Irunkōvēl , also known as Irungkōvēl , Irukkuvēl , and Ilangōvēlir , was a title of the Irunkōvēl line of Velir kings. The Irunkovel line of kings ruled over Konadu identified with the Kodumbalur and surrounding areas in ancient Tamilakkam . They trace their lineage to the clan of Krishna ; one of the inscriptions at Kodumbalur belonging to one of the kings in the Irunkovel line, namely Tennavan Irunkōvēl alias Maravan Bhutiyar. They belong to Kallar family, K. A. Nilakanta Sastri mentions in his study.
31-507: The most famous among them was a contemporary of Karikala Chola as well as poet Kapilar and lived during the Sangam era. There is a song of Kapilar when Irunkovel would not accept Pari s daughters. Sangam literature mentions a chieftain called Irunkovel who could trace his lineage back over 49 generations to residence in Dvārakā . He is later defeated by Karikala Chola and becomes a subordinate to
62-499: A defeat. Although we know very little about the circumstances leading to this battle, there can be no doubt that it marked the turning point in Karikala's career, for in this battle he broke the back of the powerful confederacy formed against him. Besides the two crowned kings of the Pandya and Chera countries, eleven minor chieftains took the opposing side in the campaign and shared defeat at
93-498: A few centuries later. The copper-plate charters and stone inscription of the 10th and 11th centuries also mention two different Karikala thus unable to determine his exact reign. Based on the literature, epigraphic evidence, and copper plate increptions, below are the various dynasties who clamed descendants of Karikala Chola, and few used the title Lord of Uraiyur , which was a capital ruled by Karikala. Kapu (caste) in Andhra
124-769: A large army, invaded the island and took away 12,000 Sinhalese men to work as slaves to build the Kaveri Dam. Later Chola kings attributed the building of dikes along the banks of the Kaveri to Karikala. The raising of the banks of the river Kaveri by Karikala is also mentioned by the Malepadu plates (seventh century CE) of the Telugu Chola sovereign of Renadu, Erigal -Mutturaju Punyakumara, who claims descent from Karikala: karuna – saroruha vihita – vilochana – pallava – trilochana pramukha kilapritvisvara karita kaveri tira (he who caused
155-675: Is mixed with legend and anecdotal information gleaned from Sangam literature . The period covered by the extant literature of the Sangam is not easy to determine with any measure of certainty. Paṭṭiṉappālai , Poruṇarāṟṟuppaṭai and a number of individual poems in the Akanaṉūṟu and Purananuru have been the main source for the information that is attributed to Karikala. There are many inscriptions and records found both in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh which mentions Karikala and his conquests and
186-430: Is not fit for cultivation. So, Karikala destroyed the forests and planted many villages. One of the villages is Pottapi, which was the most important village and hence the whole locality acquired in course of time the name Pottapi Nadu. Unlike Trilochana Pallava, Karikala Chola donated lands not only to Brahmins but also to the cultivators. Sometime between the reign of Sinhalese monarch Vankanasika Tissa , Karikala, with
217-479: Is said to have originated from Telugu Cholas who themselves claim descendant from Karikala. Karikala Bhaktulu caste in Andhra also known as Sengunthar consider Karikala Chola as their hero. Uraiyur Uraiyur (also spelt Woraiyur ) pronunciation is a locality in Tiruchirapalli city in Tamil Nadu , India . Uraiyur was the ancient name of Tiruchirappalli City. Now, it has become one of
248-565: The Chola sovereign. The Irungovel chieftains were not merely feudatories but were related to the Cholas through matrimony. The Cholas considered the offspring of these unions as one of their own and referred to them as Irungolar meaning child or son in their epigraphs. These princes assumed both the Chola and Irungovel titles like for example there was one Adavallan Gangaikonda Cholan alias Irungolan during
279-433: The battle of Venni , Karikala had other opportunities to exercise his arms. He defeated the confederacy of nine minor chieftains in the battle of Vakaipparandalai. Paranar, a contemporary of Karikala, in his poem from Agananuru mentions this incident without giving any information on the cause of the conflict. According to legends Karikala was one of the few Chola kings who won the whole of Ceylon (Lanka). The Grand anicut
310-407: The 9th century CE and later made Tanjavur their capital, and Urayur slowly lost its place in the Chola administration. During the Sangam age, Uraiyur was also known as Koḻi lit., ‘ Rooster ’. The name is explained by the myth of a rooster boldly confronting the elephant of the king. He was taken aback for a moment but then decided to build his empire around that place after he realized the cause for
341-619: The Chola ministers sent a state elephant to look for the prince. The elephant finds the prince hiding in Karuvur (modern day Karur in Tamil Nadu ). His political opponents arrested and imprisoned him. The prison was set on fire that night. Karikala escaped the fire and, with the help of his uncle Irum-pitar-thalaiyan, defeated his enemies. Karikala's leg was scorched in the fire and from thence Karikala became his name. Old Sangam Age inscriptions and also sthala puranam of great ancient Saiva shrine at Parasalur, near Mayavaram says that in order to escape
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#1733084819343372-607: The Cholas as well as Uraiyur to 272–232 BCE, which was the period of Ashoka (ca. 304–232 BCE) who was ruler of the Maurya Dynasty of Pataliputra (modern Patna ). Inscriptions and rock edicts of Ashoka and the Satavahanas describe Urayur as "the citadel and centre of the Cholas". Uraiyur was ruled by Karikala Cholan . A revered Digambar Jain Acharya, Samantabhadra , was born here in
403-715: The Great , was a Tamil Emperor of the Early Cholas of the Chola dynasty who ruled ancient Tamilakam (Modern day Tamil Nadu in Southern India ) from Uraiyur . He is credited with the construction of the flood banks of the river Kaveri and conquest of Tamilakam , Andhra and Sri Lanka . He is recognised as the greatest of the Early Cholas. In Thiruvalangadu plates of Rajendra Chola I , Medieval Tamil Cholas listed Karikala Chola as one of their ancestors. The story of Karikala
434-532: The Pandya’s strength to give way…". Based on numerous village records and Telugu Chola inscriptions found in Andhra, Karikala seems to have battled against a Pallava king named Trilochana Pallava or Mukhanti Pallava or Mukhanti Kaduvetti and captured Tondainadu , leaving the southern Telugu country to the Pallava king. The Pallava king who had Kanchi as his capital moved the capital to Kalahasti after losing Kanchi in
465-400: The back-formed origin legend of this incident as follows: The king of Uraiyur ( Tiruchirappalli ) Ilamcetcenni married a Velir princess from Azhundur and she became pregnant and gave birth to Karikala. Ilamcetcenni died soon after. Due to his young age, Karikala's right to the throne was overlooked and there was political turmoil in the country. Karikala was exiled. When normality returned,
496-619: The banks of the Kaveri to be constructed by all the subordinate kings led by the Pallava Trilochana whose third eye was blinded by his lotus foot). The Grand Anicut , also known as the Kallanai was built by Karikala and is considered one of the oldest water-diversion or water-regulator structures in the world which is still in use. The Kallanai is a massive dam of unhewn stone, 329 metres (1,080 ft) long and 20 metres (60 ft) wide, across
527-452: The battle. The inscriptions also says that Karikala ordered Trilochana Pallava to come and assist him in building the flood banks along the Kaveri river. But the Pallava king who was ruling from Kalahasti declined to obey which made Karikala to declare war against him. Karikala won the battle and captured the Telugu country. During that time period, southern Andhra was covered with big forests which
558-559: The busiest areas in Trichy City. It was the capital of the early Cholas , who were one of the three main kingdoms of the ancient Tamil country . Sometimes spelt as Urayur , this location is also known as Thirukkozhi , Nikalaapuri , Uranthai , and Kozhiyur or Koliyur . There is definite mention of the Cholas, and their capital in Ashokan inscriptions in Orissa pushing back the antiquity of
589-539: The cage's structure and waited for the guards to grow complacent. Then, with a swift slash of its powerful claws, it tore through the wooden bars, catching the guards off guard. Overpowering them with its newfound strength and skill, it leapt into the jungle and reclaimed its freedom, thriving in its rightful domain. According to the Poruṇarāṟṟuppaṭai , Karikala Chola fought a great Battle of Venni in which both Pandyan and Cheran king Uthiyan Cheralathan suffered
620-544: The clan of Karikala, who was the Mandara tree on the Mandara mountain, viz., the solar clan; who was the worker of many wonders like controlling the daughter of Kaveri" Karikala was the son of Ilamcetcenni . The name Karikalan has been held to mean "the man with the charred leg" and perpetuates the memory of a fire accident in the early years of his life. Some scholars also hold the view kari and kalan are Tamil words meaning "slayer of elephants". Poruṇarāṟṟuppaṭai describes
651-648: The construction of flood banks along the Kaveri river. Many rulers and petty chiefs who came after him claimed him as their ancestor and decorated themselves as belonging to the Chola clan of Karikala and of the Kashyapa gotra . The following lines are taken from the Malepadu plates of Renadu Chola king Punyakumara, "Dinakara-kula-mandar-achala-mandara-padapassya Kavera-tanaya-velollamghanaprasamana-pramukn-adyanak-atisaya-karinah Trairajya-sthitim-atmasat-kritavatah-karikala" The above lines are translated as: "In
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#1733084819343682-441: The hands of Karikala. The Chera king, who was wounded on his back in the battle, committed suicide by starvation. Venni was the watershed in the career of Karikala which established him firmly on his throne and secured for him some sort of hegemony among the three crowned monarchs. Venni is also known as Vennipparandalai and now it is known as Kovilvenni and is situated near Needamangalam , 25 km away from Thanjavur . After
713-403: The later part of the second century CE. His notable works include Ratnakarandaka Shravakachara, Aaptamimamsa and Swambhu Stotra. Uraiyur is also mentioned as the capital of the ancient great Chola King Karikalan before the 1st century CE until the dynasty was revived by Vijayalaya Chola c. 850 CE. The Cholas were one of the four great Tamil dynasties; ( Pallavas , Cheras and Pandyas are
744-535: The main stream of the Kaveri. A later Chola record from Tiruvaduturai refers to this event that is raising the banks of the Kaveri by Parakesari Karikala Chola. After his victory over the Northern kingdoms of Vatsa, Magadha and Avantika, Karikala returned to Tamil land and worshipped Lord Shiva at the Perur Pateeswarar Temple located at the banks of river Noyyal in present-day Coimbatore . Karikala
775-483: The murder plot hatched by conspirators Karikal Valavan stayed there in disguise of a vedic and agama sastra lecturer for eight years. Paṭṭiṉappālai , written in praise of Karikala also describes this incident, but without mention of the fable of the burnt limb: Once, in a dense forest, a young tiger cub was captured by hunters and locked in a wooden cage. Inside, it grew quietly, its claws sharpening as its body filled with strength and purpose. Though confined, it watched
806-648: The other three) who ruled over the Tamil country in South India , the Konkan coast, Deccan Plateau and during the peak reached beyond the Narmada up to the Ganges – Damodar delta from early antiquity. The word Urayur in Tamil literally means "the residence". Urayur was an ancient Chola city with a fortress and city wall on the southern banks of the river Kaveri . The Imperial Cholas of
837-738: The time of Kulottunga I and then there was a certain Sendamangalam Udaiyan Araiyan Edirili Cholan alias Irungolan during the reign of Kulottunga III . Nankudi Vellalar (Nangudi Vellalar or Sivakalai Pillaimar), is a Tamil sub caste of Vellalar found in Tamil Nadu, India. They claim descent from the Velir clan of Irungovels. The hereditary headman of the caste was always invested with the title Irungovel. Citations Bibliography Karikala Chola Karikala ( Tamil : Karikāla Chōḻaṉ ), often referred to as Karikala
868-408: The world outside and learned its captors' routines. One day, a mighty elephant nearby struggled within a deep pit. Using its massive trunk, the elephant pushed against the edges of the trap, bringing the banks down and freeing itself. The tiger watched closely, inspired by the creature's determination and method. Determined to break free as well, the tiger bided its time. It studied the weakness in
899-581: Was an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva. He is said to have done the Kumbhabhishekham (sanctification ritual) of the temple through hundred golden vessels. A famous text named Perur Puranam was composed by Kachiyappa Munivar in Tamil on the origin of the temple. Karikala Cholan Manimandapam (memorial hall) was built in honour of the king who built the Grand Anicut. The hall designed as per Chola architecture style
930-475: Was built after his conquest over the Sinhalese kingdom and he used Sinhalese war prisoners for the hard task of moving stones from the mountains to the river bed of the Kaveri. The Pattinappalai also describes the destruction caused by Karikala's armies in the territories of his enemies and adds that as the result of these conflicts, the "Northerners and Westerners were depressed… and his flushed look of anger caused
961-561: Was built at a cost of ₹ 21 million. It features a bronze statue of the king. According to Nilakanta Sastri Karikala reigned in 190 CE. However, V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar states that the Karikala mentioned in Silappadikaram and the Karikala in Sangam literature are two different kings and the Karikala mentioned in Silappadikaram has nothing to do with Trilocana Pallava and nothing prevents another Karikala having flourished in Puhar