonda kop Parakesari Parmarkku yandu 34-avadu Tiruvenga-dak kottattu Arrur-nattut Tondaiman Per-arrur sabhai-yomum nagarattomum Pallippadai Vagisvara Pandita Bhattarar Sri Kodandaramesvaram ahiya Adityesvarattu Alvarkku Purattasit tingal tiruk Kettai mudal edir elu nalum tiru-nakshtram ahiya tiruch Chadayattanrum tiru-uchchavam seyvatarkkum bhojanattukkum Pallippadai Vagisvara Pandita Bhattarar Tondaiman Perarrur sabhaiyomum nagarattomum vali sandiradittavar id dharmam seyvataha engal vali vaitta pon suttu vettich chuduk koduttu tip-pokki urkarchemmai mudal nurrain (g) kalanjum Vagisvara Panditan enum pundumbinal nirattalavu tu-nel nalayirak kadiyum....”. This tells us that the name of the temple is “Pallippadai Vagisvara Pandita Bhattarar Sri Kodandaramesvaram a/iasAditye-svara Alvar temple”, and records an endowment of 105 kalanju of gold together with a net annual income of 4,000 kadi of paddy. Details of the expenditure against this income are also recorded later on in the inscription. These include provision for the supply of offerings, vegetables, curds, ghee, salt and other requirements for the celebration of a seven-day festival lasting from the asterism of kettai to that of Sadayam (the latter being the natal star of the king) in the month of Purattasi (September-October), for a feeding-house and for feeding, on the seven days of the festival, a thousand persons, tapasvins of all sects including Mahavratins, brahmans and devotees of various classes. It is of special interest that this inscription mentions among other items the time-honoured celebration of the Indra festival so graphically described in the Tamil epics Silappadikaram and Manimekhalai and whose stoppage is said to have brought about a great calamity to the then Chola capital Kaverippattinam and its inhabitants. The sabha and the nagaram of Tondaiman Perarrur agreed to maintain this charity in favour of the Pallippadai Vagisvara Pandita Bhattarar temple, as requested by the Mahavratins of Adityesvaram, the Ganap-Perumakkal of the Tiru Panrisvarattu Prithivi Vitankar temple of the neighbouring town of Kaverippakkam and the Pan-mahesvaras (SII, VII, no. 529).

Thus we conclude that this is a temple named after Aditya I, being in fact a pallippadai, a memorial tomb-temple,^[1] built over the mortal remains of this king who died in this place: hence it was that he came to be called after his demise ‘Arrurttunjina Udaiyar’ as described in the Tirumalpuraminscription. It was built by Parantaka I sometime before his 34th year as a tangible expression of the filial piety of a dutiful son. A liberal endowment was made for services to the deity and for the celebration of a festival in honour of his birthday to be conducted for seven days ending with the day of his natal star Sadayam in the month of Purattasi (PI. 92).

Virrirunda Perumal temple

There are three other inscriptions from this place, in the local Vishnu temple called that of Virrirunda Perumal. According to them this Vishnu temple was known in the past as Tiru-merk-koyil, and even as late as in the 13th century, this place was still called Tondaiman Arrur. Thus we have confirmation that Tondaiman Arrur is the same as the modem Tondamanad.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

This temple of Parantaka I is an historical monument built by an illustrious Chola ruler in memory of his equally great father who (perhaps) died in this place. The Department of Archaeology should take immediate steps to rehabilitate it on scientific lines and to declare it a protected monument. The Hindu Religious Endowments Board of Andhra Pradesh should also take necessary steps for its proper maintenance.