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DATES OF PANDYA KINGS.
No. 25.]
Wassif and Rashid-ud-din assert that "Sundar Pandi " died in Hijra 692, the last day of which year was December 1st, A.D. 1293 (Yule's Marco Polo, II. 269). I see no real reason why we should not accept the date as being one of the 11th year, vis. October 29th, A.D. 1287, and if so, it supports the evidence offered by the second of the two groups given below; but it is perhaps safer to reject the date as a basis for argument. K. 55 is also doubtful since it would seem that, if correct in other respects, a wrong solar month was quoted, and K. 56 must be set aside because it is evident that the regnal year has been wrongly quoted; the date given in A.D. 1286 as the ninth year is at variance with all the other dates yet examined, and would postpone the king's accession to a date subsequent to March 29th, A.D. 1277. I also discard my No. 75 (above) for the reason given in my note on that inscription. This leaves nine dates by which we may be guided, if No. 76 is accepted as I think it certainly may be.
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Of these nine, K. 25, K. 27, K. 52, K. 54, put together, give us August 28th, A.D. 1275 to May 15th, A.D. 1276 as the limit; and K. 23, K. 24, and my 74, 76, 77 give us October 1st, A.D. 1276 to March 14th, A.D. 1277, as the limit of the accession of this king.
With regard to overlapping of reigns, e.g. August A.D. 1289 being in the 13th or 14th year of this king (K. 23, 24) when June 27, A.D, 1289, is placed also in the 22nd year of Maravarman Kulasekhara I. (K. 48)-it is well to note that Marco Polo (Yule, II. 267) says "In this province (Maabar) there are five kings who are own brothers. . . . at this end of the province reigns one of those five Royal Brothers, who is a crowned King, and his name is SONDER BANDI DAVAR." Wassaf, speaking of the same king under the name "DEWAR SUNDAR PANDI" says he had "three brothers, each of whom established himself in independence in some different country" (ibid. 269). This account is strongly supported by the Chinese annals (ibid. 273), where the country is called "Maparh," or Malabar, and is reported to have sent tribute (presents) to Kublai Khan in A.D. 1286. " Pauthier has given some very curious and novel extracts from Chinese sources regarding the diplomatic intercourse with Ma'bar in 1280 and the following years, Among other points these mention 'the five brothers who were Sultans."" See also my remarks in the last paragraph of No. 69 above.
Colonel Yule's note from which I have quoted gives us some further important information regarding the kingdom (or kingdoms) of Madura at this period. Wassaf introduces (1310) a king whom he calls "Kales Dewar" who had ruled for 40 years, and whom we may identify with Märavarman Kulasekhara I. in whose 40th year, vis, March 18th 1308 A.D.. was engraved the inscription at Tiruvarur (above VIII. p. 276), and in his 41st year, vis. June 9th, A.D. 1309, the inscription at Sinnamanur (No. 73 of the present publication).1 "He had two sons, Sundar Bandi by a lawful wife, and Pirabandi (Vira Pandi ?) illegitimate. He designated the latter as his successor. Sundar Bandi, enraged at this, slew his father" and seized the throne. Vira-Pandya drove him out, and Sundara-Pandya sought aid from the Muḥammadans, which led to Malik Kafar's raid. The story is confirmed by Amir Khusra.
It must be remembered that this Sundara-Pandya, who murdered his father Kulasekhara I., was not our Jatavarman Sundara-Pandya II. who seems to have died in A.D. 1293, but a subsequent prince of the same name and family. We have as yet no published inscrip. tions bearing date between 1309 and 1317 A.D. in the Pandya territories. If any of the parricide Sundara-Pandyas come to light we shall have to call that king (or prince) SundaraPandya III.
This was the Kulasekhara to whom the Tamils entrusted the tooth relic carried away by them from Ceylon (Mahavansa, ch. XC, verse 43). It was returned a few years later. The Mahavansa also mentiors "the five brethren who governed the Pandyan kingdom" in the reign of Bhuvaneka Bahu of Ceylon whose date Bell gives as 1277-1288 A.D.
