Temples in and around Madurantakam

by B. Mekala | 2016 | 71,416 words

This essay studies the Temples found around Madurantakam, a town and municipality in Kancheepuram (Kanchipuram) District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Madurantakam is one of the sacred holy places visited by Saint Ramanuja. It is also a region blessed with many renowned temples which, even though dating to at least the 10th century, yet they c...

The word Deva means God, and kanmi means servant. Devakanmi means the servant of the God. The Devakanmigal belonging to Brahmin group associated with temple administration. As gleaned from inscriptional sources the term Devakanmi has been in vogue since the 9th C.A.D.[1] K.A. Nilakanta Sastri stated that the Devakanmis were important officials of the temples.[2] According to K.K. Pillai, the Devakanmis were high officials and supervisors of the temple lands. The Chola epigraphs elucidated about the Devakanmigal. One epigraph viewed that the devakanmigal acted as Srikariyam Seyyum officer.[3] Another lithic record identified that they acted as a temple servants by receiving 90 sheep and agreed to burn lamp with 1 Ulakku of ghee every day for a lamp.[4] A lithic record mentioned devakanmigal as the servant of the temple[5] The devaganmis were together responsible for the proper management of the temple and when they transacted its business, they met in the theatre of the temple[6] and another inscription is incomplete it indentified only the officials one among them was Devaganmigal.[7] Brahmadhiraja The Brahmins who distinguished themselves in war in the Chola period were given the title Brahmadhiraja.[8] Nilakanta Sastri has denoted them as Brahmin Senapatis.[9]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Dalayan.D., Early Temples of Tamil Nadu, New Delhi, 1992, p.32.

[2]:

Nilakanta Sastri.K.A., op.cit, pp.506 and 581.

[3]:

A.R.E., 555 of 1920; S.I.I., Vol. XIX, No.15; A.R.E., 557 of 1920; S.I.I., Vol. XXXII, No.66.

[4]:

A.R.E., 472 of 1908; S.I.I., Vol. III, No.199.

[5]:

A.R.E., 117 of 1910.

[6]:

A.R.E., 154 of 1895; S.I.I., Vol.III, No.202; S.I.I., Vol. V, No.718; Select Inscriptions of Tamil Nadu. No.IX:2.

[7]:

A.R.E., 256 of 1907; S.I.I., Vol. XXIII, No. 256.

[8]:

Mahalingam, T. V., South Indian Polity, Madras, 1967, p.263.

[9]:

Nilakanta Sastri, K.A., op.cit., p.775.

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