Chola kings fought fierce wars, amassed wealth and sought to expand their domain constantly. And they were ardent devotees of Lord Siva. Many often experienced a spiritual awakening and became renunciates.
One such renunciate was Kandaradita. He was a precedessor to the famous Raja Raja Chola. Kandaridata ruled for only six years -- between 950 AD and 956 AD -- before renouncing his kingdom. Until now, it was thought that he was buried in Nandhi Hills in Mysore. Historian S R Balasubramanian had come to this conclusion based on pallipadi temple -- the shrine built on the burial site of a king -- and a statue there.
Now, M Rajendran, a serving IAS officer, says there is evidence to show that Kandaridata was buried in the Kolli Hills -- a key site in Tamil history with references stretching back to the late Sangam period when Valvil Ori reigned there. Inscriptions show that the Kolli Hills was a recruiting ground for the Chola army and Raja Raja’s army chief hailed from there.
“Kandaraditan was called Cholamudaiyar. There is no evidence to prove that Nandhi Hills had the pallipadi temple of the king. That Kandaraditan was buried in Kalingampatti is supported by the fact that his wife Chempianmadevi, his son Uthama Chola, as well as his successors gave many grants to Arapaleeswarar temple in the Kolli Hills, which is 5 km from the Cholamudaiyar temple,” explains Mr. Rajendran.
Mr. Rajendran says that there is a statue of Kandaraditan near Nagapattinam too but that does not mean that he was buried there. “Kandaraditan was known as Merku Ezhuntharulia Devar, suggesting that he died in a place west of Thanjavur. Since Nandhi Hills is west of Thanjavur, Balasubramaniam should have come to the conclusion that he died there. But the Kolli Hills also lies west of Thanjavur, the capital of Cholas,” he says.
The IAS officer has transcribed copper inscriptions of the Cholas and published a book on them.
He says that in Arapaleeswarar temple there are three stone inscriptions by Uthama Chola and one inscription talks about 100 ‘kazhanju’ gold (70 sovereigns) donated by Chempianmadevi.
“Like his father, Uthama Chola also quit politics to become a devotee of Lord Siva and he paved the way for the reign of Raja Raja. Three Chola kings — Raja Mahendra (1060 - 1063), First Kulotunga (1070 - 1120) and Rajathi Rajan II (1163 - 1178) — also gave land grants to Arapaleeswarar temple. Their grants are further proof that Kandaraditan was buried in Kalingampatti,” says Mr. Rajendran.
