The Yamuna-Kaveri 'Tehzeeb' of my life!

Vanakkam Makkalay!

Arangamaanagarulane - Aadi Rangam

The Yamuna Phase

Its been a little more than seven months since I shifted from the banks of river Yamuna to the banks of river Kaveri. My father used to pull my leg saying that when I am in the banks of Kaveri I become a mischievous and a lazy kid. Thus, he made me do my college far away in the banks of Yamuna. But I have never been closer to home even at Thanjavur than I was closer to my traditions and culture at Delhi. I was never able to feel home to understand and associate with Yamuna though. (One simple anecdote on this note is the taste of Kaapi. For some reasons the Kaapi I made with all the popular and regular filter coffee powders never tasted right in Delhi. I tried many combinations and ratios to make it perfect but was never able to achieve it. Until I moved to Mysuru, found a new constant 'Gayathri Coffee Works' in Devaraja market. Their special blend powder's aroma touches your soul when you brew. Might sound silly, but believe me 'twas a serious issue.)

Arangamaanagarulane - Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Satsangam's Primary Object of Worship

The South Indian Temples, Vishnu Sahasranama Satsangam and other activities made Delhi feel like a home. At some point I even thought that there is no going back for me from Delhi. Every time I finished and tried rushing back to Thanjavur, Indraprastha would soon drag me back for some reasons. I made friends, brothers, sisters and mentors and they welcomed me to their homes, made me part of their families, appreciated me and I became the 'Chamathu Kondhay' the parents would compare their kids with saying 'look at how he is regular to temple, doing his Nithyakarmas etc.' I am hope they knew that the delicious Prasadams and the company of the people that made me going to the temple most of the times. But the fact is I got to learn a lot about my culture, identity, purpose and life. Dhanyawad to Dilli!

Vaikunthanatha Swami, Delhi

The Kaveri Phase

April 2023 - Feb 2025 was the climax of Delhi time for me. I stepped into the world of job, switched jobs within months. Towards the end, a call came from a batchmate who was not so familiar beyond just the knowledge of each other's existence and she became the reason for my homecoming (Not exactly to Thanjavur, but to the beautiful city nourished by the Kaveri river, Mysuru). The initial month was to orient myself to the place, people and the work. Then became my frequent visits to my home, being closer to mom, doing things I love (doing tours and talking about the history of Cholas & Thanjavur region). Surprisingly, the workplace in Mysuru had put me in touch with lot of good people (I am grateful for each and everyone). More than anything, it got me closer to Kaveri. I don't know from when did I grew so fond of Kaveri. But I know one thing for sure that it is the purest, cleanest Kaveri that is flowing that had made me so fond of her. Because, the same divine Kaveri when she reaches and blesses the fertile land of Thanjavur, she had seen a lot by then and carries all the dirt and sin of people along with her (Sorry got too much philosophical. Kaveri is revered even holier than the Ganges (Sorry Ganga Maiyya, we have this bias and affection towards Kaveri).

The Royal Mysuru

I am trying to recollect why I started writing this post. Nevertheless, I am enjoying my time at Mysuru and feeling home with lovely people around me (Don't Put Nazar pleej). The colors, the calm, Kaveri and Kaapi are all the reasons. The joy of being in a city that retains its rural characteristics is something that is unexplainable. Seeing agricultural fields, clean and sacred river flowing in some 10 kms radius, a chaotic and historic local market are something that I missed for a decade while I was in Delhi. Not to forget my palatial workplace filled with culturally vibrant objects and every corner to fall in love with. The work that I am doing has restored my confidence in many ways.

My Dear Kaveri

I am realizing this while writing my post that how these two rivers actually shaped my journey. Right now I am being embraced by Kaveri's warmth and I like to hold on to that. I also feel that Delhi lingers in me a little and I carry the Delhi within me.

I think the universe puts you at the right place in the right time. Trust the process!

Siddhartha's forgotten Wife - Buddha and Yashodhara - Dr. Anand Burdhan

"காதல் வந்து நுழைந்தால்

போதி மரக்கிளையில் ஊஞ்சல் கட்டி புத்தன் ஆடுவான்"

Buddha will swing under the Bodhi tree if he falls in love

- Na. Muthukumar, 'Pudichirukku' Song from Saamy Movie

"But it was not something Buddha did"

I know, you all are wondering that I'm writing after some three years and beginning with some quirky lyrics from a cinema song. Apparently, the idea to write this post struck my mind while listening to the song while driving back home after a lecture of Dr. Anand Burdhan on 'early historical sculptural art' at my workplace.

Although laziness was a primary reason, wandering from city to city and other useless things I was doing kept me away from writing detailed blogs. With the advent of attention and audience in Instagram was also a reason of me staying away from BlogSpot. In these three years, many good things have happened, I have learned and unlearned many lessons in my life. 

My job and the acquaintances are few among the good things that has happened. I have this privilege of attending the classes of the art appreciation course that's being coordinated by our division. There was this lecture on 'Early Historical Sculptural Art' by Dr. Anand Burdhan on 16th May, 2024. Dr. Burdhan is the deputy dean and assistant professor at the School of Heritage Research and Management at the Ambedkar University, Delhi. His expertise areas are museology, heritage studies and management, temple architecture and cosmology.I am yet to process the impact of Dr. Burdhan's lecture. 

I was mostly confined to only topics related to South Indian history and temple architecture. My brain complicated the process of grasping the historical information beyond the geographical area that I come from. But Dr. Burdhan’s lectures are one such enlightening experiences which leaves an imprint and the content of his subject stays in your mind.

Dr. Burdhan began with sculptural art of Mauryan age, then on to Sunga art and its important centres. Then came the Gandhara sculptural art. Dr. Anand Burdhan's impact is mainly because of two factors. One is his deep-rooted knowledge and the next is his style of delivering. His remarkable memory of citing the exact verses from various texts and of inscriptions are impeccable and leaves me speechless.

Buddha being worshipped by Indra & Brahma - Wikimedia Commons

Coming to the subject, Dr. Anand Burdhan was explaining about how only two gods from the Hindu pantheon is depicted in Buddhist sculptural art. Indra and Brahma were the two gods accompanied Buddha to this world when he was descending from the heavens of Indra after preaching. In few sculptures one can see Indra and Brahma depicted along Buddha, sometimes worshipping Buddha as well.

In the Buddhist text of Lalit Vistara, this incident from the life of Buddha has been described. Immediately after enlightenment, Buddha remembers none but his wife, Yashodhara. The very fraction of moment he starts to go and visit yashodhara. Lord Brahma then says to Indra to stop Buddha and remind him of his duties to preach the ignorant people. But Buddha persists to visit her. Yashodhara unlike Gauthama, couldn't throw away her responsibilities and also she was not yearning for a justification from Gauthama. Buddha, later conveys that he was wrong thinking that he was ignorant that Yashodhara might not leave him if he wanted to renunciate and abandon everything for enlightenment. Buddha goes to Yashodhara and she throws him a question 'Oh enlightened one! do you remember me?' To which Buddha responds saying, 'Yes, Indeed. I remember you. After enlightenment the first thought came to my mind was about you and here I am.'

A lot of thing happen beyond this conversation which leads to Yashodhara admiring Buddha's enlightenment. Yashodhara also expresses her wish to join the Sangraha after listening to the words of Buddha. She realizes that Gauthama have become enlightened and he was no more the same person who abandoned his wife, newborn child and the whole kingdom sneaked out in the night. 

While I browsed some other sources, came across the description of the same incident in different manner. But here I just wanted to share an excerpt from the lecture of Dr. Anand Burdhan. This post is a result of the impact of his lecture. Otherwise I don't have substantial knowledge about Buddhism and Buddha to an extent to comment about it. Thus, mistakes are possible and pardon me for the same.

 

Yours Eastgaterr

 

Remnants of Ancient Pallavas in the Glorious Capital of the Cholas

The main reason that Tamil Nadu is known for its great temples and the marvelous architecture began when Mahendravarma Pallava built a temple carved out from the rock in Mandagapattu. Mahendravarma Pallava was also known as Vichitra-Chittan for him being a unique innovator. The kings after Mahendravarma Pallava innovated more creative ideas and built different types of temples. Temples in rock (Mamallapuram, Mandagapattu, Seeyamangalam and other cave temples), temples in sandstone (Kanchi Kailasanathar, Vaikunda Perumal Temple) etc.

Pallavas can rightly be called as the fathers of temple architecture when it comes to Tamil Nadu. But people of Tamil Nadu almost forgot this dynasty.

Cholas became powerful in the 9^th Century winning over the Pallavas who were declining because of constant wars with the Chalukyas from the north and Pandiyas from the South. Before that Pallavas ruled over the large area of present day Tamil Nadu comprising the areas of present day Thanjavur, Trichy and Pudukkottai districts. We can see ancient rock-cut cave temples and other structural temples with the design elements of the Pallava style in the above mentioned areas.

Towards the end of their rule, Pallavas realized the necessity of building and strengthening a capital towards south of their headquarter Kanchi. They chose the fertile lands between the many tributaries of the Cauvery River. Nandivarman II, is credited with the construction of this southern base. This new base for Pallavas was built in and around the present villages of Kandiyur and Veerasingampettai near Thiruvaiyaru. This base of the Pallavas were known as Nandipuram, Aayirathali (Temple of 1000 Lingams). This Nandipuram finds it mention only during and after the period of Nandivarman II. Also some other Chola inscriptions of Parantaka I, Rajaraja I and Rajendra I talks about few other Chola temples that were functioning at that point of time. Such temples are now only found in the inscriptions.

The first literary mention of Thanjavur in the hymn of Thiruvizhimizhalai by Appar (7^th Century) gives us the name of a temple called ‘Thanjai Thalikulathu Mahadevar’ and in the hymns of Azhwars sung praising Lord Vishnu of Thanjai Maamani Kovil. All these mentions shows us there were temples that pre-dates the Chola period temples. But today because of the ravages of time and fortunate cultural rejuvenation that happened during the period of Cholas, Nayaks and the Marathas of Thanjavur, these ancient temples reflects only the later historic fabric.

When Rajendra shifted his capital from Thanjavur to Gangaikonda Cholapuram, Thanjavur lost its prominence as an administrative center. After the decline of Cholas, Nayaks were appointed to rule Thanjavur and they brought back the charm to Thanjavur. They reconstructed many temples and also built new temples using the materials and debris from the dilapidated structures. 

Pallava Simha Pillar at the Mahamandapam of Brihadeeshwara Temple

Even though Thanjavur was celebrated by the Cholas, Nayaks and the Marathas, it still shelters the remnants of the Pallavas graciously. Temples that were reconstructed during the Nayak period carry these fragments of glorious past of Thanjavur before the Cholas made it as their capital. Even the Brihadeeshwara temple, pinnacle of Chola temple architecture shelters a Pallava Simha pillar at the Mahamandapam which was repaired and reconstructed by the Nayaks of Thanjavur.

Pallava Simha Pillar at Narasimha Perumal Temple, Palliagraharam

Thanjai Maamani Kovil is a Divyadesam, abode of lord Vishnu sanctified by the Azhwars. Three temples located back to back at the Palliagraharam on the banks of river Vennaru. The first temple in the line is of Narasimha Perumal where a Simha Pillar of Pallava period is put to inappropriate use in the temple’s well here. 

Ganesha Sculpture at Konkaneshwarar Temple

Konkaneshwarar temple in the west main street is a Nayak period temple and later renovated during the Marathas rule. This temple shelters 2 beautiful sculptures of Pallavas style. One is the sculpture of Lord Ganesha and another is of Chandikeshwara.

Chandikeshwara Sculpture at Konkaneshwara Temple

There are temples in and around Thanjavur that still bears the inscriptions of the later Pallava kings. While celebrating the grandeur of the Cholas and others, we often ignore these fragments of history of Pallavas that added more wealth in the form of temple architecture of Tamil Nadu.

Yours East Gaterr

War Trophies of Rajendra Chola

Another feather in the Chola’s cap is the great King Rajendra Chola. He is none other than the son of Rajaraja Chola. Just like his ancestors, Rajendra was very successful in the battles that he fought and ferreted his enemies. He along with his army vanquished his enemies and bought home his exemplary war trophies.

Valorous Years

Being a Chola helped Rajendra’s growth in the already organized administration, powerful bureaucracy, strong army and the naval force. He emerged as any other victorious Chola King.

Before ascending the throne Rajendra ‘s war with the Ganga Clan, Nolambas, Tulu, Konkans, Kodavas, Telugu speaking region, and also the Chera country made his enemies incapacitated.  Rajendra Chola was the only king to be abundantly blessed by Vijayalakshmi as well as Durga which is evident from his back to back success over different regions.

Chalukya's Nandi in Vada-Kailayam within Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple

Apart from being victorious, Rajendra’s war trophies made him stand out. His attraction towards victory is synonymous as he got the idols of Mahishasura Mardini from his war expeditions. It is not just Rajendra, but all his ancestors worshipped this fierce form of Durga before going for a war. 

During the first ten years of his rule, he displayed his courage and valor in the wars that he fought. In the 11th Century Rajendra’s army defeated Kings from the North and reached the banks of the river Ganges and the army was made to carry the holy water in golden pots to the new capital Gangaikonda Cholapuram. In fact the title Gangaikonda Cholan refers to the King who brought the holy Ganges to the South.

In fact, Rajendra went along with the army only up to some extent, rest of the conquest was headed by his chief commander only. With some inscriptional evidence, we get to know that Rajendra welcomes his victorious chief commander at Mahendragiri. To commemorate his victory, they together install a Vijayasthambam at the top of Mahendragiri.

More War Trophies in brief

The  war trophies are placed in various places in and around Gangaikonda Cholapuram. The main temple at Gangaikonda Cholapuram shelters few of the important war trophies of Rajendra. A Sowrapeedam from the Nolambas is a beautiful artefact. Scholars assign it as a creation of 9th century. A lotus like shape spreaded over a square platform, Ashta-Dik-Palakas adorning in each corner while Arunan drive the chariot of Lord Surya which has seven horses. This is one of the sculpturally richest depiction of Suryapeedam.

Chalukya's Mahishasura Mardhini at Reddy Street in Poor State of Maintenance

The Mahamandapam of the Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple shelters a Durga from Nolambas, Lord Surya (standing posture) from the Chalukyas and another significant sculpture of Saraswati from the Palas (placed right in front of the main Shrine of lord Shiva). Other than this, the Nandi in the Amman shrine on the northern side of the temple, twenty handed Mahishasuramardini from the Chalukyas enshrined separately are the notable war trophies within the temple complex.

Now coming back to the small villages around the Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple, the next closest war trophy Mahishasura Mardini is sheltered and worshipped under a huge tree in the Reddy Street. It is saddening to see such artefacts of historic significance being maintained in a poor state. The next war trophy is the Mahishasura Mardini of Manmalai. This sculpture resembles the craftsmanship of the Guptas, probably from the Madhya Pradesh region.

Manmalai Durga - Redstone Sculpture - Gupta's Craftsmanship from Madhya Pradesh

Another treasure trove of war trophies are under the ownership of the ASI and is sheltered in a village called Sengamedu. These sculptures are now worshipped by the local villagers. These sculptures are from the Kalinga dynasty. Two pairs of Bhairava and Bhairavi sculptures, and other Mahishasura Mardini sculptures are worshipped and maintained in good condition. 

Sengamedu - Sculptures from the Kalinga Desa (Orissa)

Another sculpture of Chalukyas Mahishasura Mardini is placed in an Azhagar temple in a village called Saluppai which is five kilometers to the north of the Gangaikonda Cholapuram temple.

War Trophies at Tiruloki Temple

Thiruloki is a small village located near the Thirupanandhal temple and is 20 kms from the Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple. Thiruloki has two important Shiva temples which give important historic information through its inscription. Thiruloki is also a derived name from Trilokya Maadevi Chaturvedi Mangalam, which was in existence from the period of Rajaraja I, since it is named after one of his wives.

Rishbhaarudar from the Chalukyas

Apart from being patronized by both father and son duo both the temples in this village hold a special place after the Rajendra’s Ganges expedition. Scholars say that Rajendra Chola brought the waters of Ganges to this temple in the first place and then took the holy water from here to the new capital. Also the Sundareswarar temple shelters two beautiful war trophies. One is the Rishabhaarudar, exquisitely sculpted in a single stone.  Lord Shiva and Parvati seated on a pedestal with a decorative arch mounted on the back of the Nandi. This beautiful creation is said to be of Nolamba’s craftsmanship. Another is the gorgeous sculpture of the Rathi Manmadhan, which is under worship can be found in the Mahamandapam of the temple. Dr. Kudavyil Balasubramanian says that this sculpture is of Lord Kartikeya and Deivanai from the North. Whether this is Lord Kartikeya or Manmadan, this is completely unique and artistically elegant. 

Rathi Manmadan (as Worshipped)

 

Apart from all these sculptures, there are some more war trophies that were brought from various parts of the ancient Indian kingdoms. 45 pillars from the Nolambas (Some part of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh) were used to build the corridor around the Then-Kailayam Shrine at the Thiruvaiyaru Temple. There is a Gangaikonda Vinayagar from the Palas being worshipped at the Nageswaran Temple of Kumbakonam. Pala dynasty’s Natrajar at the temple of Melakadambur and Durga of Kollampudur are also the part of victory trophies that were brought into the Chola kingdom.

Majestic Mahishasura Mardhini at Sengamedu

All these war trophies speaks the value of the great success that Rajendra has achieved and further purifying his capital with the holy waters of the Ganges. Some of these beautiful sculptures are under worship which somehow are safeguarded in a way, but few other important sculptures are in bad conditions. One should definitely pay a visit to all these war trophies in order to experience the pride that Rajendra would have had when he brought all those to his kingdom. It was overwhelming for me to personally visit those trophies. I sincerely hope this blog post motivates the reader to at least go visit one of the war trophies of Rajendra The Great.

Yours East Gaterr
 

Kulottunga III and The East Gopuram, Thiruvarur

The majestic temple of Tyagarajar, the huge chariot of the temple etc. are THE identity of the ancient city of Thiruvarur. It is also the birthplace of the Carnatic Trinity. The historic and religious significance of the temple goes on and on, sheltering two shrines that was sung and praised by the Shaivite Saints, Asia’s biggest Chariot, the shrine of Tyagaraja, Kamalakshi (one of the Pancha-Akshis), generous donations and infrastructural additions by Cholas and the legends of Muchukunda Chakravarthy and Manuneedhi Cholan adds more glory to the temple. 

Rajagopuram built by Kulottunga III

As per some Shaiva beliefs, it is believed that Aaroor is much older than the Chidambaram temple. This belief adds more to the religious importance of the temple. While the central sanctum is a construction of Adithya I’s period, the other sanctums around the temple have seen rapid developments and more additions by different dynasties that ruled the Chola country later. Even there are sculptures that belongs to the period of Pallavas. The shrine of Tyagaraja (Somaskanda brought to this world by Muchukunda Chakravarthy from Indran – as per the legend) was constructed by Rajendra Chola I. The inscription in the shrine is the only place where Rajendra Chola I clearly inscribes his birthdate as Aadi – Aarudra along with his father’s Aippasi – Sadhayam. Thus, this shrine plays an important role in providing us with an important historic information.

Now, what we are concerned in this post about this great temple is the East Rajagopuram. This Gopuram, with all the design elements, is assigned to Kulottunga III’s construction. Kulottunga III was one of the remarkable king among the Cholas. To commemorate one of his greatest victory, he built this Rajagopuram with the wealth that he won from the war. 

Eesaana Shiva, Guru of Kulottunga III

Kulottunga III ruled from 1178-1218. During his reign, somewhere before 1180, he fought against Veerapandiyan who was supported by the forces from Ceylon. Unfortunately, Veerapandiyan was defeated by the valorous Chola King. Kulottunga III installed a Jayasthambam and also deputed Vikrama Pandiyan to rule over the Pandiyan Kingdom. Later in 1188, Again Veerapandiyan fought against Kulottunga just to lose again. After sometime, Vikrama Pandiyan’s son Sadaiyavarman Kulasekaran waged a war against Kulottunga III around the year 1202. Sadaiyavarman fled the battleground and also Madurai was razed down to the ground. Followed by this Kulottunga won over the Chera kingdom and coronated him as the King of all the three kingdoms. He did Veerabhishekam and Vijayabhishekam in Madurai and added a title “Tribhuvana Veera Devan” to himself.

Kulottunga was so courageous and at the same time he proved that he was humble in front of Madurai’s Chokkanathar. He organized a procession of the deity and worshipped the lord in the streets of Madurai with the gold, pearls and gems that he won from the treasury of Madurai and the wealth he got from the war. From the Meikeerthi of this humble king, we get to know that he used this gold, gems and wealth to build the Rajagopuram and also gilded the shrine of Vanmikanathar and also renovated the ancient Devasiriyan Mandapam in the Thiruvarur temple. 

Tribhuvana Veera Devan - Kulottunga III

Kulottunga III also installs his own sculpture along with his Guru Eesaana Shiva aka Someswarar in this Rajagopuram. He is the only one among the Cholas to add his own sculpture in the Gopurams that he constructs in different temples. He gives more importance to the temple by first time inscribing his title of “Tribhuvana Veera Devan” here. This brief inscription of the glorious King is engraved as if Lord Shiva himself talks about his valor and mentions him as “Nam Thozhan” (meaning ‘My Friend’). This exalted status was bestowed to only Sundarar (One of the Shaivite Quartet) by Lord Shiva himself. With the details mentioned, this inscription was engraved somewhere around the September of 1201. Thus, the construction of the Rajagopuram must’ve happened around the same year.

Thus, this Rajagopuram is not just a simple Gopuram. This was built to commemorate the greatest victory of the King along with many beautiful sculptures that decorates the Gopuram amidst which the Humble King himself stands with his Guru Eesaana Shivar in different Devakoshtas. This Rajagopuram stands as a witness to the victory of the King as well as a testimony to the importance given to Guru, art and architecture that was patronized along with the growth of temples.

 Reference: Thiruvarur Thirukkovil by Kudavayil Balasubramanian

Yours East Gaterr

Udaiyar by Balakumaran - Facts, Fiction and Highlights

Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki Krishnamurthy (1899-1954) inspired youngsters of that generation to go on the trails of Vanthiyadevan and Arulmozhivarman. This magnum opus of Kalki brought the fame of Arulmozhivarman, who later was coronated as Rajarajacholan, which this great visionary deserved. Though Ponniyin Selvan was widely celebrated, readers who were so engrossed and travelled back in time didn’t want the story to end. There was a strong feeling of incompleteness. Balakumaran (1946-2018) was one among the millions who got inspired and embarked on the journey to make the readers feel complete with his own magnum opus “Udaiyar”. 

Readers can relate that once they get into the world of history fiction by such eminent authors, there’s no going back. Once I finished the trilogy of Kalki Krishnamurthy, I got to know about many other such history-fiction works. But I was just keen to complete the well-known works of Kalki Krishnamurthy, Balakumaran and Shandilyan (1910-1987). They are fondly known as the trinity of history fiction/Tamil literature. I’m yet to read the works of Shandilyan.

Since I read few authoritative works about the Brihadeeshwara temple and being a beginner in learning history, the myths revolving around the great temple and the death of this great ruler was always a curious anecdote to research. I found the answers for some of the myths and mysteries as I read “Udaiyar”. 

I read Udaiyar immediately after reading Ponniyin Selvan. It was almost like a sequel but written by different authors. Kalki Krishnamurthy’s work was so organized that each and every chapter was properly titled. It followed a pattern. But in Udaiyar, keeping track of the story was a bit difficult. There were so many characters used and they were dropped then and there. Balakumaran kindled the curiosity but disappointed the readers by dropping the characters like Gunaseelan, Vainavadasan etc. The six huge parts of work had so much of repetition. After reading the ‘Meikeerthi’ of Udaiyar Sri Rajaraja Chola Devar again and again throughout the books, I somehow managed to remember and I can even quote few lines from it without refering the book.

Udaiyar sowed the seed of the biggest ever rumour that Karuvurar Devar was the Guru of Rajaraja Cholan. This is one of the commonly heard stories. Balakumaran gave so much importance to this Siddhar. Rajaraja Chola’s Guru was “Eesana Shiva Pandithar” for which find inscription at the Brihadeeshwara temple itself. Karuvurar and the King were not even contemporary. The ultimate outcome of the myth was Karuvurar had to spit for the Shivalingam to be properly installed at the sanctum. There is some literary evidence that suggests that Karuvurar could be a contemporary to Rajendra Cholan. But never the Rajaguru of the latter also. Sarva Shiva Pandithar is the inscribed name of Rajendra’s Rajaguru. Karuvurar Devar’s portrayal in Udaiyar is so cinematic. He beats his thigh out of confidence saying “Rajarajaa You build the temple, I’ll protect you from anything.” While Rajaraja Chola would be sleeping somewhere in his palace. 

 

All these exaggerations and disconnections are not found in the works of Kalki Krishnamurthy. I agree that every author has their own style of writing and injecting their imaginations. But here it seems artificial. 

Balakumaran, like other authoritative scholars, have logically understood and written about the construction of the temple. The myth that is still believed by the masses, is that they planned and built a ramp on one side of the temple and pulled the top stone to that height. Building a ramp on one side means the other end of the ramp would be resting and pushing against the whole structure, which would’ve caused the structure to lean or even collapse. In Udaiyar, we find the simplest logical answer that it was built with the help building a ramp-like structure around the temple, like the cock-screw method used to build the Pyramids in Egypt. 

While there is no match for the greatness of Rajaraja Chola, Rajendra Chola is no less than his father. They both were undoubtedly the greatest ever king the world had seen. Rajendra Chola throughout this Udaiyar has been portrayed as a strict, strong and a  fierce Prince.

I liked the distinctive portrayal of Senapathi Krishnan Raman, who built the surrounding corridor around the grand temple. His son Arunmozhi was equally given importance. Balakumaran brilliantly drew out their constant thoughts of serving and safeguarding the Chola Kingdom in good detail. This makes us delve into the details about their spying and strategy planning etc. Panjavan Maadevi had her fair share of brilliance expressed. The Pallipadai temple of Panjavan Maadevi is a must visit. 

 

There are few heartwarming moments that make us feel real. Vainavadasan’s death, Udaiyar conversing with Panjavan Maadevi while she fights for her life, the death of Rajaraja Cholan and Panjavan Maadevi etc. The sole credit of the peaceful death of Rajaraja Chola should go to Balakumaran. Our history enthusiasts and few other scholars never allowed this great man to have had a peaceful death. There are so many stories woven around this incident. 

This post is just a simple attempt to differentiate the facts from the fictional work. One can’t even imagine criticizing the authors who made the common people learn history but with a big pinch of fiction. Also it is important to understand the fact that readers who know factual history, can easily differentiate the truthful facts and leave behind the fictions as that’s where the creativity of the author comes into play.

Yours East Gaterr