TAMILAKAM - 1

"Thoothan varuvaan, Maari pozhiyum " - This reminds us of the cult classic "Aayirathil Oruvan" movie, but most of us are not reminded of the magnificent cholas and their unbeatable achievements.

Goosebumps alert!!!! Once you start reading, the Cholas’ achievements will leave you spell bound.

As you all know cholas were impeccably great and their achievements are no less than any other kingdom of the west or the Song dynasty of the far east.


HISTORY

The cholas' reign is divided into early medieval and the later. The chola dynasty was established by 300 BCE/BCE. They ruled from 848CE/AD to 1279 CE/AD.

The notifiable king of early cholas was Karikalachozhan, the one who built the majestic Kallanai dam located in Tiruchirappalli.

Not to mention, the Cholas‘ reign rose to peak of power during the reign of medieval or imperial cholas. This period included the great Raja Raja chozhan I and Rajendra Chozhan I.

The late cholas reign began with the magnificent Kulothunga chola I and ended with the Rajendra Chola III.

THE REIGN

Cholas were once the most powerful kingdom of the Tamilakam among – the cheras, pandyas and pallavas.  The Sangam literature, Ashoka pillar (240 BCE) holds illustrations about the cholas. Even the Burmese king, Kyanzittha (1086–1113), wrote a letter on golden leaves to Kulothunga Chola I. Such a peaceful diplomatic overseas relationship was maintained.


The reign of Rajendra III ended when the history changer Jatavarman Sundara pandiyan, defeated the cholas and their allies – the Hoysalas. Rajendra chola III is said to have fled to Gangaikondacholapuram , but his demise or later life is a complete mystery.

ART AND ARCHITECTURE:

THE Kallanai, Brihadeshwara temple, Gangai konda cholapuram, Airawateshwara temple are the proofs of their greatness.

INDIANIZATION AND THE REAL KADARAM KONDAAN

 The chola empire extended from major parts of present-day Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh to parts Sri lanka,Maldives,Singapore, Indonesia,Malaysia, Southern Thailand.The proofs of these exist in the immortal inscriptions found in the temples.

In the present Era, we are all familiar with the term “Westernization”, but many of us haven’t heard of the term “Indianization”. Just imagine, how great our ancestors were and the way our Indian culture was spread. Most of the South Eastern countries have gone through the phase of Indianization. The Cholas were the ones who played the major role in this meticulous process.

The decimation of Sri Vijaya( parts of present day Singapore and Indonesia)and the successful expedition and conquest of Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, some parts of Cambodia and Vietnam earned Rajendra Chola the title ‘Kadaram vendran (one who conquered Kadaram)’ and also made all the kings his vassals(puppet king). Many of the Chola Kings ruled indirectly through vassals.

A DEVIATION -THE LARGEST TEMPLE 

The Angkor wat ,  the largest Hindu temple ,located in present day Khmer , Cambodia in the world is considered as the unsung world wonder by the historians .Presently , it is an UNESCO world heritage site and a Buddhist shrine Initially built as a Vaishnava(Vishnu)  temple by king Suryavarman II (1113 AD to 1150 AD) and completed by Jayavarman VII in Angkor or Yashodhapuram  within a time span of 38-40 years . A modern-day fact is that, even with the presence of the machines and much technology, it will take nearly 300 years to build one such marvel.

According to a common man belonging to Cambodia, the temple and the kingdom have no relations with the kingdoms of Tamilakam. But the historians, oppose it. Why???

Stay tuned!!!!