Did you know that there are no inscriptions in temples that are religious, mythological or philosophical in nature, asked Pradeep Chakravarthy, to an intrigued audience.
All through his talk on “Daily life in Madras a 1000 years ago,” organised by INTACH-Chennai Chapter and Alliance Francaise of Madras, the author and behaviourist spoke about how temple inscriptions had proven to be sources of information. “Temples were not just places of worship and religion as they are primarily today, but played an important role in the local administration 1,000 years ago. The temple inscriptions shed light on the landmark judgements passed in the area and the gifts that were received,” Mr. Chakravarthy said.
Speaking about the territorial divisions during the Chola period, Mr. Chakravarthy said that while an ‘ur’ was where farmers would have stayed, the traders would have populated the ‘nagarams’.
“Madras, as we know it today, lay largely between Puliyur kottam and Puzhal kottam. Areas such as Nungambakkam and Mylapore would have all had local governments. Villages were far more independent and powerful then,” he said.
Answering questions at the end of the talk about whether the temple inscriptions shed any light on the population of the villages, the culture and festivals of a 1,000 years ago or whether Madras had been affected by any natural calamity at that time, Mr. Chakravarthy said it was important to take the history of Madras into classrooms in schools and colleges.
“While there are a few courses about the history of Chennai, which have begun in many colleges, inscriptions and the light they shed on the past should be included for study by students as well,” he added.
