Alli Rani (), also known as Alli arasi , is a legendary

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

queen of the

Sangam period The Sangam period or age (, ), particularly referring to the third Sangam period, is the period of the history of ancient Tamil Nadu, Kerala and parts of Sri Lanka (then known as Tamilakam) spanning from c. 6th century BCE to c. 3rd century CE. ...

, who is thought to have ruled the whole western and northern coast of

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

from her capital

Kudiramalai Kudiramalai (, ) is a cape and ancient port town on the west coast of Sri Lanka. On the Gulf of Mannar near Silavaturai, the town shares a history with nearby Karaitivu Island, the ancient port town of Mannar and the Ketheeswaram temple. Kudiram ...

. According to folklore, her fort, Allirani fort, is located in

Mannar, Sri Lanka Mannar ( ta, மன்னார், translit=Maṉṉār, si, මන්නාරම, translit=Mannārama, formerly spelled Manar) is the main town of Mannar District, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is governed by an Urban Council. The town is l ...

. She is sometimes seen as an incarnation or multiform of

Meenakshi Meenakshi (Sanskrit: ; Tamil: ; sometimes spelled as Minakshi; also known as , and ), is a Hindu goddess and tutelary deity of Madurai who is considered an avatar of the Goddess Parvati also referred to as Durga. She is the divine consort of ...

and

Kannagi Kannagi ( ta, கண்ணகி) sometimes spelled Kannaki, is a legendary Tamil woman who forms the central character of the Tamil epic ''Cilappatikaram''. Kannagi is described as the chaste woman who stays with her husband despite his unfai ...

. Legends attribute her as an "

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...

" ruler, who had an administrative and an army of only women, with male being their subordinates and servants. There are references to her in several texts such as ''Alli katai'', ''Alli Arasani Maalai'', ''Pavazhakodi Maalai'' and ''Pulavendran Kalava Maalai.'' She is also depicted in a popular dramatic compilation in

Tamil language Tamil (; ' , ) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. Tamil is an official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sovereign nations of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and the Indian territory of Pudu ...

, entitled as ''Alli Arasani Nadakam''.

Legend

The only daughter of a Pandyan king, she was considered an immaculate conception as she was found on an ''alli'' (Tamil word for lily) after the end of a

Putrakameshti Putrakameshti () is a special yajna performed in Hinduism for the sake of bearing children. It is classified under a series of rituals called the kamya-karma. Literature In the ancient Indian epic Ramayana, upon the recommendation of Sage Vas ...

ritual. She was at young age sent to

gurukula A or ( sa, गुरुकुल, gurukul) is a type of education system in ancient India with ('students' or 'disciples') living near or with the guru, in the same house. The guru-shishya tradition is a sacred one in Hinduism and possibly ap ...

and perfected riding and martial arts. Alli Raani is described as courageous and alert. She defeated and killed in a battle an usurper to the Pandyan throne named ''Neenmugan'', "The blue faced one", who came at her with an army. After the victory was she crowned to the throne of

Madurai Madurai ( , also , ) is a major city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District. As of the 2011 census, it was the third largest Urban agglomeration in ...

. Several myths attribute her as being married to the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...

hero

Arjuna Arjuna (Sanskrit: अर्जुन, ), also known as Partha and Dhananjaya, is a character in several ancient Hindu texts, and specifically one of the major characters of the Indian epic Mahabharata. In the epic, he is the third among Panda ...

. Arjuna who penetrated the palace of Alli Raani, took the form of an old

ascetic Asceticism (; from the el, ἄσκησις, áskesis, exercise', 'training) is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from sensual pleasures, often for the purpose of pursuing spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world for their p ...

man. He called out for the love of the queen, who responded back by sending snakes and elephants to kill him. Arjuna later on came to her room in the form of a snake as she was asleep, thereupon embracing the queen. According to other versions of this myth is this event followed by a marriage with Arjuna tying the

Thaali A mangala sutra (), or thaali (ISO: ''tāḷi''), is a necklace that the groom ties around the bride's neck in the Indian subcontinent, in a ceremony called ''Mangalya Dharanam'' (). The necklace serves as a visual marker of status as a ma ...

on Alli Raani. Alli Raani ruled over the in western and northern coasts of Sri Lanka and controlled there the

pearl fishery Pearl hunting, also known as pearling, is the activity of recovering pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in the Persian Gulf region and Japan for thousands of years. On the P ...

. According to local traditions did the gulf of Arasadi have no opening towards the north, but communicated with the sea by a channel running in the line of the present

Chilaw Chilaw ( si, හලාවත, translit=Halāvata, ta, சிலாபம், translit=Cilāpam) is a large town in Puttalam District, North Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is governed by an urban council. The town is located 80 kilometres away f ...

canal. Alli Raani used to proceed from

Akkaraipattu Akkaraipattu (Tamil language, Tamil: ''அக்கரைப்பற்று'', Sinhala language, Sinhala: ''අක්කරපත්තුව'') is a large town in the Ampara District, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. The town is strategically lo ...

by land. A

great flood A flood myth or a deluge myth is a myth in which a great flood, usually sent by a deity or deities, destroys civilization, often in an act of divine retribution. Parallels are often drawn between the flood waters of these myths and the primaeval ...

submerged greater parts of land, subsequently leaving Arasadi on a narrow split of land, forming the present

Puttalam Lagoon The Puttalam Lagoon is a large lagoon in the Puttalam District, western Sri Lanka. The lagoon is fed by two rivers, namely the Kala Oya and Mi Oya, discharging at and respectively. It is linked to Mundal Lagoon to the south by a channel ...

and destroying her palace.{{Cite book, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iloCuf8NDQgC, title=Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, last=Colombo, first=Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland Ceylon Branch, date=1887, publisher=Colombo Apothecaries Company, pages=38, language=en

References

Tamil monarchs Mythological queens Sri Lankan Hindus Sri Lankan Tamil royalty

Legend

See also

References