HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Mushika-vamsha'' (
IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...
: Mūṣika-vaṃśa mahā-kāvyam) is a
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
dynastic chronicle composed in 11th century by poet Atula.Thapar, Romila'', The Penguin History of Early India: From the Origins to AD 1300.'' Penguin Books, 2002. 394-95.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 178-179. It narrates the legendary history of the
Mushika dynasty Mushika dynasty, also spelled Mushaka, was a minor dynastic power that held sway over the region in and around Mount Ezhi (Ezhimala) in present-day North Malabar, Kerala, India. The country of the Mushikas, ruled by an ancient lineage of the Heh ...
, which ruled the northern part of the present-day
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
state of India. The chronicle moves from mythological beginnings of the founding ancestors to more authentic genealogical history in later ''sargas.'' Several kings mentioned in the kavya, such as Validhara Vikrama Rama (c. 929 AD),Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 180-181. JayamaniNarayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 480-81. and Kantan Karivarman (Srikantha Kartha) (both c. 1020 AD)Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 180-181. and Chera king Kota Ravi Vijayaraga (c. 883–913 AD)Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013. 97-98. can be found in the medieval inscriptions discovered from north Kerala.


Date

''Mushika-vamsha'' is believed to have been written during the reign of the Mushika ruler Shrikantha, who is assumed to be a contemporary of the 11th century
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
ruler
Rajendra I Rajendra Chola I (; Middle Tamil: Rājēntira Cōḻaṉ; Classical Sanskrit: Rājēndradēva Cōla; Old Malay: ''Raja Suran''; c. 971 CE – 1044 CE), often referred to as Rajendra the Great, and also known as Gangaikonda Chola (Middle Tamil ...
(see
Historicity Historicity is the historical actuality of persons and events, meaning the quality of being part of history instead of being a historical myth, legend, or fiction. The historicity of a claim about the past is its factual status. Historicity denot ...
below). If this belief is true, ''Mushika-vamsha'' is the earliest known historical Sanskrit ''
mahakavya Mahākāvya (lit. great kāvya, court epic), also known as ''sargabandha'', is a genre of Indian epic poetry in Classical Sanskrit. The genre is characterised by ornate and elaborate descriptions of scenery, love, battles and so on — in short, eve ...
'', pre-dating
Kalhana Kalhana ( sa, कल्हण, translit=kalhaṇa) was the author of ''Rajatarangini'' (''River of Kings''), an account of the history of Kashmir. He wrote the work in Sanskrit between 1148 and 1149. All information regarding his life has to be d ...
's ''
Rajatarangini ''Rajatarangini'' ("The River of Kings") is a metrical legendary and historical chronicle of the north-western part of India, particularly the kings of Kashmir. It was written in Sanskrit by Kashmiri historian Kalhana in the 12th century CE. The ...
'' by a few decades. Indologist
A. K. Warder Anthony Kennedy Warder (8 September 1924 – 8 January 2013) was a British Indologist. His best-known works are ''Introduction to Pali'' (1963), ''Indian Buddhism'' (1970), and the eight-volume ''Indian Kāvya Literature'' (1972–2011). Life Wa ...
classifies Atula's style as '' Vaidarbhi'', and believes that he was influenced by the 6th century poet
Bharavi Bharavi () was a 6th century Indian poet known for his epic poem '' Kirātārjunīya'', one of the six ''mahakavyas'' in classical Sanskrit. Time and place As with most Sanskrit poets, very few concrete details are available about Bharavi's life ...
, among others.


Plot


Origin of the dynasty

Atula provides a mythological origin of the Mushika dynasty, tracing its descent to a
Heheya The Heheya Kingdom (also known as Haihaya, Haiheya, Heiheya _sa.html" ;"title="nowiki/> sa">हैहय was a kingdom ruled by the Yadava people, who claimed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. One of the mo ...
queen, whose family was killed during
Parashurama Parashurama (), also referred to as Rama Jamadagnya, Rama Bhargava and Veerarama, is the sixth avatar among the Dashavatara of the preserver god Vishnu in Hinduism. He is believed to be one of the ''Chiranjeevis'' (Immortals), who will appear ...
's slaughter of the
Kshatriya Kshatriya ( hi, क्षत्रिय) (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority") is one of the four varna (social orders) of Hindu society, associated with warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...
rulers. The pregnant queen initially wanted to commit suicide, but her family preceptor dissuaded her from doing so, encouraging her not to destroy her unborn baby. With the help of the preceptor, the queen fled southwards, and came to the coastal region that later became the Mushika kingdom. There, she was attacked by a huge rat (''mushika''), who was actually the divine spirit of the Eli mountain (
Ezhimala Ezhimala, a hill reaching a height of , is located near Payyanur, in Kannur district of Kerala, south India. It is a part of a conspicuous and isolated cluster of hills, forming a promontory, north of Kannur (Cannanore). The Indian Naval Acad ...
), and had been cursed by the sage
Kaushika Vishvamitra ( sa, विश्वामित्र, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Mantr ...
to become a rat. The queen burned the rat to ashes with the flame emitted from her eyes: the rat was thus redeemed, and became transformed into its original form.


Rama, the dynasty's founder

At the request of the divine spirit, the queen started living in a cave of the mountain, protected from Parashurama. There, she gave birth to a boy, who received education from the preceptor. By the time the prince grew up, Parashurama had wiped the Kshatriyas from the earth 21 times. Feeling sorry for their widows, he decided to perform a ritual sacrifice to absolve himself from the sin of killing the Kshatriyas at the Eli mountain. For one of the sacrificial ceremonies, he needed a Kshatriya prince. The divine spirit of the mountain brought to him the Heheya prince, who belonged to the
lunar dynasty The Lunar dynasty (IAST: Candravaṃśa) is a legendary principal house of the Kshatriyas varna, or warrior–ruling caste mentioned in the ancient Indian texts. This legendary dynasty was said to be descended from moon-related deities (''Som ...
. After the end of Parashurama's ceremony, the prince was crowned as a king, and thus, became the founder of the Mushika dynasty. Since Parashurama performed his consecration with the holy water from a ''ghata'' (earthen pot), the king came to be known as Rama-ghata-mushika. The first six cantos deal with the exploits of Rama. He established a council of ministers, and his favourite minister was Mahanavika ("great sailor"), a member of the trading class (''Shreshti'') of
Mahishmati Mahishmati (IAST: Māhiṣmatī) was an ancient city in present-day central India. It was located in present-day Madhya Pradesh, on the banks of Narmada River, although its exact location is uncertain. It is mentioned in several ancient texts, a ...
. Rama also established the fortified city of Kolam, and the Mushika rulers came to be known as Kolabhupas. Once, he visited the hermitage of Parashurama, who gave him an invincible bow called ''Ajita'' and several divine missiles. Meanwhile, he received the news that his ancestral Heheya kingdom had been conquered by the
Magadha Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
s. Rama wanted to march against Magadha, but his ministers advised him to subjugated the southern kingdoms first. After consolidating his rule in southern India, Rama crossed the Vindhya mountain, and asked the Magadha ruler Suvarman to hand over the former Heheya territory to him. When Suvarman refused, the two kings fought a battle in which Suvarman used divine missiles, but Rama could counter him without use of Parashurama's divine missiles. Ultimately, Rama defeated and killed him in a duel. The vassals of Magadha accepted his suzerainty. He married Suvarman's daughter, and restored the Magadha territory to Suvarman's son. Gradually, Rama conquered the entire Bharata (India) and "the islands", and became a
Chakravartin A ''chakravarti'' ( sa, चक्रवर्तिन्, ''cakravartin''; pi, cakkavatti; zh, 轉輪王, ''Zhuǎnlúnwáng'', "Wheel-Turning King"; , ''Zhuǎnlún Shèngwáng'', "Wheel-Turning Sacred King"; ja, 転輪王, ''Tenrin'ō'' ...
(universal emperor). He appointed his elder son Vatu as the ruler of the Heheya kingdom, and returned to Kola with his younger son Nandana. At Kola, he performed a
horse sacrifice Horse sacrifice is the ritual killing and offering of a horse, usually as part of a religious or cultural ritual. Horse sacrifices were common throughout Eurasia with the domestication of the horse and continuing up until the spread of Abrahamic ...
, and after a long time, retired to penance, crowning Nandana as the new king of the Mushika kingdom.


Nandana and his successors

The Cantos 7-10 describe the "amorous exploits" of Nandana: the poet describes him as a mighty and glorious monarch, but does not describe his achievements as a king. Nandana was succeeded by Ugra; Canto 11 lists the names of the next 51 rulers (all patrilineal descendants). Ugrasena, the sixth successor of Nandana, repulsed an invasion from the
Kerala Kingdom Keralas or Udra Keralas were a dynasty mentioned in Sanskrit epics of ancient India. In the Mahabharata, the Keralian empire took part in the Kurukshetra War by feeding both armies. According to the Puranas, the navigators and survivors of the Ya ...
. His successor Chitrasena was killed by a lion during a hunting expedition. The next ruler Shatasoma, described as a descendant of the
solar dynasty The Solar dynasty (IAST: Suryavaṃśa or Ravivaṃśa in Sanskrit) or the Ikshvaku dynasty was founded by the legendary king Ikshvaku.Geography of Rigvedic India, M.L. Bhargava, Lucknow 1964, pp. 15-18, 46-49, 92-98, 100-/1, 136 The dynasty is ...
, performed a hundred horse sacrifices. On the advice of sage
Agastya Agastya ( kn, ಅಗಸ್ತ್ಯ, ta, அகத்தியர், sa, अगस्त्य, te, అగస్త్యుడు, ml, അഗസ്ത്യൻ, hi, अगस्त्य) was a revered Indian sage of Hinduism. In the I ...
, he visited
Kailasha Mount Kailash (also Kailasa; ''Kangrinboqê'' or ''Gang Rinpoche''; Tibetan: གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ; ; sa, कैलास, ), is a mountain in the Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region of China. It has an altitude of ...
and brought a sacred idol of the god
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
. This idol was installed in a newly-constructed shrine at Celera (also known as Cellura,
Taliparamba Taliparamba (also known as Perinchelloor and Lakshmipuram) is a Municipalities of Kerala, Municipality in Taliparamba taluk of Kannur district, Kerala, India. The municipal town spreads over an area of and is inhabited by 44,247 number ...
or Lakshmipura). Shatasoma's descendant Sharmadatta obtained the boon of living as long as he wished from Shiva, for himself and his 20 descendants. His descendant Vatukavarman built the large Vatukeshvara Shiva temple at Alashuddhi. His successor Ahirana built the Ahiraneshvara Shiva temple on the western bank of the Pṛthana river (identified as
Valapattanam Valapattanam is a census town in the Kannur district, located in the Indian state of Kerala. It is also the smallest panchayat in Kerala. Its area is 2.04 sqr Km. It is about 7 km north of Kannur. Valapattanam is known for its communal harm ...
). Ahirana's son Ranabhara was attracted some girls while chasing elephants in the Sahya mountains. He followed them into a big cave, spent some days with a thousand cave girls, and then brought them to his kingdom using an
elixir ELIXIR (the European life-sciences Infrastructure for biological Information) is an initiative that will allow life science laboratories across Europe to share and store their research data as part of an organised network. Its goal is to bring t ...
. After the birth of his son Aryagupta, he entered the cave once again, accompanied by many women. Aryagupta's son Achala built the city of Achalapattana on the Eli mountain. His younger son Vikramasena ascended the throne after expelling the elder son Ashvasena from the kingdom. Vikramasena's son Vinayavarman ruled by ''
dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
'', and the next ruler Rajavarman built a Buddhist monastery ( vihara) called Rajavihara. Ashvasena's son Jayamanin I became the next ruler with the help of an army from the Pandya kingdom. Jayamanin's grandson Udayavarman patronized
Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...
s. The next ruler Virochana I killed a
Pallava The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The dynasty rose to prominence after the downfall of the Satavahana dynasty, with whom they had formerly served as fe ...
king, and married his daughter Harini. Two of his descendants - Shashidatta and Janavrata - killed each other in order to seize the throne. Nothing is known about the last 38 kings mentioned in the Canto 11, except their names.


Kunchivarman and Ishanavarman

Canto 12 begins with the reign of Kunchivarman, whose daughter married the ruler of the neighbouring
Kerala Kingdom Keralas or Udra Keralas were a dynasty mentioned in Sanskrit epics of ancient India. In the Mahabharata, the Keralian empire took part in the Kurukshetra War by feeding both armies. According to the Puranas, the navigators and survivors of the Ya ...
. His son Ishanavarman married Nandini, the daughter of a Chedi king who had been dethroned. Ishanavarman led an army to Chedi, and restored the throne to his father-in-law. Upon his return to the Mushika kingdom, he faced an invasion from the
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
king Jayaraga. The warring kings decided to engage in a personal combat, but the Kerala prince Goda and Ishanavarman's nephew negotiated a peace treaty between the two kingdoms. Ishanavarman and Nandini did not have any children, so he married a
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
princess, with whom he had a son named Nrparama (or Nrpavarman).


Nandini's descendants

An upset Nandini prayed to the goddess
Bhadrakali Bhadrakali (IAST: Bhadrakālī; ), also known as Mahakali and Kali, is a Hindu goddess. According to Shaktism, she is one of the fierce forms of the Supreme Goddess Shakti, or Adi Parashakti, mentioned in the Devi Mahatmyam. In Vaishnavism, ...
(or Chandika), and obtained a boon that the Mushika throne would be passed on to the sons of the female members of her family. (The manuscript is mutilated here, but it is clear that the Goddess says something about women: the editor theorized that the goddess talks about matrilineal descent, which is what effectively happens in the subsequent portions of the text.) Sometime later, she gave birth to a son named Palaka, and a daughter named Nandini (II). To avoid a war of succession between Nrparama and Palaka, Ishanavarman sent Palaka to the Chedi kingdom. Ishanavarman patronized scholars, and built several Shiva temples. Towards the end of his life, he suffered from a severe fever, and died after performing a ''
Mahadana The sixteen great gifts (Sanskrit: Shodasha-Maha-dana; IAST: Ṣoḍaśa-Mahā-dāna) refers to a category of ritual donations mentioned in the Puranic texts of ancient India. The most prominent of these donations include the tula-purusha — ...
'' ("Great Donation") ceremony. The ministers then appointed Nrparama as the new king, whose infant son Chandravarman became the titular ruler after his death. Taking advantage of this situation, the Kerala king invaded the Mushika kingdom, whose ministers recalled Palaka from Chedi. Palaka repulsed the invasion, slaughtered the enemies on the battlefield, and became the king. He was succeeded by Validhara, the son of his sister. Validhara defended his kingdom against the
Ganga The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
invaders, and was succeeded by his maternal nephews, first Ripurama, and then Vikramarama. Vikramarama build a huge wall of large rocks to prevent a Buddha (''Jina'') shrine from being swallowed by the
Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...
. (This temple remains unidentified, and was probably lost to the sea in the later years.) His successors were Janamani, Samghavarman (or Shankhavarman), Jayamani (Jayamanin II), and Valabha I. Valabha I, described in Canto 13, was a powerful warrior king, who subjugated the chieftain of Bhatasthali, and made his relative Nrparama the in-charge of that territory. His younger brother and successor Kundavarman built the Narayananapura city and a
Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
temple in that city. The next ruler Palaka was a son of a sister of Kundavarman. At the time of his death, Palaka did not have an adult younger brother or a maternal nephew. He was succeeded by Ripurama, a chieftain of Bhatasthali. After a glorious reign, Ripurama was succeeded by Gambhira, a son of Palaka's sister. Gambhira was a strong ruler, who crushed a revolt by the subordinate chief of Marupura, and burnt down that city.


Vallabha II

Jayamani (Jayamanin III), the successor and younger brother of Gambhira, became a renowned ruler. During the last years of his reign, he was assisted in administration by his nephew, the crown prince Valabha II. Valabha II, said to be an
incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It refers to the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or the appearance of a god as a human. If capitalized, it is the union of divinit ...
, partially that of
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
and partially that of
Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
, made grants to the Vedic ''
agrahara An ''Agraharam'' or ''Agrahara'' was a grant of land and royal income from it, typically by a king or a noble family in India, for religious purposes, particularly to Brahmins to maintain temples in that land or a pilgrimage site and to susta ...
'' of Cellura. This ''agrahara'' is described as a hermitage with a variety of trees. At Cellura, there were two head
brahmanas The Brahmanas (; Sanskrit: , ''Brāhmaṇam'') are Vedic śruti works attached to the Samhitas (hymns and mantras) of the Rig, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva Vedas. They are a secondary layer or classification of Sanskrit texts embedded within ea ...
(priests) named Bhava and Nandin, said to have descended from the heavens. They are compared to
Shukra Shukra (Sanskrit: शुक्र, IAST: ) is a Sanskrit word that means "clear" or "bright". It also has other meanings, such as the name of an ancient lineage of sages who counselled Asuras in Vedic history. In medieval mythology and Hindu as ...
and
Brihaspati Brihaspati ( sa, बृहस्पति, ), also known as Guru, is a Hindu deity. In the ancient Vedic scriptures of Hinduism, Brihaspati is a deity associated with fire, and the word also refers to a rishi (sage) who counsels the devas (god ...
(the teachers of the
Asura Asuras (Sanskrit: असुर) are a class of beings in Indian religions, Indic religions. They are described as power-seeking clans related to the more benevolent Deva (Hinduism), Devas (also known as Suras) in Hinduism. In its Buddhism, Buddhi ...
and
Devas Devas may refer to: * Devas Club, a club in south London * Anthony Devas (1911–1958), British portrait painter * Charles Stanton Devas (1848–1906), political economist * Jocelyn Devas (died 1886), founder of the Devas Club * Devas (band), ...
respectively, in Hindu mythology). Vallabha visited the "cities" (shrines) of
Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
and
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
, the latter of which had been built by the earlier king Shatasoma, and paid obeisance to the deities. He commissioned repairs to these two temples, which had decayed with age, and gave benedictions to the brahmanas before leaving. Jayamani made Vallabha his
heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...
, and then asked him to march to aid the
Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
king, who was preparing to attack the
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
king. Vallabha had to abandon the march midway, when a loyal subject told him that Jayamani had died, and an enemy named Ramavikrama had usurped the throne. Vallabha sent an envoy to the Kerala king, and then turned back towards the Mushika capital. On the way back, he visited the Mulavasa shrine, and paid obeisance to the
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
. Vallabha's army defeated Ramavikrama's forces in a fierce battle. Vallabha punished the surviving dissidents, and took control of the Mushika kingdom. The poet describes his coronation and construction activities in detail. Vallabha built the city of Marahi, an international commercial port, at the mouth of the Killa river. He also built the Vallabhapatnam fort, named after himself. He installed a statue of
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
at the Vatukeshvara temple. His army crossed the ocean, and conquered many islands.


Shrikantha

Vallabha II was succeeded by his younger brother Shrikantha (
IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is a transliteration scheme that allows the lossless romanisation of Indic scripts as employed by Sanskrit and related Indic languages. It is based on a scheme that emerged during ...
: Śrīkaṇṭha) alias Rajavarman. He commissioned restoration of the Vatukeshvara, Kharavana, and Ahiraneshvara temples. He restored the wealth that the enemies had plundered from the temples, and paid obeisance to
Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
. The extant text breaks off after a description of the Shiva worship and rituals.


Historicity

The poet Atula was primarily focused on eulogizing the dynasty's rulers, rather than on describing their reign based on the historical facts. The first six cantos, which are about the dynasty's founder Rama, describe an ideal ruler rather than a historical figure. There is no evidence that a ruler from present-day Kerala conquered Magadha or other regions of northern India. Although the text's description of the dynasty's origin is purely legendary, some historians, such as M. G. S. Narayanan, believe that it indicates northern origins of the dynasty. Narayanan theorizes that the Mushika family may have migrated from the
Heheya The Heheya Kingdom (also known as Haihaya, Haiheya, Heiheya _sa.html" ;"title="nowiki/> sa">हैहय was a kingdom ruled by the Yadava people, who claimed to be descended from Yadu, a legendary king of Chandravamsha lineage. One of the mo ...
kingdom of Cenral India to Kerala at the beginning of the Mauryan rule. Nandana of Atula's text may be same as Nannan, a king described in the
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, nativ ...
Sangam literature The Sangam literature (Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam'';) historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' (Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ'') connotes ...
, but this cannot be said with certainty. According to the Sangam literature, Nannan ruled Ezhilmalai (Eli mountain), and fought many battles against the neighbouring rulers. However, Atula does not credit Nandana with any military achievements. Indologist
A. K. Warder Anthony Kennedy Warder (8 September 1924 – 8 January 2013) was a British Indologist. His best-known works are ''Introduction to Pali'' (1963), ''Indian Buddhism'' (1970), and the eight-volume ''Indian Kāvya Literature'' (1972–2011). Life Wa ...
notes that the story of Shiva's boon (of living as long as they wished) to Sharmadatta and his 20 successors solves the chronological inconsistencies arising from dating the dynasty's origin to
Parashurama Parashurama (), also referred to as Rama Jamadagnya, Rama Bhargava and Veerarama, is the sixth avatar among the Dashavatara of the preserver god Vishnu in Hinduism. He is believed to be one of the ''Chiranjeevis'' (Immortals), who will appear ...
's time, by allowing as much as hundred years for the kings' lifespans. All of these kings appear to be imaginary. Canto 12 onwards, the text describes rulers who can be identified as historical figures. However, not all of the events described in this and subsequent cantos are historical. For example, Ishanavarman's purported march to Chedi is of doubtful historicity, although his conflict with the Kerala king seems to have some historical basis. Shrikantha is identified with king Kandan (Kantan) Karivarman mentioned in the
Eramam Eramam is a village in Kannur district in Indian state of Kerala. Demographics As of 2011 Census, Eramam had a population of 9,448 with 4,478 males and 4,970 females. Eramam village has an area of with 2,425 families. Population in the age ...
inscription, which records the ''Samayasanketam'' ceremony conducted at the
Chalappuram Chalappuram is a suburb of Kozhikode city in India. Location Chalappuram is situated on the south of the city on Kallai road. The road going east from Pushpa junction connects to Chalappuram Post Office and P.V.Samy Road. This road is also c ...
temple during Kandan's reign. The inscription also mentions ''Rajendra-chola Samayasenapati'' of Kadappappalli, who is identified as the 11th century
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
king Rajendra. The ''Mushika-vamsha'' mentions that Shrikantha restored the temples that had been plundered by the enemies, and then ends abruptly after describing the worship rituals at the restored temples. It appears that the Chola king Rajendra successfully invaded Kerala around 1020, and Atula has omitted this fact to avoid spoiling his glorious description of Vallabha's reign. Shrikantha seems to have restored the temples in the aftermath of this first Chola invasion, as described in the Mushika-vamsha and the Eramam inscription. The Kerala kingdom subsequently rebelled against Rajendra's overlordship, leading to a second Chola invasion around 1028, in which both the Kerala king and Kandan were killed.


References


Bibliography

* * * {{ref end Epic poems in Sanskrit 11th-century Indian books Works about monarchs History of Kerala History books about India