Gangaikod Cholpuram

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Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

Gangaikonda Cholapuram (गंगईकोंडचोलपुरम) is a town located in Jayankondam, Ariyalur, Tamil Nadu, India. It became the capital of the Chola dynasty in c. 1025 during the reign of Rajendra Chola I, and served as the Chola capital for around 250 years. The great Brihadishwara Temple has been recognised as a World Heritage site by UNESCO [1]

Origin

Variants

  • Gangaikond Cholpuram (गंगईकोंड चोलपुरम) (उदयारपलयम तालुका, जिला त्रिचिरापल्ली, मद्रास) (p.261)
  • Gangaikondacholapuram

Location

The town is about approximately 125 kms northeast of Tiruchirapalli international airport. As of 2014, the ancient city exists as a heritage town in the Ariyalur district of Tamil Nadu, India. The great temple of Brihadeeswarar Temple at this place is next only to the Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur in its monumental nature and surpasses it in sculptural quality.

Jat clans

History

The city was founded by Rajendra Chola I to commemorate his victory over the Pala Dynasty. The name means The town of the chola who took over Ganga (water from Ganga) or who defeated (the kings near) Ganga. It is now a small village, its past eminence only remembered by the existence of the great Lord Maha Shiva Temple. The Chola empire included the whole of southern India to the river Tungabhadra in the north. For administrative and strategic purposes they built another capital and named it Gangaikondacholapuram.

The city seems to have had two fortifications, one inner and the other outer. The outer was probably wider. The remains of the outer fortification can be seen as a mound running all around the palace.[2][3]

Excavations suggest that the outer fortification was built of burnt bricks, was about six to eight feet wide. It consisted of two walls, the intervening space (the core) being filled with sand. The bricks are fairly large in size and are made of well-burnt clay.[4][5]

The surviving temple in Gangaikonda Cholapuram was completed in 1035 AD.[5] Rajendra emulated the temple built by his father after his victory in a campaign across India that Chola era texts state covered Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Bengal. After his victory, he demanded that the defeated kingdoms send pots of Ganges River water and pour it into the well of this temple.[6]

Rajendra I, states the Tamil tradition, thereafter assumed the name of Gangaikonda Cholan, meaning the one who conquered the Ganges. He established Gangaikonda Cholapuram as his capital from the medieval Chola capital of Thanjavur, which would go on to become the capital for the next 250 years.[7] Rajendra I built the entire capital with several temples using plans and infrastructure recommended in Tamil Vastu and Agama sastra texts.[8] These included a Dharma Sasta, Vishnu and other temples. However, all of these were destroyed in the late 13th and 14th centuries except the Brihadishvara temple. The other Chola landmarks are evidenced by soil covered mounds and excavated broken pillar stumps and brick walls found over an area of several kilometers from the surviving temple.[9][10]

The reasons for the city's destruction are unclear. According to Vansanthi, the Pandyas who defeated the Cholas during the later part of the 13th century "may have razed the city to the ground" to avenge their previous defeats.[11] However, it is unclear why other temples were destroyed and this temple was spared, as well as why there are around 20 inscriptions from later Cholas, Pandyas and Vijayanagar Empire indicting various gifts and grants to this temple.[12] An alternate theory links the destruction to the raids and wars, particularly with the invasion of the capital city and the territories that were earlier a part by the Chola Empire along with Madurai by the armies of Delhi Sultanate led by the Muslim commander Malik Kafur in 1311, followed by Khusrau Khan in 1314 and Muhammad bin Tughlaq in 1327.[13][14][15] The period that followed saw wars between the Hindu kings and the Muslim Sultans who seceded the Delhi Sultanate and carved out new polity such as the nearby Madurai Sultanate (1335–1378). [16] The Vijayanagara Empire defeated the Madurai Sultanate in 1378 and this temple along with other Chola era temples thereafter came under Hindu kings again who repaired and restored many of them.

गंगईकोंडचोलपुरम

विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर[17] ने लेख किया है ...गंगईकोंडचोलपुरम (AS, p.261) चोल वंश के प्रतापी राजा राजेंद्र चोल (1101-1144 ई.) की राजधानी. 1955-56 के उत्खनन में पुरातत्व विभाग को इस स्थान पर एक प्राचीन दुर्ग की भित्ति के अवशेष प्राप्त हुए हैं. इसकी लंबाई 6000 फुट उत्तर-दक्षिण और 4500 फुट पूर्व-पश्चिम की ओर है. दुर्ग के अंदर 1700 फुट लंबा और 1300 फुट चौड़ा राजप्रसाद था. दुर्ग के बाहर उत्तरपूर्व के कोने में बृहदीश्वर का प्रसिद्ध मंदिर था. दुर्ग और मंदिर के बीच कारुवट्ट नामक नदी बहती थी. वर्तमान मंदिर का शिखर भूमि से 170 फुट ऊंचा है. यह तंजोर के प्रसिद्ध मंदिर की शैली के अनुरूप बना है. मंदिर के पास सिंहतीर्थ नामक कूप है जिसे राजेंद्र चोल ने बनवाया था. यह नगर चोल राजाओं के शासनकाल में बहुत उन्नत तथा समृद्ध था. नगर का नाम संभवत: राजेंद्र चोल ने गंगा के तटवर्ती प्रदेश की विजय के स्मारक के रूप में गंगईकोंडचोलपुरम रखा था.

गंगैकोण्ड चोलपुरम्

गंगैकोण्ड चोलपुरम्, तमिलनाडु के त्रिचुरापल्ली जिले में स्थित एक स्थान है। यह जैयमकोण्ड सोलापुर से 10 किमी की दूरी पर है। प्राचीन काल में यह एक प्रख्यात नगर था। लोकप्रवाद है कि वाणासुर के तपस्या के फलस्वरूप शिव ने यहाँ एक कूप में गंगा बहा दी थी जिसके कारण यह नाम पड़ा है। वस्तुत: इसे प्रथम राजेंद्र चोल ने बसाया था जो 'गंगैकोंडचोल' कहा जाता था। यहाँ चोलकालीन एक विशाल मंदिर के अवशेष हैं।[18]

गंगाई कोंडा चोलापुरम को राजेंद्र चोल द्वारा स्थापित किया गया था जो पाल वंश की विजय का प्रतीक था। इसे 250 साल पहले चोल वंश की राजधानी के रूप में जाना जाता था। इस स्‍थान पर बहुत सारे राजाओं का शासन रहा है। यहां एक शिव मंदिर भी स्थित है। यह मंदिर आज भी इस क्षेत्र की वास्‍तुकला और कला का जीवंत प्रतीक है। यह मंदिर न सिर्फ चोल वंश के लिए महत्‍वपूर्ण है बल्कि यह दक्षिण भारत का सबसे बड़ा और प्राचीन शिवलिंग वाला मंदिर है। इस मंदिर में 4 मीटर ऊंचा शिवलिंग खड़ा है। इस मंदिर में चोल वंश के दौरान की कई कलाकृतियां बनी हुई है। मंदिर की दीवारों पर उस काल के बारे में काफी कुछ अंकित है। [19]

External links

References

  1. ↑ https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/250
  2. ↑ S.R. Balasubrahmanyam (1975), Middle Chola Temples, Thomson Press, ISBN 978-9060236079, pp. 241-249.
  3. ↑ Vasanthi (2009). "Excavation at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, the imperial capital of Rajendra Chola, and its significance". In Kulke, Hermann; K., Kesavapany; Sakhuja, Vijay (eds.). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwip: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of south-east Asian Studies. pp. 96–100. ISBN 978-981-230-938-9.
  4. ↑ S.R. Balasubrahmanyam (1975), Middle Chola Temples, Thomson Press, ISBN 978-9060236079, pp. 241-249.
  5. ↑ Vasanthi (2009). "Excavation at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, the imperial capital of Rajendra Chola, and its significance". In Kulke, Hermann; K., Kesavapany; Sakhuja, Vijay (eds.). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwip: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of south-east Asian Studies. pp. 96–100. ISBN 978-981-230-938-9.
  6. ↑ S.R. Balasubrahmanyam (1975), Middle Chola Temples, Thomson Press, ISBN 978-9060236079, pp. 241-249.
  7. ↑ Melton, J. Gordon. Faiths Across Time: 5,000 Years of Religious History [4 Volumes]: 5,000 Years of Religious History.
  8. ↑ S.R. Balasubrahmanyam 1975, pp. 241-249.
  9. ↑ S.R. Balasubrahmanyam 1975, pp. 241-249.
  10. ↑ Vasanthi (2009). "Excavation at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, the imperial capital of Rajendra Chola, and its significance". In Kulke, Hermann; K., Kesavapany; Sakhuja, Vijay (eds.). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwip: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of south-east Asian Studies. pp. 96–100. ISBN 978-981-230-938-9.
  11. ↑ Vasanthi (2009). "Excavation at Gangaikonda Cholapuram, the imperial capital of Rajendra Chola, and its significance". In Kulke, Hermann; K., Kesavapany; Sakhuja, Vijay (eds.). Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwip: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of south-east Asian Studies. pp. 96–100. ISBN 978-981-230-938-9.
  12. ↑ Pillai, J.M. Somanasundaram (1994). The great temple at Tanjore. Tamil University, Thanjavur. pp. 109–111.
  13. ↑ Michael C. Howard (2012). Transnationalism in Ancient and Medieval Societies. McFarland. pp. 93–94. ISBN 978-0-7864-9033-2.
  14. ↑ George Michell (1986). Islamic heritage of the Deccan. Mārg Publications. p. 8.
  15. ↑ Jamal Malik (2008). Islam in South Asia: A Short History. BRILL Academic. p. 140. ISBN 90-04-16859-1.
  16. ↑ George Michell (2008), Architecture and art of Southern India, Cambridge University Press, pages 16-21, 89-91, note 1
  17. ↑ Aitihasik Sthanavali by Vijayendra Kumar Mathur, p.261
  18. ↑ विकिपीडिया-गंगैकोण्ड चोलपुरम्
  19. ↑ नैटिवप्लानेट-गंगाई कोंडा चोलापुरम
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