Indian Antiquary Vol 22

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 73

MARCH, 1893.)
MADRAS MUSEUM PLATES OF JATILAVARMAN.
61
ruling at the same time.21 Almost throughout the Tamil districts of Southern India we meet with Pandya inscriptions which, to judge from the characters employed in them, must belong to some of the later kings. Among these may be mentioned Sundara, Vira, Vikrams, Kulasekhara and Parakrama, Marco Polo mentions a “Sonder Bandi” of the Pandya dynasty, 22 who may be identical with the Sandara-Pandya of the inscriptions. Later on, the Pandya kingdom fell a prey to the ambition of the Vijayanagara kings and their feudatories. Coins bearing one or other of the names 'Sundara-Pandiyan (Sundara-Pandya), Vira-Pandiyan (Vira-Pand , and Kulasegaran (Kulabokhara), are not infrequently met with in the bázárs of Tanjore anu Madura. Another coin, bearing the legend 'Samarakôlagalan (i.e. in Sanskrit, Samarakólahala),33 a name which occurs in the traditional lists of Pandya kings, is also often found. He was a king whose dominions extended as far north as Kanchipura where an inscription, dated during his reign, is found, and contains the 'Saka date 1391 expired.21 From this inscription we learn that he was also called Puvanêkavîran (i. e, in Sanskrit Bhuvanaikavira), a name which is likewise found on coins.25 Coins bearing the legends Kachchi-valangum Perumin,28 Ellántalaiy-ánún, 27 Jagavíra-Ráman,29 Kaliyuga-Ráman,29 Séra-lula-Raman, 30 and Pútala,31 are generally ascribed to the Pandya dynasty. From Tamil inscriptions we learn that the capital of the Pandyas was Madura, and that their dominions were often very extensive. That their emblem was the fish, is borne out by inscriptions as well as coins.39 From certain names which occur in Kanarese inscriptions, and which are referred to in Dr. Fleet's Kanarese Dynasties of the Bombay Presidency, it may be concluded that there was a family of Pandya chiefs ruling in the North as feudatories of one or other of the Kanarese dynasties. Probably, some member of the Pandya dynasty of Madura. for some unknown reason, migrated to the North and established for himself a small principality; and his successors appear to have preserved their family name. TribhuvanamallaPàdyadeva, 33 Vira-Pandyadêva34 and Vijaya-Pandyadê va35 were ruling the Noņambavadi
11 The Kalingattu-Parani (canto xi. verse 63) mentions five Pandya princes who had been defeated by Kulôttunga-Chola. This king was, as bas been shown by Mr. Kanakasabbai Pillai (ante, Vol. XIX. p. 338) and Dr. Fleet (ante, Vol. XX. p. 279 f.), identical with the Eastern Chalukya Kulôttunga Chodadeva I. (Saka 985 to 1034), and it is very probable that it is this defeat of the Pandyas that is referred to in the Chidambaram inscription and in the inscriptions found at Tanjore and other places.
12 Dr. Caldwell's History of Tinnevelly, p. 35. But see ante, Vol. XXI. p. 121, where the date of the accession of Sundara-Pandya is calculated from materials supplied by Dr. Hultzsch. We have thus obtained the date of one of the several Sundaras.
23 Sir Walter Elliot's Coins of Southern India, Nos. 134 and 135.
24 Dr. Hultzsch's Progress Report for February to April 1890, Madras G. O. dated 14th May 1890, No. 355, Pablic. 36 Sir Walter Elliot's Coins of Southern India, No. 133.
26 ibid. No. 145. 17 This is the reading of the legend on Elliot's No. 136 soggested by Dr. Holtzsch (ante, Vol. XXI. p. 324) who ascribes it to Sundara-Pån ya. The Rev. J. E. Tracy of Tiramangalam, in his paper on Pandya coins, published in the Madras Journal of Literature and Science, had read Ellen
*Sir Walter Elliot's Coins of Southern India, No. 144. This legend has been read by Mr. Tracy.
» Mr. Tracy's Pandyan Coins, No. 3, and Elliot's No. 147. In an inscription of the Jambukébvara temple on the island of Srirangam (ante, Vol. XXI. p. 121) Sandara Påniya is called Lanka dvipa-luntana-dvitiya-Rama,' a second RAma in plandering the island of Lanka. It is not impossible that the biruda Kaliyuga. Raman bears the same meaning and is intended to denote the same Pandya king.
» Mr. Tracy's Pandyan Coins, No. 11 (wrongly for No. 6).
n ibid. No. 1. The legend on No. 139, Plato iv. of Sir Walter Elliot's Coins of Southern India has been read Korkai-andar. But the correct reading seems to be :-[1.] Son- [2.] du ko. [3.] ndáin). Sônádu means 'the Chola country. One who conquered the Chola cantry' would be an appropriate biruda fora Pandya king. In the Tiruppamikunram inscription, published in the Archaological Survey of Southern India, Vol. IV. Sandara Pandya has the birada Sinada valangiy-aruliya, one who is pleased to distribute the Chola country,' which bas been misread (pp. 44 f.) Sérandu-valangiyaruliya.
$ The Bov. E. Loventhal in his Coins of Tinnevelly (p. 7) says that "there must have been two distinct Pånd ya dynasties, one in Korkai and one in Madura, and there were several branch lines, especially of the Madura Pandyas. Both the chief lines had the elephant and the battle are as their royal marks,
e as their royal marke, probably because they were closely related to ench other." He adds (p. 8) that, later on, "the Madura Pandyas chose the fish mark as their dynastic emblem, that is, when they left Baddhism they changed who elephant mark and took instead of it a pure Vishņu mark--the fish." - Dr. Fleet's Kanarose Dynasties of the Bombay Presidency, p. 51.
ibid. p. 52.
ibid. p. 53.