there were a few dynasties called themselves cholans in places other than traditional cholamandalam. 1. chalukya cholas(11-12th century coastal andhrapradesh) 2. hoysala cholas( 13th century karnataka) 3.chodagangas( 14th century odissa) 4. telugu chodas ( rayala seema region 5-8th century?) 5.jaffna chola chakravarthis ( 14th century northern ceylon) 6. kongu cholas( western tamil nadu-5-8th century?) 7. thai cholas ( thailand 12th century)
Orriyuran is belived to be the father of Vijayalaya Chola. Please go through the follwoing text: Thiruttani and Velanjeri Copper Plates A chance find of a bronze group of Vrshavahana, Devi and a bull, with a prabha, by playful School Children at the Village Velanjeri near Thiruttani, on 6-10-1977 led to the discovery of two important Copper Plate grants, one issued by the Pallava ruler Aparajita and another by Parantaka Chola I. A metal object resembling a nail was found in their school play ground by the school boys. Out of curiosity the boys uncovered a part of the earth and found to their surprise a metal image. With the help of their teacher they skillfully dug out the image and soon found another image and a bull lying there carefully burried. From the report of the teacher, it is seen that the images, were deliberately burried, possibly fearing some desecration or theft. The find of these bronze images attracted large crowds from the nearby villages and the story of the find appeared in the news-papers. Where upon, I deputed the Registering Officer of the Department to inspect the find and submit a report. During his investigation the villagers who discovered the find handed over the two historic copper plates which are now in the custody of the Tamil nadu Department of Archaeology.
Both the copper plates are intact and are fairly well preserved. One of the copper plates was issued by the Pallava ruler Aparajitavarman in his ninth year. The other one was issued by Parantaka Chola in the 25th year about 930 A.D. Both these plates, particularly the Pallava copper plate throws very valuable light on the political and religious history of Tamilnadu and is the most important discovery in recent years.
The Pallava copper plate mentions the gift of taxes to the Subrahmanya temple on the top of Thiruttani hill by the Pallava ruler Aparajitavarman who is portrayed as a great devotee of Lord Subrahmanya. For the first time, the history of the famous Subhramanya temple of Thiruttani is taken to a very remote antiquity. The present copper plates shows that the Subrahmanya temple was in existence even earlier than 900 A.D.
The Pallava copper plate is also important from another angle. Hitherto the place of Aparajita Pallava in the Pallava line was not known. For the past hundred years Scholars have been trying to assess his position and his relationship with other Pallava rulers and contemporaries. Aparajita was considered the son of Nandivarman and a step-brother of Kampavarman and so on.
All the surmises of scholars are proved wrong by the present discovery. The present Velanjeri copper plate mentions that Aparajita was the son of Pallava ruler Kampavarman through a Ganga Princess whose name is given as Vijaya. The copper plate also details the relationship between Kampavarman and Nrpatunga and also the battles won by Aparajita which are of vital interest to the history of the latter Pallavas. The present copper plate throws very valuable light and removes many confusions that have been prevalent with reference to the history of later Pallavas.
The Chola copper plate is also of great interest. It refers to the conquest of Kanchipuram and erection of imposing palaces there by Karikala Chola. It mentions the spider story about the birth of Koccengannan. For the first time, the name of Vijayalayachola's father is known as Orriyuran. About Parantaka, the donor, the copper plate states that he performed Tulabhara in the temples of Kanyakumari, Ramesvaram and Srirangam.
Both the copper plates were said to have been in a clay pot which has also been recovered. The plates and pot were willingly gifted to the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology, by the villagers. The texts and translations of the copper plate charters and also a brief history of Thiruttani are published here.
The image of Siva standing on a pedestal is about 95 c.m. in height. The Devi also standing is about 93 c.m. and the Bull 40 c.m. All the three are placed on a badhrapitha of 15 c.m. in height. A prabha, somewhat broken, covering all the three images about 280 c.m. has also been found. The form of Siva seems to indicate an early date while that of the Devi and the bull seems to be some what later. They fit in with the pedestal. The images probably belong to a period between 950 and 980 A.D.
APARAJITA'S PLATE Among the two copper plate charters found at Velanjeri, Aparajita's plate is the earliest. The charter consists of five plates fastened to a seal. The charter has not suffered any damage, and is available in full.
The plates, five in number, are 27 cm. in length and 10 cm. in width; the ring is 16 cm. in diameter; the seal 9.5 cm. in diameter is countersunk to a debth of 1 cm. The plates are not numbered. The first and the last pages of the plates are not inscribed. The letters are deeply cut and fairly well written with few mistakes.
The seal The seal which is intact, carries the figure of a seated bull in the centre facing left. It is typical of the bulls found in other Pallava seals and stone sculptures. It is flanked by lamps on stands (Kuttu vilakku). Above the bull are shown ashtamangalas, (the eight auspices symbols), among which Kendi, Srivatsa, lamp and mirror are clearly visible. This is topped by an umbrella and fly whisks flanking the parasol. In the rim portion is an inscription in grantha characters reading- Svasti Sri - ntrasa siras sreni sri sikha sayi sasanam rajnah Pallava vamsendoh sri Aparajitavarmanah. Aparajitavarmanah The verse ends with the word Aparajitavarmanah i.e. of Aparajita varman. This word is repeated again as Aparajitavarmanah immediately below the seated bull. The repetition of this word is not only interestsing but also rare. It seems to indicate that the seal is that of Aparajita and that the same word in the verse relates to the royal sasana as a whole.
A point of interest is that the seal was embossed by a smith, whose name is given as Videlvidugu Perun-kannan. So far we have not come across in the Tamil country the name of the artist who embossed the royal seal. It shows that the kings had in their employment artisans to inscribe the order on the plates and separate artisans to emboss the seals.
The Grant The grant was issued by the Pallava ruler, Aparajita, in his ninth regnal year.
After giving the mythical genealogy of the Pallavas, the grant begins with Kampavarman. He seized the throne from Pallava Nrpatunga with glory. A certain Vijaya of matchless virtues and born of the Ganga family, was his queen. Aparajita was their son. Aparajita destroyed the elepants of the Bana ruler, captured Karanai,the Pandya city, and won a great battle against the Chola at Chirrarrur.
At the request of one Vamanayya, the king gifted the village Pudur, in Thiruttaniyal nadu, to the sabha of Melirunjeru as a devatana brahmadeya and stipulated that the village should pay one thousand kadi of paddy as Pancavara to Lord Subrahmanya who is pleased to stand on the hill. The record details the boundaries of the lands gifted, the tax exemptions and the privileges conferred on the village.
A certain Podini Mahadeva bhatta was the composer of this grant. This silpin Vijayanna engraved the charter and a certain Videlvidugu Perunkannan embossed the seal.
Language The grant, like all other Pallava grants of the seventh and eighth century A.D. is bilingual, written in Sanskrit and Tamil.
The Sanskrit portion is in poetry and prose. The poetic version describe the explooits of Kampavarman, and Aparajita and extols the greatness of Vijaya, the mother of Aparajita.
The prose part closely follows the style of the age, as reflected in Bana's 'Kadambari', 'Harsha Carita' and also the prose portion of the Kuram plates of Paramesvara varman. It contains a long drawn out passage and is written with an eye on word play. It is a beautiful composition, essentially musical. Mahadeva the composer, was certainly an eminent poet, who inherited his father's poetic talent. His father Srikumara is praised as a composer of mahakavyas. The drafting of the Tamil portion is equally good and free from mistakes.
VELANCHERI PLATES OF PARANTAKA CHOLA I The plates Parantaka's charter, consists of five plates fastened to a ring and seal. The plates measure 22 cm. in length, 6.5 c.m. in breadth and 3 m.m. in thickness. The charter is engraved on both the sides of all the copper plates. The ring and seal are intact. The lertters are fairly well preserved.
The seal The seal, fairly well preserved and measuring 7.5 c.m. in diameter is fastened to a ring 15.0 c.m. in diameter. On the face of the seal is found the chola emblem, viz. two fish and a seated tiger placed on a bow flanked by two lamp stands and topped by a parasol and two chauris. Running around the emblem is an inscription in grantha characters recording that it is a charter of Parakesarivarman. The inscription is fully preserved. The emblem and the letters are embossed from a mould and are not chisselled. The inscription on the seal reads:-
Svasti Sri Srimat chandra nyuteneva Chola vamsa sikhamaneh Sasanam Chola bhubartuh Parakesarivarmanah.
The grant The grant is in two parts, the first part is in Sanskrit, written in grantha characters and the second part is in Tamil, in Tamil characters. Both the parts refer to the gift of villages made by Parantaka chola, the Sanskrit part being brief and the Tamil part giving detailed descriptions of the lands, taxes exempted etc. However it is in the Sanskrit portion the geneology of the grantor is given, which is of great interest for reconstructing history. Like all other copper plates of the period, the sanskrit portion is in poetry and prose. However the sanskrit portion lacks the poetic embellishments found in Aparajita's charter. The Sanskrit part consists of 17 verses followed by a prose.
Parantaka's plate is dated in his 25th regnal year, 932 A.D. It gives the names of the progenitors of the Chola line beginning with Vishnu, followed by Brahma, Marichi, Kasyapa, Surya and Usinara. Karikala, Sibi and Koccengannan receive special attention. The tale of Sibi is often repeated in all the Chola records and literature. This record says that Lord Agni took the form of a vulture and came chasing the dove. With a view to save the suffering and life of the dove, Sibi gave his own flesh and rescued the dove from torture.
Karikala Three important events in the life of Karikala are mentioned. (1) He caused the crest of the Cholas marked on the slopes of Himalayas. (2) He raised embankments on either side of river Kaveri and controlled its flood and (3) he made Kanchi a city of palaces.
Parantaka Chola's Udayendram plates(1) mention only the name of Karikala without referring to his exploits. Hence this is perhaps the earliest Chola record to refer to the exploits of Karikala. The two points of historic interest are the raising of embankments on either side of river Kaveri; and his conquest upto Kanchi. Regarding the later event, Prof. Sastri has the following to say(2) 'His conquest of Tondaimandalam and settlement of agrarian colonies there, are other elements in the Karikala legends, that can find no support from the earliest authorities on his reign. It would seem that Tondainadu was ruled by Tondaiman Ilamtiraiyan in the days of Karikala and there is no satisfactory evidence in support of the suggestion that has been made that this chieftain was the grandson of Karikala or atleast a viceroy appointed by him after his conquest of Kanchi'.
The above views of Sastri need modification in the light of the present grant. This seems to suggest that Karikala's power extended upto Kanchi and that Karikala fortified the city and built great palaces. According to literary sources Karikala's son is said to have married a Naga princess and the child born to them was called Tiraiyan. The word Tiraiyan is derived from the legend that he was wafted on the shore by the waves of the sea (tirai-i.e.-wave). Interestingly an eighth century Pallava copper plate seems to lend support to this legend. The Kasakkudi plate(3) referring to the lake (now called Tenneri) Triayaneri calls it in the sanskrit portion as Tira-laya-tataka. Tira-laya (wafted on the shore) appears as the Sanskrit equivalent of Tiraiyan. This legend seems to have been popular long before 8th century., the date of the Kasakkudi plates. Karikala's conquest of Kanchi as suggested by the present copper plate of Parantaka shows that it was a historical fact and that Tiraiyan was in some way connected with Karikala.
Koccengannan The legend of Koccengannan, being a spider in his earlier birth and on account of weaving a web over the linga, is referred to in saint Appar's Devaram in 7th Century A.D. The story of Kaccengannan being a spider and blessed by Siva, taking birth in the line of Cholas is mentioned in this grant. It seems to be almost a translation of what Saint Appar says in his Devaram.
A point of interest is the number of battles won by Koccengannan, mentioned by Thirumangai Alvar.(4) In the Thirunaraiyur Padigam (sacred hymns on the Lord of Thirunaraiyur), Thirumangai Alvar, calls him Sembiyan Koccengannan Koccolan, Ten nadan (Lord of the Southern country is Pandya), Kudakongan Ponninadan, Ten Tamilan, Vadapulakkon etc. Among the battles, Venni figures prominently, but his opponents at Venni are not mentioned. One Vilandavel is mentioned as an enemy defeated by him. Alundai, probably identical with Teralundur near Mayuram is also mentioned as a battlefield where he distinquished himself. Thirumangai also refers to the construction of seventy madakkoil to 'Entol Isar' generally identified with Siva. There are also others who consider this as a reference to ashta bujakara Vishnu. At any rate he seems to have been a great devotee of both Siva and Vishnu. While such great victories are mentioned by Thirumangai, a saint of eighth century A.D., no other record speaks of his conquests. Even this plate of Parantaka refers only to the spider story of Koccengannan. (Parantaka was not a religious fanatic. In this very copper plate his benefactions to Srirangam and Kanyakumari are mentioned). That this plate also refers to Koccengannan as a Sivabhakta and is silent abut this Vishnu bhakti would indicate that Thirumangai's reference to his construction of seventy mada temple to Entol Isar, seems to refer to Siva temples.
Orriyuran, the father of Vijayalaya The charter refers to one Orriyuran born in that family. The inscription places Orriyuran immediately after Koccengannan.(5) The name Orriyuran is significant. Orriyur is the name of a sacred Saivite village near Madras and obviously the name Orriyuran is derived from this village. In the time of the early Cholas, a number of chieftains like the Irukkuvel and Ilangovel are seen bearing this name.(6) Obviusly these names were after this Chola who figures as the father of Vijayalaya in this record. Incidently this is the first time we get the name of the father of Vijayalaya as Orriyuran. The name of Vijayalaya is not specifically mentioned in this record but it says that the son of Orriyuran was a great fighter, the fire to the forest of enemy rulers. His son is mentioned as Aditya.
The record does not mention either the battles or conquests of Vijayalaya and Aditya.
Parantaka Aditya's son is referred to as Parantaka. This charter is silent even about Parantaka's conquest though it was issued in the 25th year when he had made major conquests over Madurai and Lanka and assumed the title, 'Maduraiyum Ilamum Konda'.(7) His Udayendram plate issued a few years earlier refers to these conquests but yet they are not mentioned in this record. On the other hand this record refers to the performance of Tulabhara ceremonies in Ramesvaram Kanyakumari and Srirangam by Parantaka. This is new information furnished by this grant. It is known from other grants and ulas, that Parantaka covered the golden hall of Chidambaram with gold. The omission of reference to these events means nothing.
It is difficult to say whether Parantaka gilded Chidambaram temple with gold after his 25th year or earlier.
There's another Chola ruler mentioned in the Velurpalayam plates of Nandivarman III, called Kumarankusa Chola:
(V. 26.) The heroic head-jewel of the Chola race named Kumarankusa, the glory of whose prowess was well-known, whose liberality was equal to that of Radheya (i.e., Karna) and whose conduct was upright, made the (*necessary*) request (*vijnapti*) for (*securing*) this (*grant*).
Was he a Chola of Uraiyur or one of the other lines like the Telugu Chodas?
He seems to have made the request on behalf of someone from Thirukattupalli, which would indicate Chola nadu, and not anywhere else. All this points to him being an ancestor of Vijayalaya...
Dear - The copper plate also mentions the Kottam and Nadu where Tirukkattuppalli is situated. It is Puzhal Kottam and Nadu is either Gnayiru or Otriyur.
That is why we were wondering where this tirukkattuppalli is and then you found that near ennore. Since the location is close by, it could be Telugu Cholas.
Can you check the details of kottam and nadu of the copper plate