Madurai: Engraving reveals Chola's spice ambitions'

Madurai: A Tamil inscription engraved on a megalithic standing stone found near Rajakumari in Idukki hill range of Central Kerala has thrown light on Chola King Rajendra I, who had conquered this hill ranges to gain hold of the spices production centres and the arterial trade route traversing through the region.  

“Chola inscriptions have earlier been reported only from the erstwhile south Travancore, now comprising Kanyakumari district of Tamil Nadu. For the first time a Prasasti of a Chola ruler has come to light from Mepara, near Rajakumari in Idukki hill range of central Kerala,” professor Ajit Kumar, department of Archaeology, University of Kerala told DC over telephone.

Ajit Kumar found this inscription, a ‘prasasti’ carved on a megalithic granite stone (funeral monument) nearly of 1'6 feet high recently. “It was engraved with 13 lines in Tamil language and script interspersed with a few ‘Grantha’ words or alphabets. It starts with the invocation Swasti Sri. It is assignable to Rajendra Chola-I (1012 CE-1044 CE) the son of Raja Raja Chola.

He is cited in the inscription as Ko-Parakesarivarman alias Udaiyar Sri Rajendra Chola-deva and dated to his 10th year of reign (1022 CE).”

The conquest of Chera territory (present day Kerala) by Raja Raja Chola and Rajendra Chola I, especially the towns of Vizhinjam, kollam and Makodi or Mahodayapuram- the capital of Chera kings, was already know from the inscriptions found in various temple in Kanyakumari and Thanjavur districts, the professor pointed out.

But the uniqueness of this inscription was that it clearly establishes that Chola king invaded the Chera territory mainly to take control of the trade routes and species trade via the hill ranges. “The early historic antecedents of species trade from hill ranges can also be inferred from the Roman coins found in Nedumkandam, Idamakuduru and Poonjar, all located in Idukki district.”

The inscription narrates that the Chola King Rajendra I had conquered in Idukki hill range from the chieftain Theratteanakarai (Mahodayapuram, the capital of Chera kingdom) in 11 CE. The Chera kingdom flourished in the bank of river Periyar, he said.

And from the Tirumalai inscription of the Rajendra Chola I, it was also known that he had defeated the Ayar king, Vikaramadita Varaguna, referred in the inscriptions as Vikarama Vera, belonging to Chera -Ay clan, said the professor adding, the Tamil literary work Purananuru too mentions of the family of Yadava or Ayar kings residing in the hilly regions and king Ayar-Andiran is referred to as the ‘lord of Podiga mountain ranges’.

Connecting the missing links in the history by correlating these artefacts and literary references helps us to construct a narrative that Idukki hill range played a significant role in species trade.  “I profusely and sincerely thank Prof. K. Rajan of department of History, Pondicherry Central University, and Bala Murugan of Epigraphy Branch, Archaeological Survey of India, Mysuru, for helping me in decipherment of this inscription,” he added.