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MAT, 1911.]
KOYILOLUGU
185
Nammalvår is true; but it is against the traditional account of the Vaisbộayas. At any rate, there is no doubt that the three were contemporaries and that they lived in the middle of the 8th century A.D.
The next royal person who contributed to the repairs of the Srirangam temple is Cbój@ndrı. simba. This Chôļêndrasińha has not yet been identified with any of the known kings of the Chôļa dynasty. But there is not the slightest doubt as to his being a historical personage. At the village of Melpadi on the western bank of the river Nugâ are two temples, at present called Chobvars And Sómanátha. The inscriptions in the former state that it was built by the Chola king Rajaraja I (A.D. 985-1018), who named it Ariñjigai-tsvars. The lithic records in the other temple disignate it as Obôlêndrasimhekvara and one of them, dated in the 14th year of the reign of Rajaraja I, mentions Cholêndrasimha Mêyilagi who, as his name indicates, must bave been an officer under the king. From the first part of his name it can be said that Obôlêndrasimba was # surname of Rajaraja I. Though there is no statement in the Melpadi records to the effect that Chôļêndrasinha-Isvara was built by Rajaraja, there is thus no doubt that the temple came into existence during his time as Chồlêndrasimha wag one of his surnames. In this connection it may also be noted (1) that the village of Melpadi itself was called Rajasrayapuram after one of the surnames of Rajaraja, (2) that the two temples in the village bear records of his, and (9) that the name Chôlêndrasinha does not occur in earlier records than the time of Rajaraja.
Ramanuja and his predecessors. When Uyyakkondêr and Manakkalnambi were managing the affairs of the Srirangan temple, there was a powerful invasion by one of the Gajapati kinge of Orissa. When the news of it reached the island, the people removed the god Alagiyamanavala to Tirumaliruõjólai and kept it there for one year. At this time, several residents of Srfrangam proved themselves enemies of the god and most of those who performed worship in the temple, died. Persons belonging to other creeds occupied the temple premises and built houses of their own. Worship in the temple fell into the hands of Nambis who were conversant in the Vaikhanasa sastrag. Under the influence of these two managers,
certain Álavandâr was indaced to becoine & Vaishọava and entrusted with the management of the temple which he ably condacted for a long time.
The successor of Alavandâr in the office of the manager of the Srirangam temple was the great Vaishṇava teacher Ramanaja. Of him the book relates a long story. He was born at Sriperambûdûr and was undergoing educational training under Yadavaprakasa. When entrusted with the management of the temple, he wont minutely into every account and fixed the scale of expenditure required for each occasion. In his scrutiny, he found out that the treasury was in a state of confasion and he, therefore, applied himself strenuously to organise & system for the better conduct of business. In this, he was strongly opposed by the temple servants who began to give him trouble. He was, therefore, foroed to leave the place. He is said to have spent two years at Tiruvea]]arai where he built a tank. Coming back to Srirangam, he divided the work of the temple in 10 different branches and appointed persons to carry them out. It is said that the arrangement made by him contributed largely to increase the wealth of the temple. After providing for the recitation of Tiruvdymoļi, Tirumoli and other Vaishnava hymns in the temple, he went out on tour to establish the superiority of the Vaishṇava creed in all quarters, leaving Mudali Andan in his place at Srirangan. Ramanuja soon fell out with the Chola king who was a staunch Sails and whose persecutions of the Vaishnavas drove the teacber to seek shelter in the country of the Hoysalas. Råmaaaja is said to have been in charge of the Srirangam temple for 3 period of 60 years prior to the commencement of his religious tour. Köyilolugu also records that a certain Kalôttunga succeeded the Chola king who persecuted Ramanuja and that the new sovereign was rather favourable to the Vaighoaviten.
