Parantaka I

Parantaka Chola I
முதலாம் பராந்தக சோழன்

Chola Territories c. 915
Reign	907 – ?950
Title	Parakesari
Capital	Thanjavur
Queen	Kōkilānadigal Villavan Mahadeviyar and others
Children	Uttamasili Viramadevi Anupama.
Predecessor	Aditya Chola
Successor	Gandaraditya
Father	Aditya Chola
Born	Unknown
Died	?955

List of Chola kings Early Cholas Elara Chola  ·   235 BC – 161 BC Ilamcetcenni  ·   Karikala Chola Nedunkilli  ·   Killivalavan  ·   Kopperuncholan Kocengannan  ·   Perunarkilli Interregnum (c.200–848)

Medieval Cholas Vijayalaya Chola 848–871(?) Aditya I 871–907 Parantaka Chola I 907–950 Gandaraditya 950–957 Arinjaya Chola 956–957 Sundara Chola 957–970 Uttama Chola 970–985 Rajaraja Chola I 985–1014 Rajendra Chola I 1012–1044 Rajadhiraja Chola 1018–1054 Rajendra Chola II 1051–1063 Virarajendra Chola 1063–1070 Athirajendra Chola 1067–1070 Later Cholas Kulothunga Chola I 1070–1120 Vikrama Chola 1118–1135 Kulothunga Chola II 1133–1150 Rajaraja Chola II 1146–1173 Rajadhiraja Chola II 1166–1178 Kulothunga Chola III 1178–1218 Rajaraja Chola III 1216–1256 Rajendra Chola III 1246–1279

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Parantaka Chola I (Tamil: முதலாம் பராந்தக சோழன்) (907–955) ruled the Chola kingdom in southern India for forty-eight years. The best part of his reign was marked by increasing success and prosperity.

Contents 1 The Invasion of the Pandya Kingdom 2 Other Wars of Parantaka 3 Extent of Parantaka's Influence 4 Civic and Religious Contributions 5 Personal life 6 Inscriptions 7 Notes 8 References

The Invasion of the Pandya Kingdom

Parantaka continuing the expansion started by his father, invaded the Pandya kingdom in 910. He captured the Pandyan capital Madurai and assumed the title Madurain-konda (Capturer of Madurai). The Pandyan ruler Maravarman Rajasinha II sought the help of Kassapa V, the king of Sri Lanka, who sent an army to his aid. Parantaka defeated the combined army at the battle of Vellore. The Pandya king fled into exile in Sri Lanka and Parantaka completed his conquest of the entire Pandya country.

Parantaka spent many years in the newly conquered country reducing it to subjugation, and when he felt he had at last achieved his aim, he wanted to celebrate his victory by a coronation in Madurai in which he was to invest himself with the insignia of Pandyan monarchy. However he was foiled in this attempt by the Pandyan king carried them away and left in the safe custody of the Lankan king. Towards the end of his reign, Parantaka tried to capture them by invading Lanka. Mahavamsa records that the Lankan king Udaya IV took the Pandya crown and the jewels and hid himself in the Rohana hills. Parantaka’s armies had to return empty handed.

After his exploits in the Pandya country and in Lanka, Parantaka I took the title of Maduraiyum Elamum Konda Parakesarivarman – Parakesarivarman who conquered Madurai and Sri Lanka.

Other Wars of Parantaka

The intervals between Parantaka’s Pandyan campaigns were occupied by a number of minor wars. He defeated the Banas (c. 910) who ruled over the area in the north of Kanchipuram. Parantaka made his ally the Ganga king Prithvipati II the overlord of the conquered Bana country. Soon after this battle, Parantaka had to wage battles against some of his smaller neighbours such as Vaidumbas and Sitpuli kings in the region of Andhra Pradesh.

Extent of Parantaka's Influence

At the height of his successes, Parantaka I's dominions comprised almost the whole of the Tamil country right up to Nellore in Andhra Pradesh. It is clear from other chola grants that parantaka was a great militarist who had made extensive conquests. He may have had it recorded , but those records are lost to us. He is known to have defeated the kings of deccan kingdoms by 912.C.E and completed at least temporarily the conquests started by his father Aditya. He had the Cheras as his close ally and the relationship were further strengthened during this reign. Villavan Mahadeviyar, one of the queens of Parantaka who bore him the son Arinjaya was a daughter of the Kerala prince Paluvettaraiyar.

Civic and Religious Contributions

Although Parantaka I was engaged for the greater part of his long reign in warlike operations, yet he was not unmindful of the victories of peace. The internal administration of his country was a matter in which he took a keen interest. He laid out the rules for the conduct of the village assemblies in an inscription. The village institutions of South India, of course, date from a much earlier period than that of Parantaka I, but he introduced many salutary reforms for the proper administration of local self-Government.

The copper-plate inscriptions detail Parantaka's promotion of agricultural prosperity by the digging of numerous canals all over the country.

He also utilised the spoils of war to donate to numerous temple charities. He is reported to have covered the Chidambaram Siva Temple with golden roof. "Thillaiyambalathhukku pon koorai veiyntha thevan" He was a devout Saiva (follower of Siva) in religion.

Personal life

From his inscriptions we can gather a few details about Parantaka's personal life. He had many wives, of whom no fewer than eleven appear in the inscriptions. He was religious but secular and encouraged various faiths. We find various members of his family building temples and regularly making donations to various shrines across the kingdom. Kodandarama was the eldest son of Parantaka. There is an inscription of him from Tiruvorriyur making a donation for some lamps during the 30th year of his father.^[1] Besides him he had several other sons; Arikulakesari, Gandaraditya, Rajaditya and Uttamasili. A member of the retinue of Pillaiyar(prince) Rajadittadeva gave a gift to the Vishnu temple at Tirunavalur in the 32nd year of Parantaka.^[2] Tirunavalur was also known as Rajadittapuram after Rajaditya.^[3] In the 39th year of Parantaka, his daughter-in-law, Mahadevadigal, a queen of Rajaditya and the daughter of Lataraja donated a lamp to the temple of Rajadityesvara for the merit of her brother.^[4] He had at least two daughters: Viramadevi and Anupama. Uttamasili does not appear to have lived long enough to succeed to the Chola throne.

Parantaka I bore numerous epithets: Viranarayana, Virakirti, Vira-Chola, Vikrama-Chola, Irumadi-Sola (Chola with two crowns alluding to the Chola and the Pandya kingdoms), Devendran (lord of the gods), Chakravartin (the emperor), Panditavatsalan (fond of learned men), Kunjaramallan (the wrestler with elephants) and Surachulamani (the crest jewel of the heroes).

Parantaka died in 955. His second son Gandaraditya succeeded him.

Inscriptions

The following is an inscription of Parantaka from Tiruvorriyur. It is important as it shows that his dominions included regions beyond Thondaimandalam:

“

..record of the Chola king Maduraikonda Parakesarivarman(Parantaka) dated in his 34th year. Records gift of lamp to the temple of Tiruvorriyur Mahadeva by Maran Parameswaran alias Sembiyan Soliyavarayan of Sirukulattur in Poyyurkurram, a sub-division of Tenkarai-nadu. Refers to a military officer who destroyed Sitpuli and destroyed Nellore.[5]

”

Here we have his son Arinjaya making a donation. Once again it is from Tiruvorriyur:

“

On the eleventh slab. Records in the 30th year of Maduraikonda Parakesarivarman(Parantaka) dated in his 30th year, gift of gold for a lamp by Arindigai-perumanar, son of Chola-Perumanadigal (i.e Parantaka), to the god Siva at Adhigrama.[6]

”

We also have several inscriptions of his son Rajaditya from Tirunavalur. One such inscription is the following from the temple of Rajadityesvara in Tirunavalur. The temple was also called Tiruttondîsvaram^[7]:

“

A record in the 29th year of the Chola king Maduraikonda Parakesarivarman. Records gift of 20 sheep for offerings and of two lamps to the shrines of Rajadityesvara and Agastyesvara by a servant of Rajadityadeva.[8]

”

Notes

References

• Venkata Ramanappa, M. N. (1987). Outlines of South Indian History. (Rev. edn.) New Delhi: Vikram.
• Early Chola temples: Parantaka I to Rajaraja I, A.D. 907–985 By S. R. Balasubrahmanyam
• South Indian Inscriptions: Miscellaneous inscriptions in Tamil (4 pts. in 2) By Eugen Hultzsch, Hosakote Krishna Sastri, V. Venkayya, Archaeological Survey of India
• A topographical list of the inscriptions of the Madras Presidency, collected till 1915: with notes and references, Volume 1 By Vijayaraghava Rangacharya
• A topographical list of inscriptions in the Tamil Nadu and Kerala states, Volume 2 By T. V. Mahalingam
• Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. (1935). The CōĻas, University of Madras, Madras (Reprinted 1984).
• Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. (1955). A History of South India, OUP, New Delhi (Reprinted 2002).
• South Indian shrines: illustrated By P. V. Jagadisa Ayyar

Preceded by Aditya I

Chola 907–955 AD

Succeeded by Gandaraditya

Persondata
Name	I, Parantaka
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	907
Place of birth
Date of death	955
Place of death