![Venur - Bahubali](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ee/Venur_-_Bahubali.JPG)
Ajila is a common surname of the
Bunt people,
the
landed gentry
The landed gentry, or the ''gentry'', is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. While distinct from, and socially below, the British peerage, th ...
of
Tulu Nadu
Tulunad or Tulu Nadu, also called Bermere sristi or Parashurama Srishti, is a region and a Proposed states and union territories of India#Karnataka, proposed state on the southwestern coast of India. The Tulu people, known as 'Tuluva' (plural ...
region in the south west of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. It is also the name of the
Jain Bunt
The Jain Bunt are the Jainists of Bunt caste from Tulunaad area of India. It has been said that the Jain Bunts also have the highest per capita income in India. They have a feudal and martial race heritages, because of ties to the erstwhile r ...
Dynasty who ruled the principality of
Venur
Venur or Venoor is a small village on the banks of the Phalguni river in Belthangady Taluk, Dakshina Kannada of Karnataka, India. It was once the seat of Jainism and the capital of the Ajila Dynasty. It is on the Dharmasthala-Moodabidri-Karkala r ...
for several centuries(1154 to 1786 C.E).
The most notable of the Ajila kings was Veera Timmannarasa Ajila IV who erected the monolith of
Bahubali
Bahubali (), a much revered figure among Jains, was the son of Rishabadeva (the first ''tirthankara'' of Jainism) and the brother of Bharata Chakravartin. He is said to have meditated motionless for a year in a standing posture (''kayotsarg ...
in 1604 C.E.The descendants of the Ajila rulers still survive and inhabit the
Aladangady Aramane (Ajila Palace).The succession to the Ajila throne was as per the Bunt custom of matrilineal inheritance (
Aliyasantana
Aliyasantana, literally " son in law as heir" in Kanarese, is the matrilineal system of inheritance practiced by Tuluver community in the Tulunaad area of Karnataka, India. It is similar to the ''Marumakkathayam'' system of the Malabar region.
...
).
The present head of the Ajila dynasty is Padmaprasad Ajila, fourteenth in line through the matrilineal lineage of Veera Timmannarasa Ajila IV.
An inscription in Old Kannada by Veera Timmannarasa Ajila IV unearthed in 2006 reads
See also
*
Jain Bunt
The Jain Bunt are the Jainists of Bunt caste from Tulunaad area of India. It has been said that the Jain Bunts also have the highest per capita income in India. They have a feudal and martial race heritages, because of ties to the erstwhile r ...
*
Venur
Venur or Venoor is a small village on the banks of the Phalguni river in Belthangady Taluk, Dakshina Kannada of Karnataka, India. It was once the seat of Jainism and the capital of the Ajila Dynasty. It is on the Dharmasthala-Moodabidri-Karkala r ...
References
{{reflist
Dynasties of India
Jain dynasties
Bunt community surnames