________________
MAI, 1911.)
KOYILOLUGU
137
Stone inscriptions of Vira-Ramanatha have also been found at Srirangam. The date of his accession to the throne had been fixed at A.D. 1255 from the fact that one of his Kannanûr records couples the 17th regnal year with the cyclic year Prajapati. One of tho inscriptions of Ramanatha at Srirangam is dated in his second year (=A.D. 1257), and this had been taken to show that the defeat inflicted by J. Sundara-Pandya I, on Virasômêsvara in A.D. 1255, had no lasting effect. It is worthy of note that Kampaya-Dandanayaka served both ander Virasomêsvara and his son, Ramapatha.
Jatavarman Sundara-Pandya I. . We have now to notice the works of another and a more important person. This is SundaraPandya who, as his name indicates, was a Pandya king. Köyilolugu says of him that he defeated the Chêrs, Chola, the Vallila i.e., the Hoysaļas) and others, assumed the biruda 'who took every country and made munificent gifts from the immense booty that he had obtained from the vanquished sovereigns. As agent to the royal donor, Pallavan Vilupparaiyan Kariyamâņikkan, • native of the Pandya country, effected innumerable repairs and additions to the Ranganatha temple. Construction of several tuld purusha mandapas and the completion of the work in the thousand-pillared mandapa, already referred to, are ascribed to Sundara-Pândya and it is also said that the festival conducted in the latter place thenceforward come to be called after him. The king 'caused to be made two gold images, one of Nilâmsai alias Sérakulavalli which he set up on the southern side of the flower-mandapa and the other was of the god but was called PonmêyndaPerumal, after the donor. It was set up in the stone shrine or strong room on the eastern side adjoining the Santdna-mandapa of Periyaliruradi. It is said that the donor originally wanted to present an image of himself in gold under the name Ponmêynda-Peramal, but finding that the temple authorities did not very much relish this idea, he had to abandon it and shape the image after the deity. He made presents of jewelled ornaments and coat of gems to the gods Periya-Peruma! and Alagiyamanavala; a coat of gems to Tiruvanantâlvar; ornaments of ruby (manikkam) and diamond (vayiram), a coat and crown of gems, & garland of raby (mánikkam), & necklace of lotuses, a garland of gold Senbaga flowers, another of Kalunir flowers in gems, a cloth of gold and various other ornaments to Periya-Perumal. He then caused to be covered with gold-plates several parts of the temple; erected a gold flag-staff; presented tubs, lamp-stands and dishes, all made of gold; caused to be dag np a spring in the Kavert for the bathing of the god; made a gold boat for the pleasure-roving of the god and bis consorts ; provided richly for the sacred offerings in the temple and presented gold care, etc. Sandara-Pândya is said to have expended 18 lakhs of gold pieces for covering the temple with gold plates and another 18 lakhs for other purposes and thus acquired the name "he who covered the temple of Srirangam) with gold,
The title Emmandalamungonda, given in the book to Sundara-Pâņdyadeva, enables us to identify him with Jativarman Sundara-Pandya I, the date of whose accession fell in A.D. 1251. He appears to have reigned until at least A.D. 1271.20 In the historical introduction of this king, he styles himself as the ornament of the race of the Moon, i.e. the Pandya, the Madhava of the city of Madhura, the uprooter of the Kerala race, a second Rdma in plundering the island of Lanka, the thunderbolt to the mountain--the Chola race, the dispeller of the Karnâta king, the fever to the elephant Kathaka king, i.e. (the Gajapati) king of Cuttack in Orissa), the jungle fire to the forest Viragandagôpâla, the lion to the deer Ganapati (i.e. the Kakatiya king Ganapati), who was the lord of Kanchi, who performed the anointment of the victors at Vikramasingapura, i.e. Nellore. He is said to have taken Srirangam from the Moon of the Karnata which means the Hoysala Vire Bômêsvara. That the latter's capital, Kannamûr, i.e. Samayavaram, was amongst his possessions
20 No. 198 of the Madras Epigraphical collection for 1906.
