Temples of Munnur (Historical Study)

by R. Muthuraman | 2016 | 67,784 words

This essay represents a historical study of the Temples in and around Munnur, situated in the Dakshina Kannada district in the state Karnataka (India). Munnur is regarded as an important religious city for the followers of both Shaivism and Vaishnavism. The ancient history of Munnur traces to the reign of the Chola, from whom the city derives it's ...

Cultivation of Temple Lands

The land situated within the temple premises or within a manageable distance from it was kept under the direct control of the temple. If the tenants did not accept the terms of lease offered by the temple, it cultivated its land directly, as was done by the temple authorities (Devakanmigal).[1] The temple administered the donated lands in three main ways, either it directly cultivated the lands with the help of manager and agents or it assigned lands to its employees in return for services or it let out the lands to tenants on lease. The management of its own land by the temple was called Tiruvidaiyattas or Thirunamattukanis,[2] a term, which was also used for secular landowners. The smaller temples, which could not employ officials to look after the land given in lease, cultivated it directly.[3]

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Ibid.,

[2]:

A.R.E.,126 of 1896.

[3]:

57 of 1918.

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