HISTORY

The founder of the Chola Empire was Vijayalaya, who was first feudatory of the Pallavas of Kanchi. He captured Tanjore in 850 A.D. He established a temple of goddess Nishumbhasudini (Durga) there.

Aditya I succeeded Vijayalaya. Aditya helped his overlord the Pallava king Aparajita against the Pandyas but soon defeated him and annexed the whole of the Pallava kingdom.

By the end of the ninth century, the Cholas had defeated the Pallavas completely and weakened the Pandyas capturing the Tamil country (Tondamandala) and including it under their domination He then became a sovereign ruler. The Rashtrakuta king, Krishna II gave his daughter in marriage to Aditya.

He erected many Shiva temples. He was succeeded in 907 A.D. by Parantaka I, the first important ruler of the Cholas. Parantaka I was an ambitious ruler and engaged himself in wars of conquest from the beginning of his reign. He conquered Madurai from the Pandya ruler Rajasimha II. He assumed the title of Maduraikonda (captor of Madurai).

He, however, lost to the Rashtrakuta ruler Krishna III at the battle of Tokkolam in 949 A. D. The Cholas had to cede Tondamandalam to the adversary. At that point of time the Chola kingdom almost ceased to exist. It was a serious setback to the rising Chola power. The revival of Chola power began from the accession of Parantaka II who recovered Tondamandalam to re­establish dominance of the dynasty.

The climax in Chola power was achieved under the successor of Parantaka II, Arumolivarman, who crowned himself as Rajaraja I in 985 A D the next thirty years of his rule formed the formative periodof Chola imperialism.

The Chola kingdom grew under him into an extensive and well-knit empire, efficiently organized and administered and possessing a powerful standing army and navy. Rajaraja began his conquests by attacking the confederation between the rulers of the Pandya and Kerala kingdoms and of Ceylon. Polonnaruva became the capital of Chola province in North Ceylon after the defeat of Mahinda V, the Ceylonese king.

He also annexed the Maldives. Elsewhere, several parts of modern Mysore were conquered and annexed which intensified their rivalry with the Chalukyas. Rajaraja built the magnificent Shiva temple of Brihadeshwara or Rajaraja temple at Thanjavur which was com­pleted in 1010. It is considered a remarkable piece of architecture in South Indian style.

Rajaraja I also encouraged Sri Mara Vijayottungavarman, the Sailendra ruler of Sri Vijaya to build a Buddhist Vihara at Negapatam. This vihara was called ‘Chudamani Vihara’ after the father of Sri Mara. Rajaraja was succeeded by his son Rajendra I in 1014 A.D. He ruled jointly with his father for a few years. He also followed a policy of conquest and annexation adopted by his father and further raised the power and prestige of the Cholas. He followed the expansionist policy and made extensive con­quests in Ceylon.

The Pandya and Kerala country after being conquered was constituted as a viceroyalty under the Chola king with the title of Chola-Pandya. Madurai was its headquarters. Pro­ceeding through Kalinga, Rajendra I attacked Bengal and defeated the Pala ruler Mahipala in 1022 A.D. But he annexed no territory in north India.

To commemorate the occasion, Rajendra I assumed the title of Gangaikondachola (the Chola conqueror of Ganga). He built the new capital near the mouth of the Kaveri and called it Gangaikondacholapuram (the city of the Chola conqueror of the Ganga).

With his naval forces, he invaded Malaya Peninsula and Srivijaya Empire that extended over Sumatra, Java and the neighbouring islands and controlled the overseas trade route to China. He sent two diplomatic missions to China for political as well as commercial purposes.

Rajendra was succeeded by his son Rajadhiraja I in 1044 A.D. He was also an able ruler. He put down the hostile forces in Ceylon and suppressed the rebellious Pandyas and subjugated their terri­tory. He celebrated his victory by performing Virabhisheka (coronation of the victor) at Kalyani after sacking Kalyani and assumed the title of Vijayarajendra. He lost his life in the battle with the Chalukyan king Someswara I at Koppam. His brother Rajendra II succeeded him. He continued his struggle against Someswara.

He defeated Someswara in the battle of Kudal Sangamam. Next came Virarajendra I, he too defeated the Chalukyas and erected a pillar of victory on the banks of Tungabhadra. Virarajendra died in 1070 A.D. He was succeeded by Kulottunga I (1070-1122 A.D.) the great-grandson of Rajaraja I. He was the son of Rajendra Narendra of Vengi and Chola princess Ammangadevi (daughter of Rajendra Chola I). Thus Kulottunga I united the two kingdoms of the Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi and the Cholas of Thanjavur.

The most important reforms carried out by him in the internal administration was the re- surveyal of land for taxation and revenue purposes. He was also titled Sungam tavirtta (he who abol­ished tolls). The Chola authority in Ceylon was overthrown by Vijayababu, the monarch of Ceylon during Kulottunga’s reign. He sent a large embassy of 72 merchants to China and also maintained cordial relations with Sri Vijaya.

He defeated the rulers of the Pandya kingdom and that of Kerala. Thfe Chola Empire continued for more than a century after him. Weak rulers succeeded him. The Cholas and the later Chalukyas clashed for the overlordship of Vengi, the Tungabhadra doab and the Ganga country.

The Chola Empire continued in a flourishing condition during the twelfth century but declined by the end of the thirteenth century. The Pandyan king Sundara rendered the final blow by seizing Kanchi in 1297 A.D. The place of the Cholas was taken over by the Pandyas and the Hoysalas. This marked the end of the Chola power.

Architecture and Art
One of the largest empires in Indian history, that stretched till South East Asia, the Cholas used their immense wealth, in building magnificent temples and structures. It would be an understatement to call the architecture of the Chola period as grand, it was more like grandiose and towering. The sheer size of their temples, the towering vimanas, the sculpted walls, just every aspect of their monuments displayed grandeur. And of course nothing to beat the Brihadeswara Temple at Thanjavur, that is a benchmark by itself in architectural excellence.

Even if the Cholas, had not built anything else, just the Brihadeeswara Temple would have been enough. I mean just consider the facts, built fully of granite, finished within 5 years, that was quite fast for that period. And then you have the vimana that towers to around 216 ft, and this is just awe inspiring, on top of the tower, you have a kalasam, made out of a single block of stone, that weighs around 20 tonnes, and was lifted to the top using an inclined plane that covered 6.44 km from the ground to the top. The Cholas built big, their structures were meant to tower, to inspire awe, to take away the breath. It was not just the grand buildings, it was also the sculpture and art that adorned them, which was equally breath taking.

The other magnificient structures built by the Cholas, were the temple at Gangaikondacholapuram, which is next only to the Brihadeesvara temple at Tanjore, in size, grandeur and architectural excellence.

And also the Airavateswara temple at Darasuram, dedicated to Lord Shiva, and so called, because it is believed that the Shiva Linga here was worshipped by Indra’s elephant Airavat.

The Chola period also witnessed a glorious phase in bronze casting, and making of idols. The bronze idols of the Chola period, were more expressive in nature, and devoid of too many intricate ornaments or designs. The bronze idol of Nataraja, the dancing form of Shiva, represents the artistic excellence during that era.

Administration:

It was not just the fact that they built magnificent temples or made exquisite idols, the Cholas also came up with an excellent system of governance and administration.  While it was a monarchy, like most other kingdoms of that era, there was a serious attempt to decentralize, and provide self government right at the local level. The empire was divided into provinces called Mandalams, and each of those Mandalams, further into Kottams, which again had districts, called Nadus, that had Tehsils usually a group of villages. While Tanjore and Gangaikonda Cholapuram were the main capitals, there also existed regional capitals at Kanchi and Madurai, where courts were occasionally held.

Their major achievement though was the local self government during their times, where villages had their own self governance. Depending on the area they covered, villages again could be Nadu, Kottram or Kurram, and a number of Kurrams made up a Valanadu. The village units had the power to administer justice at the local level, and for most crimes, fines were imposed, which went to the state treasury.  Death penalty was given only for crimes that amounted to treason.

Economy
Chola period had a robust and thriving economy, that was built on 3 tiers. At the local level, it was agricultural settlements, that formed the foundation, on top of this you had the Nagarams or the commercial towns, that primarily acted as centers of distribution for items produced externally and by local artisans for international trade. The top most layer was made of “samayams” or merchant guilds, who organized and looked after the thriving international maritime trade. With agriculture being the occupation of a large number of people, land revenue was a major source of income to the treasury. The Cholas also built a large number of tanks, wells, and a large number of channels to distribute water. They had also built stone masonry dams over the Kaveri, and there was a thriving internal trade going on too.

Naval and Maritime Trade.
The Chola period would be noted for it’s emphasis on maritime trade and conquest, they excelled in ship building. While they had a strong internal maritime system, the Imperial Chola Navy came into existence during the reign of Raja Raja Chola I, who strengthened it. Raja Raja Chola’s use of the Navy to subdue the Sinhalese king Mahinda, would be one of the greatest naval victories ever. Another major achievement was the conquest of the Sri Vijaya kingdom under Sailendra, now in Indonesia, by Raja Raja Chola’s successor Rajendra Chola. Having possesion of the East and West coasts of India, the Cholas had a thriving international trade with the Tang dynasty in China, the Srivijaya empire in Malayan archipelago and the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad. The Cholas also combated sea piracy succesfully in the Malayan archipelago, and had a close trade with the Song dynasty in China, that led to advances in ship building.

While the King was the supreme commander of the Navy, it had a highly organized structure, that was divided into Ganams a Fleet squadron, usually commanded by a Ganapathy. And there was a hierarchical ranking structure, below the King, that consisted of Jalathipathi(Admiral), Nayagan( Fleet Commander), Ganathipathy(rear admiral), Mandalathipathy(vice admiral) and Kalapathy( the ship captain). You also had separate departments for customs excise(Thirvai), inspection and audits( Aaivu) and an intelligence corps( Ootru). The Cholas also had their own coast guard equivalent in Karaipiravu. And this would be one of their finest achievements, building a world class naval structure.

Literature
Often called as the Golden Age of Tamil culture, it was one of the greatest literary eras in history equivalent to the Elizabethean reign in England or the Guptas in Northern India. Nambi Andar collected the various works on Saivism and arranged them into eleven books called Tirumurais, and another great work of literature was the adaptation of the Ramayana into Tamil by Kamban, called as the Ramavatharam. The period also saw excellent works on Tamil grammar like Yapperungalam by Jain ascetic and Virasoliyam that attempts to find a balance between Tamil and Sanskrit grammar by Buddhamitra.

 

 

Lohit Ayas	Copper
Syam Ayas	Iron
Vanik	Traders
Gramini	Village Head
Bhagadugha	Tax collector
Sthapati	Chief Judge
Takshan	Carpenter
Niska	Unit of currency
Satamana	Unit of currency
Pana	Term used for coin
Shresthi	Guilds
Vihara	Buddhist Monastery
Chaitya	Sacred Enclosure
Pradeshika	Head of district Administration
Nagarka	City administration
Jesthaka	Chief of a Guild
Prathamakulika	Chief of artisans
Uparika	Governor of Bhukti
Didishu	Remarried woman
Amatya	High official
Dvija	Initiation into education
Yukta	Revenue officer in the Mauryan period.
Rajjukas	Land measurement & fixing land revenue
Sabha	Assembly of few select ones
Samiti	Larger Assembly
Dharamamahamatya	Most important post created by Asoka.

Civilization and Culture of the Pallavas

The Pallava rule formed a golden epoch in the cultural history of south India. The period under the Pallavas was marked by considerable literary activities and cultural revival. The Pallavas warmly patronized Sanskrit language and most of the literary records of the time were composed in that language. Due to the cultural renaissance and a great revival of the Sanskrit language a galaxy of scholars flourished during the Pallava era, which accentuated the literary and cultural development in Southern India. Tradition referred that Simhavishnu, the Pallava king invited the great poet Bharvi to adorn his court. Dandin, the master of Sanskrit prose probably lived in the court of Narasimhavarmana II. Under the royal patronage, Kanchi became the seat of Sanskrit language and literature. The core of learning and education, Kanchi became the point of attraction for the literary scholars. Dinanaga, Kalidasa, Bharvi, Varahamihir etc were the distinguished person with enormous talent in the Pallava country. Not only the Sanskrit literature, the Tamil literature also received a huge impetus during the Pallava period. “Maatavailasa Prahasana”, written by Mahendravarmana became very popular. The famous Tamil classic “Tamil Kural was composed during the period under the royal patronage. Madurai became a great center of the Tamil literature and culture. The Tamil grammar “Talakappiam” and Tamil versical compilation “Ettalogai” etc were composed during the period. These were of immense literary importance.

From the 6th century AD, due to the Sanskrit revival, long poetical composition replaced the earlier style of the short poetry. Poetry was written according to the taste of the sophisticated and aristocratic people of the society. The “Silappadigaram” is one of such work suited to the taste of the sophisticated, educated people of the Pallava era. One of the most important literary works of the time was “Ramayanam” by Kaban. This is known as the Tamil form and version of Ramayana, where the character of Ravana was painted with all the noble virtues in comparison to Rama. It is consistent with the Tamil tradition and Tamil ego against the Northern Ramayana by Valmiki. The Buddhist literary work “Manimekhala” and the Jaina poetical work “Shibaga sindamani” etc. also flourished during the period.

The devotional songs composed by Vaishnava Alavaras and the Saiva Nayanaras also shared a significant position in the cultural renaissance of the Pallava period. Appar, Sambandhar, Manikkabsagar, Sundar were some of the devotional Narayana poets who composed Tamil Stotras or hymns. Siva was the object of worship and love. Since the Pallava kings were great musicians themselves they were the great patrons of music. Several celebrated musical treatise were also composed under their patronage. During the time painting also received a great patronage from the Pallava kings. Specimen of the Pallava painting has been found in the Pudukottai State.

Civilization of the Pallava period was greatly influenced by the religious reform movement that swept over India during the eighth century. The wave of the reform movement was originated in the Pallava kingdom first. The Pallavas completed the Aryanisation of Southern India. The Jains who had entered south India earlier had set up educational centers at Madurai and Kanchi. They also made a massive use of Sanskrit, Prakrit and Tamil as the medium of their preaching. But in the competition with the growing popularity of the Brahmanical Hinduism, Jainism lost its prominence in the long run.

Mahendravarmana lost interest in Jainism and became a staunch follower and patron of Saivism. Consequently Jainism began to fade out and continued in diminishing glory in centers like Pudukottai and in the hilly and forest regions.

Buddhism, which had earlier penetrated in the south, fought against invading Brahmanism in the monasteries and public debates. The Buddhist scholars debated finer points of theology with Brahmanical scholars and mostly lost the ground.

The civilization of the Pallava period was marked by the tremendous ascendancy of the Hinduism, which has been branded by the modern historians as the victory of the northern Aryanism. It is said that the influx of the mlechcha Sakas, Huns and the Kushanas in Northern India had polluted the significance of the Vedic rites and religion. In order to protect the purity of Vedic religion many Brahmins migrated to Southern India and preached the Vedic Religion. Henceforth the civilization of Deccan or southern India was mostly influenced by the Brahmanical Hinduism. Pallavas became the patrons of the orthodox Vedic preachers. The performance of the horse sacrifices by the Pallava rulers testified the ascendancy of the Vedic civilization. The success of Hinduism was mostly caused by the royal patronage to this religion. Sanskrit was the vehicle of the Brahmanical thought. Hence both the Brahmanical religion and Sanskrit literature made a great progress during the Pallava period. Several centers for the Brahmanical study sprang up. These study centers were closely connected with the temple premises and were known as Ghetikas. The study of the Brahmanical scriptures and literatures was the order of the day. The Pallava kings in order to promote the Brahmanical civilization made land grants or agraharas to the maintenance of the educational institutions. In the 8th century AD, another significant Hindu institution called Mathas or monasteries were in vogue. They were a combination of temple, rest houses, educational centers, debating and discoursing centers and the feeding Houses. The university of Kanchi became the spearhead of Aryan-Brahmanical influences of the South. Kanchi was regarded as one of the sacred cities of the Hindus. The Pallava king though mainly were the worshippers of Vishnu and Siva, they were tolerant towards other religious creeds. Although the religions like Buddhism and Jainism lost its former significance during the Pallava era, yet the civilization of the Pallava period was marked by the multiethnicity promoted by the Pallava kings.

The History of Licchavis

The Lichchhavis (also Lichchavi, Licchavi) were an important member of the Vajjian confederacy. The early Indian traditions describe the Lichchhavis as Kshatriyas. Scholars reject the theory of foreign origin of the Lichchhavis on the strength of these traditions. But they were degraded to the status of fallen Kshatriyas due to their championship of non-Brahmanical creeds like Jainism and Buddhism.

Rise of the Licchavi Power

In the 6th century B.C. the Licchavi power was firmly established. Though the Lichchhavis belonged to the Vajji confederacy, they had autonomous status. Their capital was Vaisali.

Originally, they seem to have an independent status. The Buddhist records preserve the names of important Licchavi leaders among whom the name of Chetaka deserves special mention. Chetaka’s sister Trisala was the mother of Mahavira, the preacher of Jainism. Chetaka’s daughter Chellana was married to king Bimbisara of Magadha. The Lichchhavis thus appear to be highly connected.

The Magadha-Licchavi Struggle-fall of the Licchavis

The Licchavis turned to be great rivals of Magadhan monarchy. In the reign of Bimbisara of Magadha, they invaded the Magadhan kingdom. In the reign of Ajatasatru, a protracted war began between Magadha and the Lichchhavis. The latter were united with the Vajjis in a confederacy. In the struggle that followed the Lichchhavis and the Vajjis were destroyed.

The causes of the Magadha-Lichchavi war were many. Ajatasatru wanted to take revenge on the Lichchhavis, as their chief Chetaka had refused to extradite Ajatasatru’s step brothers. They had escaped to Vaisali (Licchavi capital) with the royal elephant and family jewels and were granted political asylum. The real cause of the Magadha-Licchavi war was the aggressive imperialism of Magadha against the neighboring republic. The war continued for sixteen years. The Lichchhavis built a mighty alliance with the Vajjis and the other thirty six Ganarajas and also with the kingdom of Kasi-Kosala against Magadha. But the ministers of Ajatasatru sowed seeds of discord among the members of the anti-Magadhan confederacy and destroyed their unity. Ultimately the Vajjian confederacy was destroyed by Ajatasatru. The Vajji territory was annexed to Magadha.

The Licchavi’s republican constitution

There were two Systems of government in the Eastern region. The states of Anga, Magadha, Vatsa etc. were monarchies. Those of Kasf, Kaulala, Videha etc. on the other band were republics. Two of these republics were quite well known, the Republics of the Vajjis or Licchavis and that of the Mallas. Republics were later developments of monarchies and the precursors of democracies. The Licchavis founded their Republic with a view to consolidating their political power. The credit for its foundation goes to Cetaka, who was a wise and valorous king of Videha. He was also the President of the whole Republic. This Republic was the union of eighteen political units, nine of which belonged to the Licchavis and the remaining nine to the Mallas.

The Kings of each unit comprising the Vajji Republic were called Gananayakas. The council of the Gananayakas was called Gana Sabha or Republican Council. It made the constitution and the laws. The individual units were governed in accordance with the constitution of the Gana or the Union. The Vajji Republic was rich and well developed in the fields of Politics, Economics, Society and Religion. The monarchists were highly jealous of this powerful Republic. They were bent upon destroying it. But they were helpless in the face of the powerful Vajjian army.

Videha with its capital at Vaisali was the biggest unit. Vaisali was divided into three zones. The first zone consisted of seven thousand residential houses with golden domes. The middle of the town consisted of fourteen thousand houses with silver domes. The third zone consisted of twenty-one thousand houses with copper domes.

These zones were inhabited by the high, middle and lower classes respectively. Vaisali was not only the capital of the Licchavis, it was the capital of the entire Vajji Republic. It was enclosed within four city walls, each at a distance of two miles from the others. It had several ramparts and entrance-gates. The Republic was a confederation of six clans viz. the Ugras, the Bhojas, the Rajanyas, ihe Iksvakus (the Licchavis), the Jnatasand the Kauravas.

 

1.		Brahma				Duly dowered girl to a man of the same class
2.		Daiva				Father gives daughter to a sacrificial priest as a part of his fee
3.		Arsa				A token bride price of a cow & a bull is given in place of the dowry
4.		Prajapatya				Father gives girl without dowry & without demanding the bride price
5.		Gandharva				Love Marriage
6.		Asura				In which bride was bought from her father
7.		Rakshasa				Marriage by capture, practiced especially by warriors.
8.		Paishacha				Marriage by seduction
Daiva marriage was considered ideal while paisacha the worst.