Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia 9812309365, 9789812309365

Table of contents :
chola-1-100
chola-101-200
chola-201-end

Citation preview

Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia

E D I T O R S

Hermann Kulke • K. Kesavapany • Vijay Sakhuja

INSTITUTE OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN STUDIES Singapore

First published in Singapore in 2009 by Institute of Southeast Asian Studies 30 Heng Mui Keng Terrace Pasir Panjang Singapore 119614

E-mail : [email protected] Website: (http://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg>) for distribution in all countries except India All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. © 2009 Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore

The responsibility for facts and opinions in this publication rests exclusively with the authors and their interpretations do not necessarily reflect the views or the policy of the publishers or their supporters. ISEAS Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa : reflections on the Chola naval expeditions to Southeast Asia / edited by Hermann Kulke, K. Kesavapany, Vijay Sakhuja. 1. Chola dynasty, 850–1279—Congresses. 2. India—Relations—Southeast Asia—Congresses. 3. Southeast Asia—Relations—India—Congresses. 4. Asia—Commerce—History—Congresses. I. Kulke, Hermann. II. Kesavapany, K. III. Sakhuja, Vijay. IV. Conference on Early Indian Influences in Southeast Asia : Reflections on CrossCultural Movements (2007 : Singapore) DS523.2 N14 2009 ISBN 978-981-230-936-5 (soft cover) ISBN 978-981-230-937-2 (hard cover) ISBN 978-981-230-938-9 (E-book PDF) This book is meant for educational and learning purposes. The authors of the book have taken all reasonable care to ensure that the contents of the book do not violate any existing copyright or other intellectual property rights of any person in any manner whatsoever. In the event the authors have been unable to track any source and if any copyright has been inadvertently infringed, please notify the publisher in writing for corrective action.

Cover photo: Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram, Tamil Nadu. Courtesy of Risha Lee. The map appearing on the endpapers is based on an original map in K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l.as (Madras: University of Madras, 1955), p. 212. Typeset by Superskill Graphics Pte Ltd Printed in Singapore by Chung Printing

CONTENTS

Foreword by Shashi Tharoor Message by M. V. Subbiah Preface by K. Kesavapany Introduction by Hermann Kulke The Contributors 1. The Naval Expeditions of the Cholas in the Context of Asian History

Hermann Kulke

vii ix xi xiii xxi 1

2. Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean as Revealed from Chinese Ceramic-sherds and South Indian and Sri Lankan Inscriptions

20

3. The Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola and the Chola-Srivijaya-China Triangle

61

4. Rajendra Chola I’s Naval Expedition to Southeast Asia: A Nautical Perspective

76

5. A Note on the Navy of the Chola State

91

6. Excavation at Gangaikondacholapuram, The Imperial Capital of Rajendra Chola, and Its Significance

96

Noboru Karashima

Tansen Sen

Vijay Sakhuja and Sangeeta Sakhuja Y. Subbarayalu

S. Vasanthi

vi

Contents

7. New Perspectives on Nagapattinam: The Medieval Port City in the Context of Political, Religious, and Commercial Exchanges between South India, Southeast Asia and China

102

8. South Indian Merchant Guilds in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia

135

9. Anjuvannam: A Maritime Trade Guild of Medieval Times

158

Gokul Seshadri

Noboru Karashima Y. Subbarayalu

10. Rajendra Chola’s Naval Expedition and the Chola Trade with Southeast and East Asia

168

11. Cultural Implications of the Chola Maritime Fabric Trade with Southeast Asia

178

12. Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia during the Period of the Polonnaruva Kingdom

193

13. India and Southeast Asia: South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

208

14. Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

227

15. Rethinking Community: The Indic Carvings of Quanzhou

240

Appendix I Ancient and Medieval Tamil and Sanskrit Inscriptions Relating to Southeast Asia and China

271

A. Meenakshisundararajan

Hema Devare

Anura Manatunga

P. Shanmugam Ninie Susanti Risha Lee

Noboru Karashima and Y. Subbarayalu

II

Chinese Texts Describing or Referring to the Chola Kingdom as Zhu-nian

Noboru Karashima and Tansen Sen Index

292 317

FOREWORD

I am delighted to welcome a valuable addition to the limited canon of books on India’s interaction with Southeast Asia. Indian Ocean studies still remain unexplored, though the Indian Ocean and its “Maritime Silk Road” have been the main focus of global and in particular Asian history in recent decades. The book titled Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia deals with several fascinating subjects, amongst them: • • •

the naval expeditions of the Cholas in the context of Asian history and Indian Ocean trade system; South Indian merchant guilds, whose fame is strongly associated with the Cholas and which are often regarded as a driving force behind the naval expeditions of the Cholas; developments in Sri Lanka and Indonesia, which were most directly affected by Chola expansionism.

India has been following a conscious “Look East Policy” since the early 1990s and India’s present accentuated level of interaction with ASEAN is integral to this approach. There has been steady progress in the India-ASEAN relationship since this policy was initiated. India-ASEAN functional cooperation is diverse and includes cooperation in several sectors. As regards political and security issues, ASEAN also has expressed its desire to work with India to fight terrorism, transnational crimes and similar problems. Recently, India concluded a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with ASEAN, which will ensure lower duties and a freer flow of trade in goods. In the cultural, educational and religious fields, India’s efforts aim to promote people to people contacts, religious tourism and linkages among institutions of higher learning. This volume fits well within these objectives.

viii

Foreword

The present book Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia, about the naval expeditions of the

South Indian Chola Dynasty in the eleventh century, is a welcome contribution to Indian Ocean studies. I hope it will enhance its readers’ awareness of a vital and sadly-neglected aspect of India’s involvement with its broader neighbourhood.

Dr Shashi Tharoor Minister of State for External Affairs India 10 October 2009

MESSAGE

At a time when the Indian psyche is slowly losing touch with its glorious traditions and legacies of the past, ISEAS efforts to put together a conference and publish this book, Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa , is of great significance. This particular volume throws light on the naval expeditions during the Chola Dynasty to Southeast Asia and its cultural impact on that part of the globe. I am sure the informative deliberations in this volume will be of great interest to researchers, academics, scholars and students of history alike and inspire them to undertake further research in this domain. We the members of the Murugappa family in Chennai, India, through our AMM Foundation are proud to be associated with this project, though in a small way.

M. V. Subbiah Managing Trustee AMM Foundation of the Murugappa Group Chennai, India

PREFACE

The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) hosted an international conference on “Early Indian Influences in Southeast Asia: Reflections on Cross-cultural Movements” from 21 to 23 November 2007 in Singapore. We acknowledge the generous funding provided by the AMM Foundation of the Murugappa Group, Chennai, India, who co-sponsored the conference. Two volumes have emerged from the proceedings of the above conference: the current volume Nagapattinam to Suvarnadwipa: Reflections on the Chola Naval Expeditions to Southeast Asia, and one on the main theme of the conference, that is, Early Indian Influence in Southeast Asia. The South Indian Chola kings had developed a sophisticated maritime enterprise centred on sea-based commerce with trading contacts in Malaya, Sumatra, and China. This had produced an ocean-going fleet that was dispatched by the Chola King Rajendra Chola I against the Srivijaya Kingdom. The essays in this volume reflect on the naval expedition, which is also mentioned in the inscription dated 1030–31 of the big temple of Tanjavur in South India. The volume contains seminal contributions by eminent historians and scholars of Asian history who have meticulously presented their findings in these essays. Perhaps the most significant contribution of this volume to Asian maritime history are the translations of ancient and medieval Tamil and Sanskrit inscriptions relating to Southeast Asia and China, and of the Chinese texts describing or referring to the Chola Kingdom as Zhu-nian. I am thankful to the contributors of this volume for sharing valuable insights into their understanding and interpretation of the Chola naval expedition to Southeast Asia. ISEAS is particularly indebted to Professor Hermann Kulke for the intellectual leadership he provided for the project. It is hoped that this volume will provide greater understanding of early Indian influences in Southeast Asia and generate further research on the subject.

xii

Preface

My sincere thanks to Professor P. Ramasamy and other ISEAS colleagues who worked tirelessly towards the preparation and organization of this major three-day conference that attracted over a hundred synopses, and in which fifty-two short-listed papers were presented. I am also thankful to Betty Kwan from ISEAS who worked very efficiently to take care of the finer details of the conference; Y.L. Lee, Head of Administration, for the administrative support and cooperation in the organization of the conference; and Triena Ong, Managing Editor of the Publications Unit, for the successful production of the current volume.

Ambassador K. Kesavapany Director Institute of Southeast Asian Studies

INTRODUCTION

Next to the study of the continental Silk Road, the Indian Ocean and its “Maritime Silk Road” have been the main focus of global, and in particular, Asian history in recent decades. But strangely enough, Indian Ocean studies still remain oddly bipartite. They emphasize predominantly the “classical” period, with its strong Mediterranean connections on the one hand, and the “early modern” period, with its rise of European dominance in the Indian Ocean on the other. The long millennium from the fifth to the sixteenth centuries, when the Indian Ocean finally emerged as an Asian Mediterranean Sea, still remains underrepresented in international studies. The present volume about the naval expeditions of the South Indian Chola dynasty to Southeast Asia in the eleventh century is meant as a modest contribution to fill this historiographical gap. The great naval expedition of the Chola king, Rajendra I, who claimed in his inscriptions to have “despatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea” and conquered more than a dozen harbour cities altogether of the famous Southeast Asian kingdom of Srivijaya in Sumatra, and on the Malay Peninsula in about AD 1025, was a unique event in the otherwise peaceful and culturally exceedingly fruitful relation of India with its neighbours in Southeast Asia. Already the last centuries of the first millennium BC witnessed increasingly extending trade activities between India and Southeast Asia, and the peacefulness of the spread of India’s culture across the Bay of Bengal throughout the first millennium AD is unparalleled in world history. Buddhism and Hinduism alike left their deep and lasting imprint on the emerging cultures of mainland and maritime Southeast Asia. The first distinct South Indian influences are usually linked with the famous Buddhist art of Amaravati, and the Pallava Grantha of present-day Indonesia’s earliest inscriptions in the fifth century AD, followed by the strong impact of Pallava and Chola art and architecture in Southeast Asia.

xiv

Introduction

In view of these lasting peaceful relations of India, and of South India in particular, with Southeast Asia, the great Chola invasions of Srivijaya in 1025, followed by another smaller naval expedition in c. 1070, are an issue that still remains a conundrum for historians. In 1955, Nilakanta Sastri, the late doyen of South Indian historians, rightly asked in his magnum opus on the Cholas, “why was this expedition against the king of Kada-ram [Srivijaya] undertaken and what were its effects?”1 and he concluded his detailed analysis of the sources: “We have to assume either some attempt on part of Srivijaya to throw obstacles in the way of the Co-l.a trade with the East, or more probably, a simple desire on the part of Ra-jendra to extend his digvijaya [“world conquest”] to the countries across the sea so well-known to his subjects at home, and thereby add lustre to his crown.”2 The American historian G.W. Spencer, on the other hand, in 1983 speaks, in the only existing monograph on the Chola conquests of Sri Lanka and Srivijaya so far, of “politics of expansion”,3 and in a previous paper (1976), even of “politics of plunder”. 4 More recent studies instead emphasize trade as the major incentive of Rajendra’s unique naval expedition. In her study of the medieval merchant guilds of South India, Meera Abraham concluded that “the raid was undertaken partly at least to establish trading rights for Tamil-speaking merchants in those areas, a trade from which the ruler, the merchant and the Co-l.a bureaucracy could expect sizable profit”.5 In the most recent substantial contribution to India’s medieval relation with Southeast Asia and China, Tansen Sen concludes that the examination of hitherto unexplored Chinese sources and reinterpretation of others “strengthens the commercial-motive theory shared by a majority of scholars”.6 However, he also refers to the often quoted passage of the Song work Zhufan zhi that those ships which tried to avoid the payment of taxes at the ports of Srivijaya were attacked and destroyed. “If true, then, both the Srivijayan diplomatic and military attempts to block direct maritime links between Indian ports and the Song markets may have been the principal factors for the Chola naval raids in 1025 and the 1070s.”7 Other scholars interpret Rajendra Chola’s raid on Srivijaya’s harbours in the wider context of the Indian Ocean trade system as the culmination of increasing tensions,8 caused by the rise of new imperial Asian powers since the late tenth century and their struggle for their share in the lucrative maritime trade. An important result of the Singapore conference at which these papers were presented was the confirmation of the cognition that the conundrum of the naval expedition of the Cholas has been and is still caused primarily by the scarcity of archaeological and literary sources. In fact, details of the expedition are known only from a single source, viz. the often quoted and, in

Introduction

xv

this volume, also frequently referred to Tamil pras´asti (eulogy) of Rajendra’s inscriptions.9 And what is perhaps even more surprising, Chinese sources are completely silent about Rajendra’s naval raid on Srivijaya. However, we do possess a considerably large number of contemporary Sanskrit, Tamil, and especially Chinese sources10 about direct relations of the Cholas with Southeast Asian countries and China that allow us to “contextualize” their naval expeditions in the Indian Ocean trade system, and to draw relevant, though often still hypothetical, conclusions about their causes. But several of these sources are either difficult to access, or are not even translated yet. Scholars of Indian history and Indian Ocean studies, and in particular the editors of this volume, are, therefore, grateful to Professors Noboru Karashima, Y. Subbarayalu, and Tansen Sen for agreeing after the conference to prepare for the first time in two appendices to this volume a critical edition of the texts as well as (partly new) translations of all relevant Indian and Chinese sources of Chola activities in the Indian Ocean. Moreover, the editors are obliged to Professor Karashima and Professor Subbarayalu to have also contributed additional papers about the famous South Indian merchant guilds. Together with these and the appendices, the proceedings of the conference provide not only a state-of-the-art picture of the maritime activities of the Cholas but also sufficient critically re-evaluated source material and stimulating theories for future research on one of the most fascinating periods in the history of South India and the Indian Ocean. The first three chapters locate the naval expeditions of the Cholas in the context of contemporary Asian history and the Indian Ocean trade system. H. Kulke’s introductory chapter interprets Rajendra’s raid on Srivijaya’s harbour cities as the culmination of the systematic quest of Rajaraja and his son Rajendra for domination of maritime South India and its surrounding islands in order to control the trade between the new emerging maritime powers of the Fatimids in Egypt and the Song dynasty of China. The emerging dominating position of the “Imperial Cholas” in the central portion of the Indian Ocean trade system was bound to clash with Srivijaya’s hegemony over the Strait of Malacca, the gate to the Chinese market. Another salient point of the chapter is Srivijaya’s finally futile “ritual policy” to establish friendly relations with the Cholas through temple donations at Nagapattinam. Whereas Kulke focuses his deliberations on the rivalry and competition in the Bay of Bengal, Tansen Sen extends in his paper on the “Chola-Srivijaya-China triangle” the range of view further to the East by a detailed introductory description of China’s rise to hegemony in the Indian Ocean trade system under the Song dynasty from the late tenth century. Contrary to most scholars working on the Cholas’ naval expeditions, he bases his analysis

xvi

Introduction

primarily on Chinese sources and argues that even initially the relations between Srivijaya and the Cholas were not as friendly as suggested by, for example, K.A.N. Sastri. On the contrary, the Srivijayans, as the main informants of Song scribes about the “barbarians of the Southern Sea”, seem to have been systematically passing wrong information about the Chola kingdom to them. This may be the reason Chinese annals failed to mention the Chola raids, and later, even depict the Cholas as a tributary state of Srivijaya. Another important contribution is that Sen revitalizes R.C. Majumdar’s theory (which had been rejected by Sastri) that Rajendra attacked Srivijaya for the first time by a minor invasion already in 1017. He concludes that the invasions were a “retaliation for Srivijayan interference in direct trade between southern India and Song China”. Karashima’s detailed summary of the results of his recent survey of Chinese ceramics on South Indian and Sri Lankan coasts sheds new light on Chinese trade with South India from the ninth century and its tremendous increase from the thirteenth century. The different discovery spots of Chinese ceramics which he surveyed on the Coromandel and Malabar Coasts (for example, Periyapattinam and Kayal; Kollama/Quilon, and Pandalayini-Kollam) are identified with toponyms mentioned in Chinese sources which are quoted. Of particular interest for this volume is his discovery of the yingqing-type porcelain sherds of the eleventh/twelfth centuries at Gangaikondacholapuram, Rajendra’s capital, “which might have been pieces brought from China by the envoys sent by Rajendra.” The paper moreover contains important information about merchant guilds that will be referred to below. The following two chapters deal with nautical perspectives and the navy, two subjects of central importance in examining the naval expeditions of the Cholas. In their deliberations about the nautical aspects of Rajendra’s great expedition in 1025, V. & S. Sakhuja are taking up an essential subject which, however, requires a lot of “professional imagination” to rectify the deplorable lack of historical source material. But they rightly point out that in 1025 the Cholas were not only endowed with the accumulated nautical knowledge of the seafaring Tamils of at least a millennium, but also with their own experience of having already successfully organized naval expeditions to Sri Lanka, the Maldives, and to the Andaman Islands at least, if not up to the Malay Peninsula. They refer to the sophisticated knowledge of the Chola seafarers of nautically relevant celestial bodies and important navigational marks, and discuss moreover questions of logistics and provisioning, possible shipbuilding centres, ports of departure, and the route followed. As for the “Chola armada”, they rightly point out that it might largely have consisted of ships taken from trade. Y. Subbarayalu’s paper on the Chola navy also brings

Introduction

xvii

us back to the reason for the conundrum of the naval expeditions of the Cholas. As an epigraphist, he rightly reminds us that due to the predominantly donative character of the inscriptions, we get only very fragmentary pieces of information about the actual mode of land-based warfare — and even less about the navy of the Cholas. The only known epigraphical reference to it so far comes from an inscription of the year 1187 which mentions a commander of “the army of the seashore” which was certainly the navy. In Rajendra’s inscriptions, only the term kalam occurs, which is the usual word for “ship”. The famous 1088 inscription of the Tamil merchant inscription at Barus/ Sumatra refers to marakkalam or “ship made of timber”. The next two chapters deal with Rajendra’s political and maritime centres at Gangaikondacholapuram and Nagapattinam. According to S. Vasanthi, Gangaikondacholapuram was founded by Rajendra probably after his sixth regnal year and remained the imperial capital of the Cholas until it was razed by the Pandyas in late thirteenth century. Apart from Rajendra’s still existing monumental Brihadisvara temple, the fate of the architectural remains of the once flourishing capital, as known from contemporary Tamil poems, was sealed by the nearby villagers who even today take bricks from them for the construction of their houses. Excavations by the Archaeological Survey of Tamil Nadu, however, revealed important antiquities, decorative objects, and Chinese ceramics. G. Seshadri’s article contains a comprehensive survey of the literary sources of the history of Nagapattinam. His critical re-evaluation of pre-sixth century sources (e.g. of the Sangam Age, Ptolemy, Pali literature, etc.) dismisses all previous attempts to trace Nagapattinam in these early sources. The earliest definite reference to it is provided by Saint Appar in the early seventh century. Particular emphasis is given to Narasimhavarman II’s embassies to China and his construction of the “Chinese Pagoda” of which Seshadri publishes for the first time an eighteenth-century drawing held in the British Library when most of the building was still extant. The article concludes with the heyday of Nagapattinam under the Cholas, when it became the focal point of Srivijaya’s attempt to establish friendly diplomatic relations with the Cholas through temple donations. The following two papers are devoted to South Indian merchant guilds, whose fame is strongly associated with the Cholas and which are often regarded as a driving force behind the naval expeditions of the Cholas against Srivijaya. N. Karashima’s article, to which the second part of his already introduced first article has to be added, is based on his research project on the South Indian merchant guilds. Together with his colleagues Y. Subbarayalu and P. Shanmugam, both of whom are also featured in this volume, he collected more than three hundred inscriptions relating to these guilds, thus

xviii

Introduction

doubling the number of known inscriptions. The article focuses on the most important guild, the Ainurruva, also known as Ayyavole, which became active in Tamil Nadu from the middle of the tenth century. The detailed depiction of its organization and unique eulogies is followed by an analysis of the crucial question of its relation with the Cholas. Karashima explains the puzzling decrease in guild inscriptions in Tamil Nadu during the heyday of the Chola state in the eleventh and twelfth centuries (in contrast to their increase in Karnataka) not as an indication of a decline in the guilds’ trade, but of their strong control by the Cholas, which restricted their own cultural activities that are the major theme of their inscriptions. The Añjuvan.n.am guild is a smaller, but in the context of the Indian Ocean trade system, perhaps even more significant guild which Y. Subbarayalu defines in his paper as “a body of West Asian traders”, consisting variously of Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traders and operating in the ports of the Malabar and Coromandel coasts and Java. Thus a Syrian Christian grant at Kottayam of c. AD 1220 bears signatures in Arabic, Hebrew, and Pahlavi scripts and a twelfth-century Tamil text refers to a group of Muslim Anjuvannam traders in Nagapattinam. Subbarayalu’s deliberations about the various modes of local cooperation of “maritime” Anjuvannam traders with other South Indian guilds, particularly the Manigramam, which were more directly linked with India’s “sub-continental” trade, are very informative with respect to the organization of South India’s international trade. These detailed studies of South Indian merchant guilds are followed by two more general chapters which also add new aspects to the debate. A. Meenakshisundararajan, too, concedes to the merchant guilds a great share in the trade policy of the Cholas. But he links their expansionism to a remarkable change in the Asian maritime trade system around AD 1000. Partly influenced by the rise of the Cholas, situated right in the centre of the Indian Ocean trade, the transoceanic pre-emporia trade from the Near East to China changed to a sectorial emporia trade, focusing on the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, and the South China Sea, together with the Java Sea. This development enhanced the importance of the harbour emporia in South and Southeast Asia and the need to control them and, at the same time, to ensure unrestricted access to them. H. Devare’s paper contains an overview of various aspects of Indian influences on the cultures of Southeast Asia. Special emphasis is given to India’s trade in textiles with Southeast Asia which Devare regards as “the binding factor in the cultural history of these two regions”, particularly during the Chola period when weaving and dyeing industries saw great development. The next three papers pertain to Sri Lanka and Indonesia, the two countries which were most directly affected by Chola expansionism.

Introduction

xix

A. Manatunga’s article on Sri Lanka is an important complementary contribution to the study of early Indian influences in Southeast Asia, the grand theme of the conference, as it gives a comprehensive account of Sri Lanka’s close cultural relations with Southeast Asia during the Polonnaruva period. Polonnaruva is relevant to this volume too, as it was the chief administrative centre of the Cholas after their conquest of Sri Lanka by Rajaraja. Situated near its eastern coast with the important harbour of Trincomalee, it played, as pointed out by Manatunga, an important role in Rajendra’s naval policy against Srivijaya. P. Shanmugam begins his article with a short survey of the few clear literary and archaeological evidences of maritime trade relations between Tamil Nadu and Southeast Asia during the Sangam Age in the first centuries AD. He emphasizes that these friendly relations were only temporarily interrupted by Rajendra’s naval expeditions. Then follows a report on his survey of Chola influence on architecture, sculpture, and iconography in Indonesia, particularly at Jambi, the Dieng Plateau, and Prambanan. Despite obvious similarities, he is careful to speak in all these cases only of “traces” and suggested “influence” as he rightly admits that “it is very difficult to identify the Chola idiom”. N. Susanti traces the rise and rule of Airlangga in the age of increasing competition between Srivijaya and Java to control the lucrative spice trade with the new maritime powers of the Cholas and Song China. Rajendra’s defeat of Srivijaya allowed Airlangga to reunite East Java and establish a flourishing kingdom, and to posthumously become early East Java’s most famous king. It is one of the ironies of the history of Indo-China relations that the extant Tamil inscriptions in China date only from 1281, two years after the final fall of the Cholas. They were the Indian dynasty that had not only been most actively involved in maritime trade with China, but were also the most productive one in issuing thousands of marvellous inscriptions in South India and a few in Southeast Asia too (see appendix I). In her article on the Indic carvings of Quanzhou, R. Lee links the foundation of a Shiva temple, about whose consecration the Tamil-Chinese bilingual inscription reports, with yet another important event of the year 1279 — Kublai Khan’s final conquest of Southern China. Under the Mongols of the Yuan Dynasty, who were themselves foreigners in China, the community of foreign traders in Quanzhou, which had actively supported them, gained greater privileges. Apart from a stylistic analysis of the nearly three hundred still existing fragments of the destroyed temple, the salient points of her deliberations are considerations about their authorship. Although many of the carvings are strikingly South Indian in style, they reveal according to Lee “conceptual and craft influences from multiple communities”. Particularly the columns, in which “Indian and Chinese subject

xx

Introduction

matters are nearly interchangeable”, might have been built by “collaborating Chinese and Tamil artisans” and the temple as a whole might be the outcome of “reliance on a shared community of local Quanzhou artisans”. The already mentioned appendices of Indian and Chinese sources of this volume by N. Karashima, Y. Subbarayalu and T. Sen speak for themselves. They are a most appropriate documentation of South Indian maritime activities in the age of the Cholas even beyond Nagapattinam and Suvarnadwipa, from Cochin to Quanzhou. It is a pleasure for me to record my thanks to the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, its Director Ambassador K. Kesavapany, its staff and in particular to Professor Tansen Sen, Dr Geoffrey Wade and Ms Rahilah Yusuf for their unfailing help in the production of this volume.

Professor Hermann Kulke (emeritus) Chair of Asian History Kiel University Germany Notes 1. K.A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l.as, 2nd revised ed. (Madras, 1955), p. 218. 2. Ibid., p. 220. 3. G. W. Spencer, The Politics of Expansion: The Chola Conquest of Sri Lanka and Sri Vijaya (Madras, 1983). 4. Idem, “The Politics of Plunder: The Cholas in Eleventh Century Ceylon”, in Journal of Asian Studies 35 (1976): 405–20. 5. M. Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India (New Delhi, 1988), p. 142. 6. Tansen Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400 (Honolulu, 2003), p. 223; see also K. R. Hall, Maritime Trade and State Development in Early Southeast Asia (Honolulu, 1985); R. Champakalakshmi, Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India 300 BC to AD 1300 (Delhi, 1996). 7. Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade , p. 225. 8. For example, K. R. Hall, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy in Early Medieval South India”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 21 (1978) 75–98; Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade ; and H. Kulke, “Rivalry and Competition in the Bay of Bengal in the Eleventh Century and Its Bearing on Indian Ocean Studies”, in Commerce and Culture in the Bay of Bengal, 1500–1800, edited by Om Prakash and Denys Lombard (New Delhi, 1999), pp. 17–36. 9. See Appendix I, No. 6. 10. See Appendix II.

THE CONTRIBUTORS

Hema Devare has pursued varied cultural and literary interests, writing fiction and non-fiction in English, Hindi, and Marathi. For the past several years she has focused on Indian textiles, their history, and cultural traditions. She has researched and written extensively on the journey of Indian textiles to Southeast Asia. She has written a dance-drama “Baliyatra”, an interlude on the ancient connection between Bali and Orissa, India. In 2005 she presented a paper, “Textile connection between India and Southeast Asia”, at an international conference on cultural interaction between India and Southeast Asia in Hyderabad, India. She produced a documentary film “Threads that Bind”, tracing the long-standing cultural links between India and Indonesia. It has been shown in India, Indonesia, and Singapore. In Indonesia, she edited a book Saree Sutra that illuminates the connection between Indian and Indonesian silk textiles. Hema Devare is currently working on a book highlighting the journey of culture from India to Southeast Asia through textiles. Noboru Karashima is Professor Emeritus, University of Tokyo and has a D.Litt. from University of Tokyo. He has been President, Epigraphical Society of India (1985); President, Historical Society of Japan (1993); President, International Association of Tamil Research (1995); President, Japanese Association for South Asian Studies (1996–2000); and was awarded the Academic Prize of the Fukuoka Asian Cultural Prize (1995) and the Japan Academy Prize (2003). His publications include History and Society in South India: The Cholas to Vijayanagar (2001), A Concordance of Nayakas: The Vijayanagar Inscriptions in South India (2002), In Search of Chinese Ceramicsherds in South India and Sri Lanka (ed.) (2004). K. Kesavapany began his term as Director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, from 1 November 2002. Prior to his appointment

xxii

Contributors

to ISEAS, Ambassador Kesavapany was Singapore’s High Commissioner to Malaysia from March 1997. In his thirty-year career in the Foreign Service, he served as Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva (December 1991–March 1997) and held key staff appointments in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including Director of ASEAN, Director of Directorate II (North America and Europe) and Director of Directorate IV (International Organizations and Third World). Ambassador Kesavapany was an active participant in the final phase of the Uruguay Round negotiations. He was unanimously chosen as the first Chairman of the WTO’s General Council in 1995. Subsequently, he played a key role in securing Singapore as the venue for the first WTO Ministerial Meeting in 1996.

Hermann Kulke is Professor Emeritus of Asian History, Kiel University, Germany. He did his Ph.D. in Indology on the temple city of Chidambaram in 1967 and D.Litt. (Habilitation) in Indian History on the Gajapati kingship of Orissa at the South Asia Institute in Heidelberg in 1975. He was Research Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in 1987 and of the Asia Research Institute, Singapore University, in 2007. His fields of specialization are early and early medieval history of India and Southeast Asia, early state formation, Indian Ocean Studies, and historiography. Major publications include The Devaraja Cult (1978); The Cult of Jagannath and the Regional Tradition of Orissa (1978); Kings and Cults: State Formation and Legitimation in India and Southeast Asia (1993); The State in India 1000–1700 (1995); (and with D. Rothermund) A History of India (4th ed., 2004). Risha Lee is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Art History and Archaeology at Columbia University in New York. Her research interests include premodern South Indian architecture and sculpture, epigraphy, merchant guild networks, as well as artistic, religious, and political exchange between India and China. This year she is conducting fieldwork for her dissertation, which is tentatively entitled, “Tamil Merchant Temples in India and Abroad”. She received her B.A. from Harvard College. Anura Manatunga is Professor at the Department of Archaeology, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka. He is also the Director, Centre for Asian Studies, University of Kelaniya; Director, Polonnaruva World Heritage Site Project, Central Cultural Fund; Honorary Librarian, Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka; and the Vice-President, Sri Lanka Council of Archaeologists. A. Meenakshisundararajan is Reader in Economics at the S.T. Hindu College, Nagercoil. He has undertaken several research projects and has been Principal

Contributors

xxiii

Investigator for “Social Security Measures in Plantations”, “Tourist Van Operations in the Kanyakumari District”, “WTO’s labour standards, Environmental Standards and their impact on India’s Foreign Trade”, and “Environment-Labour Linkages of WTO — A Threat to India’s International Trade”. He has presented several papers at national and international seminars and conferences. At present he is Principal, S.T. Hindu College, Nagercoil.

Sangeeta Sakhuja is an educationist at the Indian Navy’s school in New Delhi. She holds a Masters degree in Indian History from Delhi University, New Delhi, India. Vijay Sakhuja is Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore. A former Indian Navy officer, Vijay Sakhuja received his Doctorate from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He was Senior Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi, and Research Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi, and at the United Service Institution of India, New Delhi. Tansen Sen is Associate Professor of Asian history and religions at the City University of New York. He is the author of Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400 (2003). He coedited China at the Crossroads: A Festschrift in Honor of Professor Victor H. Mair (special volume of Asia Major, vol. 19, issues 1-2, 2006) and guest edited a special issue of China Report (vol. 43, issue 4, 2007) entitled “Kolkata and China”. His recent articles include: “The Yuan Khanate and India: Cross-Cultural Diplomacy in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries” in Asia Major (2006), “The Formation of Chinese Maritime Networks to Southern Asia, 1200–1450” in Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient (2006), and “The Travel Records of Chinese Pilgrims Faxian, Xuanzang, and Yijing: Sources for Cross-Cultural Encounters between Ancient China and Ancient India” in Education About Asia (2006). He is currently at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, on a visiting research fellowship. Gokul Seshadri is one of the founders and a contributing editor of varalaaru.com, a monthly magazine dedicated to South Indian historic research. He specializes in South Indian temple architecture, iconology, and epigraphy and has published several articles in related areas. Gokul also pioneered a digital reconstruction effort to visualize the original grandeur of ancient Chola mural paintings at the Brihadeswara temple, Thanjavur. He works as a Software Architect in New York.

xxiv

Contributors

P. Shanmugam, formerly Professor and Head, Department of Ancient History and Archaeology, is the Director, Institute of Traditional Cultures of South and Southeast Asia, University of Madras, Chennai, from 2004. He has completed several research projects, one of which was a project on the Ports of the Tamil country. He has contributed numerous articles on South Indian Economic History, Epigraphy, and Coinage in several professional journals. His publications are Revenue System under the Cholas (1987) and a book on coinage of the Sangam period (2004). The work, Recent Advances in Vijayanagara Studies (2005), was edited by him. He has participated in several excavations in Tamil Nadu, including at Korkai, Kodumanal, Uraiyur, and Kanchipuram. For an integrated study of the cultural links of Southeast Asia with South India, he has participated in several archaeological field visits in South India and also in the countries in Southeast Asia. Y. Subbarayalu is former Professor of Epigraphy and Archaeology, Tamil University of Thanjavur (1983–2001) and specializes in South Indian epigraphy and archaeology, historical geography, and history of South India. He was Research Associate in the Madras University project, “A Topographical List of Inscriptions in Tamil Nadu and Kerala” (1966–70) and Lecturer in Ancient History at Madurai Kamaraj University (1976–83). He has been the Chief Investigator for the Historical Atlas of Tamilnadu, Tamil University (2001–04) and Coordinator for the Historical Atlas of South India, French Institute of Pondicherry (2005–08). He has a number of publications to his credit, including Political Geography of the Chola Country (1973); A Concordance of the Names in the Chola Inscriptions (1978) (as Co-author); Palm-leaf Documents of Tiruchirappalli District (1989); Studies in Chola History (2001); and A Glossary of Tamil Inscriptions (2002–03). Ninie Susanti is Professor at the Archaeology Department, Faculty of Humanities University of Indonesia. She is affiliated with the IAAI (Ikatan Ahli Arkeologi Indonesia — Archaeologist Association) and AAEI (Asosiasi Ahli Epigrafi Indonesia — Epigraphist Association) and specializes in epigraphy. S. Vasanthi pursued her studies in Chennai. She obtained her M.A. Degree in Ancient History & Archaeology, Master of Philosophy in Ancient History & Archaeology, and her Doctoral Degree from Madras University, Chennai. She joined the Tamil Nadu State Department of Archaeology in 1982 as Archaeological Officer, and worked for three years in Chennai. She was then posted as Curator to the Pre-Historic Site Museum at Poondi (where the

Contributors

xxv

world famous pre-historic sites in India are located), where she served for more than five years. She is currently working as an excavation cum exploration archaeologist. She has participated in the excavations by the Department at Alagankulam, Tirukoilur, Poompuhar, Maligaimedu, Andippatti, Marakkanam, Tranquebar, and Sembiyankandiyur. Vasanthi received the Best Student award from Madras University; won Second Prize for the Best Student award from Jawaharlal Nehru foundations, India; and was awarded a small grant by the Nehru Trust for Indian Collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

1 THE NAVAL EXPEDITIONS OF

THE

CHOLAS IN THE CONTEXT OF 1

ASIAN HISTORY

ulke

Hermann K

In one of his inscriptions at the monumental temple at Tanjavur, King Rajendra Chola is praised for having dispatched in 1025 “many ships in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught Sangrama-vijayottunga-varman, the king of Kadaram, together with the elephants in his glorious army, (took) the large heap of treasures, which (that king) had rightfully accumulated; (captured) with noise the (arch called) Vidhyadhara-torana at the ‘war gate’ of his extensive city, Srivijaya with the ‘jeweled wicket-gate’ adorned with great splendour and the ‘gate of large jewels’ ”.2 The inscription enumerates likewise twelve other port cities on the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, and the Nicobar Islands, which had been raided by the South Indian navy. Rajendra’s mighty overseas expedition against Srivijaya was a unique event in India’s history and its otherwise peaceful relations with the states of Southeast Asia which had come under India’s strong cultural influence for about a millennium. The reasons of this naval expedition are still a moot point as the sources are silent about its exact causes. Nilakanta Sastri concluded in his monumental work on the Cholas that “we have to assume either some attempt on the part of Srivijaya to throw obstacles in the way of the Cola trade with the East, or more probably, a simple desire on the part of Rajendra to extend his digvijaya to the countries across the sea so well known to his subjects at home, and thereby add luster to his crown”.3 The American 1

2

ulke

Hermann K

historian G.W. Spencer interprets the naval expedition of the Cholas as the culmination of their “politics of plunder” and expansionism which the Cholas had been employing for decades already in wars in South India and Sri Lanka.4 In 1995 Tansen Sen pointed out that “the possibility of a ‘trade war’ cannot be completely ruled out because the Zhufan zhi [Description of the Barbarous People by Chau Ju-kua, AD 1225] records of Srivijayans forcing foreign ships to stop at their sea ports, and if the ships failed to do so, then, they would be attacked by the powerful Srivijayan navy and destroyed. Therefore, the Cola raid on Srivijaya can be concluded as an ambitious maneuver with a pretext to remove hindrance from the trade route.”5 In his more recent monograph of the year 2003, Sen went even a step further and suggested that “the Srivijayan diplomatic and military attempts to block direct maritime links between Indian and the Song markets may have been both the principal factors for the Chola naval raids”.6 Recently K.V. Ramesh, too, emphasized the unhindered and unthreatened trade between South and Southeast Asia as the primary purpose of the naval expedition, but also, as its second, the booty, as claimed in Rajendra’s own inscription.7 Another possible factor, particularly emphasized by Meera Abraham in her monograph on South Indian merchant guilds, is a direct influence of the famous Manigramam and Ayyavole merchant guilds on the politics of the Cholas.8 All these explanations have their own truth value. But there are reasons to assume that Rajendra’s naval expeditions against Srivijaya also have to be seen in the much wider context of Asian history and the contemporary political and economic developments in the Indian Ocean. The late tenth century witnessed the synchronous rise of three new and powerful dynasties, the Fatimids in Egypt (AD 969), the Song in China (AD 960) and the Cholas (AD 985), which soon began to interfere in the Indian Ocean trade system. The decline of the Abbasids of Baghdad and the rise of the Fatimids in Egypt were major events in the Muslim world. Already in 985/86 al-Maqdisi wrote “Baghdad was once a magnificent city, but is now fast falling to ruin and decay, and has lost all its splendor… Al-Fustat of Misr (Cairo) in the present day is like Bagdhad of old; I know no city in Islam superior to it.” 9 The rise of the Fatimids as the dominating power of the Muslim World not only caused the shift of Muslim trading activities from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea,10 but also increased considerably the importance of the Malabar coast in the hinterland of the emerging Chola power. Whereas the Persian Gulf trade with India followed mainly the coastal line to the great harbours of Gujarat, ships from the Red Sea and Aden, particularly during the summer monsoon, easily crossed the Arabian Sea directly to the Malabar coast of South India. This development is well documented by the famous

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

3

Geniza documents of Jewish traders of Cairo/Al-Fustat and Aden with the Malabar coast.11 In the Far East the Song dynasty from the outset began to promote and control maritime trade more successfully than any other Chinese dynasty.12 But India and Southeast Asia, too, emerged during these decades as active participants in the international power struggle and maritime trade between the Near East and China, the terminals of the Indian Ocean trade. The spectacular attack of the Cholas on Srivijaya has to be seen in this broader context of the rise of new powers, the shift of trade routes, and, as a consequence of these processes, a struggle for market share. The rise of the Cholas from 985 to 1025 took place with breathtaking swiftness. From their dynastic core region in the Kaveri delta, King Rajaraja subdued all kingdoms of South India with their coastal regions, penetrated into central India, and conquered the offshore islands of Sri Lanka and the Maldives. In the twenties of the eleventh century, his son Rajendra undertook, as a culmination of this Chola expansionism, his two unique expeditions to Bengal and Southeast Asia. The Cholas appear to have followed a systematic plan, even though it might have evolved only stepwise. After the conquest of the whole of South India and its flourishing ports on the Coromandel and Malabar coasts, they occupied Sri Lanka and the Maldives as important maritime trading centres in the Indian Ocean, and then subdued all possible Indian opponents on the eastern coast up to Bengal (for example, the Somavamsa of Orissa) and finally attacked Srivijaya, which dominated Southeast Asia’s trade routes through the Straits of Malacca and the Sunda Straits. During the last centuries of the first millennium AD, India and Southeast Asia went through similar processes of state formation, which elsewhere have been subsumed under the term “from early to imperial kingdom”.13 The result of this development was an increased capacity of the state to extract socially produced surplus, and to mobilize men and means. Suffice it to mention here the rise of the Rashtrakutas in Central India in 752 and the state of Angkor in AD 802. More or less simultaneously with the expansionism of the Cholas under Rajaraja and Rajendra, the kingdom of Angkor for the first time extended its frontiers far beyond its dynastic homelands, and subjugated parts of Laos, central Thailand, and the northern part of the Malay Peninsula. It soon became the dominating power in the Gulf of Siam and Mainland Southeast Asia and was, therefore, bound to get into conflict with Dai-Viet and Champa who were competing for the control of the important maritime trade routes on the eastern coast of Mainland Southeast Asia.14 And, most important in our context, Angkor penetrated very directly into the sphere of interest of Srivijaya on the

4

ulke

Hermann K

northern Malay Peninsula.15 For centuries, Srivijaya had controlled the southern part of the Malay Peninsula up to Ligor and Chaiya and temporarily even the Isthmus of Kra. In this northern outpost of Srivijaya’s influence on the Malay Peninsula, one of its most important inscriptions records the construction of a sanctuary in Ligor, dedicated to Buddha, Padmapani, and Vajrapani by a king of Srivijaya in the year 775.16 From the middle of the eleventh century, another “imperial kingdom” and important competitor arose in the northeastern Bay of Bengal. The kingdom of Pagan united central and coastal Burma with parts of the northwestern coast of the Malay Peninsula. Pagan was thus, perhaps for the first time in the history of Southeast Asia, able to link maritime trade in the northern Bay of Bengal directly with China, through its access to the land route to Yunnan. During this period Burma’s relations with countries on the opposite side of the Bay of Bengal and with Sri Lanka appear to have been very strong as can be seen, for example, from the influence of Orissan architecture in early Pagan. The Malay world of present Malaysia and Indonesia was divided between Srivijaya in the west and the kingdom of Mataram in Java. In the early tenth century Mataram had shifted its capital from near Yogyakarta in southern central Java to northeastern Java near Surabaya. The causes of the abandonment of one of Asia’s most impressive sacred spaces around the Borobudur and Prambanan are still unknown. 17 But there are good reasons to assume that this shift aimed at the control of the fertile rice-growing plains southwest of Surabaya, and at a more direct access to, and perhaps even control over, the spice trade route from the Moluccas which passed along the northern coast of Java. The west of the archipelago and its important trade routes were, since the late seventh century, under the control of Srivijaya. Sometimes termed as a thalassocracy or “Ocean State”, Srivijaya appears to have been a confederation of harbours and their respective hinterlands rather than a centrally administered agrarian state,18 but its richness was proverbial. In the year 956, on the eve of the above mentioned rise of the new great powers of the Indian Ocean, the Arab geographer Ma’sudi reported that even the fastest ship would not have been able to visit in two years all the islands of this kingdom whose Maharaja extracts more profit from his own country than any other rulers of the world.19 Srivijaya, however, was also known for its military strength and piracy-like activities. An early twelfth-century Chinese account reports “They [the Srivijayans] are skilled at fighting on land or water. When they are about to make war on another state they assemble and send forth such a force as the occasion demands. They appoint chiefs and leaders, and all provide their own

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

5

military equipment and the necessary provisions. In facing their enemy and braving death they have not their equal among other nations…. If a merchant ship passes by without entering [their harbour], their boats go forth to make a combined attack, and all are ready to die [in the attempt]. This is the reason why this country is a great shipping centre.”20 The relations of the Southeast Asian states with their great neighbours, India and China, were intensive, but of very different natures. India was for Southeast Asian countries the holy land of Buddhism and Hinduism and certainly an important trading place. But politically and increasingly, economically too, China was the undisputed “Middle Kingdom”. All kingdoms of Southeast Asia and particularly those that were small and harassed by their neighbours sent tributary missions to the imperial court of China. 21 For Southeast Asian historiography and, of course, for the historiography of the Indian Ocean trade system, it is of the greatest importance that Chinese officials reported meticulously about these missions, their gifts, requests, etc. China’s own interest in the “southern barbarians” of Kunlun, the countries of Southeast Asia, increased considerably under the Tang dynasty (618–907).22 Their rule coincided with the early heyday of transoceanic trade of Arab and Near Eastern merchants in China. 23 The reunification of China under the Song. dynasty and the rise of the Fatimids and the Cholas in the second half of the tenth century initiated a new era in the maritime history of Asia. Shortly after his accession to the throne, the first Song emperor issued orders for the regulation of maritime trade and revenues. About two decades later, a “Bureau of Licensed Trade” was established for buying up foreign goods which were then sold as a state monopoly. In 987 the Chinese government gave an instruction which appears to have been one of the major causes of the struggles in the Bay of Bengal during the eleventh century. In this year, China dispatched four missions vested with imperial authority and gifts to foreign countries to induce “foreign traders of the South Sea and those who went to foreign lands beyond the sea” to come more frequently to the Chinese ports on the promise of special facilities and import licences.24 Srivijaya was the first country to react to the Chinese offer and sent a tribute mission already the following year. But during its stay in China the mission was informed that its country had been attacked by the east Javanese kingdom of Mataram. During a stopover in Champa the mission received the news that Mataram was still continuing its war against Srivijaya. The mission, therefore, returned to China and Srivijaya was placed under imperial protection. But a Javanese embassy to China in 992 confirmed that the war was still going on.25 The reasons for this conflict are unknown. But in this case too, we

6

ulke

Hermann K

may assume that it was caused by competition between these two states which were most directly involved in the spice trade with China. We are informed that during these years of increasing tensions, a number of peculiar “rituo-political” donations of Southeast Asian rulers to China and India. The annals of the Song dynasty report that in 1003 the king of Srivijaya “sent two envoys to bring tribute. They told that in their country a Buddhist temple had been erected in order to pray for the long life of the emperor and that they wanted a name and bells for it by which the emperor would show that he appreciated their good intentions. An edict was issued by which the temple got the name of Ch’eng-t’en-wan-shou (‘ten thousand years of receiving [blessings] from heaven [that is, China]’) and bells were cast to be given to them.”26 The next year Srivijaya again sent envoys to China who were followed up by four embassies until 1018. Obviously Srivijaya was most eager to win China’s favour. In exactly the period when Srivijaya’s king had a temple constructed for the welfare of the Chinese emperor, Srivijaya also entered into the same type of diplomatic relations with the Chola state in South India. The famous larger Leiden grant of the year 1005 records the Chola king Rajaraja donating the revenue of a village for the maintenance of the Buddhist shrine Cudamani Vihara, which Sri Maravijayottungavarman, the Sailendra king of Srivijaya, had constructed in the name of his father at Nagapattinam, the major port of the Chola state.27 The foundation stone of this shrine in the South Indian harbour might have already been laid about two years earlier in 1003, the year when the king of Srivijaya informed the Chinese emperor about the construction of a Buddhist shrine for his welfare. It is tempting to assume a direct connection between these two unusual and more or less synchronous deeds of Srivijaya’s king whose name is clearly mentioned both in Chinese and Indian sources. Srivijaya obviously tried to establish friendly relations with the two big powers of East and South Asia in order to maintain and strengthen its privileged position in the maritime trade in eastern Asia. Previously China might have been more important for Srivijaya than South India. But after their conquest of South India’s ports, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka, the Cholas controlled the central section of the Indian Ocean trade routes in a way very similar to how Srivijaya dominated its southeastern section. During this period of incipient trade rivalry in the Bay of Bengal, both states obviously still tried to maintain their friendly relations.28 After his accession to the Chola throne in 1014, Rajendra continued this policy. In 1015 he confirmed his father’s donation to Srivijaya’s temple at Nagapattinam by a new inscription. That same year and in 1018, he received large gifts of “China gold” (Cina-kanakam) from Srivijaya for a Hindu temple and its Brahmins in the Chola harbour.29

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

7

During these years, Angkor, Mainland Southeast Asia’s major power, also entered into this kind of ritual diplomacy with the Cholas. Shortly after 1012 King Suryavarman I under whom, as already mentioned, Angkor became the dominating power in the Gulf of Siam, chose a very unusual gift for the Chola king. For the protection of his own royalty ( atma-laksmi) he presented to Rajendra a war chariot with which he had defeated his own enemies.30 In this case too, it is left to us to speculate on the reasons for the truly royal gift by the king of Angkor to his colleague on the Chola throne. It is likely that Angkor had entered troubled waters with its penetration into Srivijaya’s sphere of influence on the Malay Peninsula. The Isthmus of Kra had always offered an alternative to the long and often dangerous maritime trade route to the Gulf of Siam through the Straits of Malacca, particularly for those merchants who wished to avoid the rather restrictive staple rights of Srivijaya about which we are informed by a Chinese account of the early twelfth century: “In recent years San-fo-ch’i [Srivijaya] has established monopoly in sandalwood. The ruler orders merchants to sell it to him. The market value of the product therefore increases several times. The subjects of that country do not dare to sell it privately. This is an effective way of governance. The country is exactly [at the center of] the southern sea. The Ta-shih [Arab] countries are far away to its west. Chinese going to Ta-shih reach San-fo-ch’i, repair their ships, and exchange goods. Merchants from distant places congregate there. This country is therefore considered to be the most prosperous one.”31 It is quite possible that in the early eleventh century, Angkor tried to reactivate the land route at the Isthmus of Kra in order to divert the maritime trade between the Bay of Bengal and China directly through the Isthmus of Kra and the Gulf of Siam which now had come under its control. Our sources are silent about a direct conflict between Srivijaya and Angkor in the eleventh century. But in the late eighth century, several inscriptions in Champa reported that people from Java and other islands, “men living on food more horrible than cadavers, frightful, came in ships” and desecrated temples and idols.32 In the mid-eleventh century, Sadasiva, Suryavarman’s purohita (royal chaplain) and brother-in-law, claims in his famous Sdok Kak Thom inscription that his forefather Sivakaivalya had consecrated Angkor’s “state cult”, the Devaraja cult, in AD 802 in order “to prevent his land of Kambuja from ever being [again] dependent (ayatta) on Java”.33 This reference in an inscription of the year 1052 shows that in eleventh-century Angkor there still existed an awareness of a possible threat from Java, which in the eleventh-century context, certainly also referred to Srivijaya. It might have been this wish never to become “dependent on Java” again which induced the king of Angkor to present to the ruler of South India his own war chariot for the sake of his atma-laksmi. Obviously

8

ulke

Hermann K

the Cholas, too, meanwhile had become rivals of Srivijaya and thus potential allies of Angkor.34 It is not surprising that in this period of hectic diplomatic activities of the various states of the Bay of Bengal, the Cholas sent their first embassy to the Chinese court. It had a stopover in Srivijaya for several months and reached China in 1015. As this happened only ten years before the swift attack of the Chola navy on the ports of Srivijaya, one may assume that the South Indian envoys had done excellent intelligence work in view of a possible future conflict with Srivijaya. As for the reception of the mission at the imperial court of China we have a detailed report in the Chinese encyclopedia Wenxian tong kao of the year 1319: “The kingdom [Chu-lien] which in antiquity never had communications with the Empire, sent ambassadors for the first time under the dynasty of the Song.” In a letter handed over by the chief of the mission, Rajaraja, who meanwhile had passed away, informed the Emperor: “My age, the stretch of the seas which separate us, and the great difficulties on the route to traverse, do not permit me to go, in order to carry myself the tribute that I wish to offer you. … [This will therefore be done by] my envoys, to the number of fifty-two, arriving at the foot of your throne. I have ordered them to offer you a robe and cap decorated with pearls, pearls of different sizes weighing about 21,000 liang, sixty pieces of ivory and sixty pounds of incense.”35 The mission to China was a great success. The large number of its members seems to have prompted the Chinese prefect of Guangzhou to request the Song court, as early as by the following year, to limit the members of embassies from these “Big Four”, the Cholas, Arabs, Srivijaya, and Java, to not more than twenty people,36 a plea which, however, went unheard. As emphasized by Tansen Sen,37 throughout the eleventh and twelfth centuries it remained Srivijaya’s major diplomatic aim to lower the Cholas in China’s esteem. As already mentioned, Rajendra Chola initially seems to have continued his father’s policy of friendly relations with Srivijaya as he reconfirmed his father’s grant to Srivijaya’s Buddhist temple at Nagapattinam, and in turn received valuable presents from the king of Srivijaya. But there are reasons to assume that during these years the competition between the major powers of the Bay of Bengal and the Javanese Sea had increased considerably. In 1016 the east Javanese kingdom of Mataram was attacked and its capital ransacked by west Javanese troops with the obvious approval or even support of Srivijaya.38 For more than a decade Mataram ceased to be Srivijaya’s rival in the spice trade of the eastern islands. As if aware of its precarious position after having become the sole big power of maritime Southeast Asia, Srivijaya sent envoys regularly to China in 1016, 1017, and 1018.

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

9

The Cholas did not remain mere spectators of Srivijaya’s rise to an unchallenged regional power with control over the vital maritime trade routes in Southeast Asia. They, too, started a new round of eliminating possible rivals in the offshore islands of South Asia. In 1017 the last remnants of the ancient kingdom of Sri Lanka were destroyed. Polonnaruva, with its easy access to the eastern coast and its ports, became the new Chola capital of Sri Lanka. In the same year, a first small naval expedition of the Cholas might have reached Kadaram, Srivijaya’s major outpost on the Malay Peninsula. In case it really occurred, Srivijaya’s mission to the Cholas in 1018 might have been intended to calm down the Chola’s increasing suspicion against Srivijaya’s intentions.39 In the same year Kerala with its important Malabar ports was finally subjugated, and the “many ancient islands”, the Maldives, were again attacked. In 1020, only five years after their first embassy had reached China, the Cholas again sent envoys to the Imperial Court.40 A few years later, in 1022/23 the Cholas accomplished their grand design by their victorious march through Kalinga up to the Ganges, eliminating all possible rivals on the eastern coast of the subcontinent and finally undertaking their great naval expedition against Srivijaya in 1025. It appears as if the Cholas had initially been trying to copy the Srivijayan model, that is, to gain undisputed control over ports and the maritime routes which passed through their sphere of influence. The exact reasons for abandoning their quest for regional hegemony and extending their expansionism across the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia are still unknown. But apparently their competition with Srivijaya had reached a level where traditional means of settling conflicts were no longer valid. In the year 1023, the competition between the Cholas and Srivijaya might have even further increased when the Chinese Emperor urged Arab envoys to shift their trade from the Central Asian Silk Road to the Silk Road of the Sea.41 In this situation, the immensity of the stake in the maritime trade might have induced the famous South India merchant guilds of the Ayyavole and Manigramam to play a more active role in this maritime big power game.42 They might have tried to influence the Chola court in a way similar to how the (British) Rangoon Chamber of Commerce exerted pressure on the British Government on the eve of the annexation of Upper Burma in 1885. But, of course, this is mere conjecture as our sources are totally silent on this point. The Chola raid of fourteen flourishing port cities on the Malay Peninsula and in Sumatra appears to have shocked the countries of Southeast Asia as none of them sent envoys to China for three years. In 1028 the Song Emperor, therefore, complained that “in recent years foreign shipping rarely came to Canton”. He sent instructions to the fiscal superintendent of Canton

10

ulke

Hermann K

to invite the merchants to return to Canton.43 Already a few weeks later, a mission from Srivijaya arrived and was treated with great honour. O.W. Wolters, therefore, rightly remarks that “Srivijaya was still in business”44 and J. Wisseman Christie even came to the conclusion that “the effects of the Chola raids appear, for the most part, to have been minimal and transitory: Srivijaya sent a well-received mission to China in 1028”.45 Although hampered by internal struggles between several port cities — most likely a result of the Chola raid — Srivijaya regained its dominant position in the western Malay world with its important Straits. It returned to its traditional means of diplomacy in order to improve its position at the Chinese court. In 1079 it donated the unbelievable amount of 600,000 gold pieces for the repair and maintenance of a Taoist shrine in Canton.46 From a Chinese report of the twelfth century we know that Srivijaya had again become “the most important port-of-call on the sea-routes of the foreigners, from the country of Java (She-p’o) on the east and from the countries of the Arabs (T’a-shi) and Quilon (Ku-lin) in the west; they all pass through it on their way to China”.47 After their naval expedition the Cholas seem to have confined themselves to only one other mission to China in the year 1033. Obviously they were reluctant to convert their military success into more permanent political dominion, by, for instance, the establishment of a fortified settlement of Tamil merchants in the Straits of Malacca. In fact, such a fortified settlement of Manigramam merchants seems to have already existed at Takuapa in the Isthmus of Kra during Pallava rule in the late ninth century.48 But as a result of Rajendra’s naval expedition, the Cholas became equated with South Indian foreigners in Javanese inscriptions. Until the rise of the “Imperial Cholas”, only Klings or “Kalingas” were mentioned in Javanese inscriptions as foreign visitors from the eastern coast of India. In 1021, when South India had already emerged as a maritime power, an inscription added Drawidas to this list and they were then replaced by the Colikas in an inscription of the year 1053.49 The trade of South Indian merchants continued to flourish also in the realm of Srivijaya. This is well documented by the famous inscription of the Ayyavole guild of the year 1088, discovered in Barus in West Sumatra. Only recently completely edited by Y. Subbarayalu,50 it reports a grant of “Captain of the town, the merchant of the locality” ( nakara-senapati nattu chettiyar) and depicts an obviously flourishing social life of an autonomous quarter of the Tamil community in Barus. From the eleventh century the impact of South Indian trade in Southeast Asia was accompanied by a new wave of cultural influence from South India. It emanated primarily from the realm of the Cholas and replaced the strong influence of Pallava art and architecture of previous centuries. But it

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

11

soon underwent the interesting process of “localization”, particularly in Sumatra. This is well depicted by a bronze sculpture from Gunung Tua and stone sculptures from Kota Cina in North Sumatra. Whereas the locally made bronze sculpture of Lokanatha and Tara with its dated Old Malay inscription of the year 1039 still depicts an excellent classical Chola style,51 the later stone sculptures of Kota Cina reveal a thoroughly localized Chola style of northern Sumatra.52 Towards the end of the eleventh century, particularly under the reign of Kulottunga I (1070–1118), the Cholas renewed their activities in the Bay of Bengal.53 In 1067–68 they interfered again in Srivijaya with a naval expedition on behalf of a pretender to the throne of Kadaram, Srivijaya’s second capital on the Malay Peninsula. At the Chinese court, however, this assistance to a prince of Srivijaya did not enhance the reputation of the Cholas. For several years the Chola state was wrongly termed in official Chinese annals as a tributary or “vassal” state of Srivijaya. This obviously false estimation might have been deliberately caused by Srivijaya’s envoys at the Chinese court. The “misunderstanding” was corrected only by a new mission of the Cholas to China under Kulottunga in 1077. It consisted of seventy-two persons, most of whom were traders. They were accorded two exceptionally high privileges of protocol. Srivijaya had to send two missions in 1079 and 1088 in order to receive the same honours.54 However, about twenty years later, the “anti-Chola faction” of Srivijaya seems to have regained the upper hand again at the imperial court of China. As pointed out by Tansen Sen, the President of the Council of Rites in 1106 objected to the imperial intention of receiving envoys from Pagan in accordance to the status given to envoys of the Cholas by saying: “The Chola [Kingdom] is subject to Srivijaya, this is why during the Xining reign period (1068–1077), we wrote to its ruler on a coarse paper with an envelope of plain stuff. Pagan, on the other hand, is a great kingdom and should not be perceived as a small tributary state. It deserves a comparable status [as given to] Arab, Jiaozhi (present-day Vietnam), and other [similar] states.”55 The involvement of the Cholas, and in particular, of Kulottunga, in Srivijayan affairs during these years is a controversial matter. It is most likely that Kulottunga’s name (Di-hua-jia-luo) occurs as the name of the ruler of Srivijaya in a Chinese transliteration in the above mentioned Cantonese inscription of the year 1079, since the same name occurs in the Song annals as the name of the Chola king who sent the mission in the year 1077. 56 From this evidence, the renewed naval activities of the Cholas in 1067–68, and other scattered evidence, one may infer that the Cholas supported one faction of the Srivijayan court or one port city of its

12

ulke

Hermann K

confederation. Another faction might then have spread the news that the Chola kingdom had become a “vassal state” of Srivijaya. After all, this was a period of intensive power struggle in Srivijaya. Only a few decades later Srivijaya-Palembang lost its dominating position among the port-cities of Srivijaya to Jambi. Tan Yeok Seong, the editor of the Srivijayan inscription of Canton, even came to the conclusion that Kulottunga might have stayed in Kadaram after the naval expedition of 1067, and reinstalled its king before he returned to South India to occupy the Chola throne in 1070.57 In about 1090, Kulottunga, at the request of the king of Srivijaya renewed, via his famous smaller Leiden grant, the donation of the villages, which Rajaraja had granted in 1005 for the maintenance of the vihara at Nagapattinam, built by the then ruler of Srivijaya.58 Kulottunga also maintained friendly relations with the two great kingdoms of Mainland Southeast Asia. In 1114, soon after his enthronement, King Suryavarman II, the famous builder of Angkor Wat, sent a mission to the Chola court, which presented a precious stone to Kulottunga. And in an inscription at Pagan, the Burmese King Kyanzittha (1077–1112) even claims to have converted the “Choli prince” to the teachings of the Buddha by a personal letter written on gold leaves in which he praised the greatness of the Buddhist triratna.59 These rituo-political missions and donations also appear to have been connected with the promotion of trade as Kulottunga is praised for abolishing tolls (sungam )60 and he is the only Chola king whose name is associated with a harbour. The renaming of Vishakhapattanam in Andhra Pradesh as Kulottungacolapattanam indicates Kulottunga’s interest in trade with countries on the opposite side of the Bay of Bengal, that is, with Burma and Cambodia via the Isthmus of Kra.61 The decline of the Chola power from the late twelfth century by no means caused a decrease in South Indian trade in the Bay of Bengal and China. The twelfth and thirteenth centuries were a period of the greatest activities of the two South Indian guilds of the Ayyavole and Manigramam merchants, mainly in South India itself of course, and in Sri Lanka.62 But Burma and the southern Thai peninsula too remained regions where South Indian merchant guilds were active during this period. An inscription of the thirteenth century at the only Hindu temple at Pagan, which was most likely built for Indian merchants, reports a donation by a member of the South Indian nanadesi merchants.63 The Tamil stone inscription of Nakhon Si Thammarat in the Wat Boromadhatu reports a Brahmadeya grant by Danma Senapati, most likely a merchant from Cholamandala.64 The weakening of the Chola state from the mid-thirteenth century allowed other kingdoms in the Bay of Bengal and their harbours to participate more actively in the Indian Ocean trade. This can be inferred from the famous Motupalli

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

13

inscription of King Ganapati of the Kakatiya Kingdom in northern Andhra Pradesh who offered in the year 1244 “safety to traders by sea starting for and arriving from all continents, islands, foreign countries and cities”.65 Recent excavations at Manikapatnam, an ancient maritime harbour in the Chilka Lake in Orissa, corroborate the increase in Chinese trade in this region of the Bay of Bengal during this period. Particularly impressive is the thirteenth-century evidence of the presence of a large South Indian merchant community in China and of Chinese traders in South India. More recent discoveries in Quanzhou (which under the Southern Song dynasty had gradually surpassed Canton as China’s main port and as a place of large colonies of foreign merchants) have brought to light a well-preserved lower portion of a Hindu temple and about 300 sculptures, all in purely late but localized Chola style.66 This temple and the large number of Hindu sculptures are the earliest known infallible evidence of the existence of a large South Indian colony in China.67 A bilingual TamilChinese inscription of the year AD 1281 reports the dedication of a Saiva statue in yet another Hindu temple in Quanzhou. Its author might have been the son of the last Chola king, Rajaraja III, who would have sought the help of the Chinese emperor two years after the eclipse of his dynastic fortune.68 Two months before this dedication, a Mongol envoy, Yang Tingbi, had already been dispatched to India — most likely to South India, “underscoring the reciprocal nature of this relationship”.69 The evidence for the presence of a Chinese merchant community in South India during these years is equally impressive. Until 1867 the ruins of a three-storeyed Chinese pagoda existed in Nagapattinam. From Chinese sources we know that it was constructed in AD 1267. China thus seems to have followed the example of Srivijaya and its Buddhist monastery at Nagapattinam. Moreover, altogether 1,838 Chinese coins have been discovered in the neighbourhood of Nagapattinam, most probably belonging to a coin hoard. They are dated from the second to the thirteenth centuries. The most recent among these belong to a time bracket of 1265 to 1275, which corresponds exactly with the date of the construction of the Chinese pagoda. If we add to this evidence the findings of Chinese ceramics in South India, the greatest amount of which belong to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries,70 it becomes obvious that these centuries were a period of intensive and mostly direct trade relations between South and Eastern India and China.71 The establishment of the Delhi Sultanate in 1206, its temporary extension to Central and South India in the early fourteenth century, the subsequent establishment of the Deccan and Madurai Sultanates, and the spread of Islam in India’s ports and along the maritime trading routes in Southeast Asia,

14

ulke

Hermann K

further increased India’s importance in the Indian Ocean trade system. Through its Indian and foreign Muslim trading communities, India’s ports became more directly linked with the “international” Muslim trade in the Indian Ocean. South Indian Muslim merchants such as the Telugu Klings and Tamil Chulias were particularly active in the Malay world.72 Moreover, the conquest of Bengal by Muslim armies around AD 1200 seems to have considerably enhanced the maritime activities of Bengal. It drew its harbours into the orbit of the Delhi Sultanate and transoceanic trade of Muslim merchants which connected the Near East and South India with Southeast Asia and China. An indication of these increased activities of Bengal trade with China are the envoys which the Sultanate of Bengal sent regularly to China during the early fifteenth century.73 In the early fifteenth century, two events were of the greatest importance and significance for the last century of the Indian Ocean trade system before the coming of the Europeans: the founding of Malacca and the maritime expeditions of the Ming dynasty under the imperial eunuch Zheng He. His seven expeditions between 1405 and 1433 firmly established a temporal hegemony of China over in the “Southern Sea”, viz. Southeast Asia, and extended temporarily China’s dominant maritime position stepwise up to Sri Lanka, South India, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, and East Africa.74 Whereas during these years, and initially under the direct influence of Zheng He’s expeditions, Malacca rose to become a major trade centre of the Indian Ocean, 75 the Mings broke off their systematic and successful maritime expansionism as suddenly as it had begun. Both events, the founding of Malacca and Zheng He’s expeditions, were the climax of a bundle of interrelated all-Asian processes. In this chapter these processes have been exemplified by an analysis of the naval expedition of the Cholas and their quest for political and economic domination of the Bay of Bengal in the eleventh century. The result of these processes and their dynamics was the emergence of a close-matched maritime network of intensive political, economic, and cultural relations, interlinking its regional networks in the Near East, South, Southeast, and East Asia. The geographical and cultural centre of this maritime network was South India.

Notes 1. Earlier versions of this paper were published in Om Prakash and Dennis Lombard, eds., Commerce and Culture in the Bay of Bengal, 1500–1800 (New Delhi, 1999), pp. 17–36 and in P. Borschberg and M. Krieger, eds., Water and State in Europe and Asia (New Delhi, 2008), pp. 19–34. 2. South Indian Inscriptions, vol. II, p. 109, quoted after K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-.las (Madras, 1955), p. 211.

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

15

3. Sastri, The Co-.las, p. 220. 4. G. W. Spencer, “The Politics of Plunder: The Cholas in Eleventh Century Ceylon”, Journal of Asian Studies 35 (1976): 405–420; idem, The Politics of Expansion: The Chola Conquest of Sri Lanka and Srivijaya (Madras, 1983). 5. Tansen Sen, “Maritime Contacts between China and the Cola Kingdom of South India: 850–1279”, in Mariners, Merchants and Oceans: Studies in Maritime History, by K. S. Mathew (New Delhi, 1995), pp. 25–42. 6. Tansen Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400 (Honolulu, 2003), p. 225. 7. K. V. Ramesh, “Reconsidering Cultural Intercourse between India and Southeast Asia: An Epigraphical Report”, in Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in

the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds. Report of the Taisho University Research Project 1997–2000, edited by N. Karashima (Tokyo,

2002 [printed in Chennai]), pp. 147–59. 8. “Our belief is that the raid was undertaken partly at least to establish trading rights for Tamil-speaking merchants in those areas, a trade from which the ruler, the merchant and the Chola bureaucracy could expect sizable profits”, M. Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India (New Delhi, 1988), p. 142. 9. G. F. Hourani, Arab Seafaring in the Indian Ocean in Ancient and Early Medieval Times (Beirut, 1963), p. 79; for a comprehensive overview, see K. N. Chaudhuri,

Trade and Civilisation in the Indian Ocean: An Economic History from the Rise of Islam to 1750 (Cambridge, 1985).

10. “Fatimid ships moved aggressively throughout the Mediterranean and into the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. It was at this time that the centre of Islam in the Indian Ocean shifted from the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea.” (J. AbuLughod, Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250–1350 (Oxford, 1989), p. 226.) A major factor of this development was the unification of the Red Sea (including Yemen) under the political authority of the Fatimids, see U. Haarmann and B. Zantana, “Zwischen Suez und Aden: Pilger und Fernhaendler im Roten Meer vom zehnten bis zum sechzehnten Jahrhundert”, in Der Indische Ozean in historischer Perspektive, edited by S. Conermann (Hamburg, 1998), pp. 109–42. 11. S. D. Goitein, “From the Mediterranean to India. Documents on the Trade to India, South Arabia, and East Africa from the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries”, Speculum 29 (1954): 181–97; idem, “From Aden to India. Specimens of the Correspondence of India Traders of the Twelfth Century”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 23 (1980): 43–66. 12. Wang Gungwu, “The Nanhai Trade: A Study of the Early History of Chinese Trade in the South Sea”, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 31 (1958): 1–135. 13. Hermann Kulke, “The Early and the Imperial Kingdom. A Processural Model of Integrative State Formation in Early Medieval India”, in The State in India 1000–1700, edited by H. Kulke (New Delhi, 1995), pp. 233–77; idem, “The Early and the Imperial Kingdom in Southeast Asian History”, in Southeast Asia

16

ulke

Hermann K

in the 9th to 14th Centuries, edited by D. G. Marr and A. C. Milner (Singapore,

1986), pp. 1–22. 14. K. R. Hall, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy in Early Medieval South India”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 21 (1978): 75–98; idem, “Eleventh-Century Commercial Developments in Angkor and Champa”, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 10 (1979): 420–34. 15. O. W. Wolters, “Tambralinga”, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 21 (1958): 587–607. 16. B. Ch. Chhabra, Expansion of Indo-Aryan Culture During Pallava Period (Delhi, 1965) pp. 26–34. 17. Boechari, Some Considerations of the Problem of the Shift of Mataram’s Center of Government from Central to East Java in the 10th Century A.D., Bulletin of the Research Centre of Archaeology of Indonesia. No. 10 (Jakarta, 1976). 18. O. W. Wolters, Early Indonesian Commerce. A Study of the Origins of Srivijaya (Ithaca and London, 1967); H. Kulke, “‘Kadatuan Srivijaya’: Empire or Kraton of Srivijaya? A Reassessment of the Epigraphical Evidence”, Bulletin de l’École Française d’Extrême Orient 80 (1993): 159–80; P. Y. Manguin, “The Amorphous Nature of Coastal Polities in Insular Southeast Asia: Restricted Centres, Extended Peripheries”, Moussons 5 (2002): 73–99. 19. G. R. Tibbetts, A Study of the Arabic Texts Containing Material on South-East Asia (Leiden, 1979), p. 38. 20. H. Hirth and W. W. Rockhill, Chau Ju-kua: His Work on the Chinese and Arab Trade in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries, entitled Chu-fan-chih (St Petersburg, 1911), p. 64, quoted from So Kee-Long, “Dissolving Hegemony or Changing Trade Pattern? Images of Srivijaya in the Chinese Sources of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries”, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 29 (1998): 295–308, see p. 301. 21. The report of a rather early mission from He-luo-dan on Java in the year AD 430 is very informative for this type of East Asian diplomacy. “My country once had a large population and was prosperous [and] never bullied by other countries. But now the situation is different and we have become weak. My neighbours vie with each other in attacking me. I beg Your Majesty to extend Your protection from far. I also hope that there will be no trading restrictions which will affect the coming and going [of our merchants]. If you pity me I hope that you will send missions ordering these countries not to maltreat us so that Your Majesty’s repudiation as the protector of the weak will be known everywhere. I hope that you will instruct the Canton officials to send back my ship and not permit them to rob and hurt [my traders]. I wish hereafter to send missions every year.” Liu Song shu , 5, 33b, quoted by O. W. Wolters, Early Indonesian Commerce. A Study of the Origins of Srivijaya (Ithaca, 1967), p. 151. 22. Wang Gungwu, “The Nanhai Trade”; see also P. Wheatley, “Geographical Notes on Some Commodities Involved in Sung Maritime Trade”, Journal of the Malay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 32, no. 2 (1959): 5–140 (21); Jung-Pang Lo,

The

23. 24. 25. 26. 27.

28.

29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46.

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

17

“Maritime Commerce and its Relation to the Sung Navy”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 12 (1969): 57–101 and see particularly Tansen Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade. K. N. Chaudhury, Trade ands Civilisation in the Indian Ocean. P. Wheatley, “Geographical Notes on Some Commodities”, p. 24ff. G. Coedès, The Indianized States of Southeast Asia (Honolulu, 1968), p. 132. W. P. Groeneveldt, Historical Notes on Indonesia and Malaya. Compiled from Chinese Sources (Reprint)(Jakarta 1960), p. 65. Epigraphia Indica, XXII, p. 257. Already in ca. AD 860, Balaputra, the first Sailendra king of Srivijaya, established a Buddhist monastery at Nalanda, which was endowed by the Pala King Devapala with land grants; see F. D. K. Bosch, “Een oorkonde van het Groote Klooster te Nalanda”, Tijdschrift voor Indische Taal-, Land-, en Volkenkunde 65 (1925): 509–88. For a comprehensive study of the involvement of the Cholas in this struggle for hegemony in the eastern section of the Indian Ocean, see also Sen, “Maritime Contacts” and Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade; K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-.las; G.W. Spencer, The Politics of Expansion; and K. R. Hall, Trade and Statecraft in the Age of the Colas (New Delhi, 1980). K. R. Hall, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy”, p. 88. K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-.las, p. 220. Canton Stories (Pingzhou daida), quoted from So Kee-Long, see note 20. G. Coedès, The Indianized States, p. 91. H. Kulke, The Devaraja Cult (Ithaca, 1978), p. 75; reprinted in Kings and Cults. State Formation and Legitimation in India and Southeast Asia (New Delhi, 1993), p. 344. K. R. Hall, “Khmer Commercial Development and Foreign Contacts under Suryavarman I”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 18 (1975): 318–36; idem, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy”. Quoted from Sen, “Maritime Contacts”. Song hui yao, quoted by Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade , p. 319, note 95. Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade, pp. 220–27. G. Coedès, The Indianized State, p. 144. For a more detailed discussion of the disputed naval expedition of the year 1017 see the chapter by Tansen Sen in this volume. N. Karashima, “Relations between South India and China in Chola Times”, in Professor K. A. Nilakanta Sastri Felicitation Volume (Madras 1971), p. 69f. K. N. Chaudhuri, Trade and Civilisation in the Indian Ocean, p. 56. M. Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India (Delhi, 1988). P. Wheatley, “Geographical Notes on Some Commodities”, p. 25. O. W. Wolters, “Tambralinga”, p. 251. J. Wisseman Christie, “The Medieval Tamil-language Inscriptions in Southeast Asia and China”, Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 29 (1998): 254. Tan Yeok Seong, “The Sri Vijayan Inscription of Canton (AD 1079)”, Journal of Southeast Asian History 5 (1964): 17–26.

18

ulke

Hermann K

47. Chou K’u-fei (AD 1178) quoted by F. Hirth and W. W. Rockhill, Chau Ju-kua, p. 23. 48. K. A. N. Sastri, “Takuapa and its Tamil Inscription”, Journal of the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 22 (1949): 25–30; J. Wisseman Christie, “The Medieval Tamil-language Inscriptions”, p. 251. 49. J. Wisseman Christie, “Asian Sea Trade between the Tenth and Thirteenth Centuries and Its Impact on the States of Java and Bali”, in Archaeology of Seafaring: The Indian Ocean in the Ancient Period, by H. P. Ray (Delhi, 1999), pp. 221–70. 50. Y. Subbarayalu, “The Tamil Merchant-Guild Inscription at Barus, Indonesia: A Rediscovery”, in Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities, edited by Karashima, pp. 19–26; see also K. A. N. Sastri, “A Tamil Merchant Guild in Sumatra”, Tijdschrift voor Indische Taal-, Land- en Volkenkunde 72 (1932): 314– 27. For the other Tamil inscriptions in Southeast Asia and China, see N. Karashima, “Tamil Inscriptions in Southeast Asia and China”, in Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities, edited by Karashima, pp. 11–17; J. Wisseman Christie, “The Medieval Tamil-language Inscriptions”, and now particularly N. Karashima and Y. Subbarayalu in Appendix I of the present volume. 51. R. Mulia, “The Ancient Kingdom of Panai and the Ruins of Padang Lawas (North Sumatra)”, Bulletin of the Research Centre of Archaeology of Indonesia, No. 14 (Jakarta, 1980), p. 27 and plates 21–23. 52. E. McKinnon, A. C. Milner, and Tengku Luckman Sinair, “A Note on Aru and Kota Cina”, Indonesia 26 (1978): 1–42. 53. For a thorough analysis of these peculiar “misunderstandings” see Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade, pp. 23–27; see also K. R. Hall, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy”, and K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-l.as, p. 316f. 54. O. W. Wolters, The Fall of Srivijaya in Malay History (London 1970), p. 93. 55. Quotation from the song shi, see Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade, p. 224. 56. For details, see Tan Yeok Seong, “The Sri Vijayan Inscription”; see also Sen, “Maritime Contacts”, and Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade. 57. Tan Yeok Seong, “The Srivijayan Inscription”, p. 21 and K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-.las, pp. 316–18. 58. K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-.las, p. 318. 59. J. Stargardt, “Burma’s Economic and Diplomatic Relations with India and China from Early Medieval Sources”, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 14 (1971): 38–62; K. R. Hall, “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy”, p. 94. 60. K. A. N. Sastri, The Co-l. as, p. 331. Kulottunga’s “generosity” might have had quite concrete reasons as Chau Ju-Kua reports in 1225: “As the taxes and imposts of the [Chu-lien] kingdom are numerous and heavy, traders rarely go there”; see F. Hirth and W. W. Rockhill, Chau Ju-kua, p. 95. 61. Ranabir Chakravarti, “Kulottunga and the Port of Visakhapattanam”, Indian

The

v

Na al Expeditions of the Cholas

19

History Congress Proceedings 42 (1981): 142–45; idem, “Rulers and Ports: Visakhapattanam and Mottupalli in Early Medieval Andhra”, in Mariners, Merchants and Oceans. Studies in Maritime History , edited by K. S. Mathew

(Delhi, 1995), pp. 57–78. 62. M. Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds, pp. 127–81; Burton Stein, “Coromandel Trade in Medieval India”, in Merchants and Scholars: Essay in the History of Exploration and Trade, edited by J. Parker (Minneapolis, 1965), pp. 47–62. 63. Epigraphia Indica, VII, pp. 197–98; see also J. Wisseman Christie, “The Medieval Tamil-language Inscriptions”, pp. 265–66, and N. Karashima, Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities, p. 15. 64. N. Karasima, Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities, p. 13. 65. Epigraphia Indica, XII, p. 196; see particularly M. Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds, p. 147, and R. Chakravarti, “Kulottunga”, pp. 66–71. 66. John Guy, “The Lost Temples of Nagappattinam and Quanzhou: A Study of Sino-Indian Relations” in Silk Road Art & Archaeology 3 (1993/94): 291–310. 67. Sen, Buddhism, Diplomacy and Trade, p. 228. 68. T. N. Subrahmaniam, “A Tamil Colony in Medieval China”, South Indian Studies (1978): 1–52 (quoted by J. Guy, p. 298). 69. J. Guy, “The Lost Temples”, p. 300; see also J. Wisseman Christie, “The Medieval Tamil-language Inscriptions”, pp. 267–68. 70. Y. Subbarayalu, “Chinese Ceramics of Tamil Nadu and Kerala Coasts”, in Tradition and Archaeology. Early Maritime Contacts in the Indian Ocean, edited by H. P. Ray, J.-F. Salles (New Delhi, 1996), pp. 109–14. 71. Haraprasad Ray, “Trade between South India and China 1368–1644”, in Commerce and Culture in the Bay of Bengal, 1500–1800, edited by Om Prakash, D. Lombard, pp. 37–46; idem, Trade and Diplomacy in India-China Relations: A Study of Bengal during the Fifteenth Century (New Delhi, 1993); for Orissa see D. Pradhan, P. Mohanty, J. Misra, “Manikapatana: An Ancient and Medieval Port on the Coast of Orissa”, in Archaeology of Orissa, edited by K. K. Basa and P. Mohanty (Delhi, 2000), pp. 473–94. 72. S. Arasaratnam, “The Chulia Muslim Merchants in Southeast Asia 1650– 1800”, paper presented at the 10th Conference of the International Association of Historians of Asia, Singapore, 1986. 73. T. Yamamoto, “International Relations between China and the Countries along the Ganges in the Early Ming Period”, Indian Historical Review 4 (1977/78): 13–19. 74. R. Ptak, ed., China and the Asian Seas. Trade, Travel and Visions of the Other (1400–1700) (Aldershot, 1998). 75. Wang Gungwu, “The Opening of Relations between China and Malacca, 1403–5”, in Malayan and Indonesian Studies. Essays Presented to Sir Richard Winstedt, edited by J. Bastin and R. Rollvink (Oxford, 1964), pp. 87–104.

2 MEDIEVAL

COMMERCIAL

ACTIVITIES IN THE INDIAN OCEAN AS REVEALED FROM CHINESE CERAMIC-SHERDS AND SOUTH INDIAN

AND

SRI LANKAN INSCRIPTIONS

ashima

Noboru Kar

It gives me great pleasure to present a paper at this plenary session of the Conference on Early Indian Influences in Southeast Asia, since I have been working for a long time on the early historical relations between Southeast Asia and India as one of my important research topics. In the 1990s I organized a project on this topic and took Indian scholars to Southeast Asian countries to study early Indian influences on Southeast Asia, exactly the same topic as that of this Conference. If you are interested in this project, please see my publications on that — (1) “Indian Commercial Activities in Ancient and Medieval Southeast Asia”, in Contributions of Tamil Culture to the Twenty First

Century: Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference-Seminar of Tamil Studies, Thanjavur, 1995, edited by Karashima, Annamalai, and Rajaram. Chennai, IATR, 2005 (yet to be released1), and (2) Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean , published by Taisho University in

2002 as a combined report of three projects, namely the one mentioned above, a second on Chinese ceramic-sherds in India and Sri Lanka, and a 20

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

21

in the Indian Ocean

third on merchant-guild inscriptions in South India and Sri Lanka. The topic of my paper today, however, concerns mostly the latter two projects. In China they started to make trade ceramics in the ninth century and their export overseas greatly increased from the thirteenth century. Reflecting such development of ceramic trade is the great number of Chinese ceramic sherds that have been discovered in Southeast and West Asian countries, not to mention Korea and Japan in the East. However, in South Asia, particularly in India, their discovery had been reported only sporadically until the discovery by chance of a good number of high quality Chinese ceramic-sherds in 1985 in Periyapattinam near Ramesvaram in South India. (Figures 2.1, 2.2) Encouraged by this discovery I organized a research project for surveying the South Indian and Sri Lankan coasts to search for Chinese ceramic sherds, through which we have been able to obtain a great number of them in many medieval port sites and dynastic capitals. 2 I will now show you the Chinese ceramic sherds discovered in Periyapattinam, which I identified as Da-ba-dan ( ) in Daoyi Zhilue ( ), a fourteenth-century Chinese work on Southern Sea countries. Southern Sea countries in the Chinese text refer to countries (mostly coastal towns) in Southeast, Southern, and Western Asia, approachable by navigation towards the South from China. A Chinese scholar identified Da-ba-dan

±²

±² !

±² !"

FIGURE 2.1 Longquan Celadon

22

Noboru Kar

ashima

FIGURE 2.2

with Dharmadam in northern Kerala because of their phonetic similarity. The main reason for my identifying it as Periyapattinam on the Coromandel Coast is the correspondence in sound and meaning between Periyapattinam and Da-ba-dan. Periya in Tamil means “big”, and so does Da in Chinese, thus the first component of these two names correspond with each other in meaning. Pattinam or pattanam in Tamil indicates commercial town or port and there are many commercial towns which have this term as its suffix, for example, Naga-pattinam, Kulashekara-pattinam, etc. Chinese texts describing these commercial towns usually employ the suffix “ba-dan” taking its sound. Therefore, the second components of Periya-pattinam and Da-badan correspond in sound. Thus, Periya-pattinam in Tamil is identical to Da-ba-dan in Chinese. Besides this meaning-cum-sound correspondence of the two names, an ecological feature described in the Chinese text suggests Da-ba-dan’s location on the Coromandel Coast, supporting its identification as Periyapattinam. Part of the text on Da-ba-dan in Daoyi Zhilue includes the following sentences. The place commands a view extending several hundred li.3 The paddy fields are flat and give rich harvest. Seasonal rains water the fields. … The sea water is boiled to make salt.

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

23

The scenery of Periyapattinam is illustrated in Figures 2.3 and 2.4 and better fits the textual description of Da-ba-dan than does that of Kerala. This is especially so of the Dharmadam area, where the Western Ghats come closer to the seashore (Figure 2.5), thus hindering a long-distance perspective. The test pits we dug at Periyapattinam are illustrated in Figures 2.6 and 2.7. The sherds we obtained through excavation and surface exploration numbered roughly 1,500 and they are classified as shown in Table 2.1. The sherds themselves are depicted in Figures 2.8–2.12. They are mostly datable back to the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, particularly the latter. During the thirteenth century, however, before the rise of Periyapattinam, Kayal to the south of Periyapattinam flourished as a state port of the Pandyas. It was described by Marco Polo in his travels as an important port for the horse trade with the Persian Gulf and Arabia. The text says:4 Cail is a great and noble city, and belongs to Ashar (Kulasekhara), the eldest of the five brother Kings. It is at this city that all the ships touch that come from the west, as from Hormos and from Kis (both in the Persian Gulf) and from Aden, and all Arabia, laden with horses and with other things for sale. And this brings a great concourse of people from the country round about, and so there is great business done in this city of Cail. FIGURE 2.3

24

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.4

FIGURE 2.5 Landscape near

Thalasser y (Malabar)

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.6

FIGURE 2.7

25

26

Noboru Kar

ashima

TABLE 2.1

Ceramic Type

Percentage

Celadon

60

White porcelain

15

Blue-and-white

10

Brown glaze

10

Others

Kiln

±± ±² Dehua ±² Jingdezhen ±² Jingdezhen ±² Guangdong ±² Longquan Fujian

5

?

FIGURE 2.8

Periyapattinam

Ceramic-sherds

Percentage 35 25 10 5 10 10 5

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.9

FIGURE 2.10

27

28

Noboru Kar

ashima

FIGURE 2.11

FIGURE 2.12

Yuan

Blue-and-White Sherds Disco vered near the Bottom of a

Test-pit

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

29

in the Indian Ocean

We were able to pick up in Palaiya-Kayal, the old Kayal, a tremendous number of Longquan celadon and other porcelain sherds of the thirteenth century. Products of Fujian and Guangdong kilns were also included5 (Figures 2.13–2.24). Figure 2.18 shows a Fujian piece and the marks were made by the insertion of small stones in between two plates while firing them in pile in a kiln. The stones were inserted so that the two plates would not be stuck together by glaze during the firing. Some other examples are illustrated in Figure 2.25. These are celadon bottles and others discovered in 1990 in Kunnattur, a village in the Madurai District. A farmer who cultivated the land discovered them accidentally. These are datable to the fourteenth century and now preserved in the Madurai Government Museum. On the Malabar Coast facing the Arabian Sea is Kollama (Quilon) which appears in Lingwai Daida ( ), a twelfth-century Chinese work on Southern Sea countries, as a port named Gu-lin ( ), where Chinese merchants disembarked from big junks to small boats to go to Arabia. The text says:

±² !

±² !

±²

FIGURE 2.13

Kayal

:

13 cent. (Longquan)

30

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.14

±² !

FIGURE 2.15 14 cent. (Longquan)

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.16

±² !

FIGURE 2.17 14 cent. (Fujian)

31

32

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.18

±² !"#!

FIGURE 2.19 14 cent. (Fujian)

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

33

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.20

±² !"

FIGURE 2.21 12/13 cent. (Southern kiln

Yingqing)

34

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.22

±² !!=±² ±²

FIGURE 2.23 13/14 cent. (Dehua

White /Yingqing)

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.24

FIGURE 2.25

Kunnattur

Discovery 14 cent.

35

36

Noboru Kar

ashima

When Chinese ship-merchants want to go to Arabia, they change the ship necessarily to a small one at Gu-lin ( ) and go. … When Arabs come, they navigate towards [the] South by a small ship and reach Gulin country. [From there] they go [by a big ship] towards [the] East to reach San-fo-qi ( ) (Sumatra and the Malay peninsula).

±²

±²

This place yields a good number of Chinese ceramic sherds. By extracting them from the section of the ground exposed by wave erosion on the seashore of Tangasseri (Figures 2.26, 2.27), we were able to obtain many pieces of celadon including a fine specimen of the fourteenth century, produced for export to Western countries (Figures 2.28, 2.29). There were also many sherds of later-century pieces, including a good furong ( ) type blue-andwhite dish from a Jingdezhen kiln ascribable to the seventeenth or eighteenth century. Chinese characters on the bottom of a small sherd read da-ming-wan ( ), meaning that this piece was produced during the Wan-li ( ) period of the Great Ming ( da-ming) dynasty. The character li is missing. The Wan-li period was from 1573 to 1620.

±²

±²

±²

FIGURE 2.26

Tangasseri

(Kollam)

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.27

FIGURE 2.28

Tangasseri

(Kollam)

37

38

Noboru Kar

ashima

FIGURE 2.29

±² !

±²±

Pandalayini ( )-Kollam ( ), located to the north of Kazhikode and mentioned in Daoyi Zhilue and by Ibn Battuta as a port where Chinese ships pass the winter (Figure 2.30), has also yielded a good number of Chinese ceramic sherds of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries6 (Figure 2.31). The Daoyi Zhilüe’s ( ) description of PandalayiniKollam (Shao-ju-nan ) is as follows: 7

±²

±² !

Sometimes through stress of weather [Chinese ships] arrive late after the departure of the horse ships, and without a full cargo; the wind blows too violently or contrarily for them to pass through the Sea of Lambri (northern Sumatra) and to escape the danger from the ragged rocks in the bay of Kao-lan-fu [Colombo], and they pass the winter in this place, remaining until the summer of the following year; when in the eighth or

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.30

Pandalayini Bay

FIGURE 2.31

Pandalayini-Kollam

Sherds

39

40

Noboru Kar

ninth moon ships come again, then they go on to Gu-li-fo [ Kollam] to trade.

ashima

±²

The reason for the winter stay of Chinese ships in the bay is explained by their late arrival due to stressful weather conditions, after the departure of the horse ships from Arabia. They would have had to wait more than half a year for the next arrival of horse ships. Mantai in Sri Lanka is almost the only site where we could get a great number of Chinese ceramic sherds belonging to the early centuries, namely from the ninth to twelfth centuries (Figure 2.32–2.40). They included sherds of Gongxian ( ) green glazed ware, Ding ( ) and Xiang ( ) white porcelain, and also Yuezhou ( ) and Changsha ( ) wares.8 Back in South India again, the excavation of Gangaikondacholapuram, a capital of the Chola dynasty (Figures 2.41, 2.42), yielded yingqing type porcelain sherds of the Jingdezhen kiln ascribable to the eleventh and twelfth centuries 9 (Figures 2.43, 2.44). These might have been brought from China by the envoys sent by Rajendra I in the eleventh century. The

±²

±²

±

FIGURE 2.32 Mantai (Double Moat

Area)

±²

±

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

±² !

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.33 9/10 cent. (Gongxian Green glazed)

FIGURE 2.34

41

42

Noboru Kar

±²

FIGURE 2.35 9/10 cent. (Ding/Xing

FIGURE 2.36

White)

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

±²

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.37 9/10 cent. (Yuezhou Celadon)

FIGURE 2.38

43

44

Noboru Kar

±²

FIGURE 2.39 9/10 cent. (Changsha Celadon)

FIGURE 2.40

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.41

Siva Temple

at Gangaikondac holapuram

FIGURE 2.42

Gangaikondacholapuram Palace

Site Excavation

45

46

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.43

FIGURE 2.44

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

47

earliest piece so far discovered in South India is a stray Yue celadon pot found in Settur in the Madurai District in 1992 (Figures 2.45, 2.46). This is datable back to the latter half of the tenth century or the first half of the eleventh century and is now preserved in the Government Museum in Madurai. I will now explain the inscriptional evidence for merchant activities carried out in the Indian Ocean and in Southeast Asia. In Motupalli, a port of the Kakatiyas located in the northern part of the Coromandel Coast near Guntur and visited by Marco Polo, we discovered many good-quality Chinese ceramic sherds of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries (Figures 2.47, 2.48). There remain in this town, now a small village, two medieval Hindu temples, and one of them has two pillar inscriptions referring to merchant activities. One of them (in Telugu), a royal order of a Kakatiya king (Ganapatideva) of the thirteenth century, 10 (Figure 2.49) first gives his assurance to foreign merchants of fair treatment and afterwards stipulates the customs charges. The first part reads as follows: By this glorious Maharaja Ganapatideva the following edict [assuring] safety has been granted to traders by sea starting for and arriving from all continents, islands, foreign countries, and cities.

FIGURE 2.45

Yue

Celadon Pot found at Settur

48

Noboru Kar

FIGURE 2.46

FIGURE 2.47 Motupalli Ceramic-sherds

ashima

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

49

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.48

FIGURE 2.49 Motupalli Virabhadraswamin Temple Telugu

Inscription

50

Noboru Kar

ashima

Formerly kings used to take away by force the whole cargo, viz. gold, elephants, horses, gems, etc. carried by ships and vessels which, after they had started from one country for another, were attacked by storms, wrecked, and thrown on shore. But we, out of mercy, for the sake of glory and merit, are granting everything besides the fixed [duty] to those who have incurred the great risk of a sea voyage with the thought that wealth is more valuable than even life.

The other inscription (a fourteenth-century Tamil inscription)11 (Figure 2.50) also records the assurance of fair treatment granted by a local chief called Annapota Reddi12 to merchants who were variously grouped including a group called nanadesi. It states: This is the record of the order issued by Annapota Reddi to merchants of far off islands [that is, foreign countries], merchants and nanadesi merchants of coastal towns: Anybody who comes to live in Motuppalli will be given required facilities and be given right to their former kani [hereditary right] and gardens and the right to migrate to wherever they like. There would be no fine for the foreign merchants [paradesi] who FIGURE 2.50 Examining Virabhadraswamin

Temple Tamil Inscription

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

51

have no heirs [that is, no confiscation of property of those dying without heirs]. We exempt tax ( ayam) on gold and silver. Regarding sungam [duty], for sandal, one-third of the previous rate is exempted.

Kottapatnam, to the south of Motupalli, near Nellore, has yielded a large number of Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese ceramic sherds belonging to the period from the thirteenth to sixteenth centuries (Figures 2.51–2.54) though the place has no reference in inscriptions or other literary sources. The nanadesi (various countries) mentioned in the Reddi chief inscription above is synonymous with padinen-bhumi, meaning eighteen countries and both words qualify the merchants organized as a guild called ayyavoleainurruvar or simply ainurruvar (meaning 500 people). There appeared in South India in the ninth century two merchant guilds called manigramam and anjuvannam, but after the twelfth century or so, they seem to have been incorporated into the ainurruvar .13 Through our project, which I organized for the study of merchant guild inscriptions, apart from the one for ceramic studies, we were able to collect some 314 South Indian and Sri Lankan inscriptions that refer to these merchant guilds and their chronological and topographical distribution as is shown in Table 2.2.14 From this distribution chart we can say that the regions where these merchant activities were most vigorously pursued were Karnataka and Tamil FIGURE 2.51

Kottapatnam

Longquan Celadon-sherds 14 cent.

52

Noboru Kar

ashima

FIGURE 2.52

FIGURE 2.53

K ottapatnam: Vietnam

14–16 cent. Green-glazed and

Thai

15/16 cent. Celadon

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

53

in the Indian Ocean

FIGURE 2.54

TABLE 2.2

Chronological and Topographical Distribution Merchant Guild Inscriptions

Year 801–900 901–1000 1001–1100 1101–1200 1201–1300 1301–1400 1401–1600 ? Total

of

AP

KL

KN

MH

TN

SL

SEA

Total

5 6 9 6 9 0

1 2 3 0 2 0 0 0

2 1 25 56 33 8 6 2

0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0

1 24 18 12 46 11 5 1

0 0 1 11 1 2 0 0

1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0

5 27 53 87 92 27 20 3

35

8

133

2

118

15

3

314

Note: AP = Andhra Pradesh, KL = Kerala, KN = Karnataka, MH = Maharashtra, TN = Tamil Nadu, SL = Sri Lanka, SEA = Southeast Asia

54

Noboru Kar

ashima

Nadu, though a certain number of inscriptions remain in Andhra Pradesh, Sri Lanka and Kerala also. Chronologically the merchants seem to have been most active from the eleventh to thirteenth centuries, though their organizational activities started in the ninth century and continued till the sixteenth century. The presence of manigramam was more conspicuous in the early centuries in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and anjuvannam was an organization of foreign merchants such as Jews, Christians, and Muslims, who migrated to the Malabar Coast from the West in earlier centuries. The ainurruvar seems to have started its activity first in Tamil Nadu in the tenth century, though its eulogy claims Aihole in Karnataka as its chief or ancestral place. 15 In Kerala there are three famous inscriptions, which refer to anjuvannam and/or manigramam. They are (1) the Kollam plates of Sthanu Ravi (late ninth century) recording the grant of land and labourers to a Christian church (palli) in Kollam and the entrustment of its maintenance to anjuvannam and manigramam, (2) the Kochi plates of Bhaskara Ravivarman (early eleventh century) recording the grant of the title anjuvannam and privileges in trade to Joseph Rabban, a Jew in Muyirikkodu (Mujiri, now identified as Pattanam), and (3) the Kottayam plates of Vira-Raghava (thirteenth century) recording the grant of the title manigramam and privileges to Ravikkorran, a merchant in Magodaiyapattinam (Kodungallur). Though the number of inscriptions referring to merchant guilds is rather small in Kerala itself, references to merchants coming from Kerala are seen in a number of inscriptions outside Kerala, including a Pagan inscription in Myanmar (Figure 2.55), which records the construction of a mandapam in a Vishnu temple by a Kerala merchant, with the temple being called “nanadesi vinnagar”.16 According to our study, the ainurruvar seems to have been an overarching organization of merchants comprising various groups of merchants and even people of other professions. The Viharehinna inscription (twelfth century)17 in Sri Lanka, recording the decision of ainurruvar in relation to the brave deeds of the soldiers who guarded merchants, enumerates the following groups which assembled to make the decision:

Tavalattuccetti (merchants of the place), cetti-puttiran (merchants), kavarai (merchants), katriban (betel leaf merchants), gamunda-svami (headman among landholders), ottan (messengers), ulpasumbai-karan (merchants with sack), angakkaran (fighters), avanakkaran (shopkeepers), …viran (soldiers?), pavadai-viran (honoured soldiers), and two other groups, which may be translated as “those conversant in Sanskrit and Tamil” (priests?), and “those who ride on donkeys” (transporters?)

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

55

FIGURE 2.55

Pagan Tamil Inscription

The assembled groups included not only merchant groups, but also those of landholders, soldiers, and others. From other inscriptions it is clear that artisan groups such as goldsmiths and potters were also included in this organization. The formation of this big merchant guild, ainurruvar , reflects not only the development of entrepot trade dealing in spices and precious goods, but also the economic growth in the Indian subcontinent accelerated by the rise of new industries such as cotton-weaving and oil-pressing. The cotton industry greatly increased in importance in South India from the thirteenth century.18 A large number of commodities are enumerated in inscriptions and the longest list of the commodities traded is found in the Piranmalai inscription, and a fairly long list can be seen in the Kovilpatti inscription. The list of commodities in the latter is as follows:

agil (aloe), arisi (rice), avarai (beans), erudu (bulls), erumai (buffaloes), kadugu (mustard), kampi (iron), kana malai (garlands ?), karpuram (camphor), karu alai malai (garlands ?), kasturi (musk), kida (cattle), kudirai (horses), mayir (hair), milaku (pepper), nel (paddy), ottai (camels), pacu (cows), pakku (areca nuts), pudavai (saree/long cloth), pul (grass), puli (tamarind), samai (bajra), sandanam (sandal), sangu (conches), tantam (ivory), tuvarai (dhal), ulandu-putavai (woollen cloth), uppu (salt), and varagu (millet). The commodities appearing in more than ten inscriptions are: areca nuts, betel leaf, oil, paddy, rice, grains, salt, sandals, cotton thread, and cloth.19

56

Noboru Kar

ashima

The Chola dynasty, which extended its hegemony over South India from the Thanjavur area for more than four hundred years from the ninth to thirteenth centuries, made two naval expeditions to the Malay Peninsula and sent envoys three times to the Song court in China during the eleventh century.20 In the same century the ainurruvar organization had its activities engraved on a stone pillar in Barus in Sumatra (Figure 2.56) revealing the existence of a Tamil merchant colony in Sumatra. The discovery of this stone was first reported in 1892 and its importance was discussed by Nilakanta Sastri in 1932, but the text has never been published and the stone has been missing for a long time. However, when we, my project

FIGURE 2.56 Barus Tamil Stone Inscription in Jakarta National Museum

Medieval

Commercial

Activities

57

in the Indian Ocean

team, visited the Jakarta National Museum in 1993, the stone was rediscovered there and the text has been published for the first time by Professor Subbarayalu, a team member.21 The close contact between China and South India continued during the Yuan period (1271–1368) and an examination of Yuan Shi ( ), the annals of the Yuan dynasty, reveals that from 1283 to 1291 China (Yuan dynasty) and Maabar (the Pandyan country in South India) exchanged envoys every year. In Quanzhou ( ), a famous port in southern China, there exists a Tamil inscription (Figure 2.57) recording the establishment of a Siva temple in that town in 1281. There must have been a large Indian population in Quanzhou at that time.22 All the above attest to the fact that before the coming of Europeans at the end of the fifteenth century there were vigorous commercial activities in the Indian Ocean based on the networks of local merchant organizations connecting East and West. In South India those networks seem to have started in the ninth century and increased their importance century by century till the fourteenth century. The famous Chinese maritime expeditions conducted by Zheng He ( ) in the Indian Ocean at the beginning of the fifteenth century (Figures 2.58, 2.59) can be taken as showing the culmination

±²

±²

±²

FIGURE 2.57 Quanzhou Tamil

Inscription

58

Noboru Kar

ashima

of this outburst of trade made possible through the network of local merchants organized in guilds, though Zheng He’s state-organized expeditions might have exercised destructive power in respect of the activities of merchant guilds in the Indian Ocean. In any case the activities of the merchant guilds seem to have declined in and after the fifteenth century. The reason for this decline and the historical relation between these merchant guilds and the European merchants who started their activities in the Indian Ocean in the sixteenth century should be the next target of study.23

±² !"

FIGURE 2.58 Zheng He Navigation Chart depicting Northern Part of South India

Medieval

Commercial

±²

Activities

in the Indian Ocean

59

FIGURE 2.59 (Zheng He Inscription) Galle, Sri Lanka

Notes 1. Though the volumes are printed and ready for distribution, it seems that the Tamil University which keeps those volumes has not yet been permitted by the State Government to release them for sale and distribution to the contributors. However, the paper is available in a booklet, Plenary Session Papers, distributed on the occasion of the Conference. 2. N. Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds in South India and Sri Lanka (Tokyo: Taisho University Press, 2004).

60

Noboru Kar

ashima

3. One li was equal to 552.96 metres during the Yuan period. 4. A.C. Moule and P. Pelliot, Marco Polo: The Description of the World, Vol. I (London), p. 412. 5. Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds, pp. 24–26. 6. On the discovery in the Malabar Coast, see ibid, pp. 44–54. 7. W.W. Rockhill, “Notes on the Relations and Trade of China with the Eastern Archipelago and the coast of the Indian Ocean during the Fourteenth Century: Part II”, T’oung Pao, XVI (1915), p. 446. 8. Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds, pp. 56–63. 9. Ibid., pp. 36–37. 10. Epigraphia Indica, XII, 22, pp. 188–97. See also N. Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds, pp. 4–5. 11. South Indian Inscriptions, XXVI, 635. See also N. Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds, pp. 5-6. 12. Annapota Reddi was one of the Reddi chiefs who established their power in the Kondavidu area, including Motupalli, after the decline of the Kakatiyas in the fourteenth century. 13. For these merchant guilds, see N. Karashima, ed., Ancient and Medieval 14. 15. 16. 17. 18.

19. 20.

21. 22. 23.

Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramicsherds (Tokyo: Taisho University, 2002).

Ibid., p. 5. Ibid., pp. 72–76. Ibid., p. 15. Ibid., pp. 27–35. References to tariyirai (tax on weaving) began to appear in Chola inscriptions from the eleventh century. N. Karashima, South Indian History and Society: Studies from Inscriptions AD 850–1800 (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1984), p. 92. N. Karashima, “Ainnurruvar: A Medieval Merchant Guild Engaged in Trade in the Indian Ocean” (in Japanese), Tohogaku, No. 105 (Tokyo, 2003), p. 6. N. Karashima, “Indian Commercial Activities in Ancient and Medieval Southeast Asia”, in Contributions of Tamil Culture to the Twenty First Century: Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference-Seminar of Tamil Studies, Thanjavur, 1995, edited by N. Karashima, E. Annamalai, and S. Rajaram (Chennai, 2005 [yet to be released]). Y. Subbarayalu, “Tamil Merchant-guild Inscription at Barus, Indonesia: A Rediscovery”, in Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities, edited by N. Karashima, pp. 19–26. N. Karashima, ed., Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities , pp. 15–16. A general discussion on this decline was made by J.L. Abu-Lughod in her book, Before European Hegemony: The World System AD 1250–1350 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), but the particular reason for merchant guild decline in South Asia is yet to be studied.

3 THE MILITARY CAMPAIGNS OF

THE CHOLA-SRIVIJAYA-CHINA TRIANGLE

RAJENDRA CHOLA AND

Tansen

Sen

The Chola king Rajendra (1012–44) is known to have launched several military expeditions against kingdoms in the Indian Ocean. This paper focuses on his raids on the Srivijayan ports in the context of growing commercial activity between southern Asia and Song China (960–1279). It argues that Rajendra Chola launched two attacks on the Srivijayan ports, one in 1017, and then a more extensive raid in 1025, in retaliation for Srivijayan interference in the direct trade between southern India and Song China. Scholars such as K.A. Nilakanta Sastri and O.W. Wolters have already proposed this motive for the Chola military campaigns against Srivijaya. However, the details about the Srivijayan interference that resulted in these raids by Rajendra Chola’s navy have not been fully explained. By analysing relevant Chinese sources, this paper will provide some specific examples of ways in which the Srivijayans might have attempted to prevent direct commercial (and perhaps diplomatic) links between the Cholas and the Song court. THE ALLURE OF CHINESE MARKETS

In the early eleventh century, the markets and ports in China emerged as some of the most lucrative places for international commerce. Traders from 61

62

Tansen

Sen

almost every region of Asia gathered at these places to procure Chinese commodities such as porcelain and silk, and sell foreign goods ranging from spices to horses. In fact, trading activity in China during the tenth and eleventh centuries had begun to affect the local economies of several Indian Ocean kingdoms and shaped the lives of merchant communities as far away as the Mediterranean Sea. Rajendra Chola’s military raids on the Srivijayan ports must be understood in this context of an international trading system that linked markets in China to the economies and societies elsewhere in the world. Although foreign traders had been frequenting Chinese markets as early as the Han dynasty (see, for example, Yu 1967), significant expansion in their numbers took place after the middle of the eighth century. This increased interest in Chinese markets and the upsurge in foreign trade during the eighth century were intimately liked to the abolition of an extremely rigid economic system that had previously existed in China. The An Lushan rebellion of 755 against the reigning Tang dynasty, although unsuccessful, had significant impact on the existing political and social structure. The rebellion also gave rise to changes in fiscal policies that had previously rarely considered revenue from internal and external trade. Perhaps the most important of these changes was the institution of monetary taxation under the Liangshui fa (twice-yearly tax) system. The increased use of money in the late Tang economy encouraged the growth and diversification of private commerce and overhauled the market and credit structures in China (Sen 2003). The late Tang and the subsequent Five Dynasties periods witnessed a number of other significant economic developments. New varieties of crops were introduced into China from Southeast Asia, improved irrigation machines and techniques spread rapidly, and the Chinese population started migrating towards the fertile southern region of the country. Because of these developments, the Chinese population grew almost fourfold from 32 million in 961 to about 121 million in 1109 (Chao 1986, p. 35), and cities expanded in numbers and density. Urban growth prompted further changes in the legal structure of markets and the patterns of mercantile activities throughout China. Restrictions limiting the markets to designated areas, which were regularly enforced during the Tang period, were lifted (Twitchett 1968). This dismantling of the rigid marketing system contributed to the emergence of active private entrepreneurs, stimulated commercial exchanges within China, and eventually led to the incorporation of international trade into Chinese fiscal policy (Sen 2003). As part of this transformed fiscal policy, the long neglected maritime trade was brought under government administration and local officials given

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

63

autonomy to control and tax maritime commerce. Known as Shibosi (Bureau of Maritime Commerce), the office in charge of administrating maritime commerce was initially established in Guangzhou in 714. The decision to establish the Bureau in Guangzhou indicates that maritime commerce was already flourishing in that city during the early eighth century. Indeed, Chinese sources indicate that there were large numbers of foreign traders from the Persian Gulf, Southeast Asia, and southern Asia who resided in the foreigners’ quarter of the city. According to one eyewitness account, there were also three Brahmanical temples in Guangzhou in the middle of the eighth century (Sen 2003, p. 163; Schafer 1963, pp. 14–15). The number of foreign traders seemed to have swelled to over 100,000 before a rebellion by a person named Huang Chao in 879 led to the massacre of many of them and the disruption of maritime trade in Guangzhou. After a brief hiatus, foreign merchants returned to Guangzhou and overseas trading activity in the town flourished again during the Song dynasty. The Song court took an active role in promoting maritime trade and even lobbied seafaring merchants to bring tribute to China by giving them special incentives. The fact that the overland trading routes were occupied by the semi-nomadic Khitans, Tanguts, and Jurchens forced the Song court to explore maritime trade as a source for fiscal revenue. Seafaring traders could now conduct trading activities at several Chinese ports, including the increasingly popular Quanzhou in present-day Fujian province. By the late eleventh century, as Robert Hartwell (1989, pp. 453–54) points out, the total volume of international commerce at Chinese ports amounted to 1.7 per cent of GNP, “and therefore, ten to twenty percent of income derived from nonagricultural activities”. Hartwell (1989, p. 453) also notes that urban and demographic changes in China, especially the growing densities of populations in the coastal regions, created “an ever-increasing demand for foreign products for defense, medicine, liturgy, home and garden, office, clothing, cosmetics, transportation and cuisine”. Hartwell argues that from the late tenth century to the middle of the twelfth century, Song China’s foreign trade was dependent on nonluxury, “staple goods” such as frankincense, sandalwood, black pepper, and cloves. “The nature of these goods,” he writes (1989, p. 454), “played an important role in determining the character of government control, the organization of economic activity, and the scale and persistence of the flow of trade between the different parts of China and each of her trading partners”. To meet the increasing demand for foreign goods, the Song court revamped the traditional tribute system and turned it into a major source of income. Through this revamped system, the government not only obtained foreign commodities without payment, but also derived substantial revenue by levying

64

Tansen

Sen

taxes on items sold in Chinese markets by the tribute carriers. In fact, the revenue collected from taxing foreign tribute and by selling products acquired through the tribute system amounted to about 9.29 per cent of the total Privy Purse income (Hartwell 1988). This revamped tribute system was also profitable to foreign merchants in many ways. They are known to have received preferential tax rates for appearing as tribute carriers, in addition to return gifts and honorific titles from the Song court. Often these return gifts and honorific titles made commercial dealings with the Chinese government more lucrative than the usual market trade. In 1028, for example, the Song court decreed to give 4,000 strings of cash in return for tribute valued at 3,600 strings of cash from an embassy from Vietnam. And in 1077, a delegation representing the Cholas was given 81,800 strings of cash and 52,000 taels of silver. Similarly, imperial titles, such as the title of Jiangjun (General), received by a Arab merchant named Pu Ma-wu-tuo-po-li (Abu Muhammad Dawal?) in 1073, seems to have elevated the status of tribute carriers among the foreign community trading with China. Such titles, at times, could have also made it easier for merchants to pass through Chinese custom houses. The growth of foreign trade during the Song dynasty thus served the needs of the Song government, foreign traders, and tribute carriers. The encouragement of maritime trade under the Song government and the increasing demand for foreign commodities in China were major factors in the development of a vast Indian Ocean trading system in the eleventh and twelfth centuries that stretched from eastern Asia to the Mediterranean Sea (Abu-Lughod 1989). Indeed, these developments are also credited with ushering in a global economy in the mid-thirteenth century. George Modelski and William R. Thompson (1996, p. 149), for example, write that the “Sung (Song) realm was the part of the world where demand and supply conditions strongly conducive to the emergence of a world market existed, and were capable of exercising a pull of attraction on the whole of the world economy”. Traders from Srivijaya, Chola, and the Arab kingdoms were all attracted to this “pull” of Song markets and the revamped tributary system. The number of foreign merchants and settlements at Song ports reached unprecedented levels and the competition among the seafaring traders for a share of the profits intensified. The Song court’s decision to link market trade to the tributary system was one of the key reasons for the increased competition among foreign traders. They vied to bring large amounts of tribute and represent as many kingdoms as possible when they arrived at the Song court. The aim was to gain recognition from the Song court in addition to making handsome profit from tax rebates. Many of these tribute carriers were Muslim

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

65

traders, who either resided at the Song ports, or came from their diasporas in Southeast and Southern Asia. The fact that some of these tribute carriers are identified as “ship masters” ( bozhu) in Chinese sources indicates that the Song court was aware that they were traders rather than officials from foreign kingdoms. Similarly, memorials from coastal officials suggest that the court also knew that foreign residents from ports such as Guangzhou and Quanzhou often appeared at the Song court as foreign envoys (see Chaffee 2006). However, the Song court, more concerned about the threat from the north and its fiscal needs, rarely attempted to curtail foreign merchants from profiting from the tributary trade. The practice of tribute carriers representing multiple foreign kingdoms and the uncertainty of their places of residence make the Song notices of foreign diplomatic missions extremely complicated. In some cases, such as the embassy representing the Chola kingdom that arrived at the Song court in 1077, it is very difficult to establish the actual role of foreign rulers in instigating the tributary missions. In other words, the records of tribute missions to the Song court must be used with caution, especially when reconstructing the diplomatic relations between Song China and foreign kingdoms. THE STRATEGIC ROLE OF SRIVIJAYA

In the last quarter of the seventh century, Srivijaya emerged as one of the leading transit points for ships sailing from the Chinese coast to southern Asia. This is evident from the journey of the Chinese monk Yijing to the eastern coast of India. Yijing embarked on his trip in 671 and lived in Srivijaya for about six months before boarding a ship for India. On his return voyage to China, Yijing again stopped at Srivijaya, this time for about six years, from 687 to 693 (Wang 1996, pp. 12–14; see also Wolters 1986 and Spencer 1983, pp. 107–11). Similarly, the Indian monk Vajrabodhi, on his trip from southern India to China, is reported to have passed through Srivijaya on a Persian ship. Before arriving in Guangzhou in 719, the mercantile ship carrying Vajrabodhi anchored at Southeast Asian ports to trade commodities that ranged from precious jewels to local products. Soon after the death of Vajrabodhi, his disciple Amoghavajra embarked on a journey to Sri Lanka and India from Guangzhou on a Southeast Asian (“Kunlun”), possibly Srivijayan, ship (Sen 2003, p. 214). These records of Buddhist monks travelling between India and China not only indicate the prevalence of Buddhism in Srivijaya, but also the strategic location, both commercial and cultural, which Srivijaya occupied on

66

Tansen

Sen

the maritime routes between coastal China and southern Asia. The commercial role of the kingdom is highlighted, for example, in the works of Arab traders such as Ibn Khurdadhbih and Abu Zaid (Reinaud 1845). The rulers and traders from Srivijaya used this vital position to advance their economic and diplomatic relations with the courts in China as well as the kingdoms in southern Asia. Already in 683, the Tang court, perhaps in recognition of the importance of the Southeast Asian kingdom, had sent a diplomatic mission to Srivijaya (Wolters 1961, p. 418). The first embassy from Srivijaya to the Tang court arrived in 702. Four other embassies from Srivijaya are reported to have reached the Tang court in the eighth century. These embassies usually presented local goods or exotic items such as five-coloured parrots and pygmies. In return, the Srivijayan rulers received titular titles from the Tang court (Bielenstein 2005, pp. 58–59). During the Song dynasty, embassies from Srivijaya became more frequent. Between 960 and 1017, about sixteen missions from Srivijaya reached the Song court (Hartwell 1983, pp. 172–75; Bielenstein 2005, pp. 59–60). Many of these missions were led by Muslims, such as Pu-Tuo-han (Abu Dahan?) in 976, Pu-Ya-tuo-luo (Abu Abdullah?) in 983, Pu-Ya-tuo-li (Abu Abdullah?) in 988, and Pu Mou-xi (Abu Musa?) in 1017. In 985, the Srivijayan mission to the Song court was led by a ship master named Jin-hua. In addition to local goods and religious items, many of these missions presented commodities that Hartwell calls the “staples” of maritime trade. He notes, for example, that the Srivijayan missions to the Song court “seldom carried less than fifty tons” of frankincense (Hartwell 1989, p. 456). In fact, Hartwell argues that Srivijaya “attempted, with high degree of success, to use its apparently formidable navy to control the straits of Sunda and Malacca and thereby the Indonesian and Near Eastern trade with China. The Palembang regime developed sophisticated techniques — markedly similar to Chinese models — to administer their monopolies. The total output of the sandalwood produced in eastern Java and the Lesser Sundas was sold to the Sumatran king. The commodity was then resold to Canton-bound traders at severalfold profit. Arabian frankincense seems to have been handled in the same way. It was divided into thirteen grades by the Palembang customs administration and then re-exported to China in large quantities” (Hartwell 1989, p. 456). Tribute from Srivijaya also included large quantities of black pepper, rosewater, gharuwood, and aromatics and medicines, all in high demand in Chinese markets. Clearly, many of these missions from Srivijaya, similar to the tributary missions from other kingdoms, were sent with commercial motives. As noted above, caution must be taken to explain these tributary missions in the context of political and diplomatic relations between the

The

67

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

rulers of Srivijaya and Song China. It is also not clear the extent to which the Srivijayan rulers, even though they are frequently mentioned as the instigators of the tributary missions, were involved in organizing and dispatching these missions. This issue is especially significant when examining the Srivijayan mission of 1077, as discussed below, the personnel of which seem to have also represented the Chola ruler Kulottunga I (r. 1070–18). Exchanges between the Srivijayan rulers and kingdoms in southern Asia are frequently reported in Indian sources. Inscriptions from Nalanda reveal intimate relations between the Srivijayan kings and Buddhist monks and Pala kings in Bengal. The Srivijayan ruler Dharanindravarman, for example, is mentioned as a pupil of a monk from Bengal called Kumaraghosa. Another inscription from Nalanda records that the Srivijayan king Balaputradeva, who reigned in the middle of the ninth century, sent an envoy to the court of the Pala ruler Devapala requesting permission to endow a Buddhist monastery at Nalanda. Balaputradeva also petitioned for “a grant of five villages for its upkeep and maintenance”. The Pala king is reported to have granted these requests of the Srivijayan king (Niyogi 1980, p. 23). The Srivijayan rulers also donated gifts to religious institutions located in the territories belonging to the Chola kingdom. In 1005, for example, the Srivijayan ruler Chudamanivarman financed the construction of a Buddhist vihara at Nagapattinam, a leading Chola port. Almost ten years later, a representative of the Srivijayan king presented precious stones to an idol in a temple in Nagapattinam. This was followed by a gift of lamps by a trader from Srivijaya. Sometime around 1018, a Srivijayan ruler mentioned as “the king of Kadram” offered gifts, including “Chinese gold” (cinakkanakam), to a temple in Nagapattinam (Hall 1978, pp. 87–88; Abraham 1988, p. 138). Several scholars have pointed out that through the presentation of these gifts, the Srivijayan rulers wanted to foster commercial relations with the powerful Chola kingdom. Scholars have also used these records as evidence of “friendly” and “cordial” relations between Srivijaya and the Chola kingdom. As the section below will argue, the latter interpretation may not be very accurate. THE CHINA-SRIVIJAYA-CHOLA

TRIANGLE

By the early eleventh century, commercial activity in the Indian Ocean had become increasingly complex and contentious not only due to the Song court’s revamped tributary system, but also because of the attempts by Srivijayans to dominate commercial exchanges through the Straits of Malacca, and the Chola court’s interest in expanding its commercial and political spheres in the Indian Ocean. Inheriting, and building upon, many of the

68

Tansen

Sen

political and economic structures of the previous Rashtrakuta and Pallava dynasties, the Cholas emerged as one of the most dominant powers in peninsular India from the tenth through the thirteenth centuries. Under the leadership of Rajaraja I (r. 985–1014), Rajendra I (r. 1014–), and Rajadhiraja I (r. 1018–54), the Chola forces invaded Sri Lanka, sacked a number of neighbouring kingdoms, undertook punitive attacks on the states in the Bay of Bengal region, and even raided the ports of Southeast Asia. The reign of these three rulers, and, indeed, almost the entire four centuries of Chola administration, was marked by internal stability, flourishing Brahmanical institutions and art, increased occupational specializations, and the expansion of domestic and international trade (see, for example, Hall 1980; Abraham 1988; Champakalakshmi 1996; Heitzman 1997). Similar to the Srivijayans, the rulers and traders from the Chola kingdom had keen interest in developing commercial relations with China. Like the ports in Srivijaya, the coastal regions controlled by the Cholas had also emerged as important centres of trans-shipment trade. These two kingdoms profited from taxing and supplying goods meant for markets in the Persian Gulf or Song China. The common interest in controlling this lucrative maritime trade seems to have been a source of tension between the Cholas and Srivijayans, despite the fact that the representatives from the latter kingdom presented gifts to temples in the Chola ports. The first military confrontation between the Cholas and Srivijayans may have taken place some time in 1017, to be followed by a more extensive raid on the Srivijayan ports in 1025. A third Chola offensive reportedly took place in the 1070s. Based on the Tiruvalangadu plates dated in the sixth year of Rajendra Chola (that is, 1017–18), R.C. Majumdar (1937, pp. 171–72) was the first to suggest the possibility of a Chola raid on Srivijayan ports sometime in 1017. The Tiruvalangadu inscription mentions that the Chola king had successfully conquered “Kataha”, identified as Kedah in the Malay Peninsula. Dismissing Majumdar’s suggestion, Nilakanta Sastri (1949; 1984) argues that a military confrontation at this “early stage” could not have taken place because Rajendra and the reigning Srivijayan king were on “friendly terms”. Nilakanta Sastri also maintained that the section of the Tiruvalangadu plate that mentions Rajendra’s conquest of Kataha was added at a later date. In a response to Nilakanta Sastri’s objections, Majumdar (1961) points to inscriptions on copper plates from the village of Puttur, dated in the eighth year of Rajendra Chola (that is, 1019–20), that also suggest a Chola raid before the more famous offensive of 1025. A careful analysis of Chinese records indicates that the relations between Chola and Srivijaya prior to 1025 were not as friendly as Nilakanta Sastri

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

69

claims. Indeed, the Chinese sources suggest that representatives from Srivijaya may have been passing inaccurate information about the Chola kingdom to the Song court before 1015, when the first diplomatic mission from the southern Indian kingdom arrived in China. This is revealed from the status assigned to the Cholas by the Song court and in a memorial presented to the Song Emperor Huizong (r. 1101–25) in 1106. In response to Huizong’s order to receive the envoys from Pagan (in present-day Myanmar) in accordance with the status given to the Chola embassies, the president of the Council of Rites objected by saying: The Chola [kingdom] is subject to Srivijaya, this is why during the Xining reign period (1068–1077), we wrote to its ruler on coarse paper with an envelope of plain stuff. Pagan, on the other hand, is a great kingdom and should not be perceived as a small tributary state. [It] deserves a comparable status [given to] the Arabs, Jiaozhi (present-day Vietnam), and other similar states. (Song shi, p. 489: 14087; Sen 2003, p. 224)

The inaccurate information regarding a Srivijayan subjugation of the Cholas, noted in the above memorial, seems to have been supplied to the Song court before the first Chola mission reached China. Upon its arrival at the Song court, the Cholas were accorded a status similar to that of Kucha, a tributary state of the Song in Central Asia. The status of a specific foreign kingdom was usually fixed on the basis of its military strength, which then determined the type of reception embassies received when they arrived at the Song court. Commercially, the bestowal of higher status helped merchants representing these kingdoms obtain favourable trading rights at the Song ports. The designation of Chola as a tributary kingdom meant that the Song court not only perceived the Cholas as a militarily weak state that was subjugated by the Srivijayan ruler, but also that traders from southern India may have received limited access to the Song markets and trading rights in China compared with their Southeast Asian counterparts. It is possible that traders and officials from Srivijaya were responsible for misinforming the Chinese about the military strength of the Cholas. In fact, even Sri Lanka, regions of which were occupied by the Cholas in the eleventh century, is also incorrectly listed in Chinese sources as one of the dependencies of Srivijaya. It seems that the Srivijayans were the main informants about the southern Asia region for Song scribes. This might explain why Chinese works fail to mention the Chola raids on the Srivijayan ports, and the Song officials, until at least the early twelfth century, insisted that the Chola kingdom was a vassal state of the Srivijayans.

70

Tansen

Sen

This intrusive role of the Srivijayans may have been known to Tamil traders and could have become evident to Chola officials after the visit of their representatives to the Song court. Tamil traders and the Chola court, which had launched several military raids in southern Asia to advance its commercial reach (Hall 1980; Spencer 1983), most likely wanted to have direct access to the lucrative Chinese markets. However, a direct commercial relationship between the Cholas and the Chinese would have affected the commercial interests of the Srivijayans. Because of their geographical location, the Tamil merchant guilds were in a position to monopolize the supply of black pepper and commodities from the Middle East destined for Song markets. Similarly, the supply of Chinese commodities to the Jewish and Arab merchants residing in Chola territories by Tamil traders would also have endangered Srivijayan profits. In other words, the Srivijayans may have perceived the entry of Cholas into the South China Sea as a major threat to their participation in trans-shipment trade. Consequently, the Southeast Asian kingdom seems to have taken prudent steps to prevent the establishment of direct Chola-Chinese trading relations, or, at least, disrupted the conditions that would have provided favourable trading terms to merchant guilds from the south Indian coast. Thus, a Chola raid on Srivijaya in 1017, shortly after the return of the first Chola mission to China, is not inconceivable. Although the event is not mentioned in Chinese sources, it should be noted that there is also no record of Srivijayan missions to the Song court for about a decade from 1018 to 1028. Instead, in 1020, a Chola mission is reported to have arrived at the Song court. The lead envoy, Pa-lan-de-ma-lie-di, suddenly became sick and died shortly after he reached Guangzhou. Five years later, in 1025, Rajendra Chola launched a massive raid on Srivijayan ports. There is no evidence to indicate that the Srivijayans had any role in the death of the Chola envoy, but it is clear that the first raid, perhaps a brief offensive, had failed to accomplish its goal. Even the 1025 raid seems to have been unsuccessful in preventing Srivijayan from interfering in Chola-Song exchanges. This can be discerned from an embassy that arrived in China in 1077. Song sources confusingly attribute the mission of 1077 to both the Cholas and Srivijayans. The section on the Chola kingdom in the Song shi (Dynastic History of the Song) reports that the Chola ruler Di-hua-jia-luo (Divakara?) sent this embassy. The chief envoy Qi-luo-luo, vice-envoy Nanbei-pa-da, and staff member Ma-tu-hua-luo led the embassy and had an imperial audience on 26 June 1077. The same source, in fact, in the same chapter but under the sub-section on Srivijaya, had previously noted that Di-hua-jia-luo was a “Great Chieftain” of the Southeast Asian kingdom.

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

71

Fortunately, a contemporary inscription found at a Daoist temple in Guangzhou has helped decipher the identity of Di-hua-jia-luo and the envoys who visited the Song court as representatives of both the Srivijaya and Chola kingdoms. The inscription, written in Chinese, and translated into English by Tan Yeok Seong (1964), reads: During the reign of Chih Ping (Zhiping) (1064–67), the Lord of the Land of San Fo Tsi (San-fo-qi, that is, Srivijaya), the Paramount Chief Ti Hao Ka lo (Di-hua-jia-luo), ordered one of his clansmen Chih Lo Lo (Zhi-luo-luo) to this city (that is, Guangzhou). Chih Lo Lo saw the temple in ruins, its foundation being buried in wilderness. He then returned home and reported the matter to the Lord. Since then Ti Hua Ka lo began to have inclinations for Tao (Dao)… Presently, a Judge by the name of Ma Tu Hua Lo (Ma-tu-hua-luo), a man of moral virtue, came to pay tribute to the Court. Permission was asked to accept his donations to construct the Hall of San Ching (Sanjing) in the Imperial Library.

Tan suggests that Di-hua-jia-luo in this inscription and in the Song shi refers to the Chola king Kulottunga, who, according to him, ruled both the Chola and Srivijayan kingdoms. Di-hua-jia-luo, Tan (1964 p. 20) writes, “was holding a very high position in the conquered country. Sri Vijaya , which was overrun by King Virarajendra (that is, Rajendra Deva Kullottunga) before AD 1067. He went home and ascended the Cola throne in 1077 A.D. He had a long and prosperous reign until AD 1119.” George Spencer (1983) rejects Tan’s conclusion and instead offers the possibility of a marriage alliance between the Cholas and Srivijayans in order to explain the confusing Chinese records. He writes (1983, pp. 146–47), “It was after all, very common for the Cholas to establish such alliances with both defeated adversaries and potential rivals, so a marriage alliance with the kings of Srivijaya, as a result of Rajendra’s conquest [in 1025] or even under other circumstances, would not have been out of character.” To prove his point, Spencer refers to records on the genealogy of fifteenth-century Malayan rulers preserved in the Malay annals, Sejarah Melayu . The record states that the Indian conqueror Raja Shulan (Rajendra I, according to Spencer), after the successful naval raid of 1025, married Onang Kiu, the daughter of the defeated King Chulin. The daughter of Onang Kiu and Shulan later married Raja Iskandar, the ancestor of the Malacca sultans. Their son, Raja Chulan, according to the Malay annals, succeeded to the Chola throne in India. After narrating this story from Sejarah Melayu , however, even Spencer appears reluctant to accept the marriage-alliance theory. He concludes by saying (1983, p. 148), “But since [in] the Sejarah Melayu’s version of events

72

Tansen

Sen

too few generations are allowed between the time of Raja Shulan (Rajendra) in the eleventh century, and the founding of Singapore by Sri Tri Buana in the fourteenth, that account must be highly condensed at best. Perhaps the Chola connection was merely an inspired fiction.” Both these analyses about the puzzling Song records concerning the 1077 mission and the Guangzhou inscription prove inadequate. An alternative, and much simpler, explanation seems to lie in the interests of Srivijayan traders in preserving their commercial status with the Chinese after a series of raids by the Cholas had weakened their sphere of influence in the Indian Ocean. Di-hua-jia-luo was probably no more than a local landlord (as the Chinese inscription suggests [Ch. dizhu = “landlord”]) trying to maintain commercial relations with the Chinese after the Chola raids on Southeast Asian ports. Hermann Kulke (1999, p. 29) suggests that after the sacking of the Southeast Asian ports, the Cholas under Kulottunga may have supported “one faction of the Srivijayan court or one port-city of its confederation”, while, “another faction could have spread the news that the Chola kingdom had become a vassal of Srivijaya”. It is possible that the 1077 mission to the Song court attributed to the Chola kingdom came from the faction opposed to Kulottunga. The goal of this mission was not to present the Chola kingdom as a leading maritime state in the Indian Ocean, but to reinforce the Chinese view that Srivijaya was a militarily powerful state that subjugated the Cholas and, as a result, deserved to maintain its trading privileges at the Chinese ports. Indeed, the statement by the Chinese official in 1106 regarding the subjugation of the Chola state by Srivijaya and the continued tributary missions from the Southeast Asian kingdom seem to indicate that Di-hua-jialuo and his envoys succeeded in preserving this false perception and helped retain the privileges it had received from the Song court (see another interpretation of this confusion in Professor Karashima’s translation of the Song shi record).

CONCLUSION Changes in Chinese fiscal and commercial policies and the revamped tributary system under the Song government attracted an unprecedented number of foreign traders to the coastal regions of China. Maritime trading networks that linked China all the way to the Red Sea became vital to the movement of people and goods. These developments transformed the structure of diplomatic exchanges among Indian Ocean states and led to the formation of several new emporia across the Indian Ocean. For many Indian Ocean kingdoms, the Cholas and Srivijayans in particular, the profit from international commerce became a key component of the local economy and regional

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

73

politics. Indeed, the participation in international commerce not only contributed to economic activities within the kingdoms, but also enhanced the political status of local rulers. Consequently, commercial and diplomatic exchanges among Indian Ocean kingdoms became interlinked and the relationship between rulers and traders turned more intimate than at any time before in Asian history. Together, these developments led to the integration of major markets in the Indian Ocean through multi-ethnic, well structured, and extremely complex trading networks that stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Chinese coast. The confrontation between the Cholas and Srivijayans, as discussed in this paper, resulted from the intense competition to access markets in Song China. Indeed, the demand for foreign staples in China that mostly came from the Persian Gulf region, and the export of Chinese porcelain and other goods to the Middle East, made trade with China extremely lucrative to traders and rulers in both the Srivijayan and Chola kingdoms. Because of their geographical locations and powerful naval forces, the two kingdoms already maintained significant control over key segments of Indian Ocean commerce during the eleventh century. The unprecedented naval conflicts between kingdoms in southern and Southeastern Asia seem to have been a consequence of attempts by Chola traders and rulers to extend their sphere of influence into the coastal regions of China. While Tamil sources indicate that the Cholas were able to defeat the Srivijayans and sack many of their port cities, Chinese records suggest that traders and rulers from Srivijaya continued to enjoy their privileged position in Song China until the twelfth century. In fact, it is not clear if Rajendra Chola’s triumph in Srivijaya had any immediate impact on Chola’s trading relations with Song China. It seems that traders from the Chola kingdom were able to establish their diaspora in China only in the twelfth century (Clark 1995; Sen 2006). For the Song officials, as evident from the 1106 memorial, the Cholas were perceived as a vassal state of Srivijaya. The memorial suggests that the Cholas failed to gain access to the Chinese markets despite their touted victories in Southeast Asia. The triangular relationship between Song China, the Cholas, and the Srivijayans illustrates a dramatically changed nature of the cross-cultural interactions in Asian history. Previously, the land routes were the main conduits of diplomatic and commercial interactions between eastern and southern Asia. The expansion of territories and spheres of influence usually also took place through the overland routes. The emergence of the Cholas in southern India, Srivijaya in Southeast Asia, and the Song court’s decision to promote maritime trade, shifted the focus of cross-cultural interactions from the overland roads across Central Asia to the sea routes passing through

74

Tansen

Sen

Southeast Asia. This shift resulted in intense commercial, diplomatic, and religious exchanges between the coastal kingdoms of India and southern regions of China that continued even after the European commercial enterprises occupied the maritime trading networks in Asia. The relationship between Song China, the Cholas, and the Srivijayans also shows that the exchanges through the maritime routes were not always peaceful. In fact, during the subsequent period, the Yuan and Ming dynasties of China tried to use their naval might to dictate the nature of commercial and diplomatic exchanges in the Indian Ocean. But the Chola raids on Srivijaya are unique because of the commercial motives involved in instigating the strikes. The exchanges between southern Asia and China had been previously defined by the transmission of Buddhist ideas. The triangular relationship between Song China, the Cholas, and the Srivijayans demonstrates the heightened role of commerce in India-China interactions and cross-cultural exchanges in Asia.

References Abraham, Meera. Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India . New Delhi: Manohar, 1988. Abu-Lughod, Janet L. Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250– 1350. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989. Bielenstein, Hans. Diplomacy and Trade in the Chinese World, 589–1276. Leiden: Brill, 2005. Chaffee, John. “Diasporic Identities in the Historical Development of the Maritime Muslim Communities of Song-Yuan China”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 49, no. 4 (2006): 395–420. Champakalakshmi, R. Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India 300 BC to AD 1300. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1996. Chao, Kang. Man and Land in Chinese History: An Economic Analysis. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1986. Clark, Hugh R. “Muslims and Hindus in the Culture and Morphology of Quanzhou from the Tenth to the Thirteenth Century”. Journal of World History 6, no. 1 (Spring 1995): 49–74. Hall, Kenneth R. “International Trade and Foreign Diplomacy in Early Medieval South India”. Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 21, no. 1 (1978): 75–98. ———. Trade and Statecraft in the Age of Colas. New Delhi: Abinav Publications, 1980. Hartwell, Robert. Tribute Missions to China, 960–1126. Philadelphia: n.p., 1983. ———. “The Imperial Treasuries: Finance and Power in Sung China”. The Bulletin of Sung-Yuan Studies 20 (1988): 18–89.

The

Military Campaigns of Rajendra Chola

75

———. “Foreign Trade, Monetary Policy and Chinese ‘Mercantilism’ ”. In Collected

Studies on Sung History Dedicated to James T.C. Liu in Celebration of his Seventieth Birthday, edited by Kinugawa Tsuyoshi. Kyoto: Do-ho-sha, 1989: 453–88. Heitzman, James. Gifts of Power: Lordship in an Early Indian State . Delhi: Oxford

University Press, 1997. Kulke, Hermann. “Rivalry and Competition in the Bay of Bengal in the Eleventh Century and its Bearing on Indian Ocean Studies”. In Commerce and Culture in the Bay of Bengal, edited by Om Prakash, pp. 17–35. New Delhi: Manohar, 1999. Majumdar, R.C. Ancient Indian Colonies in the Far East: Vol. 2, Suvarnadvipa. Dacca: Dacca University Press, 1937. ———. “The Overseas Expeditions of King Rajendra Cola”. Artibus Asiae 24, no. 3–4 (1961): 338–42. Modelski, George and William R. Thompson. Leading Sectors and World Powers: The Coevolution of Global Politics and Economics. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1996. Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. History of Sri Vijaya. Madras: Madras University Press, 1949. ———. The Colas. Madras: Madras University Press, 1955 (reprint 1984). Niyogi, Puspa. Buddhism in Ancient Bengal. Calcutta: Jijnasa, 1980. Reinaud, J.T. Relation des voyages faits par les Arabes et les Persans dans l’Inde et à la Chine dans le IXe siècle de l’ère chrétienne. 2 vols. Paris: l’Imprimerie Royale, 1845. Schafer, Edward H. The Golden Peaches of Samarkand: A Study of T’ang Exotics. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1963. Sen, Tansen. Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2003. ———. “The Yuan Khanate and India: Cross-Cultural Diplomacy in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries”. Asia Major 19, no. 1–2 (2006): 299–326. Song shi (History of the Song Dynasty). Compiled by Tuo Tuo (1212–55) et al. Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1995. Spencer, George. The Politics of Expansion: The Chola Conquest of Sri Lanka and Sri Vijaya. Madras: New Era, 1983. Twitchett, Denis C. “Merchant, Trade and Government in the Late T’ang”. Asia Major 14, no. 1 (1968): 82–95. Tan, Yeok Seong. “The Sri Vijayan Inscription of Canton (A.D. 1079)”. Journal of South East Asian History 5, no. 2 (1964): 17–24. Wang Bangwei. Tang gaoseng Yijing shengping ji qi zhuzuo lunkao (An Examination of the Life and Works of the Eminent Tang[-Dynasty] Monk Yijing). Chongqing: Chongqing chubanshe, 1996. Wolters, O.W. “Srivijayan Expansion in the Seventh Century”. Artibus Asiae 24, no. 3–4 (1961): 417–24. ———. “Restudying Some Chinese Writings on Sriwijaya”. Indonesia 2 (1989): 1–41. Yu, Ying-shih. Trade and Expansion in Han China: A Study in the Structure of SinoBarbarian Economic Relations. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967.

4 RAJENDRA CHOLA I’S NAVAL EXPEDITION TO SOUTHEAST

ASIA

A Nautical Perspective

Vijay

Sakhuja and Sangeeta Sakhuja

In the civilizational history of India, the role of the Chola kings, particularly Rajaraja I and Rajendra Chola I in building a military maritime capability was unprecedented. The architecture of their pre-eminence was built through a series of expeditions in India — in the north, deep into the Indo-Gangetic plains through Odra-visaya (Orissa), Kosala, and Dandabhukti (Midnapur), in southern Radha near the mouth of Ganges; and from Venga (East Bengal), 1 a westward expansion that saw the defeat of the Chera kingdoms on the Malabar coast; and well into the Deccan Plateau, with the defeat of the Chalukyas and the capture of their critical strongholds. In the west, the Cholas expanded towards the Arabian Sea, occupying the LakshwadeepMaldives archipelagos that sit astride the ancient Indian Ocean trade routes. They also made successive southward surges into Ceylon, attacking various Sinhala kingdoms. In its expeditionary context, the 1025 naval raid in Southeast Asia in Sumatra, Indonesia, and Malaysia was a singular display of the power of the Chola king, Rajendra Chola I, who possessed and wielded strong political and military power in India. Under Rajendra Chola I, the Chola empire was perhaps the most respected Hindu State that possessed, though only for a brief period, “inconsiderable dominion over the Malay peninsula and the

76

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

77

Eastern Archipelago”.2 The success of the grand foray in Southeast Asia was the result of a consistent and aggressive maritime mercantile policy of Chola kings, particularly Rajaraja I (AD 984–1014) and his son Rajendra Chola I (AD 1014–44). The Chola kings had encouraged overseas maritime trade through trade missions, sea-based commerce, and opening the Chola heartland to the overseas trading systems from the Mediterranean and Persia in the west, and Malaya, Sumatra, and China in the east. This resulted in a powerful maritime capability built around ships that were marshalled for the 1025 expeditionary naval raid in Southeast Asia. It should be pointed out that the Chola kings did not have a navy comprising warships exclusively for naval combat, but an armada was put together with ships taken up from trade (STUFT), the modern term for such activity. This essay attempts to examine the naval expedition ordered by Chola king Rajendra Chola I to Southeast Asia. Given the scant evidence on this obtained from the inscription dated 1030–31 of the big temple of Tanjavur in India, this is an impressionistic and a reconstructive essay that deals with several nautical aspects3 of the expedition. It explores the reasons for the attack, types of vessels comprising the armada, route followed, navigation skills of the Chola seafarers, and in its tactical construct, the elements of deception and surprise. As the voyage involved long distance over several days, the paper also looks into the provisioning of the ships that would have carried large volumes of food, water, and repair materials including rigging, weapons and transport (both mechanical and animal) to support thousands of soldiers, ancillary forces, and the ships’ crews.

INSCRIPTION AND ITS INTERPRETATION

The naval expedition ordered by Chola king Rajendra Chola I to Southeast Asia is mentioned in the inscription dated 1030–31 of the big temple of Tanjavur which reads:

“[who] having dispatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught Sangrama — Vijayottunga Varman, the king of Kadaram, together with the elephants in his glorious army, [took] the large heap of treasures, which [that king] had rightfully accumulated; [captured] with noise, the [arch] called Vidyadhara torana at the ‘war gate’ of his extensive city, Sri Vijaya with the ‘jeweled wicket gate’ adorned with great splendour and the ‘gate of large jewels’; Pannai with water in its bathing ghats; the

78

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

ancient Malaiyur with the strong mountain for its rampart; Mayirudingam surrounded by the deep sea [as] by a moat; Ilangasoka, undaunted [in] fierce battles; Mappappalam having abundant [deep] water as a defence; Mevilimbangam having fine wall as defence; Valaippanduru having Vilapandur; Talaittakkolam praised by great men [versed in the sciences]; Madamalingam, firm in fierce and great battles; Ilamuridesam whose fierce strength rose in war; Manakkavaram, in whose extensive flower gardens honey was collecting and Kadaram, of fierce strength, which was protected by the deep sea”.4 The inscription lists the names of places that were attacked by the invading Chola forces and these have been subjected to historical geography investigations; six can be found on the Malay Peninsula, four in Sumatra, Manakkavaram has been identified as the Nicobar Islands and two, that is, Valaippanduru and Mevilimbangam, are unknown. 5 Historians and scholars have engaged in a meticulous study of these place names and the correctness of the places has been a subject of some debate. 6 Some historians have even questioned if the raid actually took place. For instance, George W. Spencer has argued that the details of the raid are “tantalizingly brief, consisting entirely of a list of place-names woven into a descriptive eulogy ( prasasti)”.7 He further notes that “the problem that has bedeviled the interpretation of South Asian and Southeast Asian history alike has been an excessive credulity towards the sources”.8 But Spencer quotes Paul Wheatley who has noted that the raid did take place and until such time as the correctness of the places attacked by raiding forces is correctly established, the “integrity of the prasasti is unimpeached”.9 B. Arunachalam has observed that “many inscriptions of Rajendra Chola I of the later days exist, and none of the prasastis elaborate any further on the details of the naval expedition. Unless new data reveals new facts, the naval campaign would remain an elusive mystery in terms of nautical aspects”.10 Arunachlam also points that Hultzsch, Venkiah, Coedès and Nilakanta Sastri have fairly well identified the places mentioned in the prasasti and the naval expedition is also mentioned in the meikriti details of the inscriptions at the Brihadisvaram of Tanjavur, and on the Esalam and Karandai Copper plates.11 According to Arunachalam, some more copper plates containing forty inscriptions were found near Tanjavur and have been translated. However, the sequence in which these places were attacked has also been a subject of debate and discussion. This is dealt with in greater detail later in the essay.

Rajendra

v

Asia

REASONS FOR THE

ATTACK

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

79

It is a well-known fact that the Srivijaya kingdom had social, cultural, religious, and trade relations with Indian kingdoms, particularly, the Chola. We are told that the Srivijaya and Chola courts had established diplomatic contacts too.12 Significantly, the Srivijaya kings had supported Buddhism in India and records tell us that a Buddhist Cudamani Vihara at Nagappattinam was built at the request of Sailendra King Srimara Vijayatunga Varman of Kadaram.13 The temple was built for pilgrims from Sumatra and the upkeep of the Vihara was supported from the revenue of nearby villages. But relations between the two kingdoms then began to deteriorate. It is indeed very interesting that most historians and scholars of South Indian history have commented on the naval raid to Southeast Asia by Rajendra Chola I, but there is no credible evidence to determine the cause of the deterioration in relations between Srivijaya and the Chola kings. We are told that there can be several plausible reasons that could have been instrumental in the ordering of the naval raid against Srivijaya territories. According to Spencer, it is a highly plausible explanation, but rather tenuous that the Srivijaya kings attempted to strangle Indian trade with China. But that Srivijaya enjoyed supremacy in the region and could control the maritime trade also remains unsubstantiated. Aja’ib al-Hind tells us that Srivijaya rulers had demanded a levy of 20,000 dinars, as right of passage, before they allowed a Jewish merchant ship to continue its voyage to China. 14 Such high levies may have been imposed on Indian ships and upset the Chola rulers, forcing the invasion against the Srivijaya Kingdom in 1025. However, Nilakanta Sastri notes that “neither the merchants nor the state in South India had any idea of possibilities of economic imperialism”.15 For the Indians, the trade was an end in itself and Indian traders were willing to trade as along as it was profitable and “it never occurred to them that foreign lands may be compelled to buy and sell at the point of the bayonet”.16 Spencer also notes that the raid can also be interpreted as a natural and logical development of lateral military expansion of the Chola kings, particularly Rajaraja and Rajendra Chola I. Related to that is the issue of the political determination of these two Chola kings to exhibit their supremacy both in India and overseas. Yet another argument that finds favour is Rajendra Chola I’s need for additional resources through plunder as demonstrated by the Chola invasions of Simhalam (Ceylon). Thus it is reasonable to believe that the raid reflects the Chola pattern of expansion, a state policy inherited and practised since Chola king Rajaraja I.

80

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

Another view that merits attention is the fact that the maritime ascendancy of the Cholas in the waters of the Bay of Bengal was acknowledged in the entire littorals as demonstrated by the establishment of merchant guilds or “ainnuruvar” in several places in Southeast Asia. A flourishing maritime enterprise had turned the Bay of Bengal into a Chola lake. Though questionable, it is reasonable to believe that Rajendra Chola I had naval ambitions to control the seas beyond the Bay of Bengal into the waters of the Strait of Malacca, dominated by the rulers of the Srivijaya kingdom, and bypass any restrictions imposed by the regional rulers. Nilakanta Sastri notes that the 1025 naval raid to Southeast Asia against Srivijaya had “rendered communication with the ‘Southern Seas’ and the Empire of China more easy and regular than it was before”. 17 Similarly, Arunachalam points out that the expedition (naval raid) reflects a clear dominance of the sea lanes in the Bay of Bengal in the eleventh century by the Chola rulers, based on their maritime supremacy, resulting in their dominance of the seas and direct trade between the Chola lands and China.

NAVIGATIONAL

WISDOM OF THE CHOLAS

A “passage plan” is vital for any sea voyage, particularly when ships sail across the high seas. In ancient times, the passage plan depended on wind conditions, weather patterns, and also on sea currents. Besides, the location of ports or places for a stopover enroute for replenishment, repair, and rest must have been a critical factor in any passage planning. In the absence of any direct evidence of charts available to Chola mariners, details of time taken by pilgrims, embassies, and ship narratives also helped to approximate the time taken by the ships to move across the seas. Tamil seafarers had developed a good understanding of the winds and currents prevalent in the Bay of Bengal, Southeast Asian waters, and also as far as China, and this knowledge must have facilitated long-distance trade. Part of this knowledge must have been homegrown and exchanged among the local seafarers, and also obtained from the foreign seafarers who had frequented the Coromandel ports. Jean Filliozat notes that the oldest inscription discovered in Southeast Asia at Vo-Canh on the east coast of Vietnam is of Tamilians from the Pandyan kingdom in the second and third centuries. He concludes that the oldest Tamil sea route across the Bay of Bengal to Vietnam was towards Sumatra island, sailing along its southern coast, passing through the Sunda Strait, and moving north directly towards the southern tip of Vietnam.18 G.E. Gerini in his research on Ptolemy’s Geography notes that for the route

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

81

from South India or Ceylon to the Sunda Archipelago (Palembang in Sumatra), ships would sail sighting en route Argyre, the Barusai, Sindai, Sabadeibei, and ending the journey at Iabadiu. The ships may have continued to China via the Satyron Islands. The modern names of these stations have been identified as Acheh Point — Pulo Nias (or coast of Sumatra at Barus), Si-Berut group (coast of Sumatra at Indra [Sinda] Pura), Si-pora and Poggy islands, Sunda Strait, and, at journey’s end, Sri-Bhoja (Palembang). The journey to China was made by passing the Siantan Islands (Great Anambas).19 It should be pointed out that the ships used by Tamil seafarers were not fitted with a rudder and magnetic compass and had to do either coasting or parallel/great circle sailings. As a result, the seafarers had mastered the prevailing wind conditions and currents in the Bay of Bengal. The western Bay experiences a generous mix of both the westerly monsoon winds and the retreating easterly monsoon. There are also two stormy periods: April to June followed by October to December. There are two most suitable seasons for an easterly voyage: July–August and late December–January because at that time the northeasterly winds and easterly currents are well set and facilitate a smooth and quick voyage east. Tamil seafarers had developed a sophisticated knowledge of heavenly bodies (stars, sun, and moon) and also mastered the art of reading and using these to undertake east-west passages. We are told that these seafarers had a good knowledge of at least fifty-six stars seen in the lower latitudes of the northern hemisphere. Ships sailing to Southeast Asia would first sail south with the southerly coastal drift along the Coromandel Coast towards Simhalam. Kalmunai or Tirukoil were the points of departure for the eastward voyage along the Seven Degrees North Latitude. This was so because ships used square or rectangular sails and could not be turned close to the wind. Also, the Orion constellation was in the most favourable position to provide an accurate east-west passage. Tamil seafarers must have mastered the art of Rumb line sailing and could then sail along fixed stellar bearings. Several itinerary records tell us about the of time taken by various ships to sail across the Bay of Bengal, pass through the Strait of Malacca, and from there to China or vice versa. According to Arunachalam, the Tamil navigators sailed on the west-east voyage for over five thousand nautical miles as far as Timor on the longitude 130 degrees,20 and these navigators had an intimate knowledge of the sea areas and location of ports in Malaya, Myanmar, the islands of Sumatra and Java, and Sunda Straits, and had circumnavigated the islands of Sumatra and Java. It is also noted that while transiting through the Bay of Bengal, the Chola navigators would have called at Nicobar Islands, which served as a port of call for replenishment, repair, and rest.

82

Port

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

of Departure

It is quite clear that Chola king Rajendra Chola I ordered a naval raid that devastated several cities in Southeast Asia. In its military context, the naval raid clearly showcases the naval capability and navigational mastery of the seafarers of the Chola Empire. Nagapattinam was the main trading port of the Cholas and also the seat of governance. The coast around Nagapattinam is generally flat, but is dotted with sand dunes. The depths along the coast are shallow, and a narrow underwater ridge along the coast is a navigational hazard. The sea breaks over the bar resulting in a strong surf and only catamarans can negotiate the surf. The port is unsafe for anchorage, particularly in November and December, due to receding monsoons. The Chola port of Nagapattinam was well south of the present-day harbour and the shift can be attributed to cyclonic activity in the Bay of Bengal resulting in shifting sands. A lighthouse of the Chola period, now in ruins, is also located south of the port city of Kodiakarai.21 Radha Kumud Mookerji tells us that Chola ports were well marked by lighthouses built of brick and mortar that were kept alight at night to guide ships to ports.22 It is plausible that the naval raid ordered by Rajendra Chola I in Southeast Asia may have been launched from the port city of Nagapattinam. B. Arunachalam tells us that the majority of the ships comprising the naval armada could not have been built in Nagapattinam. A large shipbuilding, construction, and preparation programme for the naval raid would certainly have come to the notice of the foreign traders who either lived in the port city, or frequented the port city and these traders, when returning to their country, would naturally tell the rulers of the Chola preparations. We are told that there could have been another port south of Nagapattinam around Vedaranyam or Topputorrai that could have been the alternate shipbuilding centre. However, Arunachalam notes that the flagship carrying the Commander of the armada would have departed from Nagapattinam and the rest of the ships of the armada would have made rendezvous with the flagship at sea. The above is a clear illustration of the stealth and deception in naval tactical formulations among Chola mariners.

Period

of Departure

Because of the seasonal winds and prevalent currents in the Bay of Bengal, the most appropriate voyage season from the Coromandel coast to the east towards Sumatra would have been late December. The voyage would generally commence after the sighting of the Migasiram, Ardra and the Ottraivelli in the southern horizon, and the Kootu nakshatram on the port bow of Ardra.23

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

83

Importantly, the voyage had to be started before the Ardra Darshan, that is, Poornima, when Ardra is sighted at dawn for the last time. In case the voyage was delayed beyond mid-January, then the guiding star would be Sravan (Alpha Aquila). The passage from the Simhalam to west Sumatra would be covered in about twelve to fifteen days. On reaching the Sumatra coast, the ships would then coast along the archipelago, through the Sunda Strait, into the Strait of Malacca.

Ships We are told that the Chola mercantile marine comprised at least three different types of vessels. These included the larger sangara and colandia24 and kattu-maran. Sangara, built with single logs of wood bound together, were coastal vessels and could carry large amounts of cargo, while the colandia were larger ocean-going vessels that were capable of distant voyages as far as Malaya, Sumatra, and the Ganges. The kattu-maran, the smaller craft, were most suitable for transporting goods from ships that were anchored in the harbour. We are told that the modern-day catamaran, a highly stable, motordriven fast craft, derives its name from the kattu-maran, meaning bound logs. Elsewhere it is noted that sangara and colandia mean “outriggers” and were probably of Malayan or Indonesian rather than Indian origin. The colandia was a large expeditionary vessel with cargo hold and capable of large volumes of cargo and sangara was a medium-sized ship that typically had many steel/iron shields attached to its sides for protection. The above description gives an idea of the types of vessels that the Chola merchant marine was built around. As noted earlier, it should be borne in mind that the Chola kings did not have a standing navy especially designed for warfare, and merchant vessels such as the sangara and colandia may have been assembled to carry troops to Southeast Asia, while the kattu-maran (modern day catamaran) was the basic floatation unit that constituted a mobile expeditionary platform for soldiers to be carried ashore. It can be concluded that the kattu-maran were the amphibious forces, launched from large ocean-going platforms that were capable of negotiating surf, negotiating shallow waters, and were supported from ships afloat.

A Brief Explanation on Navigation Instruments

The Chola mariners used a variety of instruments and objects for navigation:

84

(a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

Ra-p-palagai: For sighting stars. Tappu palagai: For speed measurements.

Human Hand: For measurement of the altitude of stars. Flat Bronze plates: For measurement of depth of water. Pigeons: For sighting land.

Chola Naval Ensign

According to G.K. Rajasuriyar, Chinese annals show that in 1033, Rajendra Chola I dispatched an emissary to China and this move had strengthened trade ties between the two. Rajasuriyar also notes that the convoy of ships had carried Tamil officials and presents for the Emperor of China. Nilakanta Sastri tells us that the Chola banner included a tiger and so did the official seal. 25 Balram Srivastava tells us that the Chola administration issued three types of gold coins.26 Among these, the first coin had a seated tiger facing right, a Chera bow behind the tiger, two vertical Pandyan fish to the right of the tiger, and the central design flanked by tall temple lamps. We are also told that the above-described banner was adopted by Uttam Chola (973–85). The seated tiger characterized the Chola homeland while the fish symbolized the Chola conquest of the Pandya Kings. Further clarification notes that the Pandyan coins had a horizontal fish, that is, one swimming, while the vertical fish on the Chola coin was representative of a dead fish, that is, the vanquished Pandya kingdom.27

Logistics Historians, archaeologists, scholars, and researchers have contributed immensely to the literature on social and cultural practices, art, religion, politics, and trade practices among ancient civilizations, communities, and peoples. There is also an enormous amount of narrative on the seafaring communities, items of trade including, trading patterns, shipbuilding and designs, navigation skills, use of instruments, and accounts of voyages undertaken by seafarers. However, there is paucity of information about the provisioning of ships, health care practices, logistics of ship stores, equipment, and repair materials. These issues gain greater significance particularly when kings sent expansive fleets to distant lands to fight battles either to conquer or simply to protect their interests overseas. Not surprising, the existing literature on the Chola naval expedition to Southeast Asia presents similar constraints and there is a near total absence of such narratives.

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

85

In order to have a better understanding of the logistics and provisioning of the Chola naval armada, it would be useful to draw on the dietary habits of the people in South India. The staple food among them was rice. Paddy was grown in abundance and rice was brought to the market where it was traded in barter and cash, that is, gold. Rice was accepted as a common measure of value in rural economy, and non-agrarian products/commodities could also be exchanged for rice. We learn that the common commodities/groceries traded in the market place included rice, dhals, gram, ghee, sugar, salt, tamarind, and spices such as cardamom seeds, pepper, mustard, cumin seeds, campaka buds, khas-khas roots, plantains, sugarcane areca nuts, and betel leaves. Furthermore, curds were a tradable commodity and formed an important part of nutrition. The above would give an impression that people of ancient South India were vegetarians, but we are informed that in the market place, hunters from the forest sold venison. Also, honey and roots could be exchanged for fish oil and toddy. We are also told that cooked “fish and flesh” were available in the shops in the port of Puhar and “high-class liquor” was also sold to customers.28 Under the tax system in the Chola administration, both salt and lemons were taxable commodities. Although there is no mention of coconuts being traded, the fruit formed an important part of the daily life of peoples of ancient India and was used in religious offerings, as a source of food, and also medicine. How do these relate to seafarers and, particularly, the Chola naval expedition? From the Tanjavur inscription, “having dispatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea”, it is possible to conclude that Chola King Rajendra I dispatched many ships to undertake raids in Southeast Asia, but there is no evidence or record to suggest the number of ships that set sail for the raid. Notwithstanding that, a large number of ships must have been provisioned before they undertook the long voyage to Southeast Asia. Keeping in mind the dietary habits of the peoples of ancient South India, we can deduce that massive quantities of rice, sugar, oil, spices, curds, coconuts, and possibly meat, would have been stored on board the logistic ships accompanying the ships carrying fighting soldiers. It is also a well-known fact that seawater cannot be consumed by human beings and such long distance voyages would require very large quantities of fresh water for normal drinking, cooking, and washing, the latter being critical to keep the crew and soldiers free of disease. On longdistance voyages, ships carried water in wooden casks.29 It is plausible that there may have been ships that carried casks and served as water tankers,

86

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

and also ships that may have carried large quantities of coconuts to serve several needs of the armada, such as an alternate for water, and as food, flavouring, and medicine. Similarly, fresh and fermented rice soups were part of the nutritive diet of ancient Indians. Sanskrit texts tell us that medicinal rice soup was prepared using parched rice, long pepper, dried ginger, and pomegranates, and the sour rice gruel called kanjika was popular among ancient seafarers of South India who served it with deep fried lentil cakes called vatakas. Perhaps the biggest challenge in provisioning was storing vegetables. It must be noted that vegetables were considered critical for the health and physical fitness of the ships’ crews, lest they suffered from Vitamin C deficiency resulting in scurvey, a threatening disease that ship surgeons had to deal with in ancient times. We are informed that before embarking on a voyage from Tawalisi, Ibn Battuta was provided with large jars called martabans containing salted ginger, pepper, lemons, and mangoes for the voyage. Besides, he also carried buffaloes and sheep, presumably to provide the crew with milk and meat. This information gives an idea that in ancient times, ships must have carried livestock to ensure a supply of milk and meat. As regards fish, it can be assumed that it was regularly caught at sea. We are informed that Chinese junks could grow vegetables on-board thus providing a constant supply of greens.

SEQUENCE

OF

ATTACK

It is evident from the above that seafarers of India and Southeast Asia had developed sophisticated navigation skills and ship routing was decided after careful consideration of monsoon winds, sea currents and cyclones. During winter, ships sailing from the port of Tamralipti on their journey to “Suvarnabhumi” (island of gold, the Sanskrit name for Sumatra) transited the Andaman Sea through the Ten Degree Channel to arrive at ports along the west coast of Malaya. Ships from South Indian ports may have also followed the Ten Degree latitude and routed between Nicobar and the northern tip of Sumatra, with Manakkavaram in the Nicobar Islands serving as the ancient trans-shipment/layover port. It would be useful to mention that September southwest cyclones in the Strait of Malacca wrecked ships, including that of the Chinese pilgrim Faxian. 30 However, in late December, when seasonal winds were favourable, ships sailed south of Sumatra entering through the Sunda Strait. This route also helped ships avoid doldrums and pirates, but had its own perils because of the hazards of open seas. 31

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

87

Before the route through the Strait of Malacca became popular among mariners, ships originating in India, Sri Lanka, and Northern Sumatra, carrying goods bound for China, were unloaded at three ports, Takuapa, Trang, and Kedah, on the west coast of Malaya for trans-shipment across the peninsula to ports in Chaiya, Ligor, and Patani in the Bay of Bandon, from where ships would then set sail across the Gulf of Siam via the Funan port of Oc Eo to Canton in China. Interestingly, a “shuttle service” between India, through the Bay of Bengal to either side of the Malay Peninsula, onward to China, had come into operation. The ships and merchants patronized Kedah due to its strategic location facing the Bay of Bengal and also its natural safe anchorages. Kedah or Katak in Sanskrit, or Kadaram or Kidaram in the literary classic Kalingattupparani, had emerged as an entrepôt which witnessed the sale and purchase of merchandise, the layover of traders waiting for favourable winds before voyaging further, and the establishment of store houses. It was, in effect, a replenishment and repair point for ships and also a venue for the exchange of culture, religion, and social practices. Arunachalam has attempted to trace the routing of the naval armada with Nagapattinam as the point of departure. By way of arrows on a map, he has shown that the armada sailed south of Sumatra and attacked Barus, Palembang, the seat of the Srivijaya Kingdom, Jambi, Pannai, Medan, Kadaram, Ilamuridesam, and Manakkavaram before the armada set sail back to its home country. However, he notes that “the inscription clearly implies that all places named were taken from the King of Kadaram in the course of a single campaign”. It is fair to argue that the naval armada would have followed the established route to Southeast Asia. As noted earlier, the inscription cites “(who) having dispatched many ships

in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught Sangrama — Vijayottunga Varman, the king of Kadaram, together with the elephants in his glorious army”,

a fierce battle may have ensued against the king of Kedah. It is pertinent to mention that Kedah Peak is a significant navigational landmark and can be seen from miles and may have facilitated ships making landfall in Kedah. For instance, on a clear day, Kedah Peak can be seen from Penang, which is sixty miles to its south. There are ruins of a Hindu temple atop Kedah Peak and the temple symbolizes the nine sacred planets of Hinduism, or Navagrahas. We are told that a fire was kept alight at the temple to facilitate night navigation by seafarers. At the base of Kedah Peak is the Bujang valley, astride the Merbok River that drains into the sea. On the banks of the river are several ancient Hindu temple sites providing ample evidence of the presence of Indians at Kedah.

88

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

The Chola Kings had a professional army and the King was the supreme commander of the military.32 The army was built around the cavalry (kudiraiccevagar ), the elephant corps (anaiyatkl, kunjiramallar, etc.), and several divisions of infantry. There were also regiments of bowmen (villigal), and swordsmen ( valperra kaikkolar), the latter being “the most permanent and dependable troops”, always ready to defend the king and his cause with their lives when called for. The army was deployed across the Chola territory and were stationed in kadagams, that is, garrisons or cantonments. An interesting description of the Chola military is provided by a Chinese author writing in 1178, who notes that the Chola kings had 60,000 war elephants and these carried “houses on their back” from where the soldiers shot arrows at long range, while for close combats they had spears.33 Arunachalam tells us that a Tamil inscription from Alur in Karnataka in India informs of a lifetime endowment made to Kadaram-konda Chola Brahmarayar by Rajendra Chola for his military service. Interestingly, he appears to be a general in the Kadaram invasion.34 As noted earlier, the Chola Kings did not have a regular navy but relied on merchant ships to transport the army for war against the Srivijaya Kingdom. Arunachalam tells us that the Anuradhapura inscription notes that those seamen had a “significant representation in corporate bodies and in the Chola administration. Military leaders included those who had successfully participated in battles, as well as those who had protected the interests of the merchants locally, abroad and during voyages”.35 It is plausible that Indian merchants located in the places that were attacked may have been aware of the impending attack and helped provide intelligence and facilitate landing, including conducting the attack. CONCLUDING REMARKS

The 1025 naval expedition ordered by Rajendra Chola I to Southeast Asia has been a subject of research, debate, and discussion among historians, archaeologists, scholars, and naval practitioners. It highlighted the Chola strategic thinking of overseas expeditions that established domains of trade, and radiated culture into Southeast Asia. Quintessentially, the Cholas were the rising power that challenged the dominant hegemonic power of Srivijaya. The naval power of the Cholas was from a “lateral pressure” of expansion of this rising power in South India, felt in all directions, including far into Southeast Asia. For the Cholas, it was targeted against a dominant challenger, the Srivijaya kings, who had adopted adversarial trade policies to the disadvantage of the Indian trade.

Rajendra

v

Chola I’s Na al Expedition to Southeast

Asia

89

In its tactical construct, the naval raid clearly showcased the Chola military maritime capability to undertake distant voyages and ability to build a colossal logistical supply chain to support such large and expansive naval operations, including transporting large forces across the sea. The maritimenaval expeditionary warfare capability was demonstrated by its littoral dominance based on access and basing, while the tactical acumen was illustrated by the deception and element of surprise during the raid. Finally, it is indeed noteworthy that the naval expedition resulted in the defeat of the enemy Srivijaya kingdom at several places in a single foray.

Notes 1. K. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as (Madras: University of Madras, 2000), pp. 207– 09. 2. Ibid., p. 165. 3. See B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package (Mumbai: Maritime History Society, 2004), p. 42 and p. 28. Arunachalam notes that Chola navigation knowledge and expertise is a knotty and challenging poser that can best be answered only by speculation and scientific conjectures. Also, given the limited and sketchy database available on the nautical wisdom of Tamil seafarers, scholars of South Indian craft and technology have to probe deeper into written material and palm leaves providing narrative on the Chola nautical wisdom. 4. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, pp. 211–13. 5. B. Arunachalam is of the opinion that these two places may have been in Malaysia, keeping in mind the sequence of places attacked 6. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, pp. 213–21. 7. George W. Spencer, “Royal Leadership and Imperial Conquest in Medieval South India: The Naval Expedition of Rajendra Chola I, 1025 A.D.”, unpublished Ph.D. dissertation (University of California, Berkley, 1967), p. 191. 8. Ibid. p. 194. 9. Ibid. 10. B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, p. 28. 11. Ibid., pp. 24–25. 12. George W. Spencer, “Royal Leadership and Imperial Conquest”, p. 200. 13. B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, p. 21. 14. Kenneth Hall, Maritime Trade and State Development in Early Southeast Asia, p. 85, citing the “Aja’ib al-Hind ” in G.R. Tibbetts, A Study of the Arabic Texts Containing Material on Southeast Asia (Leiden, 1979), p. 44. 15. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, p. 598. 16. Ibid. 17. Ibid., p. 606. 18. Jean Filliozat, The Oldest Sea Routes of the Tamil Trade (Madras: Bull. Institute, 1976) cited in B. Arunachalam, p. 3.

90

Vijay Sakhuja

and Sangeeta Sakhuja

19. G.E. Gerini, Researches on Ptolemy’s Geography of Eastern Asia (Further India and Indo-Malay Archipelago) (New Delhi: Oriental Books, 1974), Table XI. 20. B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, p. 78. 21. Ibid., p. 79. 22. Radha Kumud Mookerji, Indian Shipping: A History of the Sea-borne Trade and Maritime Activity of the Indians from the Earliest Times (Bombay: Longmans, Green and Co., 1912), p. 137. 23. For more details, see B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, pp. 81–82. 24. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, pp. 85–86. 25. Ibid., p. 20. 26. Balram Srivastava, Rajendra Chola (New Delhi: National Book Trust of India, 1973), p. 57. 27. For more details see . 28. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, p. 80. 29. B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, p. 23. 30. Ibid., p. 75. 31. For instance, Faxian, the Chinese pilgrim, had boarded a ship that transited south of Sumatra, through the Sunda Strait, and landed at Ye-po-ti or Taruma on West Java. 32. K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Co-l. as, p. 454. 33. Ibid., p. 459. 34. B. Arunachalam, Chola Navigation Package, p. 28. 35. Ibid., p. 17.

5 A NOTE ON THE NAVY OF

THE

CHOLA STATE

Y. Subbarayalu

The evidence for the naval expeditions of the Chola rulers comes from the brief references in the eulogistic introductions of their inscriptions, very rarely corroborated by some literary evidence. From the early tenth century, the Chola kings took some military expeditions into Sri Lanka, obviously by carrying their warriors in boats across the Palk Strait or Gulf of Mannar. Here, of course, the sea distance to cross is only about 50 to 150 kms. If the Twelve Thousand Ancient Islands conquered by Rajaraja I is identified as the Maldives — and there is some good circumstantial evidence to do so (Nilakanta Sastri 1955, p. 192; Indrapala 1985, p. 51) 1 — then this sea expedition was made over a distance of about 800 to 1,000 km. Therefore when Rajendra I sent his naval forces to the Srivijaya kingdom about 1026, the Chola navy already had some experience in travelling over long distances. But apart from these informed guesses, we have practically little explicit information from any contemporary source to understand the organization of the Chola navy, the nature of their sea vessels, the numerical strength of the warriors involved in the expeditions, or the port towns used as their naval bases. It is a known fact that the history of medieval South India mainly depends on the contemporary inscriptions. True, there are several thousands of inscriptions in the south. The inscriptions, being mostly records of gifts of land, animals, gold, and other material to temples or other charitable institutions, give good information about the agrarian activities of the times, 91

92

Y. Subbarayalu

the temple rituals, and several aspects of religious culture. Some details about the society, economy, and the government of the day may also be gleaned from them. The nature of the inscriptions is such that we are not able to tell much about the science and technology of those times. The eulogistic preambles of the inscriptions give some information about the personal achievements of the king and his retinue, the military exploits, the enemy countries that were attacked, and so on. But when it comes to the actual mode of land warfare, the strength of the army, the weapons that were used, and the mode of transport of men and material over long distances, the available information is meagre and fragmentary. Such fragments of data have to be pieced together to get a meaningful picture of the military organization of the day. There was definitely a standing army, comprising many select ( terinda) regiments of soldiers, from the early tenth century. Some designations are used to indicate the structural features of the different regiments. They are kaikko-l.a, ve-.laikka--ra, pariva-ram, kon.gava-l., villigal., a-naiya- t.kal., kutirai-che-vagar, or-r-ai-che-vagar, and so on. The names suggest that there were archers, swordsmen, cavalry, elephantry, infantry. There were also regiments recruited from outside the Tamil area, namely from Malaya- l.am, Karuna-d.akam, and Vad.ugam. Beyond the names, we are not able to tell anything about their actual composition and functions. Even regarding the two prominent categories of the regiments, namely the kaikko-l.a and the ve-l. aikka--ra, there is very little information, thereby leading to various speculations and disputes among scholars about their nature and composition.2 Sometimes we hear about the cantonments (kad.agam, parigraham, pad.ai-vı-du) and outposts ( nilai), while the captains of the regiments (pad.ai-na-yagam) and the commanders (Dan.d.ana-yagam, Se-na-pati, Mudali) figure in their official capacities as well as patrons of temples. In the eleventh century, which marks the zenith of the Chola state in its various aspects, the Chola army was really a huge body. A Kannada inscription of 1007 (EI, XVI, pp. 74–75) narrates, of course in an exaggerated tone, that the Chola army that invaded the Chalukya country and caused untold miseries and humiliation there was a huge one consisting of 900,000 troops. Very rarely is the Chola navy mentioned in inscriptions. An inscription at Sirkazhi in the Thanjavur District (SII, V, 990) dated 1187, mentions one Araiyan Kad.alkol.amitanta-n alias Amarako-n Pallavaraiyan, who was a Tan.d.alna-yagam of karaippad.aiyila-r, as one of the sureties for some landowners’ tax payment to the government. Four other persons who are mentioned along with this Tan.d.alna-yagam were holders of titles such as Vil-upparaiyan and Pallavaraiyan, usually a mark of status and ranking; it is possible that they also were related to the same army. The term karaippad.aiyila-r means “the army of

A Note on the Navy of the Chola State

93

the seashore”. That is, it could be considered to be the navy. Tan.d.alna-yagam, a variant of Dan.d.ana- yagam, denotes the commander of the army. His given name, Kad.alkol.amitanta-n, is interesting. It means “one who floated while the sea engulfed”. That shows his or his family’s traditional association with the sea. Thus here is a bit of information relating to the Chola naval personnel. It is possible that the pat.t.inavar, the fishing community of this coastal area, where this inscription comes from, played a large part in the Chola naval organization. Except for the kalam or ship mentioned in Rajendra I’s eulogy, 3 no other information is available in the inscriptional record about the Chola fleet. The term kalam is used in Tamil literature from early centuries to denote ships. The Barus inscription of 1088 refers to marakkalam, or ship made of timber, which, of course, was being used by the merchant body. What was the size of this ship? How was it constructed and where? Such questions are difficult to answer. Recent investigations into traditional maritime technologies of the south Indian coast have given us some useful information. In fact, a scholar has even boldly tried to reconstruct a picture of the Chola navigation package (Arunachalam 2004). Even though some details of this picture are based on speculation and recent folklore, there is some concrete evidence on the possible locations of the boatbuilding yards, the nature of the boats, etc. It is suggested that the coast of Palk Bay has several convenient ports where even now the traditional kind of boatbuilding is carried out to some extent. The Cholas might have utilized these places for raising their naval fleet. Naturally on the opposite side, that is, on the eastern side of the Palk Bay, the Sri Lankan coast had several bases where the Singhalese kings used to station their navy and boatbuilding yards. A Tamil inscription of 1175 ( Epigraphia Indica, XXII, p. 87) records that the Singhalese king Parakramabahu, while fighting a protracted war with the Chola king in 1170s, reinforced his army cantonments (padai-nilai) on the sea coast facing the Palk Bay, namely Ura-ttur- ai, Pulaichche-ri, Ma-to-t. t.am, Vallika-mam, and Mat.t.iva- l, and started building pad.avu or boats there. The nature and size of the vessels kalam and pad.avu in the foregoing records are not described in any contemporary records. We have some indirect evidence in this regard from a Tamil inscription of about 1200 (or 1256) CE from Krishnapattinam, south of Nellore, on the Andhra coast ( Nellore Inscriptions, Gudur 39; ARE, 1963–64: no. 79). This is an inscription made by an assembly of itinerant merchants (paradesi ) of the 18-Bhumi (same as the Aiyavol.e Ainu--rr-uvar) agreeing to contribute to the local temple some cess on the merchandise transacted by them in the local port-town called Kollittur-ai alias Gandago-pa-lan-pat.t.inam. This assembly also included the

94

Y. Subbarayalu

Añjuvan.n.am merchants of Malai-man.d.alam, that is, the Kerala coast. It is interesting to note that several seaborne vessels are mentioned in this inscription, and according to the category of the vessel, the money contribution was fixed. VESSEL

MONEY ( ma-d.ai )

Marakkalam

1

To-n.i

1

Kalavam

1/2

Ved.i

1/4

Pad.avu

1/4

Among these vessels, both coasting and deep-sea vessels should have been included. From the rates of contribution, it is possible to tell that the marakkalam and to-n.i were the larger vessels and since the marakkalam is mentioned first in the group, it may be the largest of all and larger than the to-n. i. It was seen above that the Singhalese king used pad.avu for carrying his forces to the Chola country. Compared with the pad.avu, the marakkalam was perhaps four times bigger in size as it was charged four times the charge on pad.avu. Toni, which is otherwise pronounced as “dhony” is described by Maclean (1893, p. 273) in the later part of nineteenth century as a large vessel plying the Coromandel coast between Madras (Chennai) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka). It was 70 feet long, 20 feet broad and 12 feet deep; it had no decks, one mast with long sail, and was navigated in the fine season only. The dimensions of the marakkalam used both by the Tamil merchants or by the Chola navy on the high seas can only be guessed using the pad.avu and dhony as the yardsticks.

Notes 1.

2. 3.

Indrapala says, quoting Clarence Maloney (1980), that the Maldives are called Mahaladipa in Sinhala language, which is obviously the earlier form of Maldive. Mahaladipa in Sinhala actually means “Ancient Islands”, and corresponds to the Tamil designation Palantiu in Rajaraja I’s inscription. The latest position of these discussions is summarized in Y. Subbarayalu (1982). The relevant passage is alaikatal natuvut pa[la] kalam=chelutti, meaning “having dispatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea”.

A Note on the Navy of the Chola State

95

References Arunachalam, B. Chola Navigation Package. Mumbai: Maritime History Society, 2004. Champakalakshmi, R. Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India 300 BC to AD 1300, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1996. Hall, Kenneth R. Trade and Statecraft in the Age of the Co-l.as, New Delhi: Abhinav Publications, 1980. Indrapala, K. “The Overseas Campaigns of Rajaraja I”. Tamil Civilization 3, nos. 2–3 (1985): 48–58. Karashima, Noboru, ed. Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds. Chennai: Taisho University, 2002. Maclean, C. D. Manual of the Administration of the Madras Presidency, Vol. III: Glossary. Madras, 1893. Nilakanta Sastri, K. A. The Co-.las. 2nd ed. Madras: University of Madras, 1955. Spencer, G. W. The Politics of Expansion: The Chola Conquest of Sri Lanka and Sri Vijaya. Madras, 1983. Stein, Burton. Peasant State and Society in Medieval South India. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1980. Subbarayalu, Y. “The Co-l.a State”. Studies in History IV, no. 2 (1982): 265–306. Revised version included in S. Rajagopal, ed., Kaveri: Studies in Epigraphy, Archaeology and History (Professor Y. Subbarayalu Felicitation Volume). Chennai: Panpattu Veliyiittakam, 2001. ———. “The Merchant-Guild Inscription at Barus, Sumatra, Indonesia — Rediscovery”. In Histoire de Barus: Le Site de Lobu Tua, edited by Claude Guillot, Vol. I (Cahiers d’Archipel 30), pp. 25–33.

6 EXCAVATION AT GANGAIKONDACHOLAPURAM, THE IMPERIAL CAPITAL OF RAJENDRA CHOLA, AND ITS

SIGNIFICANCE asanthi

S. V

The emperor Rajendra Chola (1012–1044 CE) was the illustrious son of the great Chola King Rajaraja I (985–1014 CE), who shouldered the task of building, extending, and maintaining the Chola empire. The foundation laid by both Rajaraja I and Rajendra I paved the way for the existence of Chola power for about 250 years, making the Cholas the most powerful dynasty in Asia in the medieval period. Rajendra I was a great warrior and assisted his father in numerous expeditions to project the Cholas to supreme power. He conducted various expeditions: the Gangetic expedition, eastern/western Chalukyas, the wars against the Cheras, and Pandyas, the Ceylon expedition, and the Kadaram expedition, etc. Rajendra assumed the title of Gangaikonda Chola and the city Gangaikondacholapuram (which means the town of the Chola who captured the Ganges) was founded by him to commemorate his victorious march to the Ganges. He also constructed the Siva temple named after his title as Gangaikkondacholeswaram, and soon thereafter, the Chola capital was moved from Thanjavur to Gangaikondacholapuram. The city of Gangaikondacholapuram was probably founded by Rajendra I after his sixth regnal year, that is, c. 1020 CE. 96

Excavation

holapuram

at Gangaikondac

97

Gangaikondacholapuram, once the flourishing capital of the imperial Cholas, is now a small forgotten village devoid of its ancient glory in Udyarpalayam taluk of the Ariyalur district. This district is a centrally located inland district of Tamilnadu which was trifurcated from the erstwhile composite Tiruchirappalli district. The district is bounded by the Cuddalore district in the north, Tiruchirappalli district in the south, Thanjavur in the east, and Namakkal and Tiruchirappalli districts are in the west. South India has was always been noted for the art of building temples which were constructed with blocks of granite stones. The medieval period kings built permanent structures for the gods while their dwelling places were constructed with mud and bricks. Hence, only the ruined remains of their living quarters were exposed in the excavation. Rajendra I and his successors built a big palace at Utkottai, which is about 1.5 km away from the Brihadisvara Temple in Gangaikondacholapuram, where even now a mound is called Maalikai Medu (palace mound). The capital itself has disappeared, the place where the emperor dwelt does not exist, and the ruins are marked by brick debris, which the nearby villagers even today take for the construction of their houses. Most of the Chola kings who succeeded Rajendra were crowned and lived in the palace that was located here. Contemporary literary works such as Muvar Ula and Kalingattupparani , describe the city and palace complex. To some extent we can assume that the description of Ayothia by Kambar and the description of the cities by Sekilar in his Periyapuram can be attributed to the city of Gangaikondacholapuram. Muvar Ula gives an account of almost all the important places of Gangaikondacholapuram, namely the palace building, entrance towers, streets, pavilions, temples, windows, big halls, etc. From the remains it can be concluded that it was a large city, carefully planned and laid out in accordance with the architectural treatises to suit the needs of a capital.1 THE PALACE SITE

The city appears to have had two fortifications: one inner and the other outer, and the latter was probably wider. The remains of the outer fortification can be seen as a mound running all around the palace. The outer fortification built of burnt bricks was about six to eight feet wide and the bricks were made of well burnt clay and fairly large in size. From the inscriptions it is understood that the outer fortification was known as Rajendra Chola Madil (named after the founder of the city, Rajendra I) and the inner fortification that was built around the royal palace, Utpadi Vittu madil.

98

asanthi

S. V

The strengthening of the fortification and additions to the city in the reign of Kulottunga I (1070–1120 CE) were probably necessary due to inland uprisings and frequent neighbouring wars. During the reign of Kulottunga Chola the fortifications were renewed and the city underwent some alteration and additions. An epigraph refers to the fort wall as Kulottunga Cholan Thirumadil after the name of Kulottunga Chola, who might have constructed the wall. Rajadhiraja I (1018–54 CE) came to the throne after Rajendra I. An inscription from Tiruvidandai (near Chennai) states that his consent was sought while he was seated in the hall at the Gangaikondacholapuram Palace.2 In the reign of Virarajendra, the third son of Rajendra, the palace at Gangaikondacholapuram was referred to as Chola-Keralan Thirumaligai (Chola Keralan palace), evidently after one of the titles of Rajendra I. The same inscription mentions a few parts of the palace as adibhumi (the ground floor), kilaisopana (the eastern portico), and a royal seat, mavali vanadhirajan. An epigraph of Kulottunga I in 1119 CE refers to Gangaikondacholamaligai, which shows that it is likely that there were more than one royal building, each having its own name.3 The Pandyas who defeated the Chola Empire late in the thirteenth century, avenging their earlier defeats, may have razed the city to the ground, a misfortune that befell capitals in early times. It would have remained a heap of brick debris, and the the inhabitants of the nearby villages have dug systematically deep into the ground and pilfered cartloads of ancient bricks for their constructions. During exploration of the site, a number of medieval period pot sherds, tiles, terracotta knobs, and some coins were collected. Consequently, the State Archaeology Department carried out excavations from 1980–85, and in 1987 and 1991. These periodic excavations revealed one portion of the palace which included several statues, terracotta moulds, and other artefacts. 4 In all twenty trenches had been laid, covering an area of 320 sq.m. These excavations were conducted at Maligaimedu, Manmalai, Kuruvalappar koil, Cholagangam, and Kalkulam. The excavation revealed two to three layers of occupation. The first layer consists of red coloured hard soil mixed with clay and brick bats. The second layer was made of loose soil mixed with a large amount of brickbats and tile pieces. The other antiquities found in this layer include iron nails and Chinese potsherds. The third layer (20 cm in thickness) of thick clay with a yellow coloured band was noticed in all the trenches at a depth of 1.65 cm, which is very close to the lime mortar.

Excavation

holapuram

at Gangaikondac

99

The noteworthy finding of the excavation was that the brick structures occurred invariably at a depth of 1.65 m and the breadth of the walls is 1.10 m. These walls were built of burnt bricks in a header-stretcher method, that is, by placing the bricks in a criss-cross pattern. On the surface of these walls, thick lime mortar is noticed. The thickness of the mortar is about 4 cm. Fourteen courses of bricks were used up to one level and below it, twenty-three courses of bricks were used for the construction of the structure. From the fifteenth level the thickness of the walls extended to 9 cm breadth on each side. The measurement of the bricks is 24.5 × 13.5 × 6 cm. The binding material used for the construction of the wall was clay and lime mortar mixed with jaggery juice (extracts from sugarcane). On the foundation wall there are granite stones with a socket at equal intervals of 1.70 m. In all, twenty such stones measuring 65 cm × 30 cm × 30 cm were noticed and they might have been used for installing wooden pillars. It can be assumed that this hall might have been a pillared hall or these pillars might have been used as lamp posters. 5 During the excavation two walls running side by side, leaving a gap of 55 cm between them filled with river sand, were discovered. These were noticed towards the east-west and north-south directions. This is a unique method of construction, because the centre space is left out intentionally to keep the building cool and also to give strength to the walls. This method of construction shows the architectural and technological skills of the architects of that period. The important antiquities found in the excavation at Gangaikondacholapuram were objects made up of iron. These include nails, and clamp nails, and clamp plates with holes.6 Long iron nails measuring 3 cm to 50 cm in length were an interesting find. These might have been used for fixing the tiles on the ceiling with wooden planks. A good numbers of tiles were also collected from the site, including those with a hexagonal shape. The medieval period flat tiles with or without collar were also collected from the trenches. A knob made of copper was also found suggesting that it might have been used on a wooden door. The occurrence of plaster with green and blue colour painting in the trenches suggests that the walls of the palace had been painted in different colours. As it was the palace site, a number of decorative objects made of ivory, bone, and stone were found during the excavations. The ivory and bone carvings, such as the figures of the yali (mythical animal), lion, and elephant were the most significant finds of this site. These might have been embedded in wooden objects such as the throne, cots, chairs, etc., for decoration. A

100

asanthi

S. V

considerable number of decorated red stone objects have also been unearthed. They include lotus flower design, birds, ducks, human heads, etc., and might have been used for decorating the ceilings and walls of the palace. These red coloured, stone decorative objects might have been brought from the Kalinga (modern Orissa) and Bengal regions. Chinese porcelain potsherds of the fine Yingqing type, and white porcelain from Jingdezhen kilns ascribable to the eleventh or twelfth century, were found in the excavation at Gangaikondacholapuram.7 According to Karashima, these ceramics might have been brought back from China by the mission sent by Rajendra I in 1033 CE.8 The potsherds include sherds of a Yingqing bowl, Guangdong jar, and a green glazed bowl. To some extent we can presume that apart from the direct Chinese contact by the Chola Empire under Rajendra I, his naval expedition and contact with Southeast Asian countries were also a reason for the occurrence of Chinese potsherds at Gangaikondacholapuram. Glass bangle pieces in black, yellow and blue were also collected. Beads of clay, crystal, paste and shell were also found in the excavation. The coarse red ware found included shouldered pots with decorations, spouted, and knobbed potteries.

CONCLUSION From the excavations carried out at Gangaikondacholapuram, it is noticed that there were three structures belonging to different periods. The royal palace was built of burnt brick. The ceilings were covered with flat tiles of a small size, laid in a number of courses, in fine lime mortar. The pillars were probably made of polished wood, supported on granite bases; a few pillar bases have survived to this day. Iron nails and clamps have been recovered from this palace site. To conclude, the excavation has brought to light the ruined and buried palace of the Chola period.

Notes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Ottakkuttar, Muvar Ula, U.V. Swaminathan Ayyar Library, Adyar, 1957. ARE 275/1910. R. Nagaswamy, Gangaikondacholapuram (Chennai: Department of Archaeology, 1979), p. 14. N. Kasinathan, Metropolis of Medieval Cholas (Chennai: State Department of Archaeology, 1998). S. Selvaraj, Tamil Civilization 5, nos. 1&2, p. 124.

Excavation

6. 7. 8.

holapuram

at Gangaikondac

101

Ibid., p. 125. Noboru Karashima, In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds in South India and Sri Lanka (Tokyo: Taisho University Press, 2002), p. 37. Ibid., p. 37.

7 NEW PERSPECTIVES ON

NAGAPATTINAM Medieval Port City in

The the Context of Political, Religious, and Commercial Exchanges between South India, Southeast Asia, and

China Gokul Seshadri

Nagapattinam (10°79'06" N, 79 °84'28" E) is a seaside port town located along the east coast of South India. It is the headquarters of the Nagapattinam district. This paper is an attempt to trace the emergence of Nagapattinam as a port of commercial and religious importance in the context of political, social, cultural, and commercial exchanges between South India, and Southeast Asia, and China that characterize the medieval period. THIRD CENTURY BC — THIRD CENTURY

AD:

REVIEW OF EARLY REFERENCES

Before focusing on the developments that occurred during the medieval period, it becomes imperative to analyse, review, and understand all earlier references to the port city, as quoted by various scholars over the last century 102

erspectives

New P

103

on Nagapattinam

or so. This will help us to understand the nature of forces that contributed to the development of the city in the later period. The period between the third century BC and third century AD is commonly referred to as the Sangam period in the annals of South Indian history (Zvelebil 1997, p. 12). An extensive collection of literary material, a small number of inscriptions, a few sites with isolated structures, coins, and indigenous and imported pottery, are the important evidence categories available for this period. No direct reference, either to the port or the town of Nagai, is forthcoming from the Sangam period assets. No coins belonging to the Sangam Age have been recovered in the Nagapattinam area.1 But urn burials have been found in the surroundings of Nagapattinam at Vanjoor and Kilvelur. Some level of human habitation should have existed at the site, but the town did not attain any religious, commercial, or political prominence. On a comparative note, we see Kavirippompattinam ( — today’s Poompuhar) — located 50 km north of Nagapattinam — prospering as the mighty capital of the Sangam Age Chola kings. Pattinappalai ( ) — one of the Sangam group of literature classified as the “Ten Idylls” sung by Kadiyalur Uruthirangkannanar in praise of the Chola king Karikala goes at great lengths to describe the busy commercial, political, and religious nature of the port city. Astronomer Klaudios Ptolemaios’ (Ptolemy — first and second century AD) reference to a metropolis called Nikama in the country of Batoi was identified as Nagapattinam by Colonel Henry Yule (1873, p. 332). He also identified the nearby towns Thelkheir as Nagore, and Kouroula as Karaikkal. Overall, this identification is doubtful as there are no other contemporary evidences to prove the existence of Nagapattinam as a metropolis — under the name of “Nikama” or “Nikam”. But the word Nikama, in Brahmi characters, is found on the pottery from excavations. The doubt gets compounded, after consulting the Pali Buddhist work Milinda Panho TABLE 7.1 Cities in the Country of Batoi, referred to by Ptolemy

Country of Batoi Nikama, the metropolis

126°

16 °

Thelkheir

127°

16°10'

Kouroula, a town

128°

16 °

104

Gokul Seshadri

(Questions of King Milinda) — which is roughly attributed to the first century BC (Davids 1890, p. xxiii). This classic from the Pali canon records a series of interesting dialogues between the Greek king Meander and the Buddhist monk Nagasena, organized into four volumes. Milinda Panho provides references to roughly thirty-four cities and countries which were famous then. There is one specific passage in this literature, in which mention is made about six ports along the sea coast to which merchant ships could sail (Trenckner 1928, p. 359). Nagapattinam finds no mention in the list.

Yatha- maha-ra-ja sadhano na-viko pat,t,ane sut,t,u katasunko ma-hasamuddam pavasitva- Vangam Takkolam Cînam Sovîram Surattham Alasandam Kolappattanam Suvannabhumim gacchati annam pi yam kinci na-va-sanearanam… The scholar who translated Milinda Panho (Davids 1890, p. xiii) attempted to identify all the ports and cities referenced in the text. He suggests that Kolappattanam should have been located along the coast of South India. It is highly likely that Kolappattanam is none other than Kavirippompattinam. PRIOR

TO THE

SIXTH CENTURY AD: REVIEW OF EARLY BUDDHIST LINKS

Even during the Sangam Age, the religion of Gautama Buddha had already taken a foothold in the south and Kavirippompattinam and Madurai distinguished themselves as important Buddhist centres — followed by Kanchipuram. 2 But it was during the regime of the Kalabhra kings, that Buddhism took deeper root in the south Indian soil and Sri Lanka, so much so that during the later part of this period, some of the most luminous stars of Theravada Buddhism emanated from South India. In the context of Nagapattinam, it is useful to focus attention on the famous trinity, namely, Thera Buddhadutta, Thera Buddhaghosa, and Acharya Dhammapala. Buddhadutta, a native of Uragapura 3 (Uraiyur, Tamil Nadu) lived during the fifth century AD and was patronized by the Kalabhra king Achyudha Vikrantha (Achyutha Narayana). He wrote four books, according to Gandha Vamsa, a seventeenth-century Burmese work on the history of Buddhist works (Bode 1894–96, p. 69). Some of his works were composed in Kavirippompattinam, at a monastery ( vihara) built by one Vishnudasa or Krishnadasa. He refers to Urgapura, Kaveripattana, the Mahavihara at Anuradhapura, Buddhamangalam, and Kanchipuram. Buddhaghosa, a contemporary of Buddhadutta, was patronized by the Gupta king Kumara Gupta-I (AD 414–55). In the epilogue ( nigamana) to

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

105

his work Manorathapurani, he refers to Kanchipuram. Papanchasudani, another work of his, was written during his stay at Matura sutta pattana (Madurai).4 Neither Buddhadutta nor Buddhaghosa nor any other Buddhist scholar of this period makes any mention of Nagapattinam. Thus, it is clear that the port city did not have any Buddhist association towards the end of the fifth century and the beginning of the sixth century AD. On a side note, this period also witnessed the departure of the celebrated Buddhist monk Bodhidharma, originally a South Indian (Pallava?) prince from Kanchipuram, to Chinese soil during the period of Liang Wudi in AD 520. Acharya Dhammapala (AD 528–60), was a highly respected South Indian Buddhist monk who rose to become the head of Nalanda — the international Buddhist university. He spent considerable time in the Raja Vihara at Anuradhapura before going back to India. His contributions to Theravada Buddhism are well known and need no further elaboration. Gandha Vamsa attributes fourteen books and commentaries to his credit (Bode 1894–96, p. 64). His commentary (attakatha) to Netti-pakarana , supposed to be the works of monk Kachchayana, a direct disciple of Thadagatha (Buddha), is called Netti-pakarana attakatha5 and is an important work in the Pali Buddhist canon. The nigamana which the Acharya provides to Netti-pakarana attakatha gandha towards the very end of his commentary has been quoted by different authors6 to contain direct references to Buddhist viharas at Nagapattinam. Hence, it calls for closer examination. In the first publication of Netti-pakarana attakatha (Hardy 1902), Professor Hardy deals in great detail with the authenticity of the work, that of its author, the commonality of the name Dhammapala in the Buddhist world, and the problem of attributing the present work to Acharya Dhammapala. 7 The last paragraph which contains the nigamana, as written by Acharya himself, is reproduced on the next page. Line no (3) is of great importance as it provides the name of the place as well as the vihara in which Dhammapala composed the work. This vihara is referred to as “Dhammasoka Maharaja Vihara” and the place as “Pattane Nagasavhaye”. The word “pattinam”8 was attached to Nagapattinam only when it became a major seaport during the Chola times from all evidences available so far. Before that, it was referred to only as “Nagai”, both in inscriptions and in literature, as we shall see shortly. Hence, there is some difficulty in associating the pattana referred to by Dhammapala with Nagapattinam directly. The difficulties get compounded as we try to identify a “Dhammasoka Maharaja Vihara” in the city. Obviously, the name of the vihara alone cannot help us to associate the structure with the Buddhist king Ashokavardhana 9 or

106

Gokul Seshadri

Ha-rena ye ca pat.t.ha-ne su-vidunam. vinicchayam. . vibhajanto navangassa sa-sanass’ atthavan.n.anam. Nettipakaran.am. dhı-ro gambhı-ram. nipun.añ ca yam. adesayi maha-thero Maha-kacca-yano vasi Saddhamma-vatarat.t.ha-ne pat.t.aneI Na-gasavhaye I Dhamma-sokamaha-ra-ja-viha-re vasata- maya-. Cirat.t.hitattham ya-tassa a-raddha- atthavan.n.anauda-haran.asutta-nam. lakkhan.a-nañ ca sabbaso Attham. paka-sayantı- sa- ana-kulavinicchayasamatta- sattavı-sa-ya pa-liya- bha-n.ava-rato. Iti tam. sankharontena an tam. adhigatam. mayapuññam. tassa-nubha-vena lokana-thassa sa-sanam. Oga-hetva- visuddha-ya sı-la-dipatipattiyasabbe pi dehino hontu vimuttirasabha-gino. Ciram. tit.t.hatu lokasmim. samma-sambuddha-sasanam. tasmim. saga-rava- niccam. hontu sabbe pi pa-n.ino. Samma- vassatu ka-lena devo pi jagatippati saddhammanirato lokam. dhammen’ eva pasa-satu- ti.

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9)

his period directly. We need other contemporary or later references which are not forthcoming. Neither of the Chinese pilgrims, Xuanzang (Hsuen Tsang) nor Yijing, provided any references to this vihara although both of them mention Nagapattinam in passing, which we shall discuss shortly. It is difficult to believe that Xuanzang, who provided an interesting early episode from the Acharya’s life,10 did not bother to visit or even mention the vihara in which the Acharya had stayed. The term “Dhammasoka” shows affinity towards Sri Lanka rather than South India. King Ashokavardhana is not usually referred to as “Dhammasoka” on Indian soil, whereas many native Sri Lankan texts refer to him by this name. 11 As regards “Maharaja Vihara”, several Raja viharas12 existed in the ancient times. In the present context, the raja viharas of Kanchipuram and Anuradhapura are worth mentioning. Of the many ancient cavern viharas of Dambulla, Sri Lanka, one is called “Maharaja vihara” even today. Acharya Dhammapala’s association with Sri Lanka is well known and hence searching for references to the vihara in Sri Lankan soil will be a worthwhile pursuit. Apart from the nigamana, we also find a colophon towards the very end of the commentary, which is reproduced below: Badaratitthaviha-re va-sina- a-cariya-Dhammapa-lena kataNettipakaran.assa attjasam. van.n.ana- samatta- ti.

erspectives

New P

107

on Nagapattinam

This colophon prefixes Acharya Dhammapala as a resident of Badarathitta Vihara. In all probability, this was added by a later author as the acharya had already identified the place and the vihara from which he wrote the work in the nigamana. This colophon, though, seems to have been carried through the ages and it reappears in Sasanavamsa, a Burmese Buddhist work of the seventeenth/eighteenth century. The text says that Padarathitta existed in Damilaratthe or the Tamil region (Bode 1897, p. 33). Gandha Vamsa provides a list of acharyas from Jambudvipa (Peninsular India) and the places where they resided13 (Minayeff 1886, pp. 66, 67). Nagapattinam finds no mention in this list either. Thus, none of the texts consulted so far associates Badarathitta or Padarathitta with Nagapattinam. It could have existed anywhere in the ancient Tamil land. Thus, the association of Badarathitta vihara with Nagapattinam and its identification with present day “Avurith-thidal” ( ) locality in the town is baseless.

EARLY

SEVENTH CENTURY

AD:

EMERGENCE OF NAGAI AS A PORT CITY

Acharya Dhammapala does not make any mention about the viharas in Kavirippompattinam in any of his works. It is difficult to believe that he did not visit the ancient city had it existed during his time. So, it is safe to assume that a major portion of Kavirippompattinam was lost during the middle of the sixth century AD. It was this irreparable loss of the Kavirippompattinam port and the city that should have played a key role in the definitive emergence of Nagapattinam during the same period or a little later. The small coastal village slowly started to receive more and more commercial/transit traffic and began to transform. In the early seventh century AD, we come across a vibrant city, fortified with walls and a port with significant traffic, as described in the thirty-one devotional couplets of Saint Thirunavukkarasar (Appar) 14 who provided the earliest definitive references to Nagapattinam. He was a contemporary of Pallava king Mahendravarman Pallava (604–30 A.D). Appar repeatedly stressed the black sea that engulfed the city while capturing other details such as the existence of kazhis and small waterways near the sea-shore (odhams ). Verse number 4.108 of Thevaram provides a very important piece of information: that large ships of a type called vangam15 abounded in Nagapattinam ( ). Following Appar, Saint Thirugnana Sambandar also sings of the lord of Nagapattinam Karonam. He reconfirmed the observation of Appar regarding vangams and said that vangam ships moved like mountains (Verse 1.84.7 —

108

Gokul Seshadri

). What is evident from Appar and Sambandar is that Nagapattinam is a well-developed city with fortified walls, buildings, major roads, and a busy port that was hosting large ships. Obviously, such an establishment must have developed over a period of time — probably throughout the sixth century AD or even earlier. It is important to note that neither of them referred to any Buddhist presence in the region. Both saints, especially Thirugnana Sambandar, took Buddhism head on and were involved in many debates with Buddhist monks. Sambandar’s stress is clearly felt in those places where indigenous Buddhist influence was present. In this context, it is important to mention the Nagai Karonam temple which had been sung about not only by the duo, but also by the later Saint Sundarar. N. Sethuraman, in his collection of research articles, observes that Karona was a corruption of Kaya-rohana (Kayam: Body + Arohana: Raising) and that the Nagapattinam temple was the twin of the Kayarohana temple in Gujarat maintained by the monks of a specific Saivite (Pasupata) sect. While the present temple legend does support this and postulates that the lord of the temple helped a saint to reach the heavens in his mortal body, there is no direct or indirect references to the pasupata movement at all in the Nagapattinam temple, either in the seventh century AD or later. Karonam might also have been derived from other origins such as “Kar Onam” and Lord Vishnu has been referred to as “Onathan”. The temple seems to have been subsequently rebuilt during Pallava and Chola times. During these early periods of the seventh century AD, Mamallapuram near present-day Chennai, distinguished itself as the famous seaport and harbour of Pallava kings. Most commercial activities were centred around that area and Nagapattinam had to wait for almost half a century before attaining commercial importance of a sizable proportion. MID-SEVENTH CENTURY AD: NAGAI, THE TRANSIT PORT

Nagapattinam seems to have become a convenient transit port for travellers and pilgrims bound for Sri Lanka and Southeast Asian countries in the postKavirippompattinam period, as evinced from Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang’s references. It is not very clear if even a proportion of the Buddhist populace of Kaviripattana (as it is referred to in some Buddhist works) migrated to the Nagai region after a natural disaster, but it is quite certain that a considerable number of transit passengers to and from the aforesaid countries must have been Buddhists. This should have certainly provided some religious flavour to the upcoming port city. Xuanzang visited South India during the period of Emperor Narasimhavarman Pallava I (630–68 AD) and hence his observations can

erspectives

New P

109

on Nagapattinam

be attributed to a period that immediately followed the saints. He provided an indirect reference to the existence of the city in his Xiyouji (Si-Yu-Ki), after an account of Mathura16 and the Potalaka mountains. His words are reproduced here: 17 Going north east from this mountain (Po-ta-lo-kia), on the border of the sea, is a town; this is the place from which they start for the southern sea and the country of Sang-kia-lo (Ceylon). It is said commonly by the people that embarking from this port and going south-east, about 3000 li, we come to the country of Simhala.

This seaside town referred to by Xuanzang can be directly confirmed as Nagapattinam, based on a reference to it in the work of his disciple Yijing,18 A Record of The Buddhist Religion as Practised in India and the Malay Archipelago (AD 671–95). 19 Yijing’s reference is reconfirmed by smaller accounts of six other Buddhist pilgrims of his times, quoted here:20

Then [after his sojourn in Srivijaya] Ou-hing embarked on a royal boat; after fifteen days he landed in the isle of Mo-louo-yu;21 after another fifteen days, he arrived in the country of Kie-tcha .22 When it was the last month of winter, he changed his course and turned towards the west. After thirty days, he reached the country of Na-kia-po-tan-na [Nagapattinam]; leaving this place, he arrived, after two days on [sic] sea, in the island of Son of the lion (Ceylon); there he went and worshipped the tooth of Buddha. Leaving Ceylon, he resumed his voyage going north-east, and, at the end of one month he reached Ho-li-ki-louo (Harikela). It is very important to note that neither Xuanzang nor Yijing referred to any Buddhist activity in Nagapattinam. As they were ardent Buddhists who braved all odds and undertook a perilous voyage, it can be assumed that at least one of them would have recorded some detail had there been any religious activity of interest. It is very doubtful if the city had an indigenous Buddhist flavour at this point of time.

LATE

SEVENTH —

EARLY

EIGHTH CENTURY

AD:

CONSTRUCTION OF THE “CHINESE PAGODA”

The period of Narasimhavarman Pallava II (AD 691–729), also known as Rajasimha, marks an important epoch in the history of South India and of Nagapattinam, in particular. “Sivachudamani” Rajasimha’s time is marked by events of varied interests. He was a great patron of art and his contributions have been preserved in the temples at Kanchipuram,23 Panaimalai,24 and

110

Gokul Seshadri

Mamallapuram.25 The Somaskanda panel seen behind the main deity of the Kayarohanaswamin temple in Nagapattinam is his characteristic watermark26 and is seen at all of the above-mentioned temples. The sanctum sanctorum structure has lost its Pallava origins, owing to the later constructions in the Chola period. The present structure is attributed to the period of great Chola king Rajaraja Chola I (AD 985–1014) (Figure 7.1). It seems that towards the later part of his reign, in AD 720, the emperor sent an embassy to China and this assumes a very significant importance in the context of Nagapattinam. This vital information is available only from Chinese sources and no inscription or literature from South India has captured this event. The Chinese sources of this information are:

±²±± ± ±² !"±±±

1. Cefu Yuangui in 20 volumes: /( ) — This Chinese encyclopedia compiled at about 1013 AD is the biggest collection of books compiled in the Song Dynasty. 2. Wenxian Tongkao or Antiquarian Researches by Ma Duanlin — published in 1321 by the Mongol emperor Yingzong, a nephew of Kublai Khan. This work contains 348 chapters (juan) under twenty-five headings. It seems Ma Duanlin was engaged in writing the book during the stay of Marco Polo in China (AD 1275–95).27 3. The Jiu Tang Shu as contained in the Siku Quanshu (Complete Collection of Four Literary Branches) 1,501 volumes: — This compilation is a mammoth effort compiled in AD 1773 under the orders of Emperor Qianlong. It has four sections, namely Classics ( jing), History (shi), Philosophy (zi), Belles-lettres (ji ), and these are further subdivided into forty-four categories.

±²±±±² !"

Traditionally, Chinese intellectuals believed that proper governance of the people could be learned from the classics. Hence, the royalties of individual dynasties attached great importance to the collection, compilation, and preservation of books to the extent that it became a rule to do so. The above mentioned books which provide a calendar of events from the past, were the results of such extensive labour. These records provide the following information (Sastri 1939, pp. 116–17): (a) In year 720 AD (in the 8th year of k’ai yuen), the king from the kingdom of

South India, Che-li Na-lo-seng-kia[,] proposed to employ his war elephants and his cavalry to chastise the Ta-che (Arabs) as well as Tou-po (Tibetians)

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

111

FIGURE 7.1 Nagapattinam to Kavirippompattinam Coastal Line

and others. Moreover he asked that a name to be given to his army. The emperor praised it greatly and named his army: “The army which cherished virtue” (Source 1). (b) The 9th month, the king of South India Che-li-na-lo-seng-kia-to-pa constructed a temple on account of the empire (China); he addressed to the emperor a request asking from him an inscription giving the name to this temple; by decree, it was decided that the name should be ‘which causes return to virtue’ (Koei-hoa se) and it was presented to him (i.e. the emperor sent Narasimha a tablet with the inscription Koei-hoa se so that it might be placed on the front of the temple erected in India by Narasimha for the benefit of China)” (Source 3)

112

Gokul Seshadri

FIGURE 7.2

Lord

Shiva as Somaskanda, Pallava Painting, Kailasanatha

Temple

fo yteira

V

.trop eht detneuqerf taht slessev fo yteirav eht sdrocer yllufhtiaf ,yrutnec retal hcum a ot gnignoleb ,gniward sihT

3.7 ERUGIF

manittapagaN ta slesse

V

113 on Nagapattinam

erspectives New P

Gokul Seshadri

114

.nodnoL ,yrarbiL hsitirB :ecruoS .ytiralc rof decnahne yllatigid neeb sah erutcip lanigirO .manittapagaN ta xelpmoc elpmet tsihdduB a ,adogap anihC eht serutpac gnitniap ruolocretaw sihT

4.7 ERUGIF

manittapagaN ta adogaP anihC

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

115

FIGURE 7.5

Ardhanariswara

from Sri Kayarohanaswamin Temple, Nagapattinam

The image was set up by the official of the king of Kidaram (Kedah, Malaysia) stationed in South India. Source: Photograph by the author during field study.

6.7 ERUGIF

riS fo sgniw rD — manittapagaN ta sre

a

W

toillE retla

Tow

Gokul Seshadri

116

.II .loV ,yrauqitnA naidnI :ecruoS

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

117

(c) In the 8th year of Kai Yuen (720), the 8th month, the day ting-tch’eou, a

decree was addressed to tchong-chow-men-hia to inform him that the king of South India having sent from afar (an ambassador) to render homage and pay tribute and this ambassador being due to return he must look after him with greatest care till his departure and act in such a way that his desires might be fulfilled. This ambassador was therefore given a robe of flowered silk. a golden girdle, a purse with emblem in the form of a fish and the seven objects; then he was sent away. (d) In the years kae-yuen (AD 713–42), an ambassador from Central India proceeded three times as far as the extremity of southern india and came only once to offer birds of five colours that could talk. He applied for aid against Ta-she (Arabs) and Toofan (Tibetans) offering to take the command of the auxiliary troops. The emperor Heuen-tsung (who reigned from AD 713–56) conferred upon him the rank of general-in-chief. The Indian ambassadors said to him: ‘The fan barbarians are captivated only by the cloths and equipments [sic.]. Emperor ! I must have a long silk embroidered robe, a leather belt decorated with gold and a bag in the shape of a fish’. All these articles were ordered by the emperor (Source 2). (e) In the 11th month, an ambassador was sent to confer by brevet the title of the king of the kingdom of South India on the king of the kingdom of, Che-li-nalo-seng-kia pao-to-pa-mo (Sri Narasimha Potavarman) (Source 1). The sources also indicate that in AD 692, as many as five kingdoms of India were engaged with China. Thus, we see that by the end of the seventh century and the beginning of the eighth century, China had become a major force in the Southeast Asian sea trade and many empires from India wanted to maintain friendly relationships with it. The South Indian emperor, Rajasimha, went one level further by pledging his forces to control the common enemies (Arabs and Tibetans). Though the reason for Rajasimha’s commitment is unclear, we may hypothesize that these enemies were possibly disturbing the mutual trade between South India, China, and Southeast Asia. The Chinese sources mentioned above do not indicate the nature of this temple (that is, the Chinese pagoda) that was built for the welfare of China in the South Indian soil, nor its location. An account of the Chinese mission lead by Wang Xuance,28 who came to India three times in 643 (with Li Yibiao), 646, as well as in 657 AD not only reconfirms the above account, but also introduces the Buddhist Acharya Vajrabodhi (AD 661–740) into the picture. According to this account, Acharya Vajrabodhi helped King Rajasimha when the country was caught in

118

Gokul Seshadri

famine. At a later point in time, when the former wanted to go to China to meet and adore Manjusri, the king decided to send his emissaries along with a Sanskrit version of the holy scripture Mahaprajnaparamita. The Acharya sailed through Ceylon and Srivijaya and after a series of troubles, landed on Chinese soil at Canton in AD 720. Vajrabodhi later on became a famous Vajrayana29 Buddhist teacher in China and when he passed away in AD 741, a stupa30 was raised in his name on the same soil. We can take it that King Rajasimha’s mission to China was political as well as religious. Our focus in this paper is mainly on the Chinese pagoda which Rajasimha built, and its location. Though Rajasimha could have built the pagoda anywhere in his empire, it is more pertinent to assume that he chose a place that was frequented by the Chinese — merchants and pilgrims alike. The pagoda should certainly have to be Buddhist in nature as China was a Buddhist country and all visitors from that country were Buddhist. So far, in the annals of South Indian history, one and only one Chinese pagoda has come to light, and that was located in Nagapattinam. We shall discuss this evidence shortly. That the Pallava emperor chose Nagapattinam and not Mamallapuram for building his pagoda clearly bears out the following facts: (a) That Nagapattinam and its surrounding areas were under the control of Pallavas during the early eighth century AD. (b) That Nagapattinam was the seaport frequented by Chinese and possibly all other Southeast Asian maritime traffic. Pallava evidences offered by the Kayarohanaswamin temple and Naganatha temple in Nagapattinam have already been seen, and now, with the building of the Chinese pagoda, it can be said that the area was a Pallava stronghold and an active seaport.

LATE

EIGHTH – NINTH CENTURY AD:

FROM TRANSIT PORT

TO

TRANSITION

MAJOR HARBOUR

Vaishnavite saint Thirumangai Azhvar, considered to be a contemporary of Pallava king Nandhivarman II Pallavamalla, lived during the later part of the eighth century AD. He has sung of Lord Vishnu31 of Nagapattinam. While the azhvar ’s verses themselves do not provide much information on the port city, a major event in his life associated with Nagapattinam is recorded in the Aarayirappadi Guruparampara Prabhava (Jeeyar 1880).32 This twelfth century religious work records that Saint Thirumangai, on requiring funds to renovate

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

119

the Sri Ranganatha Temple at Srirangam, Tamil Nadu, stole the golden Buddha statues in the vihara at Nagapattinam. While the authenticity of this story is questionable, it is an indicator of the riches associated with the vihara which was at Nagapattinam. From the previous discussions, we have to conclude that this vihara is none other than the “Chinese Pagoda”33 built by Rajasimha. King Pallavamalla himself seems to have been engaged with the region, as evinced from his copper plates of Pattadattal Mangalam. Saint Sundarar of the Thevaram Trio34 has been attributed to the period of the Pallava king Nandhivarman III (AD 840–65) and hence belongs to the first half of the ninth century AD (Rajamanickanar 2003, p. 101). Sundarar sings of the Lord of Kayarohanam in twenty-two verses and in doing so, provides ample and unique references to the state of affairs in Nagapattinam during this period. Verses 7.101.4, 5, 7 and 8 are of great historic value and hence deserve some focus. (a) Verse no 7.101.4 illustrates Nagapattinam as a city which was lit throughout the night, perhaps due to the heavy commercial/ maritime traffic plying the port. It also refers to the military forces that were guarding the city around the walls of the fortress ( Sen thar purisai — Thar means forces, in this context). Thus, Sundarar provides the first direct evidence to a seaside city that was guarded by forces. That Nagapattinam was a fortified city was already mentioned earlier. (b) Verse no 7.101.5 is a direct reference to the trade and merchant activities. Mention is made about kanakam (Gold) and karpooram (Camphor) which were traded by the merchants of the city. Pagarnar means trading merchants and in this context pagarndha has to be taken as trading. Mention is made about papparavar — a term whose meaning is unclear for now. (c) Verse no 7.101.7 mentions Idhai soozh thennagai which means a city surrounded by ships with large masts or sea sails. (d) Verse no 7.101.8 contains a goldmine of information which is most pertinent to the present context. It provides direct evidence to the levies and taxation that were carried on along the shores of Nagapattinam. “Large ships of type vangam, which are carrying even elephants, insert themselves into the shores of Nagapattinam for Sungam (taxation and clearance)”. The term velai can also mean “to take rest”, instead of “shores”. Thus, we can also interpret Sundarar’s verse to mean that large ships inserted themselves for the purpose of taxation as well as for transit.

120

Gokul Seshadri

TABLE 7.2

References

to Nagapattinam by Saint Sundarar

Thus, Saint Sundarar provides the much-required references on the harbour side activities of Nagapattinam in his eloquent observations. (e) Verse no. 7.101.9 records the attraction various kings had for Nagai. It is unclear why Sundarar chose to mention Nagai as “Then Nagai” or Southern Nagai. That this distinguishing epithet is applied only to the city and not the temple is borne out by the fact that all the qualities and features listed by him in the lines preceding the words “southern” are that of the city and not the temple. Was it just to indicate that it was located in the southern part of Tamilnadu? Mention can also be made of Athipatta Nayanar, one of the sixty-four celebrated saints of the Saivite world from Nagapattinam,

erspectives

New P

121

on Nagapattinam

whom Sundarar mentions in his Thiruthondar Thogai. However, there is no inscriptional evidence for this period, notwithstanding the political and commercial importance of the city. However, there is only one Pallava inscription found on the premises of the Naganatha temple (Jayakumar 2001, p. 215). It names the city as Nagai. TENTH – ELEVENTH CENTURY AD: HEYDAY OF

NAGAPATTINAM

UNDER THE CHOLAS

During the tenth century, Nagapattinam came under the complete sway of the Cholas, who were the most powerful rulers of South India in this period. It is not clear when exactly Nagapattinam was annexed to the Chola empire. The earliest Chola inscription available in the port city is that of king Rajaraja Chola I (AD 985–1014), but there are enough reasons to believe that it should have been annexed much earlier. In Thiruvarur, which is twenty-four km away from Nagapattinam, an inscription of Madurai konda Parakesari belonging to the thirty-ninth regnal year of the king (ARE No. 573 of 1904) can be found. This is none other than Parantaka Chola I (AD 907–953), one of the powerful monarchs of the Vijayalaya line. It is reasonable to assume that this region was under the Chola sway since the times of Parantaka or a little later, though most inscriptions in this region are available only from the later part of the tenth century AD. Table 7.3 provides the chronological list of inscriptions retrieved from the Kayarohanaswamin temple by the epigraphists of the Archaeological Survey of India. Rajaraja’s inscription says that Nagapattinam was an Ur under Pattinak Kootram. Mandalam — valanadu35 — nadu and kootram were the various subdivisions of the country during the times of Rajaraja, comparable to the present day state-district- taluk divisions. The valanadu subdivision was a special introduction by Rajaraja for better land administration. We come to know from other sources 36 that Pattinak Kootram was under the Kshatriyasikamani Valanadu. Three inscriptions of Rajendra Chola provide vital information on the relationship between the Cholas and the Srivijaya empire of the Sailendras and hence warrant detailed discussions. The first was inscribed during the third regnal year of the king (ARE 1956–57, p. 164). It should be remembered that both father and son were co-ruling for two years before full powers and autonomy was provided to Rajendra37 in his third regnal year. The inscription records the details of an expensive jewel, set with a variety of precious stones

122

Gokul Seshadri

TABLE 7.3

Chronological

list of inscriptions from

Sri Kayarohanaswamin Temple, Nagapattinam

Inscription Reference

Location

King & Regional year

Period

ARE 1956–57: 165

Below lingothbhava image/ central shrine of the Kayarohanaswamin temple

Rajaraja I / 25 th

c. AD 1010

ARE 1956–57: 167

Base of south wall of central shrine

Rajaraja I / 29 th

c. AD 1014

ARE 1956–57: 164

West wall below the lingothbhava image/ central shrine

Rajendra Chola I / 3rd c. AD 1015

ARE 1956–57: 162

Base tiers of the west wall/ central shrine

Rajendra Chola I / 3rd c. AD 1015

ARE 1956–57: 161

Base tiers of the west wall/ central shrine

Rajendra Chola I / lost c. AD 1015

ARE 1956–57: 157

North wall/central shrine

Rajendra Chola I / 4th

ARE 1956–57: 166

On the west and south walls/central shrine

Rajendra Chola I / 7th c. AD 1019

ARE 1956–57: 158

Base tiers of the North wall/ Rajendra Chola I / lost central shrine

ARE 1956–57: 159

West wall/central shrine

Rajadhi Raja I / lost

After 1018

ARE 1956–57: 160

West wall/central shrine

Rajendra II / lost

After 1052

c. AD 1016

erspectives

New P

123

on Nagapattinam

Inscription Reference

Location

King & Regional year

Period

ARE 1956–57: 156

North wall above bikshatana Virarajendra / lost murthi in antarala/ central shrine

After 1063

ARE 1956–57: 154

On the tiers of the north wall of Mahamandapa/ central shrine

Rajaraja II / 10 th

c. AD 1156

ARE 1956–57: 153

On the tiers of the north wall of Mahamandapa/ central shrine

Rajadhiraja II / 5th

c. AD 1168

ARE 1956–57: 155

On the tiers of the north wall of Mahamandapa/ central shrine

Rajadhiraja II / 10 th

c. AD 1173

ARE 1956–57: 168

On the north wall of Artha Mandapa/ Thiyagaraja shrine

Kulottunga III / 4th

c. AD 1182

ARE 1956–57: 169

On the west wall and tiers of Artha Mandapa/ Thiyagaraja shrine

Kulottunga III / 6th

c. AD 1184

ARE 1956–57: 150

North wall of Mahamandapa/ Thiyagaraja shrine

Kulottunga III / 14th

AD 1192

ARE 1956–57: 151

North wall of Mahamandapa/ Thiyagaraja shrine

Lost

Around 12th century

ARE 1956–57: 163

Base tiers on the west wall of central shrine

Lost / 2nd

ARE 1956–57: 152

North wall of Mahamandapa/ Thiyagaraja shrine

Lost / fragmentary

124

Gokul Seshadri

such as emerald and ruby, donated to a silver image of Shiva called Nagai Azhagar by the official of the king of Srivijaya, who was a resident of Melthondrip Pattinam of Keezchembi Nadu. The name of the official — referred to as kanmi in the inscription — has been lost. One Eran Sadaiyan engraved the record. Keezhchembi Nadu is considered to be the present-day Ramanathapuram coastal area and Melthondrip Pattinam should have been a seaport (Jayakumar 2001, p. 66). This inscription seems to suggest that an official of the Srivijaya king was permanently stationed in South India to take care of the interests of the kingdom. It is unclear if this official was a native of India or Srivijaya. The second inscription (ARE 1956–57, p. 161) in which the regnal year of the king has been lost, records the gift of several types of lamps provided by Nimalan Agattiswaran, the agent of the king of Srivijaya. The lamps are said to have been fashioned by Eran Sadaiyan alias Devakanda Acariyan. It is likely that this inscription and the earlier one speak about the donations made by the same individual — the kanmi of Srivijaya king — Nimalan Agattiswaran. Eran Sadaiyan figures in both inscriptions. The third inscription (ARE 1956–57, p. 162) talks about a specific deity (Ardhanariswara) installed by the official of the king of Kidara (modern Kedah of Malaysia) on the premises of the temple. The name of the official is captured as Sri Kuruttan Kesuvan ana Akralekai. Unfortunately, no mention is made about the place in which he was stationed or his nationality. The official donated gold coins (kazhanju) of China (Cheenak Kanagam) for the provisioning of the following facilities: • • •

87 Kazhanjus: Avirbali archana of Sri Ardhanariswara 87 Kazhanjus: To provision 2000 MaaKalams (revenue term) and two Kalam (measure) 60 Kazhanjus as Undigaip Pon: Ghee and Yogurt provision to Brahmins and the Devars

The later part of the inscription is damaged and hence not many inferences can be made. It can be seen that Chinese gold coins were in good circulation and used in South India to provide facilities. This Ardhanariswara donated by the official is a beautiful creation of Chola sculptors and has survived to date, as a niche ( koshta) image in the northern wall of the hall adjacent to the sanctum sanctorum Artha (Mandapa). The sculpture portrays the male (Shiva) portion as Rishabantika — flanked by his Bull — while the female (Uma) portion is holding a mirror. The facial features carry striking similarities to the famous Shiva sculpture of the

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

125

Chandeswara group in Gangai Konda Cholapuram, Tamilnadu. While the first and second inscriptions are from the official of the king of Srivijaya38 (present day Sumatra), the third is from the official of the king of Kidaram (Kedah in Malaysia). During the period under discussion, Srivijaya was under the Sailendra kings of Kidaram, but historically, both are different empires. These two inscriptions indicate a period when the ties between the Cholas and the Sailendras found their highest watermark in the Middle Ages. The Chola copper plates preserved in the Leiden University Museum of Holland, popularly known as the larger and smaller Leiden plates, turn another page in the maritime relationship of Chola/Srivijaya empires, in which Nagapattinam plays a critical role. The larger plates are twenty-one in number issued during the twenty-first regional year of Rajaraja I (AD 1006) and engraved during the period of Rajendra I. The smaller plates, three in number, were issued during the period of Kulottunga I. The script on these copper plates was not engraved. The text were first written on wax tablets and later cast in copper. A detailed treatment of these grants has been provided by K.V. Subrahmanya Iyer (Epigraphia Indica XXII, p. 213) The larger plates contain a Sanskrit portion, consisting of 111 lines laid out in two sides of five plates, and a Tamil portion, consisting of 332 lines laid out on both sides of sixteen plates. The Tamil portion makes limited use of Grantha characters to denote words of Sanskrit origin. The essence of the Sanskrit portion is that in the twenty-first regnal year, the king gave the village of Annaimangalam to the lofty shrine of Buddha in the Chulamanivarma Vihara, which the ruler of Srivijaya and Kataha, Mara Vijayottungavarman of Sailendra family with the makara crest — who was the son of Chulamanivarman — had erected in the name of his father in the delightful city of Nagappattana. After Rajaraja had passed away, his son Madhurantaka caused a permanent edict to be made for the village granted by his father. It is mentioned that the height of the vihara towered above Kanaka Giri or Mount Meru ( Kanakagiri samunnati vibhavam atiramaniyan Chulamanivarmma Viharam). It is interesting to note that Nagapattinam is mentioned as a delightful city. The essence of the Tamil portion is that on the ninety-second day of the twenty-first year of his reign, the king, while he was in the pavilion on the southern side of his palace called Rajasrayan, erected in the suburbs of Tanjavur, declared that the income of 8,943 kalam, 2 tuni, 1 kuruni , and 1 nali of paddy accruing from the payment of the assessment on 97 veli , 2 ma, 1.5 kani, 1 mundirigai Kil of three ma, three kani and one mundirigai and Kil of half and two ma of land comprising the village of Aanaimangalam — including such as have ceased to be pallichandas and omitting such as had

126

Gokul Seshadri

been excluded in survey — to be given as tax-free pallichandas to meet the requirements of the palli , that is, the shrine of Buddha in Chulamanivarma Vihara being constructed by Chulamanivarman, king of Kataha at Nagapattinam in Pattinak Kootram, Kshatriyasikamani Valanadu. The oral order was committed in writing by Thiruvai Kelvi (the official, responsible for writing down royal orders) and attested (signed) by four signatories (Thirumandira olai nayagam). In accordance with it, it was ordered to be entered into the accounts by the officials Karumamarayans and Naduvirukkum. With four officials of the tax dept (Puravuvari) and three others styled varippottagam (tax registrars) present, the entry into the tax registry was made. Arrangements were made for drawing up the deed of the gift (present plate) and effecting necessary changes in divisional or village accounts. For the ceremony of walking along the boundaries and fixing the end points, one official called Kankani Naduvirukkam, four Bhattas , and one Puravuvari officer were nominated. As royal order was issued to Nattar members of the assembly to be present during the ceremony to show the land boundaries, draw up, and give the deed of assignment to those who were receiving the donation. Assemblies of no less than twenty-six villages of Pattinak kutram took part in the ceremony of fixing the boundaries (ellaikkal naduthal). The key points regarding these grants are: (a) R.C. Majumdar (Epigraphia Indica XXII, p. 283) compares the present grant with that of a vihara at Nalanda39 and suggests that in the present case, the Sailendra king, Chulamanivarman, should have specifically requested King Rajaraja to provide a grant to his vihara. He discusses the Sanskrit portion of the grant and its indirect references to this effect. In this context, the following Tamil portion of the grant is interesting:

Kidarattaraiyan Chulamainpanman Kshatriyasigamani valanattu Pattinak Kootrathu Nagappattinatu eduppikkindra Chulamanipanma viharattup palliku vendum nivandatukku… (c) The term “viharattup palliku vendum nivandatukku” should be interpreted as “a grant, as required for the vihara”. There is no direct implication here to any specific request made by Chulamanivarman to Rajaraja I to support the vihara with a grant. (d) “Viharattup palliku” can be interpreted as a “Vihara, which is a palli” or more appropriately, a palli or a shrine within the vihara complex. This observation is of paramount importance, which we shall discuss shortly. (e) “eduppikkindra” indicates “currently under construction” — a present tense usage.

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

127

(f) While the Tamil portion is accurate in distinguishing the palli from the vihara complex, the Sanskrit portion doesn’t. Nor does it bother to record the fact that the complex construction was begun by the father of King Mara Vijayottungavarman. (g) The height of the vihara exclaimed in Sanskrit portion should be kept in mind as it will be referred later. (h) The accuracy with which the area of land provided by the grant has been expressed is worth mentioning. The projection on the yield per year from the land provides a temptation to suggest that the government might have maintained a table on the approximate yield capacity of various types of soil across the dominions. (i) The execution period of the royal order, during the times of Rajaraja I seems to have been quick (two years and seventy-two days) as compared with a long wait of ten years in the case of Rajendra I (Esalam copper plate grants). Smaller Leiden grants consist of the Tamil portion only and were issued during the twentieth year of Kulottunga Chola I. The essence of these three smaller plates is below: (a) While the king was resting in a seat called Kalingarayan in the bathing hall (Thirumanjana Salai) at the palace in Ayirattali 40 alias Ahavamallakulakalapuram, two messengers of the king of Kadaram, named Rajavidyadara Sri Samantha, and Abhimannottunga Sri Samantha petitioned to him that the village granted free from payment of taxes as pallichanda for meeting the requirements of the shrines of Rajendrasolapperumpalli and Rajarajapperumpalli, which were constructed by the king of Kadaram at Solakulavallippattinam in Pattinak kutram, a subdivision of Keyamanicka valanadu, may be entered in a copper plate document and issued in favour of the Sangattar of the Palli. (b) The messengers also prayed that the kanialar of the pallichanda lands may be removed and the lands be left entirely in charge of palli and that this fact may also be noted in the same copper plate deed. (c) Boundaries of the monastery and its surroundings (palli nilai and palli vilagam) is 313/4 veli, 2 ma and 1 mundirigai. Key points regarding these grants are: (a) Possibly due to the hostility of the relationship between the Cholas and Sailendras, the land cultivators seemed to have enjoyed the lands belonging

128

(b) (c) (d) (e)

(f)

Gokul Seshadri

to the palli. The grants had to be issued as kudi neekiya devadana (“Kudi neeki ippalli changattarke kaniyaga kuduttom” — line 38) or a grant where the present cultivators shall be removed. Line 39 — Rajarajapperumpalli, which must have been a shrine in the vihara, figures as a surname of Sailendra’s Chulamanivarma vihara itself ! The Rajendrasolapperumpalli, referred to in the inscription, should also be considered as a subshrine in a major complex. When listing the pallichanda lands, the grant omits rajendrasolap perumpalli, which was mentioned earlier, and lists only those villages belonging to Rajarajasolapperumpalli. “The sangattar of palli seem to have been the administrative body of the vihara, comparable to the pan maheswara of Shiva temples” — observes Subramanya Iyer. A Pandiyan inscriptional reference (ARE 1963–64, p. 290/Jayakumar 2001, p. 70) to Rajarajapperumpalli as ThiruMaheswarap Perumpalli can be viewed in this background. The palli vilagam 41 should be taken as the ambulatory wall of the complex. Palli nilai could have meant the core structure of the temple.

LATER PERIOD

REFERENCES AND FINDINGS

The China pagoda, built by Pallava king Rajasimha, finds repeated references in Marco Polo, The Kalyani inscription of Dhammacheti issued in AD 1476, Valentyn (AD 1725), and Sir Walter Elliot (AD 1867). An extremely important piece of evidence regarding the China pagoda is being publicized in the present paper for the first time.42 This watercolour sketch is currently in the possession of the British Library in London. The name of the painter is lost, but the wording inscribed on the front in ink identifies beyond all conceivable doubts what it represents: “Sketch of an ancient structure Nagapatam43 commonly called the Chinese pagoda but supposed to be the remains of a Jaina44 temple”

The exact year of this painting is not known but it can be assumed that this should have been drawn in the early or middle part of the eighteenth century, when most portions of the complex were intact. It is needless to emphasize the importance of this painting in the present context. The painting shows the tower which was later referred to as Puduveli gopuram and carefully recorded by Sir Walter Elliot in two drawings. Interpolating

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

129

the size of the structures from the height of the tower, we can see that it was a massive complex. The height of trees pales in comparison to that of the main structures. The sanctum sanctorum of the main palli is comparable to a South Indian Vesara (circular) vimana. A smaller vimana is seen behind the main shrine, and it could have been a subshrine or an additional shrine in the complex. It is a common Buddhist custom to build many small temples in one complex. The China pagoda complex could have housed many smaller pallis or shrines and this alone explains why only one structure, that is, the China pagoda, has been referred to in later annals and no mention is made of an independent Rajarajapperumpalli, Rajendracholapperumpalli,45 or Padarikarama 46 monastery. The Kalyani inscription’s reference to the cave in which the image of Buddha was kept — in the light of present evidence — makes one wonder if the main shrines were built along the grounds of South Indian garba grihas because Nagapattinam has no mountains or caves in its vicinity. The same inscription also provides another piece of information regarding the sanctity of this place, which is that this place marks the exact holy spot where Buddha’s tooth relic was kept before its transit to Sri Lanka. The structure between the tower and inner shrine, as well as the small rooms shown in front of main shrine, could have been the dwellings of Buddhist monks. The whole complex should have faced east, judging from the remarks of Jesuits,47 who pulled down the remains of the tower in 1867. The ambulatory wall, which extends through the backside of the complex, reminds us of the “vilagam” reference in the smaller Leiden grants. The complex should have housed hundreds of bronze Buddha images, some48 of which were excavated in the last two centuries. In the light of the evidence offered in the present paper, it seems more appropriate to assume that the donors of these bronzes were merchants and transit passengers — rather than the local populace. A quote from “A Personal Narrative of a Mission to Madras Mysore and South of India” (Hoole 1844, 111) is important.

“It [Negapatam] contains some remains of the former prevailing system of Buddhu: In one of the streets is a well executed sculpture of Buddhu, full size and seated as though in meditation. Outside the town is a high tower usually called Tzina or “Silver Pagoda” concerning which the traditions are many and contradictory. That which attributes its erection to the Chinese, appears to favor the notion of its having

130

Gokul Seshadri

formed part of a Buddhist temple. It is constructed of red bricks, quite smooth and of a small size; with so little cement, that it has been disputed whether any at all had been used. An intelligent native who was with me when I examined the building said that a cement had been used, constituting entirely of the earth thrown up by the white ants in forming their mounds and cells. That this earth had been ground into a fine paste and used as a cement between each brick. The tower is so lofty as to be the first object visible at sea and was used by the Dutch for their flagstaff. I have been concerned to hear a report, which I hope is untrue, that preparations were making to take it down…” Sadly, Hoole’s fears were proven to be true.

CONCLUSIONS Early Buddhist links of Nagapattinam are questionable. The city probably existed only as a centre of Saivism/Vaishnavism until the trade and merchant contacts from the seventh century AD onwards gave it a Buddhist association. The evolution of Nagapattinam as a medieval port was greatly triggered by the loss of Kavirippompattinam on the same coast. The commercial activities should have started as early as the eighth century. Rajarajapperumpalli, Rajendracholapperumpalli, and other pallis could have been smaller shrines in a large complex. Other than the Buddhist bronzes, not many stone statues of Buddha have been recovered in the Nagapattinam region — which is strange, because we get them even in much smaller pockets and hamlets. One wonders if there was any native Buddhist population at all in the city or whether all the vihara activities were mainly for inland and foreign transit merchants. This requires further analysis.

Notes 1. So far, no author appears to have provided any direct evidence of this. Natana Kasinathan provides a generic reference to the coin finds in Nagapattinam district, but is not specific about the locations (Kasinathan 1994). 2. It is interesting to note that these centres were capital cities of various empires. 3. As quoted by Gandha Vamsa. For references, see the later discussions on Gandha Vamsa in the present article. 4. This has been misinterpreted as Mayurapattana by some authors and got to be associated with present day Mayavaram, near Kumbakonam. 5. Dhammapala wrote two books on Netti — Nettipakaran(a)-attha-katha and Nettiatthakatha-thika according to Gandha Vamsa (Bode 1894–96, pp. 64–66).

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

131

6. Hikasaka (1989), p. 26, who, in turn, quotes Mylai Seeni Venkatasami and Anand Kausalyayana. 7. It is of interest to note that even the then Buddhist world was well aware of this problem and called the second Dhammapala, who came some time later and authored a book or two, “Chulla-Dhammapala”. 8. We see that many seaside ports were appended with the term “pattinam” since the Sangam ages –– Kavirippom-pattinam being a very good example. But not all ports were distinguished by this name, as evident from names such as Thondi, Korkai, and Musiri (Muziris). 9. In present day Indonesia, there exists a vihara by name of “Dhammasoka vihara”. 10. According to this account provided by Xuanzang, Dhammapala was born to a high official in Kanchipuram and was all set to marry the daughter of the king. Just the night before the marriage, he renounced the world and became a monk in a monastery that was located on the farther outskirts of Kanchipuram. 11. Refer to Dipavamsa, for examples. 12. Does the term refer to Buddhist monasteries patronized by kings? 13. Ramachandran’s pioneering work incorrectly refers to Jambudvipacharya of Gandha Vamsa as Acharyas of Kanchi (T.N. Ramachandran 1992, p. 6). 14. Thevaram, Fourth Thirumurai 4.71-1 to 4.71-10: ten verses (Nerisai Venpa), Fifth Thirumurai 5.83-1 to 5.83-10: ten verses (kurunthogai meter), Sixth Thirumurai 6.22-1 to 6.22-11: eleven verses (Thandaka Hymns). 15. For a treatment on Vangam, refer to Jayakumar (2001), p. 58. 16. In Mathura, Xuanzang saw a Buddhist sangharama erected by King Ashoka’s brother Mahindra and a vihara to its east, believed to have been erected by Ashoka himself — both of which were in a state of dilapidation, when he saw them. 17. Beal (1906), p. 233. 18. Sastri (1939), p. 108. 19. Yijing came to India some twenty-eight years after Xuanzang. 20. Religieux Eminents, pp. 144–45, as quoted by Sastri (1939), p. 115. 21. Malayu in Sumatra. 22. Kedah in Malaysia. 23. The Kailasanatha Shrine, dedicated to Lord Shiva. 24. The Thalagiriswara Temple. Panaimalai is located near Vizhuppuram. 25. Several temples, including the three famous shore temples. 26. Rajasimha equates himself with Guha (Kartikeya), son of Lord Shiva, in the Kailasanatha Temple Inscription. It will be interesting to analyse his emphasis on Somaskanda, in the light of this inscription. 27. For details, see Journal of American Oriental Society Vol. 11, p. 12. Article by Wells Williams. 28. For the original French translation by Sylvain Levi, refer Journal Asiatique 1900. For an English translation of Sylvain Levi’s account, refer Chatterjee, 1987.

132

Gokul Seshadri

29. Also known as Tantrayana. 30. Shunjo Nogami and others, Outline of Buddhist History in China as quoted by Hikasaka, 1989. 31. The temple is called the Sri Sundararaja Perumal Temple. 32. The version of the book to which I referred was printed in 1880 and was an interesting historic specimen on its own. 33. The Chinese Pagoda, as per the Chinese sources, is a Buddhist temple and not a vihara . 34. Popularly known as “Thevaara Movar” in Tamil traditions. 35. The Valanadu subdivision was introduced by Rajaraja I while the rest were in existence even earlier. 36. Refer to later discussions on the Larger Leiden Grant of Rajaraja I in the present paper. 37. It was a customary practice of the Cholas to provide apprenticeship to a wouldbe king by allowing him to co-rule with the present king. The inscriptions will mention the names of both kings on certain occasions. For a treatment on the subject, please refer to Kudanthai N. Sethuraman (1980). 38. A recently discovered inscription, in the precincts of Agasthiswara Temple at Kolappakkam near Chennai, Tamilnadu, talks about the donation made by the king of Srivijaya to the temple. On palaeographic grounds, this inscription is assignable to the period of Rajaraja Chola I. Refer to The Hindu newspaper, 12 February 2006. 39. About the middle of the ninth century AD, the Sailendra king established a vihara at Nalanda and at the request of the Sailendra king, Devapala of Bengal granted five villages. 40. The location of this Ayirattali has been identified with the present-day Veerasingam Pettai area, near Kumbakonam, Tamilnadu by Kudavoil Balasubramaniyan in his book titled Nandhipuram. 41. Refer to an article titled, “Vilagam” (M. Nalini 2001). 42. To the best of the author’s knowledge, the presence of this colour drawing is not known to any scholar who has worked on all related areas and we find no mention about it in any of the published works. The museum experts who wrote explanatory notes on the painting seem to be aware of its significance. 43. Patam is a corruption of Pattinam. We find many such pattinams getting corrupted under Western observations. 44. The China Pagoda was possibly misunderstood as Jaina Pagoda. 45. The term “Akkasalai Perumpalli” associated with this palli in a Buddha bronze inscription could be related to the name of the street in which the status was found: Nanayakkara Street. Akkasalai indicates coin minting factory, and Nanayam also means coin. But this proposition requires further evidence. 46. This is referred to in the Kalyani inscription of Dhammachetti. 47. The remark was that the tower was obstructing the passage of sunlight to the prayer hall.

erspectives

New P

on Nagapattinam

133

48. About 350 bronzes have been recovered. For a detailed treatment, refer to T.N. Ramachandran, 1990.

References Beal, Samuel. Si-yu-ki, the Buddhist Records of Western Countries — Vol. II. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., 1906. Bode, Mabel. Index to Gandhavamsa. London: Pali Text Society, 1894–96. ———. Sasanavamsa. London: Pali Text Society, 1897. Chatterjee, S.P. The Mission of Wang Hiuen Tse in India. Calcutta: Sri Satguru, 1987. Davids, Rhys T.W. Milinda Panha — Questions of King Milinda (Translation) Oxford, 1890. Hardy, Prof. E. The Netti-Pakarana with Extracts from Dhammapala’s Commentary. London: Pali Text Society, 1902. Hikasaka, Shu. Buddhism in Tamilnadu, a New Perspective. Chennai: Institute of Asian Studies, 1989. Hoole, Elijah. Madras Mysore and the South of India. London: Longman, Brown, Green and Longmans, 1844. Iyengar, Raghava. R. Nallisai Pulamai Mellialargal. Thamizh Kadal, 1933. Jayakumar. P. Tamizhaga Turaimugangal-Medieval Period (Tamil). Thanjavur: Anbu Veliyeetagam, 2001. Jeeyar, Pinbazhagiya Perumal. Guruparampara Prabhava . R. Ramakrishna Pillai, 1880. Kasinathan, Natana. Collected Papers. Tamil Nadu: State Department of Archaeology, 1994. Mahalingam T.V. Kanchipuram in Early South Indian History. Bombay: Asia Publishing House, 1969. McCrindle, J.W. Ancient India as Described by Ptolemy. Reprinted from the Indian Antiquary, 1884. Minayeff, Professor. Gandhavamsa. London: Pali Text Society, 1886. Nalini, M. “Vilagam”. In Kaveri: Studies in Epigraphy, Archaeology and History (Professor Y. Subbarayalu Felicitation volume), edited by S. Rajagopal. Chennai: Panpattu Veliyiittakam, 2001. Rajamanickanar, M. Kaala Araichi (Tamil) (Reprint). Chennai: Alamu Pathippagam, 2003. Ramachandran, T.N. Nagappatinam and Other Buddhist Bronzes in the Madras Museum. (Reprint). Bulletin of the Madras Government Museum, 1990. Sastri, Nilakanta K.A. Foreign Notices of South India. Chennai: University of Madras, 1989. Sethuraman, N. Early Cholas, Mathematics Reconstructs the Chronology. Sethuraman, 1980.

134

Gokul Seshadri

Trenckner, V. The Milindapanho. London: Royal Asiatic Society, 1928. Venkatasami, Mylai Seeni. Bauttamum Tamizhum (Tamil) (Reprint). Chennai: Vasantha Pathippagam, 2004. Yule, Col. Henry. Indian Antiquary , Vol. XIII. Bombay, 1873. Zvelebil, Kamil V. Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature. Leiden: Brill, 1997.

8 SOUTH INDIAN MERCHANT GUILDS IN THE INDIAN OCEAN AND SOUTHEAST

ASIA

ashima

Noboru Kar

INTRODUCTION Since the 1980s more attention has been paid to the merchant activities in the Indian Ocean than before. However, the works published so far deal mostly with the period after the coming of Europeans, and there are comparatively far fewer number of works which study the period prior to it, except, of course, the works dealing with the Roman trade period (first to third century). Those small number of works which study the period after the Roman trade and before the coming of Europeans include Kenneth R. Hall, Trade and Statecraft in the Age of the Colas; Meera Abraham, Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India; and R. Champakalakshmi, Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India 300 BC to AD 1300. All these give much attention to the vigorous commercial activities of the merchant guilds from the ninth to the thirteenth centuries, coinciding with the period of rule by the Cholas in Tamil Nadu and the Chalukyas in Karnataka. K.V. Subrahmanya Aiyer, K.R. Venkatarama Ayyar, G.S. Dikshit, and K. Indrapala were the pioneers who studied these guilds, and Abraham, based on the studies of those pioneers, concentrated her study on the two important guilds called man.igra-mam and ainu-r-r-uvar. For her study she collected nearly 150 inscriptions which refer to those guilds and advanced past studies to a 135

136

Noboru Kar

ashima

great extent. However, in addition to the inaccuracy, in several cases, of her (or past scholars’) reading of those inscriptions, there are still many more inscriptions referring to the guilds, if we search for them. Moreover there have been discoveries of several important inscriptions in Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka after the publication of her book. In order to make up for such deficiency in past studies, I organized a project for the study of merchant-guild inscriptions in collaboration with Y. Subbarayalu, P. Shanmugam, S. Pathmanathan, and others, and collected some three hundred inscriptions1 which refer to the terms relating to merchant guilds such as man.igra-mam, añjuvan.n.am, ainu-r-r-uvar,2 na-na-de-si, padinen.vishayam, and padinen.-bu-mi, though the last three are to be regarded as synonymous with ainu-r-r-uvar, which is the most prominent of them. For the purpose of collecting these inscriptions, we visited many places, including Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, and Indonesia, and took estampages of the inscriptions which were newly discovered, as well as already known. Even in the case of already known inscriptions, we were able to improve the reading of previous scholars on the basis of our new estampages. The añjuvan.n.am was an organization of foreign merchants such as Jews, Christians, and Muslims who migrated to the Malabar Coast from the West in earlier centuries.3 The man.igra-mam, which was a descendant group of traders from Van. ika-gra- ma in Kaverippumpattinam according to Champakalakshmi, appeared in Kerala and Tamil Nadu inscriptions in the ninth century and after. The appearance of ainu-r-r-uvar as the merchant guild in the ninth-century Aihole inscriptions is doubtful, and many inscriptions referring to it are found from the tenth-century in Tamil Nadu. This guild increased its power gradually with the advance of time, and from the twelfth century both añjuvan.n.am and man.igra-mam seem to have become incorporated into the organization of ainu-r-r-uvar. If we take the chronological and topographical distributions of the inscriptions referring to these guilds, including their synonymous names, we see the following: The first thing we notice from the topographical distribution shown in this table is the fact that we have a good number of inscriptions in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka compared with other areas, although we have a certain number in Andhra Pradesh in the areas other than Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The four inscriptions in Southeast Asia come from Indonesia (Sumatra), Thailand, and Myanmar. As for the chronological distribution, we notice that there is concentration in the period from the eleventh to thirteenth centuries, the largest number belonging to the thirteenth century. The chronological tendency seen in Karnataka is rather parallel to the tendency

c

137

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

TABLE 8.1

Chronological and Topographical Distribution of Merchant Guild Inscriptions

Year

AP*

800–900 901–1000 1001–1100 1101–1200 1201–1300 1301–1400 1401–1600 Undated Total

5 6 9 6 9 35

KL*

KN* MH*

1 2 3 0 2 0 0 0

2 1 24 56 33 8 6 2

8

132

0 2

2

TN*

SL* SEA* Total

1 24 18 12 46 11 5 1

1 11 1 2

118

15

1 0 1 2

4

5 27 52 87 93 27 20 3 314

Note: AP = Andhra Pradesh, KL = Kerala, KN = Karnataka, MH = Maharashtra, TN = Tamil Nadu, SL = Sri Lanka, SEA = Southeast Asia

Source: AMCAIO, p. 5.

found for all the inscriptions, but the tendency in Tamil Nadu is somewhat different, showing a decrease in number in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. This point will be discussed later. We shall now examine the inscriptions which refer to these merchant guilds in order to know their organization and activities. However, as the ainu-r-r-uvar was the most important guild among them, as stated above, and as it had the largest number of inscriptions which afford information on structure, activity, and history of the guild, the inscriptions we are going to examine in the following section will be mostly those of the ainu-r-r-uvar. CONTENTS OF THE MERCHANT GUILD INSCRIPTIONS

As for the contents of the inscriptions, the majority records the donation to the temple by some individual merchant belonging to these guilds. For example, a Konerirajapuram inscription (SII, xix, 280: Tj, TN) records that Venkadan Singam alias Disai-ayirattu-ainurruvan granted land to a temple for burning a perpetual lamp. However, some inscriptions record the protection of tank, temple, etc. to be ensured by the members of these merchant guilds. The Takua Pa inscription in the Malay Peninsula (AMCAIO, p. 11) records that man.igra-mam and se-na-mugam4 were asked to protect the tank named Sri-(avani)naranam. Some other inscriptions refer to the temple or tank which were constructed and named after a merchant guild. For example,

138

Noboru Kar

ashima

the Pagan inscription in Myanmar (AMCAIO, p. 15) refers to a temple na-na-de-si-vin.n.agar, and a Munisandai inscription (IPS, 61: Pd, TN) refers to the tank called aiññu-r-r-va-pe-re-ri . However, the inscriptions important for our understanding of the organization of merchant guilds are the ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions recording some decisions made by a large number of the guild members at their assembly meeting. We can distinguish between two types in these assembly meeting inscriptions. One type can be called er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam inscriptions which record the decision of merchants to confer the name of er-ivı- rapat..tinam, meaning “the town of the brave soldiers”, on the town in which the merchants as well as the soldiers live. The other is the type called pat.t.ana-pagudi inscriptions, which record the merchants’ decision to share the contribution to the temple for its festival, repairing, etc. from the profit of their trade. We shall now see the contents of these two types of inscriptions. Er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam has been interpreted variously by different scholars in past studies, for example as “mercantile town” by T.N. Subramanian; “fortified mart” by Venkatarama Ayyar; or “market-towns protected by er-ivı- rar (warriors)” by K. Indrapala. Hall takes it as an emporium established in some remote area assuming a commercial stance between the nagarams and the pat..tinams. Champakalakshmi regards it as a privileged town which has protected warehouses for itinerant merchants. Though these interpretations, especially that by Indrapala, cannot be rejected categorically, a somewhat different idea is obtainable from a comparative study of inscriptions of Tamil Nadu and of Sri Lanka, including the recently discovered inscriptions of Samuttirapatti, Viharehinna, and Budumuttawa. The new interpretation to be proposed here is also applicable to many other inscriptions referring to er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam in Tamil Nadu and even those in Karnataka. The Samuttirapatti inscription (Avanam 2-2, 3: Md, TN, 1050) tells us that the merchants of ainu-r-r-uvar conferred the name of er-ivı- ra-pat.t.inam on the town where they (together with vı-rakkod.iyar, brave soldiers) live, granting some privileges to vı-rakkod.iyar in appreciation of the brave deed they had done for them. Vı-rakkod. iyar, who were thus honoured seemed to have won in the fighting against other merchants who were antagonistic to the ainu-r-r-uvar merchants of this town and rescued three important ainu-r-r-uvar members. The Viharehinna inscription (AMCAIO, pp. 32–34: SL, c.1150), based on the estampage taken afresh, records that vı-rar (soldiers) together with na-t..tu-chet.t.iya-r reciprocated the honour given to them by the merchants of the town by relinquishing some income which they were entitled to take from the people of the town. The honour is stated to have been the conferment of the name of er- ivı-ra-pat..tinam on the town where they lived and the indemnity

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

139

money that the merchants paid to release a vı-rar who had been put into jail by the local ruler. The new interpretation, therefore, is that er-ivı- ra-pat.t.inam was the name of the town conferred by the merchants of ainu-r-r-uvar on it in appreciation of the brave deed done for them by soldiers such as vı-rar and vı-rakkod. iyar, whom the ainu-r-r-uvar merchants usually affectionately called “our sons” ( nam makkal. ). It is not necessary to take it as a town restricted to some remote area, or as the town which had the protected warehouse, though further studies will be desired on these points. All the er-ivı-ra-pat.t.inam inscriptions come from the eleventh and twelfth centuries, suggesting some circumstances in which the importance of the soldiers who guarded the merchants increased greatly. Further studies will be necessary on this point too. The inscriptions which record pat..tana-pagudi grant in Tamil Nadu are found mostly in the thirteenth century, though we find the inscriptions of this type in Karnataka for all the centuries after the eleventh century. Pat.t.anapagudi in Tamil means “share” or “part” (pagudi ) of the town (pat..tanam) and sometimes the share was called magamai in inscriptions. In Kannada inscriptions the term dharma-yam is used for this shared contribution. This type of inscriptions is more in number than the Er-ivı- ra-pat..tinam type inscriptions, and good examples of the inscriptions in Tamil Nadu are those of Sarkar Periyapalaiyam, Piranmalai, and Kovilpatti. The Kovilpatti inscription ( AMCAIO, pp. 281–82: Tp, TN, 1305) states, after the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy given in the beginning, that the Ainu- r-r-uvar members (the two groups of) na-.t.tuchchet.t.igal. and tal. achchet.t.igal. , and (another two groups of) mun-ai and mun-aivı-rakkod.iyar, who were called “our sons” (nammakkal. ), and the members of chitrame--l i-periyana-d.u , who were righteous and kind, assembled at the grove named Achchakkandaka in a Siva temple in Vadadaliyur and decided unanimously the following charity (money contribution in the form of pat..tana-pagudi) for the deity. After this, it further states that the charity thus agreed will actually be made by the members of the four specified nagarams in the area and stipulates the way of sharing the contribution. As chet..ti was a title given to merchants, na-.t.tu-chet..tigal. and tal. a-chet..tigal. are supposed to have been groups of merchants, but actually they seem to have been soldiers who guarded the ainu-r-r-uvar merchants. Mun-ai and mun-ai-vı-rakkod.iyar were definitely groups of soldiers who were regarded lower than merchants, as indicated by the words “our sons”. However, these four groups also composed the ainu- r-r-uvar organization, and we shall examine later the groups which composed the ainu-r-r-uvar in more detail later. Chitrame-l. i-periyanad.u is the organization composed of peasant groups, often

140

Noboru Kar

ashima

together with some groups of artisans and servicing-castes.5 They were not the regular component groups of the ainu-r-r-uvar organization, but joined in this assembly. This inscription is remarkable in revealing the fact that this charity to a Siva temple, which was decided by the ainu-r-r-uvar, was actually to be made by the members of the nagaram of the four towns in the same val. ana-d.u where the temple existed. Though we do not know whether the members of the ainu-r-r-uvar and those of the nagaram were the same or not, the decision made by the ainu-r-r-uvar was to be carried out by the members of the nagaram, which were the more locality-oriented organizations. The Sarkar Periyapalaiyam inscription (Avanam 6-12: Cb, TN, 1289) records that the members of ainu-r-r-uvar and padin-en.-vishayam, including chet.t.i, chet.t.i-vı-raputtirargal. , malaiman.d.alattu-pala- nagaran.gal. , who met in the precincts of a Siva temple as the assembly of the ainu-r-r-uvar ( ainu-r-r-uvan-- peruniravi) and also as the assembly of the padin-en.-vishayam ( padin-en.-vishayam-peruniravi), decided the charity together with the groups called na-t.t.u-chet.t.i, tal. am-chet.t.igal. , arupattuna-n-gu-mun-ai, and mun-aivı-rakkod.iyar. The charity (pat..tana-pagudi contribution) is stated for the purpose of conducting a festival in a Siva temple in a village in Virachola-valanadu. Chet..ti is one of the most important merchant groups. Chet.t.i-vı-raputtirargal. coming in the second position is often represented by chet.t.i-puttiraI in other inscriptions and seems to be another merchant group. Na-.tt.u-chet..ti, tal. amchet..tigal. , arupattuna-n-gu-mun.ai and mun.ai-vı-rakod.iyar were all soldiers’ groups. Malaiman.d.alattu-pala-nagaran.gal. were the nagarams in the Malai-mandalam (Kerala) and not specified as the nagaram of some town, unlike the Kovilpatti inscription seen above. But in this locality (Virachola-valanadu), which is close to Kerala, there must have been many Kerala merchants carrying on trade in horses and others. In this case, therefore, the actual contribution must have been made by all the merchants who lived in this locality. The way of sharing the contribution is usually stipulated on the basis of the traded commodity and that of the Kovilpatti inscription is as shown in Table 8.2. There are some inscriptions which enumerate more commodities than on this list, such as the Belur inscription ( EC (n.s.) ix, Bl-171; Hs, KN, 1382), which gives sixty-two names, and the commodities appearing in more than ten inscriptions are the following eleven items: pepper, areca nuts, betel leaf, oil, paddy, rice, grains, salt, sandal, cotton threads, and cloth. Among these commodities, in addition to the precious commodities such as spices and big animals, there are a variety of products required for daily consumption such as salt, rice and areca nuts, reflecting the participation in the big assembly by many local merchants organized as nagaram. The appearance of

c

141

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

TABLE 8.2

Pat.t.ana-pagudi

Sharing in

Terms

of Commodities

Commodities 1 big bag of pepper 1 big bag of areca nuts 1 bale of cloth … 1 horse 1 camel 1 bag of medicine 1 head pack of incense, yak hair, sandal paste, camphor and other imported goods 1 domestic quadruped like cow, bull, calf and buffalo 1 big bag of silk cloth, rhinoceros horn, peruku, musk, iron bar and other big goods 1 big bag of paddy 1 big bag of grains, straw, dry grains like wheat, beans, half beans, mustard, and ve… 1 big bag of tamarind 1 head pack of herb, cinnamon, garland, conch, ivory, … 1 big bag of rice 1 cart load of salt, tamarind, paddy, and others brought by a bullock cart The other commodities

Contribution in pan.am 3/20 2/20 6/20 — 1 1/2 1 + 1/2 1 1 + 1/40 1 + 1/40 1/40 1/20 1/20 1 + 1/40 1/20 1/8 Decision on spot

Source: Kovilpatti Inscription.

cloth, oil, and iron-bar in the list of commodities and frequent reference to them indicate the development of those industries, namely weaving, oilpressing, and iron-smithy in South India during the period from the twelfth to fourteenth centuries, which is also attested to by an analysis of tax terms appearing in inscriptions of the period.6 In the chronological distribution of pat..tana-pagudi inscriptions there is again a difference between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. While the thirty-five pat..tana-pagudi inscriptions of Tamil Nadu are concentrated in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the fifty-three Karnataka inscriptions appear in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Though the number is lower, pat..tana-pagudi inscriptions in Andhra Pradesh are distributed rather evenly over the period in and after the twelfth century. In the case of Kerala and Sri Lanka, such inscriptions are rarely encountered.7

142

Noboru Kar

EULOGY

ashima

–

OF AINURRUVAR

––

We shall now examine the origin of the ainu-r-r-uvar merchant guild. Most of the ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions, both of the er-ivı- ra-pat..tinam and pat..tana-pagudi types, that record the decision made by a number of groups of merchants in an assembly, have the eulogy (prasasti) of Ainu-r-r-uvar in the initial part, such as the king’s eulogy which is usually given in the beginning. The earliest eulogy of ainu-r-r-uvar so far discovered in Tamil Nadu is recorded in the Kamudi inscription (AMCAIO, pp. 228–29; Rm, TN, middle of the tenth century) and that in Karnataka is in the Bedkihal inscription (AMCAIO, pp. 229–30; Bj, KN, c.1000). Strangely, however, they already show a somewhat mature stage of eulogy formation, being long enough to accommodate mythological explanations too. The eulogy of the Kamudi inscription — which is surely the eulogy to the ainu-r-r-uvar though this damaged inscription does not mention the name of ainu-r-r-uvar — states that they possessed 500 charters called vı-ra sa-sanam, they had Lakshmi on their chest, they were descendants of Vasudeva, Kandali and Mulabhadra,8 and sons of Paramesvari,9 and transacted in eighteen pat..tanam, thirty-two ve-.lapuram , 64 kad.igaita-val.am (these three places will be explained later). After this, it enumerates the groups which actually formed together the ainu-r-r-uvar organization, starting from chet..ti and ending with vı-rar, including ga-mud.asva- mi in between. The eulogy of the Bedkihal inscription states that they possessed 500 charters called vı-ra sa-sana, were brave, observed the dharma of the viravalam.ja, were descendants of Vasudeva, Kandali and Mulabhadra, possessed boons granted by Bhagavati, were lords (Paramesvarar) of Aiyavole, they transact in eighteen pat. t.anam , thirty-two ve-lavula and sixty-four ghat.ika-stha- nam (that is, kadigaita- val.am). After this the groups which composed the ainu- r-r-uvar are enumerated starting from set.t.igutta, ga- mun.d.asa-mi , bı-ran-, amkaka- ran and ba-rikan (same as va-riyan). Through the examination of eulogies of ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions, starting from Kamudi and Bedkihal ones, we may be able to summarize the important matters given in the eulogy as follows: (1) the charter they had, in which their rights and duties were supposed to have been described, (2) the dharma they practised as merchants ( val.añjayar) such as honesty and bravery, (3) their lineage from the three gods, Vasudeva, Kandali and Mulabhadra, (4) their close relation with Aihole through its deity Parames´vari (Durga), (5) the wide area represented by eighteen pat..tanam, thirty-two ve-.la- puram, and sixty-four kad.igai-ta-val.am, where their activities were conducted, and (6) their hill banner.

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

143

From the summary of the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy above, and also from the regulation of charity contributions to be made by its members stipulated in pat..tana-pagudi inscriptions, we may regard the ainu-r-r-uvar as a merchant guild, though it seems to have functioned as an organization overarching various merchant groups under its banner. Its activities were stated to cover a wide area, and of the “18 pat..tanam, 32 ve-l.a-puram, and 64 kad.igai-ta- val.am”, pat.t.anam is a port or commercial town such as Nagapattinam and Krishnapattinam. Ve-l.apuram seems to have meant the harbour area of the port, and kad.igai-ta-val.am seems to have been a market in the citadel of the town (pat..tanam), and the numbers, 18, 32, and 64, are all fictitious, just meaning, many. The Barus inscription discovered in northwest of Sumatra, Indonesia, supports this statement in the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy, as the ainu-r-r-uvar merchants met at ve-.la-puram in Va-ro-su (Barus) alias Ma-tan.garivallava-de-si-uyyakkon.d.a-pat.t.minam.10 According to the eulogy, the origin of the Ainu- r-r-uvar is linked to Aiyavole, the present Aihole in Karnataka, but it is strange that the activities of this merchant guild become conspicuous in Tamil Nadu earlier than in Karnataka, namely in the tenth century. The earliest eulogy also comes from Tamil Nadu, notwithstanding their obvious Karnataka connection as suggested in the eulogy. Though the eulogy of the Kamudi inscription does not mention Aihole, the inclusion of ga-mun.d.asva- mi among the associated groups clearly indicates its relation with Karnataka. Another puzzle is found in Aihole itself. An inscription of the Gaudaragudi temple and another in the Lad Khan temple, both in Aihole and ascribable to the end of the eighth century, are the first inscriptions which refer to the term ainu--ru (five hundred), but it is associated only with Brahmins ( maha- janas or chaturve-dins) and not with merchants. In Aihole there remain a few more inscriptions of the twelfth century which mention ainu--r u, but in them also the term refers only to the five-hundred Brahmin organization. The eulogy of ainu-r-r-uvar began to appear in Tamil Nadu from the middle of the tenth century, and in Karnataka probably a little later, showing somewhat maturity in their development as eulogy. The people who claimed their association with it were definitely merchants who were composed of various communities of the locality. Though Brahmins in Aiyavole might have initiated the forming of a merchant guild and taken leadership in commercial activities, their actual relation with the later ainu-r-r-uvar organization composed of various communities remains enigmatic at present.

144

Noboru Kar

ashima

– AINU R –R –UVAR We shall examine here the groups which composed the ainu-r-r-uvar organization. As already seen, the eulogy often refers to, besides ainu-r-r-uvar, various groups COMPONENT GROUPS OF

of merchants and people of other professions as the component groups of the guild. Even if those groups are not included in the eulogy, they appear in the subsequent part of the inscription and in some cases they are the people who convened the assembly. Unlike the king’s eulogy, however, it is rather difficult to separate the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy from the part in which the convening groups appeared often together with some other groups which joined in the assembly. Some examples are as follows: The Viharehinna inscription in Sri Lanka, which records the conferment of the name er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam, gives the following groups in the eulogy.

taval.attu-chet..ti (merchants in the locality) chet..ti-puttiran- (merchants) kavar-ai (merchants) ka-triban- (betel leaf dealers) ka-mun.d.a-sva-mi (chief landlords) o-.tt.an- (messenger) ul.pasumbaikka-r- an- (merchants carrying bag) an.gaka--ran- (soldiers) a-van.aka-r- an- (shop keepers) pa-va-d.ai-vı-ran- (soldiers with honour) After this, it gives the names of the following two groups.

padin-en.bu-mi-vı-rar (soldiers) na-.tt.u-chet..ti (merchants/soldiers) Actually the last but one group ( padin-en.bu-mi-vı-rar) was the chief figure who convened the assembly and spoke in this inscription in the first person plural. What they decided in the assembly is as follows. In appreciation of the honour which the merchant organization (vı-raval.añjeyar , that is, ainu-r-r-uvar) gave them, namely, the conferment of the name of er-ivı- ra-pat..tinam on the town, they decided to reciprocate it by relinquishing some dues they are entitled to take in the town, together with the na-t..tu-cet.t.i, whom they regard as their brothers. In this inscription the word ainu-r-r-uvar does not appear as a group. Instead, the word vı-raval. añjeyar appears in the portion where ainu-r-r-uvar is usually found in the eulogy of ainu-r-r-uvar, which indicates that vı-ravalañjeyar was synonymous with ainu-r-r-uvar.

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

145

The Sarkar Periyapalaiyam inscription, which is an example of Pat.t.ana-

pagudi inscriptions, gives the name of the following groups.

chet..ti (merchants) chet..ti-vı-raputtirargal. (merchants) malaiman.d.alattu pala nagarangal. (several nagarams of Malaiman.d.alam or Kerala)

They are summed up at the end of this enumeration as ainu-r-r-uvar who met as the assembly (peruniravi) of padin-en.-vishayatta-r and also as that of ainu-r-r-uvar. Following this, however, four more groups are enumerated as having joined that assembly. They are:

na-.t.tu-chet..ti (merchants/soldiers) tal.am-chet..tigal. (merchants/soldiers in the locality) ar-upattuna-gu-mun-ai (soldiers called 64) mun-ai-vı-rakkod.iyar (soldiers) The latter two are grouped as nammakkal. (our sons) indicating clearly their subordinate status, though all the four seemed to have been lower in their status than those enumerated before them. As an example of the Karnataka inscriptions, the Bedkihal inscription, which records the honour given by merchants to a warrior who killed the enemies of the merchants,11 enumerates the groups as follows.

emt.una-d.a padinar- uvar (the sixteen of the eight na-d.us) ainu-r-bba sva-migal.u (the five hundred leaders) set..tiguttaru (merchants) ga-vun.d.a sa-mi (headman among landholders) bı-ran (the brave man) amkagaka-r-ar (fighters) ba-rikan (writers) This enumeration is given at the end of the inscription and makes emt.una-.ta padinar-uvar representative of the groups which follow it by inserting a word a-giya (as) in between emt.una-t.a padinar-uvar and other groups. From the examination of the groups appearing in er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam- and pat..tana-pagudi-type inscriptions of various regions, we may be able to classify the groups into eight categories. With some examples for each category, they are as follows.

146

Noboru Kar

ashima

(1) Organizations or groups of big merchants gavar-e (merchant) nakhara/nagara (townsmen) set..ti (chet.t.i) (merchant) set..ti-guttaru (merchant) bal.añja/ban.añjika/val.añjiya (merchant) emt.una-.ta padinar- uvaru (the sixteen of the eight na-d.us) (2) Local organizations of leading landholders ga-mun.d.a-sva-mi (headman among landholders) chitrame--li-periyana-d.u (the big assembly of peasants) (3) Groups of merchants dealing with specific merchandise or running a shop ga-ttrigaru (betel-leaf merchants) a-van.akka-r-ar (shopkeeper) (4) Merchants-cum-soldiers na-.tt.u-chet..ti (the set..ti of the locality) bı-ra-van.igaru (soldier merchants) (5) Soldiers who guard merchants vı-rar (the brave men) vı-rakkod.iya-r (those of the victorious banner) mun-ai/mun-ai-vı-rar (the brave men of the battlefield) (6) Organization of foreign merchants añjuvan.n.am (the guild of foreign/Muslim merchants) parade-si (foreign merchant) (7) Some other professional groups akkasa-le- (goldsmith) ba-rika (va-riyan-) (writer) (8) Servant groups

pan.iche(cha)y-makkal. (servant groups) kalan-ai (servant groups)

From the above, it is clear that in the assembly of the ainu-r-r-uvar, often called peruniravi or samayam (big assembly), various groups other than merchant

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

147

groups joined in, including those of landholders, artisans, and other professions. This tendency is conspicuous in the assembly held for the purpose of contributing to a temple, reflecting all the people’s concern about temple affairs of the locality. For that, the cooperation of chitrame-l-i-periyana-t..tar or ga-mun.d.a-sva-migal. would have been very important. In some inscriptions the . . participation valangai and id.angai groups is also recorded. They were the organizations of low-caste groups composed of artisans and servicing-castes and arranged horizontally in the two groups of the right hand (valan. gai) and the left hand ( id.an.gai).12 Another group which was important for the ainu-r-r-uvar organization were the groups of soldiers. As wealthy itinerant merchants, members of the ainu-r-r-uvar had to carry their precious merchandise to various countries, even across the ocean, and therefore, needed soldiers to guard them and their merchandise. Even among the soldiers there were different groups and the frequently referred-to groups are na-t..tu-chet.t.i (cet.t.i of the locality), vı-rar (the brave men), vı-ra-kod.iyar (those of the victorious banner), or mun-ai (fighters?). The last three groups often appear under the name nammakkal. (our sons) after the enumeration of merchant groups, reflecting their lower position than merchants. However, the position of na-.tt.u-chet..ti (and also tal.a-chet.t.i) seems to have been ambivalent, as they appear sometimes among merchant groups and at some other times among nammakkal. groups. Er-ivı- ra-pat.t.inam inscriptions describe the brave fights of these soldiers to protect their merchants who were supposed to be their “fathers”. Thus, the ainu-r-r-uvar organization includes various groups, but the most important group were certainly the merchant groups. The frequently appearing groups among them were chet..ti (set..ti), chet.t.i-puttiran- (set.t.i-guttaru), kavarai (gavare), nagaram (nagara), and en..tuna-d.u- padinaruvaru. Chet.t.i (set..ti) was the title given to important merchants in those days and the people having this title seemed to have taken leadership in the activity of the merchant guilds. The last group, en..tuna- d.u -padinaruvaru, meaning “the sixteen of the eight na- du” is seen only in Karnataka, but it is not clear what sort of organization it was. In the case of a nagaram associated with some locality, it was an organization composed in itself of various merchant groups, though there were also other nagarams, each of which was composed of dealers in some specific merchandise.13 Usually some of these particular merchant groups were responsible for convening the pat.t.ana-pagudi assembly in the name of the ainu-r-r-uvar, but the er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam assembly seems to have often been convened by some of the soldier groups who were honoured by the ainu-r-r-uvar merchants. The name er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam conferred on the town must have been more important for

148

Noboru Kar

ashima

the soldiers and merchants, although other groups also joined in the assembly as known from the Viharehinna inscription. Merchant organizations other than ainu-r-r-uvar, such as man.igra-mam, añjuvan.n.am and parade- si, were also seen in inscriptions often joining in pat..tan.a-pagudi assembly; they seem to have been incorporated into the ainu-r-r-uvar organization since the twelfth century. Añjuvan.n.am and parade- si were the organizations of foreign merchants, as stated earlier. The Tittandatanapuram inscription (AMCAIO, p. 269: Rm, TN, 1269), which mentions both añjuvan.n.am-man.igra-mam and padin-en.-vishayam in the first person plural in the beginning, refers later only to añjuvan.n.am-man.igra-mam in the first person plural as the body that made the resolution in the assembly. This case seems to indicate that the añjuvan.n.am-man.igra-mam, which were two independent merchant guilds earlier, had already been incorporated into the padin-en.-vishayam (the ainu-r-r-uvar) organization, though they took the initiative in the local ainu-r-r-uvar assembly. The names of padin-en.-vishayam, padinen.-bu-mi and na-na-de-si are also often referred to in inscriptions in relation to the assembly together with the name of ainu-r-r-uvar or sometimes independently. However, they seem to have been used synonymously with ainu-r-r-uvar. First of all, these terms appear in the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy itself as an adjective qualifying ainu-r-r-uvar, indicating that the activities of ainu-r-r-uvar were carried out in a wide area such as the eighteen countries (padin-en.-vishayam or padin-en.-bu-mi) or various regions (nana-de-si). Therefore, the usage of these terms (in the form of “we the people of such and such, for an example, padin-en.-vishayam) as a synonym of ainu-r-r-uvar is quite natural and understandable. They are often used either together with ainu-r-r-uvar to augment the meaning, or independently instead of ainu-r-r-uvar, showing the people’s preference for it. In the case of the Piranmalai inscription (SII , viii, 442: Rm, TN, c.1300), after the eulogy of ainu-r-r-uvar and enumeration of a certain number of groups, the names of padin-en.-vishayam and ainu-r-r-uvar are given together in the first person plural, and at the end of the inscription it is stated that a temple accountant wrote this document by the order of padin-en.-vishayam. There is no reason in this inscription for us to regard them as two different organizations. The Sarkar Periyapalayam inscription also describes the big assembly as those of padin-en.-vishayam and ainu-r-r-uvar using the first person plural for both, and it is difficult to regard these two as two independent organizations. In the signatory section of this inscription, only the expression “we of the padin-en.-vishayam big assembly” appears, omitting “the ainu-r-r-uvar big assembly”.

c

149

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

In the Baligami inscription na- na-de- si-byavaha-rigal. (merchants of nana- de- si) appears in the beginning together with mummur- i-dan.d. a

(the convening group of the assembly), but in the following portion only ainu-r-r-uvar appears as the prominent figure. Since the real initiative seems to have been taken by mummur-i-dan.d.a in the transaction in this inscription, we have to say that na-na-de- si-byavaha-ri in the beginning is the same as ainu-r-r-uvar. In the Terdal inscription, ainu-r-r-uvar appearing in the beginning of the eulogy is replaced afterwards by na-na-de-si just before the enumeration of the groups starting with gavar-e, which clearly indicates these two are synonymous in this inscription. From a Kurugodu (Bellary District) inscription which mentions merchants belonging to the na-na-de- si of la-t.a (Gujarat), cho-l- a (Tamil Nadu), maleya-.la (Kerala), telun.ga (Andhra) and karna-t.a (Karnataka), it may be understood that na-na-de- si usually denoted a wide area and not a local organization. We may say that ainu-r-r-uvar, padin-en.-vishayattar, padinen.-bu-mi and nanade- si are all synonymous, and the choice of the term seems to have been left to the people concerned. People often preferred the word na-na-de-si or padin-en.-vishayam to indicate the wider area of their activity, though they retained and gave the first place to the term ainu-r-r-uvar in the eulogy.

HISTORICAL

ANALYSIS

We shall now discuss the relations between the merchant guilds and the state and by doing so try to give a historical perspective to the merchant activities organized in guilds in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia during the period from the tenth to the fourteenth centuries. The activity of añjuvan.n.am and man.igra-mam is conspicuous in the Kerala inscriptions, though their numbers are small. The Kollam copper plate inscription of Sthanu Ravi (late ninth century) records the grant of land and labourers to a Christian church (pal.l.i) in Kollam and the entrustment of its maintenance to añjuvan.n.am and man.igra-mam. The Kochi copper plates of Bhaskara Ravivarman (early eleventh century) record the grant of the title añjuvan.n.am and privileges in trade to Joseph Rabban, a Jew in Muyirikkodu,14 and the Kottayam plates of Vira-Raghava (thirteenth century) record the grant of the title man.igra-mam and privileges to Ravikkorran, a merchant in Magodaiyapattinam (modern Kodungallur). A noteworthy point of these Kerala inscriptions is the close relation which these guilds, añjuvan.n.am and man.igra-mam, had with the king or local chiefs. Though a similar relationship is also seen in the inscriptions of Andhra

150

Noboru Kar

ashima

Pradesh recording the king’s or chief’s assurance of fair treatment of merchants who come to the port,15 merchant guilds in Tamil Nadu in and after the twelfth century, in contrast, seem to have kept their independence from the political power to a certain extent. Most of the later ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions in Tamil Nadu do not mention any reigning king, while most other inscriptions do. This difference deserves further study. In Vishakapatnam we have three inscriptions which refer to members of añjuvan.n.am. Two of them in duplicate, one in Telugu ( SII, x, 651) and another in Tamil (SII , xxvi, 103), dated in 1090, refer to a member of añjuvan.n.am who, coming from Matottam (Mantai) in Sri Lanka, was given by the nagaram of Vishakapattanam and the ruling king some tax concession for the maintenance of a pal..li (most probably mosque). The pal.l.i has the name of ainu-r-r-uvar as its component.16 The second inscription (SII, x, 211) in Telugu and datable between 1200 and 1207 mentions a similar tax concession by the local chief to another member of añjuvan.n.am from Pa-s´ay (probably Pasai on northern coast of Sumatra) for the same pal.l.i. These inscriptions testify to the activity of the añjuvan.n.am in Andhra coast, Sri Lanka, and Southeast Asia, in close relation with ainu-r-r-uvar. The definition of man.igra-mam is more difficult, but it seems to have been a specified or closed organization whose activities were carried out basically in Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the ninth and tenth centuries, though in the later centuries, we have references to it in a few inscriptions, such as those of Kovilpatti (1305) and Piranmalai (c.1300). In the former, the accountant who signed the document of the assembly is stated to be the accountant of Kodumbalur man.igra-mam nagaram. This Kodumbalur man.igra-mam nagaram is included in the eleven nagarams enumerated in the Piranmalai inscription as the body which participated in the big assembly. Kodumbalur is supposed to have been the centre of this organization. Though it had already been incorporated in the ainu-r-r-uvar organization in the thirteenth century, as indicated by the Tittandatanapuram inscription examined above, the name man.igra-mam was retained by the Kodumbalur nagaram even in the fourteenth century. A remarkable point revealed in the chronological and topographical distribution table (Table 8.1) given at the beginning of this article is the decrease in the number of guild inscriptions in Tamil Nadu during the eleventh and twelfth centuries in contrast to their increase in Karnataka during the same period. The eleventh and twelfth centuries were the heyday of the Chola state in Tamil Nadu, when envoys were sent to China three times and maritime expeditions were conducted twice to the Malay Peninsula. The heyday of the Chalukyas in Karnataka also coincided with this, including

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

151

the long and peaceful reign of Vikramaditya VI, which sets a question, why decrease in one place and increase in the other? Does it reflect the difference in state policies towards commerce? Although we may not be able to give a full answer to this question, we shall discuss this point to some extent here. If we examine the numbers in Table 8.1 in more detail17 we can see that while for the tenth-century Karnataka has only one ainu-r-r-uvar inscription, Tamil Nadu has twenty-four of them for the same century, which together with the earlier appearance of the ainu-r-r-uvar eulogy in Tamil Nadu indicates that the activity of ainu-r-r-uvar started earlier in Tamil Nadu. Though in the eleventh century, Karnataka shows a rapid increase in ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions amounting to twenty-five, the first half of that century has only three ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions. Moreover, all the three come from the Mysore area, which was invaded and occupied by the Chola army during that period and are dated by the regnal year of Rajendra I and Rajadhiraja I. Two of them were actually written in Tamil. Ainu-r-r-uvar’s Tamil Nadu connection is suggested by this also. However, another important point, more important for the present discussion, emerging from the above, is the close relation that ainu-r-r-uvar had with the Chola state. It seems that merchants followed the Chola army to southern Karnataka and established the bases of their activity in the area occupied by the army. We can detect the same tendency in Sri Lanka too. In Vakalkada and Padaviya, occupied by the Cholas in northern Sri Lanka in the first half of the eleventh century, there are ainu-r-r-uvar inscriptions,18 though they do not refer to the reigning Chola king. During the tenth century in Tamil Nadu, nagarams were placed under the strict vigilance of the state,19 and the Chola kings of the middle period tried to control the activity of merchants to gain more profit from trade, especially from foreign trade. The purpose of the expeditions to the Malay Peninsula conducted by Rajendra I and Virarajendra must have been to gain hegemony over the maritime trade between the West and East. According to Songshi, the annals of the Song dynasty in China, the mission sent to the Chinese court by Rajaraja I was composed of fifty-two members. 20 Most of them, excluding some officers such as ambassadors and guards, must have been merchants organized in ainu-r-r-uvar guild. This close relation between the merchants and the state may explain the decreasing tendency of the merchant-guild inscriptions in Tamil Nadu during the eleventh and twelfth centuries. They had to conduct their activity under state control and seem to have had fewer opportunities for having their own assembly for charity and other purposes. Moreover, during the heyday of the Chola state, the state itself afforded generous aid to temples for their construction, worship

152

Noboru Kar

ashima

service, and repair. The sudden increase of pat..tana-pagudi inscriptions in the thirteenth century in Tamil Nadu is explained by the loss of state support to temples when the state power waned during that century. Therefore, the powerful local organizations had to support the temples in their locality.21 The Chola state collapsed around 1279. The above conjecture, however, does not explain the reason for the concentration of the merchant-guild inscriptions in Karnataka in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, which urges us to make similar studies of Kannada inscriptions. Another point, namely the independent feature of ainu-r-r-uvar in Tamil Nadu seen in their later inscriptions, which made no reference to the reigning king, may be explained to some extent in the following way. Though the origin of ainu-r-r-uvar can be traced back to the tenth century or even earlier, ainu-r-r-uvar seems to have changed its character in the twelfth century and later when the Chola state power began to decline. The ainu-r-r-uvar began to hold its assembly from the twelfth century together with chitrame--li-periyana-d.u (the peasant organization often led by ex. . hill-tribes who became landlords) or valangai/ian gai (low-caste groups composed of artisans and servicing-castes arranged horizontally in two groups of the right hand and the left hand).22 These two organizations gained power from the twelfth century and led the protest movement against the established social order which had been cultivated and protected by Brahmins and Vellalas who composed the upper stratum of the Chola state.23 The participation of ainu-r-r-uvar in this protest movement must have given it the characteristic of political independence from the state. As for the concentration of er-ivı-ra-pat..tinam inscriptions in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, we may relate it to the abandonment of the expansionist policy and the disassembly of the Chola army after its retreat from Sri Lanka in the middle of the eleventh century,24 but in other cases further studies are necessary to find the reason. The last, but not the least, important point is the fact that the activity of merchant guilds ceased practically in the fifteenth century, though a number of their inscriptions remain from the later centuries. It was the beginning of the fourteenth century that the armies of Delhi Sultans invaded South India, terminating the rules of the Sevunas, Kakatiyas, and Pandyas successively. Afterwards the Vijayanagar army advanced into Tamil Nadu from Karnataka where they had established a kingdom, and after a period of misery caused to the people by the exploitative nature of the invading armies, the Vijayanagar rule was well established in Tamil Nadu by the end of the fifteenth century. Na- yakas newly appointed by the kings for local administration about that time and afterwards encouraged commerce and industry in their territories.25

c

153

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

In the beginning of the fifteenth century in the Indian Ocean, Zheng He, a Chinese naval general, conducted his maritime expeditions seven times, accompanying a large fleet of big Chinese junks laden with tremendous amount of precious goods and many soldiers. At the end of the fifteenth century, by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope, Vasco da Gama arrived in Kozhikode (Kapad), heralding the coming of numerous European merchants in the next century and afterwards. At present, however, we are not able to say how these factors were related — if related at all — to the decline of the activity of merchant guilds in South India and Sri Lanka in and after the fifteenth century.26 We need further studies on this point too.

EXPLANATION Abbreviations

FOR

ABBREVIATIONS

for Publications

AMCAIO = Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds, by Noboru Karashima, ed. (Chennai: Taisho University, 2002).

ARE = Annual Report on (South) Indian Epigraphy (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, since 1887).

EC (n.s.) = Epigraphia Carnatica, New Series (Mysore: University of Mysore, since 1972). EI = Epigraphia Indica (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, since 1892). IPS = Inscriptions (Texts) of the Pudukkottai State Arranged According to the Dynasties, anon. (Pudukkottai, 1929).

SII = South Indian Inscriptions (New Delhi: Archaeological Survey of India, 1890).

Abbreviations for Nations, States Tamil Nadu and Karnataka SL AP KL KN MH TN

= = = = = =

Sri Lanka Andhra Pradesh Kerala Karnataka Maharashtra Tamil Nadu

Bl Cb Cg Ct Hs

= = = = =

Belur Coimbatore Chingleput Chittoor Hassan

and Districts (Old) in

154

NA Nl Pd Rm SA Sl Tj Tn Tp

Noboru Kar

= = = = = = = = =

ashima

North Arcot Nellore Pudukkottai Ramanathapuram South Arcot Salem Thanjavur Tirunelveli Tiruchirapalli.

Notes 1. During the last five years a few more have been reported in some journals such as Avanam . 2. This term has a few variants: aiññu-r-r-uvar, aiññu-r-r-uvar, and aiññu-r-r-uvar in Tamil, ainu- rbbaru and ainu-rvaru in Kannada. 3. Subbarayalu, “Anjuvannam: A Maritime Trade Guild”. 4. Se-na-mugam seems to have been a group of merchants, not soldiers as interpreted earlier. We find this term in a few Javanese inscriptions too. 5. Karashima and Subbarayalu, “Ainnurruvar: A Supra-local Organization”. 6. Karashima, South Indian History and Society, pp. 91–92. 7. After the political trouble caused by the invasions of Maga from Orissa and Chandrabanu in the Malay Peninsula in the thirteenth century, the Sinhalese dynasty left Polonnaruwa and shifted its capital to the places in the south in the following centuries, which damaged trade in Sri Lanka. The social protest movement which occurred in Tamil Nadu during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries involving ainu-r-r-uvar was not seen in Kerala and Sri Lanka, which seems to have caused the difference. This point will be explained later. 8. Though these three deities are found in the Hindu pantheon, they seem to have had some specific relation to Jainism or to western Deccan. 9. Paramesvari is Durga as a consort of Siva. 10. Subbarayalu, “The Merchant-Guild Inscription at Barus”. 11. Though this inscription does not record the conferment of erivı-ra-pat.t.inam, it is classified as an erivı-ra-pat.t.inam inscription. 12. For these groups, see Karashima and Subbarayalu, “The Emergence of the Periyanadu Assembly” and Karashima, Towards a New Formation, pp. 141–58. 13. Karashima, Subbarayalu and Shanmugam, “Nagaram during the Chola and Pandyan Period”. 14. If this is the same as the old Muziris, it could be Pattanam near Parur, according to some recent excavations carried out there. 15. Motupalli inscriptions. See Karashima, ed., In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds. 16. The name is given in Telugu as anyu-t.t.uva-perumballi . 17. Figures in Table 8.1 include both ainu-r-r-uvar and man.igra-mam inscriptions. 18. Karashima, Ancient and Medieval, pp. 264–66.

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

155

19. Karashima, Subbarayalu, and Shanmugam, “Nagarams during the Chola and Pandyan Period”, pp. 7–8. 20. Appendix to this volume. 21. Karashima, “Temple Land”. 22. For these two organizations, see Karashima and Subbarayalu, “The Emergence of the Periyanadu Assembly”. 23. For this protest movement, see Karashima, “New Imprecations”. 24. The famous Polonnaruwa inscription (EI, xviii, 38) records the Simhala king’s recruitment of ve-l.aikka-rar for guarding a Buddhist temple. They were probably disassembled Chola soldiers judging from the reference to various regiments . . such as valaangai and id. angai, though they are stated at the same time to have had val.añjeya merchants as their leaders (-achchama-r). 25. Karashima, A Concordance of Nayakas, pp. 50–52. 26. General discussion on the decline of merchant activities of this period was made by Abu-Lughod in her book, Before European Hegemony, but the particular reason for that in South Asia is yet to be studied.

References Abraham, Meera. Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India . New Delhi: Manohar, 1988. Abu-Lughod, Janet. Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250–1350. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989. Champakalakshmi, R. Trade, Ideology and Urbanization: South India BC 300– AD 1300, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1996. Chaudhuri, K. N. Asia Before Europe: Economy and Civilisation of the Indian Ocean from the Rise of Islam to 1750 . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Dikshit, G.S. Local Self-Government in Medieval Karnataka. Dharwar: Karnatak University, 1964. Hall, Kenneth R. Trade and Statecraft in the Age of the Colas. New Delhi: Abhinav Publications, 1980. Indrapala, K. “South Indian Mercantile Communities in Ceylon, circa 900–1250”. Ceylon Journal of Historical and Social Studies , NS, 1-2: 101–13. Karashima, Noboru. South Indian History and Society: Studies from Inscriptions AD 850–1800. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1984. ———. “Trade Relations between South India and China During the 13th and 14th Centuries”. Journal of East-West Maritime Relations 1 (1989): 59–81. ———. Towards a New Formation: South Indian Society under Vijayanagar Rule. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1992. ———. “South Indian and Sri Lankan Inscriptions Relating to the Merchant Guilds”. In Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds, edited by N. Karashima, pp. 3–9. Chennai: Taisho University, 2002.

156

Noboru Kar

ashima

———, ed. Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds. Chennai: Taisho University, 2002b. ———, ed. In Search of Chinese Ceramic-sherds in South India and Sri Lanka. Tokyo: Taisho University Press, 2004. ———. “The Emergence of Medieval State and Social Formation in South India”. International Journal of South Asian Studies 1. New Delhi: Manohar, 2008. ———. “Temple Land in Chola and Pandyan Inscriptions: The Legal Meaning and . Historical Implications of Kud. inı-nga--de-vada-na ”. Indian Economic and Social History Review 45, no. 2 (2008). ———. “The Emergence of New Imprecations in Twelfth- and Thirteenth-Century Tamil Inscriptions and Jati Formation”. In Conflict and Adjustment, edited by D.N. Jha and Eugenia Vanina. New Delhi: Tulika Books, 2008. Karashima, N., and Y. Subbarayalu. “Ainnurruvar: A Supra-local Organization of South Indian and Sri Lankan Merchants”. In Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds, edited by N. Karashima, pp. 72–78. Chennai: Taisho University, 2002. ———. “The Emergence of the Periyanadu Assembly in South India during the Chola and Pandyan Periods”. International Journal of Asian Studies 1, no. 1 (2004): 87–103. ———. “Kaniyalar Old and New: Landholding Policy of the Chola State in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries”. Indian Economic and Social History Review 44, no. 1 (2007): 1–17. Karashima, N., Y. Subbarayalu, and P. Shanmugam. “ Nagaram during the Chola and Pandyan Period: Commerce and Towns in the Tamil Country AD 850–1350”. Indian Historical Review 35, no. 1 (2008): 1–33. Mills, J.V.G. Ying-yai Sheng-lan (The Overall Survey of the Ocean’s Shores) by Ma Huan, translated and edited by J.V.G. Mills. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1970. Nilakanta Sastri, K. A. The Colas, 2 Vols., Madras: University of Madras, 1935 and 1937; 2nd ed. in one volume, 1955. ———. Foreign Notices of South India: From Megasthenes to Ma Huan . 1939. Rajagopal, S., ed. Kaveri: Studies in Epigraphy, Archaeology and History (Professor Y. Subbarayalu Felicitation Volume). Chennai: Panpattu Veliyiittakam, 2001. Rockhill, W.W. “Notes on the Relations and Trade of China with the Eastern Archipelago and Coast of the Indian Ocean during the Fourteenth Century”, part I. T’oung-pao , vol. XV (1914): 431 ff. Shanmugam, P. “Pattadai and Industries in the Tamil Country Under the Vijayanagar Rule”. Journal of Asian and African Studies 37 (1989): 31–49. ———. “Pattanappagudi: A Voluntary Impost of the Trade Guilds”. In Ancient and

Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds, edited by N. Karashima, pp. 72–78. Chennai: Taisho University,

2002. Sharma, R.S. Urban Decay in India: c.300–c.1000 . New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal, 1987.

c

South Indian Mer hant Guilds

157

Spencer, George W. The Politics of Expansion: The Chola Conquest of Sri Lanka and Sri Vijaya. Madras: New Era Publications, 1983. Stein, Burton. Peasant State and Society in Medieval South India. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1980. Su Jiqing. Daoyi zhilue jiaoshi (Critical edition of Wang Dayuan’s Daoyi zhilue), Beijing, 1981. Subbarayalu, Y. “The Merchant-Guild Inscription at Barus, Sumatra, Indonesia — Rediscovery”. Histoire de Barus: Le Site de Lobu Tua, I, edited by Claude Guillot. Cahiers d’Archipel 30 (1998): 25–33. ———. “Social Change and the Valangai and Idangai Divisions”. In Kaveri: Studies in Epigraphy, Archaelogy and History (Professor Y. Subbarayalu Felicitation Volume), edited by S. Rajagopal. Chennai: Panpattu Veliyiittakam, 2001. ———. “Anjuvannam: A Maritime Trade Guild of Medieval Times”, chapter 9 in this volume. Subbarayalu and Karashima. “A Trade Guild Inscription from Viharehinna in Sri Lanka”. In Ancient and Medieval Commercial Activities in the Indian Ocean: Testimony of Inscriptions and Ceramic-sherds , pp. 27–35. Chennai: Taisho University, 2002. Subrahmanya Aiyer, K.V. “Largest Provincial Organizations in Ancient India”. Quarterly Journal of the Mythic Society (Bangalore) (new series) 45: 29–47, 79–98, 270–86; 46: 8–22. Reprint (n.d.): 1–79. Subramanian, T.N. “A Tamil Colony in Medieval China”. In South Indian Studies, edited by R. Nagaswamy, pp. 1–52. Madras, 1978. Venkatarama Ayyar, K.R. “Medieval Trade, Craft and Merchant Guilds in South India”. Journal of Indian History XXV, Part 1 (1947): 269–80.

9 A

ANJUVANNAM Maritime Trade Guild Medieval Times

of

Y. Subbarayalu The term añjuvan.n.am (or añchuvan.n.am) was first noticed in the Che-ra copper-plate grants edited by Gundert (1844, pp. 115–46). In one of them, this term occurs along with man.ikkira- mam ( man.igra-mam). Gundert thought that these two names stood for the Jewish and Christian principalities or corporate bodies of those two communities. V. Venkayya and T.A. Gopinatha Rao, who re-edited these records, did not concur with Gundert’s view. Venkayya took the two bodies as just semi-independent trading corporations like the Val. añjiyar (EI, IV, pp. 293–94). Hultzsch translated the term as “five castes” by splitting it as añju (five) and van.n.am (caste) while re-editing the Jewish copper-plate grant: The object of the grant was Añjuvan.n.am. This word means “the five castes” and may have been the designation of that quarter of Cranganore in which the five classes of artisans — ainkamma-l.ar, as they are called in the smaller Kottayam grant resided (EI, III, pp. 67–68).

Hultzsch is cetainly mistaken in this regard, as in the said smaller Kottayam grant (EI , IV, pp. 290 ff), the ainkamma-l.ar are given as servants ( ad.ima) to a merchant leader who was honoured with the title of “man.igra-mam”. On the other hand the Añjuvan.n.am and Man.igra-mam are found in the Ce-ra copper 158

Anjuvannam: A

Maritime

Trade

Guild of Medieval

Times

159

plates as two independent bodies of equal standing and enjoying a number of trading rights at Kollam and themselves employing (or purchasing) servile people too. A brief analysis of these copper plates may be in order here. Of the two earlier grants1 in the possession of the Syrian Christian church at Kottayam, the first one dated in the fifth regnal year of Stha-n.u Ravi (849 CE) records that the Ve-n.-ad.u chief Ayyanad.ikal. Tiruvad.i gave a charter assigning certain ı--l avar (toddy-tappers) and van.n.a-r (washermen) tenants or cultivators ( kud.i) to Tarisa--pal.l.i, obviously the Christian church built at Kurakke-n.i-Kollam by the efforts of one Maruva-n Sapı-r Iso. 2 These serfs were relieved of some tax encumbrances and permitted to enter the fort and market area for carrying out their duties. The pal.l.i (church) was given the right to enjoy all taxes and also the right to keep the measuring instruments, a right which had been the prerogative of the donor-chief until then. The grant was made in the assembly of some dignitaries, officials, and añjuvan.n.am. Perhaps man.igra-mam was also present then (the name is mutilated and illegible). The first portion of the second grant containing the name of the king and date is missing. From other details and the names of the donor and the donee, etc. this should be put close to the above one. Actually it purports to make some additional grant to the same Tarisa--pal.l.i. Some more tenants such as carpenters ( taccar) and cultivators (vel.l.a-l.ar) were assigned to the church and some demarcated land was gifted for the supply of oil. The church was given the right to punish its erring tenants itself. The officials were warned not to interfere in those matters. The bodies called ar-unu--r-r uvar (“the six hundred”, a military body), añjuvan.n.am, and man.igra-mam were asked to protect the pal.l.i and its landed property as per the charter. The subsequent section records details of the “72 rights and privileges” (vı-d.upe- r- u) given to both the añjuvan.n.am, and man.igra-mam 3 as follows: (1) Remission of one-sixtieth part of the customs duty (that they had been paying to the government). (2) No poll tax on the slaves (ad.ima) employed (or purchased?) by them. (3) They can collect 8 kasu on both incoming and outgoing merchandise transported by carts and 4 kasu on those transported by ships and boats. (4) Only in their presence should the fixing of the customs duty and the fixing of prices for the merchandise be done. (5) The two bodies shall do the accounts of the collection of the customs duty daily. (6) They can receive one-tenth part of the rent (pati-patava-ram) on the land let on lease within the four gates (of the town).

160

Y. Subbarayalu

(7) They are permitted to carry on elephants the purification water for their rituals. (8) If they feel wronged (by the officials) they can get it redressed by stopping the payment of the customs duty and the weighing fees (tula-kku-li). (9) They alone can enquire about the crimes committed by their members.

Thus the añjuvan.n.am, and man.igra-mam became the rightful occupants ( ka-ra-l.ar) of the nagaram and they were to act together always. Sapı-r Iso, who is said to have established the nagaram or township by a king’s charter, was permitted to use the measuring instruments owned by the church and (instead) pay the measuring fees to the latter. The above details may show that añjuvan.n.am, and man.igra-mam were important trading bodies, responsible for collection and remission of customs duty and for fixing the sale prices of merchandise transacted in the port town of Kollam. They were granted the customary (seventy-two) rights and privileges by the ruler of the area. The relation between Sapı-r Iso and the two bodies should be a close one as the former is said to be the founder of the nagaram, and the latter, the occupants of the nagaram. The “seventy-two” rights and privileges are again mentioned in the Jewish copper plate of Bhaskara Ravi (1000 CE) found at Cochin (EI , III, pp. 67–68). In that record, one Issuppu Irappan, that is, Joseph Rabban, obviously a Jewish merchant, was granted (the title of) añjuvan.n.am, the free use(?) of boats and vehicles, the añjuvan.n.am rights, the use of torch in the daytime, decorative cloth, palanquin, etc. He was exempted from payment of duties and weighing fees. Though brief, it is in the same vein as the Syrian Christian grant. We may not be wrong to say that Maruva-n Sapı-r Iso and Joseph Rabban were the chief merchants of the respective towns like the pat.t.an.asva-mi mentioned in ayyavol.e-500 inscriptions. All said, there is no direct evidence to recognize añjuvan.n.am and man.igra-mam respectively as Jewish and Christian bodies, as was proposed by Gundert. It is only the possession of the above copper plates by the present owners, a Jewish synagogue (at Cochin) and a Syrian Christian church (at Kottayam) respectively, that directly prompts the above identification. This fact was stressed by Venkayya while editing the Kottayam grant of Vı-ra Ra-ghava (c.1220) (EI , IV, pp. 290 ff). At the same time the signatures in Arabic, Hebrew, and Pahlavi scripts given by several persons at the end of the second Syrian Christian grant cannot be ignored lightly. Those signatures would suggest that there was a mixed population of West Asian traders, consisting of Jews, Arab Muslims and Christians, and Persians at Kollam in

Anjuvannam: A

Maritime

Trade

Guild of Medieval

Times

161

the ninth century. Coupled with this fact, the fact that in the Jewish copperplate grant, the donee who is a Jew was specifically honoured with the añjuvan.n.am rights, would support the proposition that the añjuvan.n.am was a body of West Asian traders. In the case of man.igra-mam, however, it could only be a body of indigenous merchants as it is found very much rooted in various interior places such as Ra-mantal. i and Tal- akka-d.u in Kerala; Kod.umba-l.u-r, Ur-aiyu-r, Srı-niva-sanallu-r, and others in Tamil Nadu. This aspect has been thoroughly discussed by Gopinatha Rao (EI, XVII, pp. 69–73). While editing some copper-plate grants of the Rashtrakuta kings and their subordinates of the tenth and eleventh centuries from Chinchani (north of Mumbai) in Thana District, D.C. Sircar observed the occurrence of the term hamyamana or its variant hañjamana in the inscriptions of Northern Konkan and conceded that it could have denoted the Parsee settlements. (EI , XXXII, p. 48). In this regard he agreed with J.J. Modi who traced hañjamana to the Avestic Hañjamana and Persian Añjuman (Indian Antiquary , XLI, pp. 173–76). A passage containing this term is as follows:

hamyamaniya-mukhya- vallana-vyavaharaka- valkasma-vyavaharakaalliya- mahara- madhumat- a-dayah paura-mukhya- ´s re-sht.hi-ke-sar-i suvarn.n.a-Kakkala- van.ijo--uva- suvarn.n.a-so-maiy- a-dayah tatha- vishayı-Verthalaiyah … (Ibid, p. 66, II. 10–12). Which in a free translation would mean the following:4 [While ruling over Samya-na, Cha-mun.d.a passed an order regarding a grant, to be made by him, to his subordinates and others] including the elders of hamyamana, namely Vallana-vyavaharaka , Valkasmavyavaharaka, Alliya, Mahara, Madhumati, and others; the elders of the paura, namely Sre-sht.hi-Ke-sari, Suvarn.n.a Kakkala, Vanijo--Uva, Suvarn.n.aSo-maiya, and others; the district officer Verthalaiya; …

The names Alliya and Madhumati, as D.C. Sircar has explained, are obviously the Indianized forms of the Arabic names Ali and Muhammad respectively. That means that at least some of the Hamyamana (Hañjamana) elders are Arabic Muslims. In the case of the paura elders they seem to be local merchants only, if we go by names such as Kesari, Kakkala, Uva, and Somaiya. And the prefixing segments such as s re-sht.hi, suvarn.n.a and van.ija denote their specialized trades. In the Kannada inscriptions of North and South Kannada Districts the name hañjamana is mentioned in several coastal places such as Basrur, Barakur, etc. even during Vijayanagara times (Ramesh 1970, pp. 252–53). It is found either separately or along with nakhara (same as nagara ). Ummara-

162

Y. Subbarayalu

maraka-la, a hañjamana-mukhya (that is, a Hanjamana leader) mentioned in an inscription of De-vara-ya I (1427) from Kaikini is considered by K.V. Ramesh as a Parsee from the name Ummara (Umar), maraka- la being sailor in the Kannada language. D.C. Sircar, however, thought that hañjamana in Kannada inscriptions could not denote a Parsee settlement as there is no other evidence for the existence of Parsee settlements so far south. It is seemingly contradictory to his earlier interpretation of this word mentioned above; he further suggested that it may be a word of Kannada or South Indian origin and concluded that it may be related to Tamil añju-pañcha- l.atta-r through the Kannada pañcha-van.n.a and Tamil añjuvan.n.am (EI, XXXV, p. 292). This argument is based on so many assumptions without any valid evidence and it has rightly been criticized by K.V. Ramesh. Strictly speaking, hañjamana would not have denoted just the Parsee settlement. Like the term yavana/yo-na/so- naka, this term also seems to have denoted collectively the West Asian traders, Arabs, Jews, Christians, Parsees, etc., and from the above evidence, it may be inferred that Arab Muslims figured more prominently than others from the eleventh century onwards, if not earlier. The form añjuvan.n.am (or añjuvan.n.am) is found only in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Its derivation from hañjamana may be easily conceded; in Tamil the sound “ha” in the initial position is generally reduced to “a”. Though this derivation cannot be verified empirically, since both terms do not occur close to each other in the known records, it is far-fetched in point of time to equate añjuvan.n.am and anju-panchalattar (“the five artisans”) as was done by T.N. Subramanian (1957) and T.V. Mahalingam (1967, p. 394) and which was accepted by D.C. Sircar. This equation cannot be sustained on other circumstantial grounds either, for the artisans or kamma-l.a s did not occupy a good social position in the early medieval centuries. They were treated only as servicing communities ( kı--l-kalanai ) to the merchant and landholding people (SII , IV, no. 223) until the fourteenth century. They got better recognition in society only during the Vijayanagara times and later when commodity production increased enormously (Karashima 1992, pp. 159–69). There is, however, some little noticed literary evidence, from a literary work of the twelfth century, called Palchandama- lai which supports unequivocally that the añjuvan.n.am group was made up of the Muslim community (Pandarattar 1971). This work refers to the members of the añjuvan.n.am, residing in Nagapattinam, both as Yavana and So-naka, and as followers of Kalupati (obviously Khalifa) and as the worshippers of Alla-h.

Anjuvannam: A

Maritime

Trade

Guild of Medieval

Times

163

As mentioned above, unlike the man.igra-mam, añjuvan.n.am is confined to coastal towns only. It is found all along the west and east coasts in several port towns. The body’s presence in the Konkan coast was referred to above. It is encountered on the Kerala coast in Pandala-yini-Kollam (near Kozhikode) and Kurakke-n.i-Kollam (south Kollam) and on the Coromandel coast, from the south to the north in Tı-tta-n.d.ata-napuram (Ramnad coast), Mayila-ppu-r (Chennai), Krishn.apat.n.am (south of Nellore), and Visha-khapat.n.am. Of these, the evidence for the southern Kollam has already been noticed. This port town is the most important town known to medieval Chinese and Arab sources. For Pandala-yini-Kollam (which is Fandarina of Ibn Battuta) we get only the name in a fragmentary Ce-ra inscription (SII , VII, no. 162), datable to about 1000 CE in the reign of Bhaskara Ravi,5 found on three broken stones in a mosque called Jama-t-pal.l.i in the town. Though the inscription is fragmentary, it refers to the Val.añjiyar and some other merchants usually found in the assembly of ayyavol.e-500 (also simply called ainu-r-r- u-var or the Five Hundred) trade guild. A high royal official (ko-yiladika-rikal.) is also referred to. Whether this inscription has anything to do with the mosque cannot be ascertained from the available portion. In any case, it may be inferred that the inscription concerns an important occasion when the Añjuvan.n.am people were present along with the Ayyavol.e merchants. In Tı-tta-n.d.ata-napuram, añjuvan.n.am is found, in the year 1269, in a big assembly consisting of several merchant groups and weavers, including . man.igra-mam, val.añjiyar of south Ilangai (that is, Sri Lanka), etc. (ARE , 1926–27, p. 93). From the fact that this body is mentioned first in the list of the assembled groups, we may infer that it had an influential position in this settlement. In Mayila-ppu-r the evidence is only from a fragmentary inscription, datable in the thirteenth century, referring to both añjuvan.n.am and Van.iga-gra-mam (man.igra-mam) (Nagaswamy 1970, no. 1967/20). In Krishnapat.nam, the añjuvan.n.am merchants (va-n.igar) of man.igra-mam (that is, Kerala) are found along with the na-d.u , nagara, and various itinerant merchants ( samasta-parade-si) of the 18-bhu-mi (ARE, 1963–64, no. 78, and Nellore Inscriptions , I, Gudur 45), which decided in 1279 on some contribution to the local temple on the merchandise imported as well as exported in the local port. The evidence from Vishakhapatnam is interesting. There are three inscriptions, two in Telugu and one in Tamil, which is a duplicate of one of the Telugu records. Unfortunately the texts as published and the brief English summaries are not accurate enough. The first one (SII, X, no. 651) is dated in Saka 1012 and the thirteenth year of the Eastern Ganga king,

164

Y. Subbarayalu

Anantavarmadeva, equivalent to 21 September 1090, and purports to remit some taxes on house-sites within the demarcated precincts of the Ainu-t.t.uva-perumballi in Visha-khapat.t.an.am alias Kulo-ttun.gacho--l a-pat.t.an.am by the “Twelve” of the nagaram of the town. The grant was entrusted to a merchant (vya-pari ) of the añjuvan.n.am of Ma-to-t.t.am alias [Ra-]makulavallipat.t.an.am. This merchant has a high-sounding name, that is, pattana-ditya . na-na--ra-javidya-dhara samangattu-ghan.t.i Asa-vu alias 18-bhu-mi-nagara-se-na-pati alias malaiman.d.ala-ma-ta-. Asa-vu may be his personal name and may be derived from the Arab name Asaf; the other preceding and following strings must be just titles. The title vidya-dhara is associated with a so- naka official found living in a bazar street called Ra-ja-vidya-dhara at Tañja-vur (SII, II, no. 66). Therefore, most probably Asa-vu is a Muslim merchant. Ma-to-t.t.am, the place from where the merchant hailed is obviously Maha-tittha (the present Ma-ntai), the famous seaport town on the north-western coast of Sri Lanka facing the Gulf of Mannar. From the second title malaiman.d.alama-ta-, it can be suggested that he had some links with the Kerala coast too. The Tamil version of the above inscription (SII, XXVI, 103) is much mutilated. But it is not difficult to recognize its exact correspondence to the Telugu version from the surviving passages. Actually both the inscriptions are written on different sides of the same stone. It may also be noted that the Telugu inscription has some Tamil features. Though there is no explicit evidence to identify the religious affiliation of the ainu-t.t.uva-perumballi (literally the Big Palli (pal.l.i) called the Five Hundred), it may be easily guessed that it was a mosque,6 from the cumulative evidence discussed so far. The second Telugu inscription (SII, X, 211) records a similar grant to the same ainnu-t.t.uva-perumballi by a chief, Mahaman.d.ale-s´vara KulottungaPrithvı-s´vara. The date of this inscription has been read by the Epigraphist as Saka 112[.] with three probable equivalent dates: 1200, 1204 or 1207. The boundaries of the Palli and the wording of the taxes are identical in both cases. In this grant the receiver was another merchant belonging to the añjuvan.n.am of Pa-s´ay. The name Pa-say is strikingly similar to Pasai or SamuderaPasai on the north coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Their identity is quite possible. 7 The name of the merchant again looks exotic: Sa-vasa- n.d.i[ba]lla, son . of Bo-yara-n.d.i[ba]lla. He had the title Ma-[va]ngari-vallabha-samaya-chakravartti. The attribute ma- [va]ngari-vallabha is similar to, if not identical to, madan.gari-vallabha , found in the Barus guild inscription as part of the second . name of Barus: Ma- dan gari-vallabha- de- si-uyyakon. d. a- pat. t. inam. . The phrase ma- dangari-vallabha means “a favourite of Ma-dan.gari” (the deity Durga) and the second part of the title, samaya-chakravartti, is usually the title given to an active representative of the samaya or assembly. Here the title

Anjuvannam: A

Maritime

Trade

Guild of Medieval

Times

165

must have been given to the añjuvan.n.am merchant by the ayyavol. e-500 after whom the mosque is also named. The above inscriptions would suggest that the añjuvan.n.am people were patronized by the ayyavol.e-500 guild and were even treated as members of that guild. Here it may be appropriate to consider some information from Indonesia relating to the añjuvan.n.am. There are several royal inscriptions of the ninth and early tenth centuries in central and eastern Java which contain references to the terms hunjeman, hunjaman, and hinjaman (Sarkar 1972, pp. 131, 140, 151, 236; Barrett Jones 1984, pp. 151, 186–87). In these inscriptions, hunjaman and its variants are found as the name of a group or body amidst several other bodies. These bodies are found to be put under certain restrictions to enter the newly created sima (villages whose royal revenue had been transferred to a religious institution). It can be understood from the contexts that these bodies were trading groups coming from several foreign countries, including South India. It is not difficult to understand that the term hunjeman (or hunjaman/ hinjaman) is a variant of hanjamana. The variants must be due to the peculiarities of Arabic orthography where vowel sounds are supplied according to the context. If the identity is accepted, we can say that the trade activities of the hanjamana/añjuvan.n.am group extended up to Indonesia in the ninth century and afterwards. The presence of man.igra-mam in Southeast Asia by this time is a well known fact. Therefore, it is no wonder that the other body should also be present there simultaneously. If we ignored the name huñjaman, etc. in Javanese records,8 it would be curious to note that the Arab and other West Asian traders are otherwise not mentioned in Southeast Asian records, in spite of the fact that the role of the Arabs in the maritime activities of the Indian Ocean is well attested to by contemporary Arab and Chinese sources. To sum up, the añjuvan.n.am of Tamil inscriptions in Kerala and Tamil Nadu coasts is the same as the hañjamana found in the Konkan coast in the Marathi-Sanskrit and Kannada inscriptions and it was the name of a trading body composed of West Asian seagoing merchants. Originally it denoted all West Asian merchants, both Arabs and Persians, including Jews, Syrian Christians, Muslims, and Parsees. This body surfaces in the inscriptions from the middle of the ninth century, as traversing the whole of Indian Ocean from Arabia to Java. Initially it interacted with man.igra-mam, a south Indian merchant guild, which itself had been carrying on sea trade by the ninth century, besides being active in the interior towns and villages. When the ayyavole-500 emerged in the tenth century and developed as a big overarching trade guild in southern India, most of the existing indigenous and local trade guilds got associated with it. Añjuvan.n.am too interacted with the ayyavole

166

Y. Subbarayalu

guild and actively participated in big gatherings (samayam or peruniravi ) led by the latter. In the eleventh century and after that, añjuvan.n.am seems to have been mostly composed of Muslim traders. There was a remarkable difference between añjuvan.n.am and other trade guilds. While all the others were found both on the coastal sites and in the interior, the former confined itself to coastal sites. That is, it was primarily a maritime guild. At the same time it became a permanent part of the local community in the coastal villages. Its presence as a trade guild was visible until the end of the thirteenth century after which it is not heard of and of course the Ayyavol.e-500 and other guilds too almost disappeared from the scene in the fourteenth century and afterwards.

Notes 1. 2. 3.

4.

5. 6.

7. 8.

Both the grants have been edited with elaborate notes by T.A. Gopinatha Rao in TAS, II, no. 9, pp. 60–85. A- variant of this name is given as Es´o- of Tapir, perhaps in its Latin form to mean Es´o- da- Tapir, according to Gopinatha Rao, the editor of the inscription. The editor, Gopinatha Rao, by some oversight took these rights and privileges as being given to the church. Going on this interpretation, Meera Abraham (1988, pp. 28–29) gives a direct role to the church in the commercial activities of the town. Actually the church is only a beneficiary enjoying some specified income from the land etc., granted to it by the ruler and enjoying the benevolence of the traders. Thinking that the inscription is written in corrupt Sanskrit, D.C. Sircar has introduced several emendations, thereby obscuring the correct meaning. The above translation, by the present writer, is made without considering his emendations. From personal communication from Professor M. G. Narayanan, an authority on medieval Chera history. Pal.l.i in Tamil inscriptions denoted any non-orthodox place of worship: Jain temple, Buddhist vihara, Christian church, Jewish synagogue, and Muslim mosque. This naming practice still continues in Kerala in the case of the latter three institutions. Interestingly we find in 1204 another merchant from Pa-sai in Tiruva-ymu-r, a village about 20 km south of Nagapattinam (Nagapattinam District Inscriptions, Tamilnadu State Archaeology Department, 2007, p. 190). Jan Wisseman Christie, a prolific researcher of Javanese history, has simply put a question mark next to this name which appears in a record of 1021 in the reign of Airlangga in the following passage (in her own translation): “… As for the kilalan (non-resident tax group: Kalingas, Aryyas, Singhalese, Pan.d.ikiras, Dravidians, Chams, Khmers, Ramanyadesis, mambang(?), soldiers, sailors, huñjman(?), …”(Christie 1993, p. 204).

Anjuvannam: A

Maritime

Trade

Guild of Medieval

Times

167

References Abraham, Meera. Two Medieval Merchant Guilds of South India. New Delhi: Manohar 1988. ARE = Annual Report on Epigraphy. Barrett Jones, A.M. Early Tenth Century Java from the Inscriptions. Dordrecht: Foris Publications, 1984. Christie, Jan Wissemann. “Texts and Textiles in ‘Medieval’ Java”. Bulletin de l’École Française d’Extrême-Orient 80, no. 1 (1993): 181–214. EI = Epigraphia Indica. Gundert, H. “Translation and Analysis of the Ancient Documents Engraved on Copper in Possession of the Syrian Christians and Jews of Malabar”. Madras Journal of Literature and Science 13, no. 13, Pt. I (1844): 115–46. Karashima, Noboru. Towards a New Formation: South Indian Society Under Vijayanagar Rule. 1992, pp. 159–69. Nagaswamy, R. Chennaimanagar Kalvettugal (Inscriptions of Chennai District), edited by R. Nagaswamy. Madras: Tamilnadu State Archaeology Department, 1970. Pandarattar, T.V. Sadasiva. Historical Facts Gleaned from Inscriptions (in Tamil). Chidambaram: Manivasagar Publications, 1971. Ramesh, K.V. A History of South Kanara, Dharwar, 1970. Sarkar, H.B. Corpus of the Inscriptions of Java , vol. II. Calcutta: Firma K.L. Mukhopadyay, 1972. SII = South Indian Inscriptions. TAS = Travancore Archaeological Series.

10 RAJENDRA CHOLA’S NAVAL EXPEDITION AND THE

CHOLA

TRADE WITH SOUTHEAST AND EAST ASIA

arajan

A. Meenakshisundar

Since ancient times, India had active maritime trade relations with many countries around the Indian Ocean. In the medieval period, South Indian states were particularly involved in this trade. Kings used to get a good deal of their income from trade and could thus afford to maintain a large army and build a powerful navy without exhausting their land revenue base, which was mostly confined to the fertile core area of their dominion. Around AD 1000, there was a remarkable change in the structure of Asian maritime trade. The previous pattern of pre-emporia trade changed into a new pattern of emporia trade. Whereas in the phase of pre-emporia trade goods were shipped directly from the place of origin to that of final consumption, the rise of emporia, particularly along the Indian coasts, implied new practices of re-export, such as breaking bulk or assorting shipments according to the demands of various ports of call. This major change in the pattern of Asian maritime trade was related to the simultaneous rise of powerful corporate empires in several parts of Asia: the Chola empire of South India, the Khmer empire of Cambodia, the empire of Champa in Vietnam, and China under the Song dynasty emerged in the early eleventh century AD. Most of these witnessed a large-scale increase in local and 168

The

Chola

Trade

with Southeast and East

Asia

169

long-distance trade and the rapid extension of rice cultivation. The goods traded were not limited to luxury items and were diversified to include a wide variety of commodities such as processed iron, spices, sandalwood, camphor, pearls, textiles, as well as animals such as horses and elephants. Customs duties played a major role in the budgets of these corporate empires, which was different from the land-revenue-based agrarian states. The political order of these medieval corporate empires was not so much that of territorial sovereignty, but of a corporate network of rulers, merchants, temples, priests, and/or royal officers. A brief survey of the rise of the Chola empire and of China under the Song dynasty will illustrate this new development.1 RAJENDRA — “THE KADARAM KONDAN”

Tamil Nadu was ruled by the early Cholas between the first and fourth centuries CE. Karikalan was the first and most famous king, who built the Kallanai (Kall — stone, Anai – bound), a dam across the Kaveri River, which is considered to be an engineering marvel of that time. The Cholas ruled the present day Thanjavur and Tiruchirapalli districts and possessed significant military power. The Cholas rose as a major power in South India in the ninth century. Their empire temporarily extended to the central Indian states such as Orissa, and parts of West Bengal. Rajaraja Chola conquered the Chera and eastern Chalukya kingdoms and also occupied parts of Ceylon by defeating the Pandyas. He held his sway over the Maldives as well. Rajendra Chola went beyond, occupying the islands of Andaman and Nicobar, Lakshadweep, Sumatra, and Malaya with his fleet of ships. He defeated Mahipala, the king of Bihar and Bengal, and to mark his victory, he built a new capital called Gangaikonda Cholapuram. 2 Parakesari-Varman Rajendra-Chola I was declared heir apparent and formally associated with his father in the administration of the empire in the closing years of his father’s rule. Accordingly, he counts his regnal years from some date between 27 March and 7 July, AD 1012 and there is clear evidence of joint rule in his third year. This year was mentioned in Rajaraja’s Tanjore inscriptions of the twenty-ninth year: Rajaraja is also stated to have made a gift in the third year of his son’s rule.3 He had gained much valuable experience on the field and in the council chamber under the guidance of his illustrious father. He played a predominant part in the war in the “Western Hill Country” and against Satyasraya. By the time he became “Yuvaraja” he held the high position of Mahadandanayaka of the Vengi and Gangamandalas and bore the titles Pancavanmaraya and “Tusker of Mummudi Chola”. 4

170

A. Meenakshisundar

arajan

Rajendra began his independent rule at about 1014 after the demise of his father. He inherited an extensive empire comprising the whole of modern Tamil Nadu, Andhra, the southern part of Kerala and parts of Karnataka, and Sri Lanka, besides the Maldives and perhaps some other islands in the Indian Ocean. Rajendra’s overseas expedition is narrated in the Tamil prasasti in the following words: (Who) having despatched many ships in the midst of the rolling sea and having caught Sangrama-Vijayottunga-varman, the king of Kadaram, together with the elephants in his glorious army, (took) the large heap of treasures, which (that king) had rightfully accumulated: (captured) with noise the (arch called) Vidyadhara-torana at the “war-gate” of his extensive city, Srivijaya with “the jewelled wicket-gate” adorned with great splendour and the “gate of large jewels”; Pannai with water in bathing ghats; the ancient Malaiyur with the strong mountain for its rampart; Mayirudingan, surrounded by the deep sea (as) by a moat; Ilangasoka (that is, Lankasoka) undaunted (in) fierce battles; Mapappalam having abundant (deep) water as defence; Mevilimbangam having fine walls as defence; Valaippanduru having Vilappanduru(?); Talaittakkolam praised by great men (versed in) sciences; Madamalingam, firm in great and fierce battles; Ilamuridesam, whose fierce strength rose in war; Manakkavaram, in whose extensive flower gardens honey was collecting; and Kadaram of fierce strength, which was protected by the deep sea.5

The most notable activities carried out by Rajendra were his invasions of Malaya and Sumatra. Of these, Srivijaya was on Sumatra Island, and Pannai was in the eastern part of Sumatra; Malaiyur may have been situated between these two countries; Mairudingam was Johore, on the Malay Peninsula; Mapappalam may have been on the Malay peninsula; Madamalingam may have been on the Kra Isthmus; Ilamuridesam was North Sumatra. Manakkavaram was the Nicobar Islands; and Kadaram was situated on the Malay Peninsula near Penang. It is clear that Rajendra Chola simultaneously captured Sumatra Island and the Peninsula as well as the other surrounding islands. It is understandable that these places were then ruled by many rulers over small dominions which were captured by Rajendra Chola.6 The successful invasion of Rajendra of the Ganga Theeram (Banks of the Ganges) and Kadaram were applauded by many poets — Jayamkondan in his Kalingattupparani (verse 189) and Ottakkoothar in his Ula (lines 34–36, 49 & 90). He was named the Gangai Kondan — the Kadaram kondan — (He who took the Ganges — He who took Kadaram).7 Rajendra’s success was indeed stunning and the early historians did not suggest (or speculate) that

The

Chola

Trade

with Southeast and East

Asia

171

the countries which the South Indian monarch captured were overseas. For instance, Hultzsch, who recovered and published the text of Rajendra’s inscription in 1891, overlooked the fact that Rajendra’s expedition was a naval war, and identified Kadaram with the “headquarters of a taluque of the Ramnad Zamindari in Madurai district”.8 It was only in 1918 that Coedès discussed fully the identification of the places mentioned in connection with Rajendra’s campaign and laid the basis for an intelligent account of it.9 Persistent efforts have succeeded in identifying the places located on the Sumatran and Malayan coasts.

FACTORS THAT

PROMPTED THE EXPEDITION

Rajendra’s expedition to North India (Ganga Theeram) has been described as his performance of digvijaya (visiting other countries in all directions and gaining acknowledgement from them as the supreme Lord). In that context, his Kadaram expedition can also be understood as an extended digvijaya . That performing such imperialistic rituals is in the blood of the Cholas is substantiated by the very title of a Chola of the Sangam Age — Rajasooyam vetta Perunar (Purananuru 16, 125, 367, 377). Sastri gives vent to the opinion that Rajendra’s naval expedition can be taken as part of his digvijaya.10 It is certain that it was the glorious North Indian expedition and the experiences gained, that helped Rajendra to realize his military prowess, and this encouraged his desire for conquests. In many cases, conquests are characterized by naked plunders. G.W. Spencer (1976) interprets the eleventh century Chola invasion of Sri Lanka as “Politics of Plunder”. The prasasti that speaks about the Kadaram expedition, mentions large “heaps of treasure” accumulated by Rajendra in his war with Kadaram. Again, gold, in those days, was an important item of export from the east and the region came to be called Suvarnadvipa (Island of gold) and Suvarnabhumi (Land of gold). One of the reasons for others attempting to conquer countries such as Malaya or Sumatra was to get an assured and constant supply of the yellow metal. However, in the case of Rajendra (as well as his followers) there was no plan to annex the captured territories to form part of the Chola Empire or to extend the Chola rule to new areas. Sastri notes that “neither the merchants nor the state in South India had any idea of the possibilities of economic imperialism.”11 Furthermore, as the exclusive rulers of the fertile Kaveri delta, the Cholas were rest assured of sufficient internal resources, both real and financial. Another interesting factor about Rajendra’s expedition was the absence of any hostility between the Cholas and the rulers of Kadaram just prior to the war. Pattinappalai — the Sangam

172

A. Meenakshisundar

arajan

classic — speaks about the “product of Kazhagam ” (Kadaram) piled up at the port of Pukar (line 191). Later, in the Middle Ages, the relations between the two countries were only cordial.

SRIVIJAYA/KADARAM/SAN-FO-QI

PROBLEM

Without referring to the Srivijaya/Kadaram /San-fo-qi problem, any account of the activities carried out by South Indian merchants in medieval Southeast Asia would not be complete. In this relation, Nagapattinam, the famous medieval port on the Coromandel Coast, played an important role. It is well known that Chulamanivarman, the king of Srivijaya/Kadaram, established a Buddhist temple (palli) in Nagapattinam. In his twenty-first regnal year (AD 1006) Rajaraja I entrusted a village for the maintenance of the temple. This fact is recorded in the so-called Larger Leiden copper plates.12 Although Chulamanivarman is mentioned only as the king of Kadaram (Kidaram) in the Tamil portion of the plates, his son Mara-Vijayottungavarman appearing in the Sanskrit portion — which was added later in the time of Rajendra I,13 son and successor of Rajaraja I — is said to have been born into the Sailendra family and to be the king of Srivijaya ruling in Kataha. There is no doubt that these three names, that is, Kadaram, Kidaram, and Kataha, refer to the same place, although their identification as Kedah in the Malay Peninsula is uncertain. Before we enter into the problem of the identification of Kadaram and also that of its relation with Srivijaya and San-fo-qi, it should be noted that the three Tamil stone inscriptions discovered in Nagapattinam in the 1950s and the Tamil inscription on the pedestal of a bronze Buddha statue, originally belonging to Nagapattinam. The texts of the first three inscriptions have not yet been published, but we were able to check their estampages and transcripts preserved in the office of the Director of Epigraphy, Archaeological Survey of India, Mysore.14 The first inscription (No. 161 of AR 1956/57) records that during the reign of Rajendra I (the year was lost due to damage to the stone), Sri Mulan Agattisuvaran, an Agent (kanmi ) of the Srivijaya King, donated several lampstands to be installed at the door of a Siva temple in Nagapattinam. The second inscription (No. 164 of AR 1956/57) records that in the third year of Rajendra I (AD 1015), another agent (kanmi ) of the Srivijaya king donated some ornaments to the same temple in Nagapattinam. A makara , which is the emblem of Mara-Vijayottungavarman, according to the Larger Leiden plates, seems to have been fixed in the centre of the ornament. The third inscription (No. 166 of AR 1956/57) records that in the seventh(?) year of Rajendra I (AD 1019?) Sri Kurundan Kesuvan alias Agralekai,

The

Chola

Trade

with Southeast and East

Asia

173

an agent (kanmi ) of the Kidaram king donated two pieces of gold called Chinakanagam (Chinese gold) for worship and feeding in the same temple in Nagapattinam. He also donated some other gold pieces for offering food to the deity and to feed Brahmins. While the first two inscriptions refer to the Srivijaya king, the last one refers to the Kidaram king. However, the dates of these inscriptions are close to one another, and if we consider the synonymous usage of Srivijaya and Kidaram in the Larger Leiden plates, it may be safely inferred that Srivijaya and Kidaram are again synonymous in these inscriptions. The agent of the second inscription (name lost) seems to have been a Tamilian, as he is said to belong to a town in Kil-Chembinadu (in the Ramnad District) in Tamil Nadu. The names of the other two agents also sound like Tamilian or Keralite names. From the above four inscriptions, therefore, it becomes evident that friendly relations existed between Kadaram and the Chola country in the beginning of the eleventh century, continuing at least until AD 1015 or 1019. RAJENDRA CHOLA IN TAMIL INSCRIPTIONS

There is yet another Tamil inscription related to Nagappattinam. It is a short (two lines) inscription engraved on the pedestal of a bronze Buddha image from the Mr and Mrs John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection of Asian Arts.15 The script of the inscription is similar to that of the inscriptions of Kulottunga I, that can be assigned its date around AD 1100. The text runs as follows: 1. irajendra — colap perumpalli akkasalaip perumpalli alvar-koyilukku

tiruvutsavam eluntarula alvar ivvalvarai eluntaruluvittar cirutavur nalankunakarautaiyar. 2. svasti-sri patinen-vishayattukkum akkasalaikal nayakar. It is known from the first line that the image was for a festival procession of the Akkasalai temple belonging to Rajendrachola perumpalli. This Rajendrachola perumpalli is certainly the Buddhist temple in Nagapattinam which is referred to in the Smaller Leiden plates in relation to the request by the Kadaram king for confirmation of the previous grant. From the second line, the image called Akkasalai — nayakar (Buddha) was to be worshipped by all the padinen-vishayam. Akkasalai means mint or workshop of goldsmiths and the expression padinenvishayam (same as padinen-bhumi) indicates the merchant guild ainnurruvar. Therefore, the Akkasalai temple was constructed

174

A. Meenakshisundar

arajan

by the goldsmiths and the Buddha image was meant for all the members of Ainnurruvar, including goldsmiths. The fact that a Buddhist temple was established by goldsmiths and the Buddha image was worshipped by all the members of Ainnurruvar, most of whom must have been Hindus, shows the international and amicable character of the guild members of the day and also connects the Ainnurruvar with Nagapattinam as well as Kadaram. Incidentally these inscriptions bring out the crucial role played by the merchants and their guilds in fostering close relations between the Tamil land and Kadaram. This leads us to find out the dynamics of trade as a factor that prompted the Kadaram expedition. Another important change that occurred during the period was the development of an alternative silk route. The original global silk route that started from the Mediterranean, via the Middle East to China overland, became less serviceable with occasional breaches of peace in the Middle East. The alternative sea route that encircled the Indian Ocean and crossed the Southeast Asian waters to China was found to be both convenient and economical. The various ports on the South Indian coast (Muziris, Kayal, Periyapattinam, Nagapattinam, Kavirippoompattinam, Marakkanam, Mamallapuram) and the Malay Peninsula (Mapappalayam, Takkolam, Pannai, Kadaram, Malaiyur, Ilankasokam, Mayirudingan) coasts were convenient to carry on emporia trade. A judicious use of monsoon winds helped to reduce the costs of motive power. Actually, the Chinese emperor urged the Arab Mission to shift their trade from the land route to the sea route (in 1023). The role of merchant guilds in fostering international trade deserves special mention. The Chola empire experienced a sudden spurt of expansion under the powerful rulers, Rajaraja I and Rajendra I, in the early eleventh century AD. The power of these rulers was partly based on the control of the fertile rice basin of the Kaveri delta, and also on their intimate links with prosperous and influential merchant guilds, which controlled long-distance trade. In fact, the Chola imperial expansion was planned according to the advice of such merchants. It was a merchant who told Rajaraja about the weakness of Sri Lanka’s king and suggested a military intervention. The main thrust of the Chola expedition was then aimed at the Polonaruva-Trincomalee region, which was obviously of strategic importance for the Southeast Asian trade. At the same time, the complete control over the Gulf of Mannar gave the Cholas and their merchants a monopoly of the pearl trade, as this region was famous for its pearl fisheries. Nanadesi, ainurruvar, manigramam, anjuvannam, ayyavole, and valenjiyar were some of the guilds of the period. These maintained contact with as many countries as possible from the Red Sea to South China. Most

The

Chola

Trade

with Southeast and East

Asia

175

of them had mercenary armies. There is evidence that guild people established their own colonies on foreign soil (the manigramam had their colony at Takuapa). Naturally, the guilds had to garner their resources to sustain themselves in a severely competitive environment. Between the Indian border and the Chinese terminal, the only possible competitor would be Srivijaya. It is equally likely that Srivijaya was imposing heavy taxes and strict rules on ships that sailed through its waters. It is worth pinpointing, in this context, a reference in an Arab text that Srivijaya rulers had demanded a levy of 20,000 dinars as a right of passage for allowing a Jewish merchant ship to continue its voyage to China. 16 The available circumstantial evidence suggests that the merchant guilds’ lobby understood the use of diplomacy that was backed by military intervention. THE IMPACT OF THE EXPEDITION

Capturing the Chinese market was one of the factors that triggered the Kadaram expedition of Rajendra. “The imports into China in trade”, says Rockhill, “consisted of two distinct categories of goods, the one manufactured textile fabrics (mostly of cotton), spices and drugs, and the other, and by far the most valuable intrinsically, jewels and semi-precious substances, such as ivory, rhinoceros’ horns, ebony, amber, coral and the like, and various aromatic products and perfumes, used either in the preparation of incense or for perfuming the body”.17 The high value of the second category of goods and the increasing demand for them led the Chinese government to declare their sale a government monopoly. Trade in these articles was open only to licensed vendors who bought their supplies at government warehouses in quantities and at prices fixed by the government. Trade in cotton fabrics, spices, and drugs were under no restrictions, and subject only to an import duty payable in kind and varying from one-tenth to two-tenths of the goods imported. Besides this import duty collected at the time of their entering the port, these goods had also to bear a fixed tonnage tax on the ship. This trade was felt to be beneficial to China on the whole and caused no anxiety to the government. In the course of time, however, grave abuses developed in connection with the trade in luxury items, and the drain of currency and precious metals resulting from its expansion, were a cause of serious concern to the government. These came to light in the twelfth century, and the Chinese government had to embark on legislation calculated to prohibit the exportation of precious metals and coined money, and to restrict the volume of trade with Malabar and Kollam (that is, the Coromandel Coast and Quilon).

176

A. Meenakshisundar

arajan

In the face of strong discouragement from the Chinese government, the commercial relations between China and South India appear to have been sustained, with more or less regularity, to the end of the thirteenth century. The Loboe Toewa (Sumatra) Tamil fragment of S ´.1010 (AD 1088), which mentions the community of Tisai-Ayirattainnurruvar, shows that the merchants of South India had settlements outside India, and it is quite possible that small settlements of these traders were found in all important entrepots of the Persian Gulf and the China Sea. Hindu sculptures of decidedly South Indian origin have been discovered in a Chinese temple in the port town of Quanzhou, opposite to Formosa; these sculptures represent Puranic themes such as the Gajendra-moksa and Krsna tied to a mortar between trees and so on, and are best placed in the twelfth or thirteenth centuries. It seems possible, therefore, that a colony of South Indian merchants had settled in the port town of Quanzhou, which has been identified with the Zayton of the medieval travellers.18 It should also be recorded that the followers of Rajendra also maintained the supremacy of Chola Kingdom on foreign soil. The Chola navy seems to have crossed the Bengal Bay again, sometime around AD 1068, during the reign of Virarajendra, as inscriptions of his seventh regnal year (AD 1069/70) mention his expedition to Kadaram, though there is no vivid description of the battle in any of them. The purpose this time was to save a suppliant Kadaram king (name unknown) from some difficulty. Just more than twenty years after this second expedition, another Kadaram king (name unknown) sent a mission to the Chola court in 1090 and requested Kulottunga I, the then Chola king, to confirm the grant of villages made previously to the Buddhist temple constructed in Nagapattinam by Chulamani-varman. This is recorded in the so-called Smaller Leiden plates.19 All these events, together with the presence of agents (kanmi ) of the Kadaram king in the Chola country, suggest the existence of very close relations between the two countries, even though the Chola navy once sacked the capital of the other country.

CONCLUSION The historical evidence, cited above, clearly proved that Rajendra Chola I continued his father’s tradition of connecting the Chola kingdom with South Asian countries through trade. After Rajendra I, only Kulottunga Chola had trade connections with Southeast Asian countries, but trade connections of the Cholas with other countries began to decline in later years. This commercial penetration brought with it the penetration of Indian culture, religion, sculptures, languages, arts, architecture, customs, and manners to the Far

The

Chola

Trade

with Southeast and East

Asia

177

East Asia to the extent that historians described the phenomenon as the development of a “Greater India”.

Notes 1. Dietmar Rothermund, An Economic History of India (New Delhi: Manohar, 1989), pp. 8–9. 2. Hermann Kulke and Dietmar Rothermund, A History of India (New York: Dorset, 1990). 3. K.A.N. Sastri, The Co-l.as (Madras: University of Madras, 1955), p. 194. 4. Ibid., p. 172. 5. Ibid., p. 211 and 213. See a new translation in this volume, pp. 279–80. 6. R.N. Samy Moovayiram, Aandukal Tamilanin Kadalvazhi Vanikam (2005), (Tamil). 7. P. Suryanarayana, Tamilnattu varalattru Ilakkia Atharangal 200 B.C. to 1350 A.D. (1998). 8. K.A.N. Sastri, The Co-.las, p. 213. 9. Ibid. 10. Ibid., p. 228. 11. Ibid., p. 220. 12. K.V. Aiyar Subrahmanya, “The Larger Leiden Plates (of Rajaraja I)”, Epigraphia Indica, XXII, 1934. 13. K.G. Krishnan, Studies in South Indian History and Epigraphy (1981), p. 160. 14. We are grateful to Dr. K.V. Ramesh, Ex-Joint Director General, and Dr M.N. Katti, Chief Ephigraphist, both of Archeological Survey India, for the permission. 15. Noboru Karashima and Y. Subbarayalu, “An Inscription on the Pedestal of the Bronze Buddha Image of Mr and Mrs John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection of Asian Art — International character of Nagapattinam Merchants during the Chola Period”, Journal of East West Maritime Relations, Vol. 3, 1994. 16. Kenneth, R. Hall, Maritime Trade and State Development in Early Southeast Asia (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1985), p. 185. 17. T’oung Pao XV, p. 419. 18. Chau Ju-Kua: His Work on the Chinese and Arab Trade in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries, Entitled Chu fan-chi, translated from Chinese and annotated by F. Hirth and W.W. Rockhill (Amsterdam: Oriental Press, 1966), pp. 19, 96 and 101. 19. K.V. Aiyar Subrahmanya, “The Large Leiden Plates”.

11 CULTURAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE CHOLA MARITIME FABRIC TRADE WITH SOUTHEAST ASIA Hema Devare

Commerce  and  business  prompted  the Indians  to cross  the eastern  seas.  The economic  contact  with Southeast  Asia  was  opened  by South  Indian  people  in pre-historic  times.  In bringing  India and Southeast  Asia  closer  an important part  was  played  by the sea  link. This connection  was  used  most  effectively  by the Cholas  who combined  maritime  and mercantile  expertise.  A glimpse  of Rajaraja  and Rajendra  Chola’s  world of foreign  trade  and their  connection with Southeast  Asia  is a fascinating  chapter  in history.  The Cholas,  who were one of the most  powerful  kingdoms  in South  India, ruled  in the first two hundred  years  of the first millennium.  They were  first mentioned  in the 1 Ashoka  inscriptions  200  years  BC as having  friendly  relations  with Ashoka. They then were  eclipsed  for several  centuries  until the rise of Vijayalaya around  AD  850 who established  the imperial  line of the Cholas,  with Tanjavur  as their  capital,  governing  the entire  Coromandel  coast.  (The name stems  from Cholamandalam,  the land  of the Chola empire.)

THE BEGINNINGS OF TRADE Throughout  this period,  trade  was  the hallmark  of the Cholas.  Commerce from the Chola country  is mentioned  in Periplus  of the Erythraean  Sea 178

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

179

(a handbook  written  by an Alexandrian  merchant  between  AD 81–96). Nearly  half a century  later,  Ptolemy  talks  of the Chola  country  and  its ports 2 and inland  cities. The Cholas  controlled  the most  extensive  shipping  from the Coromandel  coast  across  the Indian Ocean  and the Arabian  Sea.  They employed  ships  of various  sizes.  Colandia  were  large  ships  used  on the  voyage up the  Ganges,  light  coasting  boats  were  for local  traffic,  and  big ocean-going vessels  reached  Malaya  and Sumatra. Kaveripattinam  and Nagapattinam  were  the two flourishing  port towns of the Chola kingdom  that became  hubs of commerce.  The reference  to Kaveripattinam,  the city par excellence  on the Coromandel  coast,  figures  in Buddhist  literature.  It is described  as a great  emporium  of the  Chola  kingdom in early  Tamil literature.  Pattinapalai (an early  Tamil poem  from  the second century)  talks of Puhar (Kaveripattinam)  having  a big colony  of foreign merchants  and  mentions  the  items  of trade.  A poet  addressing  the  Chola  king says,  “big  ships  enter  the  port of Puhar  without  slacking  sail  and  pour  out on 3 the beach  precious  merchandise  brought  from overseas”. One of the main articles  that came  from the Coromandel  Coast  was cotton  cloth.  The Mahabharata mentions  Tanjavur  muslins  whereas  Kautilya’s Arthashastra describes  Madurai  as a prominent  centre  of cotton  weaving. Periplus mentions  Argaru,  which  is the same  as Uraiyur  as a great  source  of trade  in fine cotton  stuff.  Tanjore  is the modern  version  of ancient  Uraiyur. 4 It rose  as the Chola capital  in the eleventh  to twelfth  centuries. The Chola princes  were  said  to wear  only  cotton.  Their robes  were  made  with cotton  and gold thread  woven  in. Chola  soldiers  also  wore  quilted  cotton  fabrics.  Early Tamil literature  gives  abundant  evidence  of this  rich produce  from the  Chola region.  For example,  Porunararuppadai , an early  Tamil classic,  mentions 5 cotton cloths,  thin like the slough  of the snake  with floral designs. Silapadikaram , another  early  Tamil poem,  refers  to Puhar  (the  capital  of the Cholas  at that time)  where  streets  were  lined with weavers  dealing  in fine fabrics  of silk, fur, and cotton. The Chola  traders  and  cotton  from  their  country  had  played  an important role in India’s  trade  with Rome  before  the beginning  of the  Christian  era.  By 200  BC the long  distance  access  stretching  from the  Mediterranean  to China was  established.  It was  connected  by the land and sea  routes  including  the famous  Silk Route.  Southeast  Asian  mainland  and  the archipelago  were  fully integrated  into this access  via India and China.  Several  Jatakastories  before the Christian  era  refer  to the voyages  between  India and the Suvarnabhumi. There  were  a number  of migrations  from India to Indochina  before  and  after the Christian  era.  A large  number  of traders  and  scholars  resided  along  these trade  routes  which stretched  from the Mediterranean  to China.  There is

Hema Devare

180

reference  to Indian  settlements  in Takola (in coastal  southern  Thailand)  and 6 Yavadwipa  in the second  century  BC. Trade  between  the  Malay  Peninsula  and  Sumatra  in the east  and  Malabar in the  west  was  in the  hands  of Tamil merchants.  Their main  objective  was  to acquire  forest  and sea  products  and mineral  wealth  of the region  for sale  in China.  Indian  textiles  were  beginning  to be used  as a medium  for exchange of wealth.  Ships  carrying  cargo  between  India and  China  stopped  at ports  on the west  coast  of Southeast  Asia  to barter  and exchange.  This intense  activity not only  enhanced  trade  and  commerce,  but was  also  a conduit  for the  spread 7 of religions,  especially  Buddhism  and Brahmanism.

TEXTILE  TRADE IN  SOUTHEAST ASIA China was  one of the earliest  eastern  markets  for the Indian  cotton.  During the later  Han dynasty,  AD 25–220,  the Chinese  came  to know  about  xibu 8 (fine cloth)  through  direct  and indirect  contact  with Indian traders.The Chinese  needed  large  quantities  of white  cotton  cloth for the uniforms  of their  soldiers  serving  in dry, hot regions,  and it remained  a valuable  import for a long  time.  White  cloth  was  accepted  as tax  and used  for payment  to the imperial  officers  and soldiers.  The same  cloth later  came  to be known as 9 kaniphain the Ming dynasty,  baftain Thailand  and kainin Malaysia. Indians  used  to carry  the  cloth  to Southeast  Asia  on the way  to China,  while Southeast  Asian  countries  re-exported  it along  with other  commodities.  The Silappadikaram refers  to this growing  trade  which  included  agil,  silk, candy, 10 sandal,  salt, and camphor. In the early  fifth century  AD, the Chinese pilgrim  Faxian  mentions  Indian  merchants  conducting  trade  with  his country. He calls  the cotton  fabric  trade  of India po-tiewhich  is connected  with the Sanskrit  word potaor pattiin Dravidian  language. The history  of the Song  dynasty  in China refers  to the arrival  of envoys from He-luo-dan  (a locality  perhaps  situated  in Sumatra).  Among  other things  that  the  envoys  brought  with  them  were  Indian  textiles.  This is the  first 11 reference  to the export  of Indian  textiles  from India to Southeast  Asia. Textiles  were  the binding  factors  in the cultural  history  of these  two regions  from ancient  times.  One of the early civilizations  in Java was Taruma Nagara  (fifth century  AD). Tarumameans  indigo,  and nagara comes  from the Sanskrit  word nagara , meaning  city state.  Indigo was  the dominant  colour  in the dyed  and printed  trade  cloths  of India.12 The two coastal  regions  of the Bay  of Bengal,  particularly  Kalinga,  were  an important source  of cotton  textiles  to Southeast  Asia  at an early  date.  Because  of this

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

181

dominance,  klingwas widely used  in the Indonesian  archipelago  as a common  term for South Asians  and klingcloths  for textiles.  This was because  Java  had  settlers  from Kalinga.

THE ROLE OF THE CHOLAS IN  PROMOTING TRADE A number  of trading  centres  came  up as a result  of the two-way  commerce. By the time the Cholas  came  back  to power,  Palembang  in the kingdom  of Srivijaya  was  already  a flourishing  port.  It remained  an important  commercial centre  from  the  seventh  to the  fourteenth  centuries.  By then,  Arab  traders  had also  entered  the scene.  Their settlements  along  the trade  route  had added  to the boom  of economic  services.  The Cholas  developed  extensive  trade  with Srivijaya.  Trade of the Cholas  with Sumatra  and peninsular  Malaysia  got a real boost  under  Rajaraja.  Traders  from Kadaram  and Srivijaya  crossed  the seas  to the Chola  country  with their  commodities  such  as iron ore and teak wood.  Rajaraja  encouraged  foreign  trade.  Traders  from the Chola kingdom flocked  to the Southeast  Asian  countries  and found  settlements  and trading guilds  already  existent  there.  Tamil merchants  had remained  in constant touch  with the archipelago  and China. South  Indian  merchant  associations  such  as manigramam,  nanadesi,  and ainnaruvar  (ayyavole  in Kannada  or aryarupa  in Sanskrit)  already  existed. Ainnaruvar  as a trade  guild became  more powerful  under the Cholas. Manigramam  and  nanadesi  joined  this  guild.  Not all South  Indian  merchants present  in Southeast  Asian ports were  associated  with merchant  groups. There  are inscriptions  in Java  and  Bali to suggest  the existence  of Banigrama (local  version  of vanigrama — merchant  groups)  which  included  both local 13 and foreign  merchants.  They were  working  under  licence  from  local  rulers. Rajaraja  Chola  initiated  a trade  mission  to China  in AD 1015.  Beginning with this, a series  of trade  missions  were  sent  to China during  the Chola dynasty.  Up until then,  the  focus  of these  trade  associations  was  the  Middle East.  But with trade  volume  increasing  in the East,  it shifted  to Southeast Asia and China.  The activity  of these  guilds  shifted  to the east  coast  of India,  the  cotton-producing  regions  stretching  from  Tamil Nadu  to Karnataka to the  south  coast  of Kalinga,  and  cotton  textiles  gained  prominence  in the 14 list of exports. As the trade  was growing,  the Chola king Rajaraja  encouraged  the construction  of Cudamani  Vihara  at Nagapattinam  by the  king  of the  Sailendra dynasty  of Srivijaya.  A decade  later,  the ruler  of Srivijaya  presented  gifts  of 15 Chinese  gold to a Hindu temple  in the Chola  state  in India. This showed

Hema Devare

182

the extent  of the growing  friendly  relations  between  the Cholas  and the eastern  archipelago.

TEXTILES  AND SPICES Painted  and block-printed  textiles  from Gujarat  and Coromandel  were closely  knit with the spice  trade.  They consisted  of plain woven  cottons decorated  either  by mordant  dyeing  or mordant  dyeing  in combination with resist  dyeing.  During the Chola period,  by the eleventh  century, weaving  and dyeing  industries  had  further  developed.  The introduction  of the draw  loom  in the  eleventh  century  and  the spinning  wheel  in the  early thirteenth  century  added  to the  technological  advance.  Block-printed  textiles, resist  dyed  with indigo  or mordant  dyed  with madder  or morinda,  along with intricate  patterns,  were  exported  in large  quantities  to Southeast  Asia 16 and  the  Middle  East. The Southeast  Asians  would  barter  their  spices  only in exchange  for these  textiles.  This patterned  cloth  had  a high  circulation  in Southeast  Asia. Changes  in textile  patterns  illustrated  on the Angkor  reliefs  reflect  the growing  popularity  of the  Indian  export  cloths  at that  time.  The Khmer  kings Suryavarman  I and  II, had  fostered  active  links  with the Chola  dynasty  in the eleventh  and  twelfth  centuries.  From the  repository  of Angkor  reliefs  one  can see  the evolution  of Indian  textiles.  Till the ninth century,  plain or striped lengths  were  in vogue.  By the tenth  century,  pleated  cloths  were  available. Progressively,  more exotic  fabrics  came  from India. Patterns  of geometric designs,  four petal  flowers,  solar  discs,  star  shapes  of various  kinds,  and  floral motifs  in bands  and squares,  became  popular.  The changing  patterns  of the fabrics  on the Javanese  statuary  around  the same  time reflect  the growing popularity  of Indian  export  cloths  at that  time. In 1225,  the Chinese  writer  Zhao  Rugua  who was  inspector  of foreign trade  in Fujian,  described  the export  of cotton  textiles  from south  India to Sumatra.  According  to his records,  Indian patterned  cloth  entered  China from various  regions  of Southeast  Asia,  thus linking  Southeast  Asia with China.17 Also  in the  thirteenth  century,  Marco  Polo recorded  the  exports  of Indian  textiles  to China and Southeast  Asia  from the Masulipattinam  and 18 Coromandel  coasts  in the “largest  ships”  known then. The rulers  in Southeast  Asia used  to buy this cloth and send  it as gifts  to the Chinese emperors  to enhance  their  status  and to maintain  control  of international trade  in their territory.  In the fourteenth  century,  Chinese  commentator Wang  Dayuan  states  in his account  that  patterned  cloth  was  imported  from Nagapattinam,  the Chola  dynasty’s  major  port  and  centre  for the export  of

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

183

19 cotton  goods. In Java,  between  the ninth  and fifteenth  centuries,  Indian textiles  had high priority  in the lists of items  of purchase  by rulers  and nobility.  Not only was  Southeast  Asia involved  in this trade,  but also  the dominant  language  at that  time  was  a mixture  of Tamil, Persian,  and  Malay.

THE CHOLA CONNECTION IN  SOUTHEAST ASIA There  is enough  inscriptional  evidence  to suggest  the Chola  connection  with Southeast  Asia.  Recent  underwater  excavations  in Pompuhar  have  unearthed evidence  of early  Chola  contacts  with Southeast  Asia  and the Roman  world. The early  Chola  square  copper  coins  with a rectangular  stone  bar with  Tamil brahmiletters  found at Khuan Luk Pat in Thailand  point to the trade contacts  with the  Tamil population  in Thailand.  Rajaraja  Chola’s  mission  and trade  organizations  such  as ainnurruvar  are  some  of the names  which  visited 20 Southeast  Asian  ports  on their  way to China. The Chola envoy,  Samanta (Sanwen),  is reported  to have  visited  many  Southeast  Asian  ports  on his way to China.  An Indian  mercantile  guild,  manigramam,  was  active  at Takuapa, a port located  on the west  coast  of the Isthmus  during  the ninth century. There  are  statues  at Takuapa  and Viengsra  in Chola  style  and an inscription at Nakhon  Si Thammarat  indicating  continuing  contacts  between  the  Isthmus 21 and South  India in Chola times. The Chinese  annals  of the Song  dynasty record  the mission  to China from Zhu-nian  (Chola)  in AD 1015.  They mention  the name  of Luo-cha-luo-zha  (Rajaraja)  as the king  of their  country. Another  Chola embassy  under Shi-li-luo-cha-yin-tuo-luo-zhu-luo  (Shri Rajaindra  Chola)  reached  China  in AD 1033,  and  a third  one  from  Kulottunga 22 in AD 1077. Tamil inscriptions  have  been  found  between  Burma  and  Sumatra  written in Grantha  script,  a common  script  between  Sanskrit  and  Tamil. Most of the  Tamil inscriptions  appear  to belong  to the  Chola  period  of the  eleventh to twelfth  centuries,  or the declining  Chola period  in the late  thirteenth century.  The inscription  in Sumatra  dated  AD 1082  was  discovered  in the last  century  at Barus,  an important  coastal  centre  for camphor.  It recorded the  decision  in Tamil by the  Indian  community  resident  there  (members  of the ainnurruvar  guild)  requiring  to pay  a charitable  fee  before  engaging  in 23 the trade  of cloth. According  to a Tanjore copper  plate  evidence,  the king of Kamboja sought  Rajendra  Chola’s  friendship  by sending  him the victorious  chariot  for the protection  of royalty,  which  indicates  the Cholas’  overseas  contact  with Kamboja.  Suryavarman  I  (AD 1002–50)  was in power  in Angkor  at that time.  The finds  of Chinese  ceramics  at several  sites  in south  India  dating  from

Hema Devare

184

the ninth to tenth centuries  onwards  are clear  indicators  of continuous 24 maritime  contacts  during  the Chola/Vijayanagara  period.

INFLUENCE OF CHOLA CULTURE The Chola  traders  were  not only active  as traders,  but they  also  brought  their brahmanical  courtly  culture  along  with them.  They  added  a significant  layer on ac   ultural  base  built  by the  Pallavas.  Rajendra’s  naval  expedition  to Southeast Asia further  strengthened  this cultural  influence.  The concept  of devaraja , Shiva  and Vishnu,  and  the generous  use  of the  Sanskrit  language  was  already being  practised.  The Cambodian  monarchy  as  well  as Javanese  royalty  thought of themselves  as Vishnu  and Shiva.  The Thai kings  regarded  themselves  as incarnations  of Indra.  In Champa,  the  spirit  of Shiva  was  omnipresent.  Cham sculptures  in Vietnam  were  the expression  of the Indian  Brahmin  pantheon 25 as interpreted  locally. Deification  was  further  promoted  under  the mid-Cholas  with the belief that  the king increased  his divine  power  by his identification  with both  the 26 temple  and  the  deity  himself. The culture  of the  Cholas  revolved  around  the temples.  They were  showpieces  for fine arts,  whether  of architecture,  stone sculpture,  textiles,  paintings,  or bronze  castings.  Music and dance  were intertwined  with the religious  activities  of the Chola  kingdom. Narrative  stories  in the form  of wall paintings  were  an ancient  tradition which was immortalized  in the Ajanta  Caves.  The wall paintings  in the Brihadisvara  temple  in Tanjavur  of early  eleventh  century  was  a continuation 27 of this narrative  tradition. The walls  of Rajaraja’s  temple  of Tanjore  depict Shiva  seated  on a tiger  skin watching  the dance  of the nymphs. Inland from the Coromandel  coast,  the town of Kalahasti  had the tradition  of creating  resist  dyed  painted  scrolls  for use as temple  hangings, which  had  the  images  of gods  from Hindu mythology  . The picturization  was dramatic,  in tune with the art of katha  recital,  which was a popular  folk 28 tradition  in the villages. The art of Kalamkari  from the Coromandel  coast could  have  had its origins  in these  religious  paintings,  which were  used  as backdrop  in the temples. The passion  and  the  patronage  of arts  under  the  Cholas  had  their  imprint on the Southeast  Asian  cultures.  The brahmanical  sculptures  in peninsular Siam  from  the  ninth  to the  eleventh  centuries  were  dominated  by the  influence of Chola art, especially  the stone  sculptures  on Pranarai  Hill at Takuapa. Ramayana battle  scenes  against  a plain white  background,  popular  in Bali, can be traced  to South  Indian  temple  hangings.  Burmese  kalagas (elaborate hangings),  portraying  stories  from  well  known  Jatakalegends,  were  decorative

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

185

hangings  meant  for monasteries  and courts  of Southeast  Asia. Rich and ornate  appliqué  materials  were  used  by the Burmese  elites  to create  them. They  were  donated  to Buddhist  temples  to gain  merit.  Using  painted  scrolls as picture  recitations  was  an ancient  practice  in India.  Bana  (the  well-known Sanskrit  author)  refers  to these  scrolls  as yamapattikas (conveying  message  of death)  in Harshacharitra . Buddhist  literature  sources  also  refer  to chalatchitra or mobile  paintings  which  was  an old tradition.  These  are  portable  galleries of pictures  with songs.  In Siamese  Buddhist  texts,  Saratha  Pakshini , these 29 chitras are  said  to have  been  shown  to people  by wandering  brahmins. Painting  on cloth  and the intricate  process  of resist  dyeing  on fabrics were  going on simultaneously.  Painted  stripes,  floral and bird pictures, sunflower  and  lilies,  luxuriant  foliage,  were  some  of the  popular  motifs.  The fabrics  of the Chola traders  were  not merely  trade  objects,  but carriers  of culture.  The textile  patterns  provided  decoration  for temple  interiors  and courts  in Southeast  Asia.  The depiction  on these  textiles  shows  that they were  Indian imports.  The temples  of Pagan  in Myanmar  provide  some evidence  for this. The painted  motif on the ceiling  of the Thetkyamuni temple  is a standard  Indian design  in printed  cotton cloths  from the 30 Coromandel  coast. In the Lokahteikpan  temple  of Pagan,  the king of Vaisali  wears  a robe  with interlocking  circles,  a design  similar  to the  ceiling pattern  of the  Kanchipuram  temple  in Tamilnadu  in India.  This seventeenth century  temple  has  imitated  the pattern  of trade  textiles  popular  from the first century  AD in the Sunga  period.  These  textiles  were  used  as ceiling 31 canopies  to define  sacred  spaces. It showed  the prestige  Indian textiles carried  among  the  rulers  of Burma.  The Angkorian  reliefs  show  that  patterned cloths  were  used  to make  blinds  for windows,  screens,  curtains,  parasols, and  upholstery  cloth  — all essential  indicators  of social  status  in the  lives  of the elite.  For example,  Suryavarman  II is seated  on a patterned  cloth  with a four-petal  flower  (a pattern  indicative  of royalty).  Parasols  shown  with 32 patterned  material  proclaim  the king’s  sovereignty. In Wat Yai Suvannaram in the Phetchaburi  province  in Thailand,  eleven  pairs of columns  are painted  and gilded  with patterns  similar  to those  on Indian trade  cloth. Buddha’s  figure  is always  resting  on imported  trade  textiles.  These  textiles became  an integral  part of temple  décor  as well as of royal regalia  for princely  courts.  They assumed  a prestigious  position  in local  societies.

HINDU  ICONOGRAPHY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA The influence  of Hindu iconography  on Southeast  Asian  minds  was  manifest through  textiles.  The upper  world of deities  was transformed  into Mount

186

Hema Devare

Meru.  In Indonesia,  the  Brahmin  priest  had  introduced  certain  rituals  to the court  in which  the mountain  motif  had  a strong  impact  as the abode  of gods. It was powerfully  expressed  in temple  structures  by erecting  stupas.  The pagoda  is a popular  image  and is depicted  on silk-weft  ikattextiles  such  as 33 pidanof Cambodia,  which  are used  as ceremonial  hangings.In Malaysia, the mountain  symbol  manifested  in the motif of tumphal . In the batik of Indonesia,  a sacred  mountain  appears  as semen or alasan . These  symbols  were meant  for the exclusive  use  of Javanese  royalty. The concept  of mandala (circle)  was  turned  into the kawung pattern  of Javanese  batik.  Vishnu  Dharmottarapurana (the ancient  Sanskrit  treatise  on painting)  prescribes  the worship  of the sun god through  an eight-petaled lotus flower  drawn  on the ground.  The Southeast  Asian sun motif was 34 transformed  under  the Indian  influence  into eight-point  rosettes  or lotuses. The circle,  the star,  and the lozenge  have  been  identified  with the lotus, chakra (Vishnu’s  weapon),  and mandala motif. Naga symbolism  prevalent  in south India found ready  acceptance  in Southeast  Asia where  snakes  and other  reptiles  were  already  important  in ancient  images.  Naga  is af amiliar  figure  on the  silk-weft  ikatcloth  of Khmer. Naga  and  Garuda,  the  mount  of Vishnu,  and  a central  figure  in the  Ramayana epic,  became  prominent  symbols  of court  regalia.  The giant  Garuda,  symbol of the ruler,  appears  on the textiles  of Indonesia  in stylized  form as a single wing or a pair of wings. Celestial  deities  from  Hindu mythology  were  favoured  designs  for court décor  among  Thai royalty.  Designs  incorporating  devas , kinnaras , apsaras , gandharvas , garuda and naga were  especially  popular.  Thepanon  (deva)  rising from a lotus  with folded  hands  became  one of the most  popular  motifs  in Thai art.  The Coromandel  coast  reproduced  this cloth  with such  motifs.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE  AND INDIAN TEXTILES The trade  textiles,  being  ceremonial  and  royal,  brought  with  them  the  inherent notion  of hierarchy.  They brought  subtle  changes  in the social  structures  of Southeast  Asian  societies.  They  became  symbols  of rank  and status.  A more rigid distinction  developed  between  the rulers  and the ruled.  They were adopted  by the rich whereas  the  masses  continued  to wear  textiles  made  with vegetable  fibre. Gold was  associated  with royalty  and gold’s  glitter  was  considered  to be a symbol  of royal  presence.  Brocaded  cloth,  valuable  silk, and  gold  became  a signature  of royalty  and the elite  in Southeast  Asia.  In Thailand,  Sumatra, Java,  and Bali, gold leaf was used  to highlight  the block-printed  designs.

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

187

Zhou Daguan,  a member  of Chinese  diplomatic  mission  residing  in Angkor in 1297,  describes  that  clothes  for royal  use  included  Indian  imports.  They 35 were valued  in gold, an indication  of their high status. Even in later centuries,  during  wedding  ceremonies,  the bride  continued  to be dressed  in costume  with silver  and  gold  thread.  Since  metal  was  a purifying  agent,  it was supposed  to protect  the bride. In Java,  the most  distinctive  Javanese  noble  dress  known  as dodot used Indian cloth which came  from the Coromandel  coast.  It  was specially designed  for priyayi or nobility  as ceremonial  dress.  There  is a reference  to dodot in the Javanese  text  of the late  ninth century  . Weavers  are depicted in the  fourteenth  century  reliefs  showing  courtly  costumes  of the  Majapahit 36 era. Evidence  of royal  cloths  is available  from  the  Chinese  annals.  According to Liangshu , King Bhagadatta  in Langkasuka  and his nobles  wore  above their robes  red cloth which covered  the top of their back between  the shoulders.  They wore  golden  belts  and gold rings  on their ears.  Women 37The  wore  scarves  adorned  with jewels. colour  red  was  considered  auspicious in India.  The red silk sari  with gold brocade  covering  the  entire  surface  was worn by brides  in south  India.  They were  offered  to the temple  before  the solemnization  of the marriage. Coromandel  fabrics  had a special  relationship  with Thailand.  Finely painted  textiles,  known  as klingcloths,  were  most  popular  with the Thai royalty.  The Crown ordered  his own designs  through  agents  who used  to go to India and ship cloths  from the Coromandel  coast.

INFLUENCE ON  SOUTHEAST ASIAN COSTUMES From textiles,  Indian  influence  spread  to the  realm  of costumes.  Simple  loin cloth gave  way to more  elaborate  forms  of clothing  for the lower  body. According  to sculptural  evidence,  the  style  of dress  adopted  by the  rulers  of the earliest  kingdoms  of Southeast  Asia included  long skirts,  draped  or folded  in front and  held  with clasps,  belts,  and  decorative  sashes.  Although the  upper  part  of the  body  and  head  were  left uncovered,  they  were  adorned with jewellery. Indian costume  forms  themselves  provided  a major  impetus  for new styles. The chawang  kabunof the Khmer  equated  with the dhoti . Khmer  skirt  cloths  with  a bundle  of pleats  tucked  in at the  waist  resembled the Indian  sari. The skirt cloth  simply  knotted  at the waist  imitated  the Indian  lungi .

188

Hema Devare

The shoulder  sash,  the salandang of the Malay  world and the sabaiof Thailand  could  have  been  derived  from the sari. The chawang  kabunwas  the most  familiar  form  of Angkorian  costumes. As early  as the pre-Angkorian  period,  Indian merchants,  brahmins,  and priests  were  attired  in unstitched  cloth which  was considered  purer  in the Hindu belief  system.  During the Angkorian  period,  Cambodian  costumes did not include  upper  body  garments  except  those  worn by warriors.  The chawang  kabun continued  to remain  a royal  costume  in later  centuries.  Before the coronation  of the king, the queen  wore the chawang  kabunof seven different  colours  for seven  days.  It was  a mark  of respect  for the deity  of the 38 day. This custom  dated  back  to Hindu origins. In the kingdom  of Srivijaya,  garments  had largely  remained  untailored. People  there  wore clothes  similar  to Indian dhoti . Like the Khmers  and Malays,  they  chose  the textiles  from India for royal  use. In Champa,  the stone-sculpted  apsara of the pedestal  of Tra Kieu (near Da Nang,  central  Vietnam),  dated  to the middle  of the tenth  century,  wears richly  decorated  cloth which  is skin tight and fits closely  to the legs.  This clothing  was  not known  outside  Champa  in Southeast  Asian  art. This style, known  as Chandataka,  corresponds  to the  costumes  of sculptures  representing dancers  and female  deities  from South  India from  the same  period  as can  be 39 seen  from the bronze  sculptures  of the Cholas. In Thailand,  the chong  kraben(dhoti ) became  firmly established  as a costume  style  for both men and women  as can be seen  in temple  stone carvings  from the Sukhothai  period  (fourteenth  century  AD).The  floral  and geometric  patterns  of the  chong  krabens and  sarongs could  be imports  from  the Coromandel  coast. The carved  depictions  from  this  period  show  that  over  the  centuries  more exotic  fabrics  became  available  to the  elite.  One particular  pattern  of intersecting roundels  enclosing  a flower  motif is carved  in bas-relief  at Angkor  Wat and Bayon.  Same  textile  is represented  on the hip-wrapper  of Javanese  Ganesha. A fragment  of export  cotton  cloth  of the same  mordant  printed  pattern  has been  recovered  in Fustat  in Egypt  belonging  to the thirteenth  century.  It has been  proven  to be of Indian origin,  exported  to the Middle East.  These representations  weave  a common  story.  It supports  the theory  of overseas 40 trade  in woven  cloth. As mentioned  earlier,  India not only initiated  fashion styles  for the elite  in Southeast  Asia,  but also  provided  much  of the cloth  to create  them.  These  textile  depictions  not only show  the evidence  of costume styles,  but also  of trade  and textile  economy  in the region.

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

189

CULTURAL LEGACY Although  Coromandel  textiles  arrived  as items  of trade  in Southeast  Asia, these  painted,  printed  mordant  resist-dyed  fabrics  were absorbed  in the hierarchies  of Southeast  Asian  society  and art because  of their  exotic  nature and  complexity  of designs  and  association  with  royalty.  Textiles  which  reflected Hindu traditions  became  a part of sacred  heritage.  They were  not only absorbed  in day-to-day  usage,  but became  an important  element  in all rites  of passage  such  as birth,  marriage,  and funerals.  They also  found  an important place  in mythology  and  customary  practices.  Coromandel  painted  fabrics  and patolas from Gujarat  were  essential  elements  in royal  ceremonies.  The use  of canopy  of painted  cottons  became  a universal  practice. These  painted  and mordant  dyed  cotton  fabrics  came  to be known  as sarsa on Southeast  Asian  mainland  and Sembagi in the archipelago,  and later became  well  known  as chints all over  the  world.  They  were  used  as  gifts  which helped  to establish  social  relationships.  In Malay  weddings  they  were  displayed on silver  trays  known  as kain telepuk and became  a widely  accepted  form of storing  wealth  in Southeast  Asian  societies.  Ritual  exchanges  occurred  at all levels  —  from the individual  to the state  —  with the aim of obtaining loyalties  and establishing  political  equations.  In Thailand,  the distribution  of imported  cloths  had been  used  since  the Ayuthya  period  as a method  of expressing  favour,  privilege,  and rank. In Sulawesi,  Indonesia,  these  fabrics  are known as ma’a . They were described  as having  come  from the mythical  sea  in mythical  times  and  hence became  sacred  treasures.  They  are  associated  with marriages  and  funerals.  The Torajas  in central  Sulawesi  build  a huge  staircase  of bamboo  to which  hundreds of rolls  of Indian  textiles  are  attached.  It towers  above  the  proceedings  and  is a symbolic  invitation  to ancestors. Even  in Indonesia  under  Islam  these  Coromandel  textiles  retained  their magical  status.  Painted  cloths  decorated  with flowering  trees  were  prized  as canopies  on formal  occasions.  It was  not merely  a sun shade,  but a public 41 statement  of authority. The trade  textiles  were  ascribed  protective  powers  and children  with diseases  were  wrapped  in them.  Magical  properties  were  also attributed  to them.  This is vividly  demonstrated  in the Javanese  antakusuma , which  is a 42 talismanic  patchwork  jacket  imbued  with supernatural  protective  powers. It was made  with fragments  of old and auspicious  Indian textiles,  including patola (a double  ikatsilk textile  which  captured  the fancy  of Southeast  Asia) and painted  cottons.  The rulers  of Yogyakarta  wore  them.

Hema Devare

190

Batik tulis(hand-drawn  batik),  for which Java became  famous,  had close  connection  with Kalamkari  from the Coromandel  coast.  Certain motifs  associated  with Indian  royal  textiles  took  root in Southeast  Asia.  For example,  the four-petaled  rosette,  popular  in Thai art since  the Dvaravati period,  was  the most  common  motif of Indian textiles  in painted  cottons for the  Thai market  and  Thai brocades.  The eight-pointed  lotus  from the Hindu symbol  for the  worship  of the  sun was  reproduced  in Javanese  batik as jalamprang .  Among the Minangkabau,  it is called  “split peanut”. Indonesian  batikwas  closely  linked  to Hindu mythology.  The batikpatterns kawung and  sumer are  not only symbols  of power,  but also  refer  to ancient links between  the rulers  of Java  and Hindu gods,  particularly  Vishnu  and Shiva.  Kawung might  have  been  inspired  by the  four-petal  flower  appearing on the  cloth  from the  Coromandel  coast.  The symbol  of the  “tree  of life”  on Coromandel  textiles  was  shared  by Indonesia. Hindu traditions  continued  through  textiles  that  were  part  of ceremonial rites.  Ramayana and  Mahabharata became  the basis  for most  classical  theatre performances  in association  with court  and  village  rituals  which  required  the use  of rich costumes. The legacy  of the fabric  trade  of the Cholas  survived  long after  their empire  declined.  In Thailand  and Cambodia,  brahmanical  practices  are  still followed  for royal  ceremonies.  On such  occasions  Indian  textiles  are  preferred. In Thailand,  in the first ploughing  ceremony  known  as nak na kwan , the Minister  of Agriculture  who  takes  the  temporary  place  of the  King, wears  pha nung  (dhoti ) for the ceremony  which  is presided  over  by brahmin  priests.  His 43 choice  of length  of cloth  is supposed  to usher  the  length  of the  rainy  season. In Cambodia,  even  today,  in traditional  dances  the performers  wear  hip wrappers  over  pants,  providing  the glimpses  of the cultural  past. Like the sculptural  evidence,  royal  practices  using  ceremonial  textiles are reminders  of the early  Indian influence  in Southeast  Asia from the Chola times.

Notes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

-las(University  K.A. Nilakanta  Sastri,  The Co of Madras,  1937),  p. 10. . Ibid., p. 22. Ibid., p. 80. Ibid., p. 22. Ibid., p. 88. H.B. Sarkar,  Cultural  Relations  between  India and Southeast  Asia(New Delhi: Indian  Council  for Cultural  Relations  and Motilal Banarasidas,  1985).

Fabric Trade with Southeast  The Chola Maritime  Asia

191

7. Himanshu  Prabha  Ray,  “Far Flung  Fabrics:  Indian  Textiles  in Ancient  Maritime Trade”,  in Textiles  in Indian  Ocean  Societies , edited  by Ruth Barnes,  p. 21. 8. Haraprasad  Ray, Trade and Trade Routes  between  India and China , c 140 BC– AD 1500  (Kolkata:  Progressive  Publishers,  2003),  p. 161. 9. Ibid., p. 163. 10. Sarkar,  Cultural  Relations , p. 252. 11. Ibid., p. 250. 12. Jasleen  Dhamija,  Woven  Magic:  The Affinity  Between  Indian and Indonesian Textiles (Jakarta:  Dian Rakyat,  2002),  p. 9. 13. Himanshu  Prabha  Ray,  “Far Flung Fabrics”,  p. 23. 14. Jan Wisseman  Christie,  “The  Medieval  Tamil-language  Inscriptions  in Southeast Asia  and China”,  Journal  of Southeast  Asian  Studies 29 (1998):  239–68. -.las, p. 185. 15. Nilakanta  Sastri,  The Co 16. Christie,  “The Medieval  Tamil-language  Inscriptions”,  p. 3. 17. John Guy, Woven  Cargoes (Thames  and Hudson,  1998),  p. 55. 18. South  Asian  History:  History  of Crafts,  Manufacturing  and Trade in Indian Sub-continent,  . (http://jigyasaO.tripo 19. Guy, Woven  Cargoes , p. 154. 20. Harprasad  Ray,  Trade  and  Trade Routes , p. 164. 21. Brahmanical  Gods  in Peninsular  Siam , p. 21. -las, p. 219. 22. Sastri,  The Co . 23. Guy, Woven  Cargoes , p. 55. 24. Ray, “Far Flung  Fabrics”,  p. 29. 25. Hubert  Jean Francois,  The Art of Champa (New York: Parkstone  Press,  2005), p. 31. 26. Heather  Elgood,  Hinduism  and  Religious  Arts(New  York: Cassell,  1999),  p. 183. 27. Ibid., p. 207. 28. Homage  to Kalamkari (Mumbai:  Marg Publications,  746-15H  H 763). 29. J.F. Hubert,  The Art of Champa . 30. Guy, Woven  Cargoes , p. 56. 31. Ibid., p. 32. 32. Gillian Green,  Traditional  Textiles  of Cambodia:  Cultural  Threads  and Material Heritage (Thailand:  River  Books  Co. Ltd.), p. 36. 33. Robyn  Maxwell,  Textiles  of Southeast  Asia(Hong  Kong:  Periplus  Editions,  2003), p. 199. 34. Elgood,  Hinduism  and Religious  Arts , p. 207. 35. Guy, Woven  Cargoes , p. 58. 36. Ibid., p. 99. 37. P.M. Munoz, Early Kingdoms  of Indonesian  Archipelago  and Malay Peninsula (Singapore,  2006),  p. 101. 38. Gillian Green,  Traditional  Textiles  of Cambodia , p. 191. 39. Jane  Purananada,  ed.,  Through  the  Thread  of Time:  Southeast  Asian  Textiles.  The

192

Hema Devare

James  H.W. Thomson  Foundation  Symposium  Papers (Thailand:  River Books, 2004),  p. 138. 40. Ibid., pp. 39–40. 41. Guy, Woven  Cargoes , p. 74. 42. Ibid., p. 102. 43. J. Purananada,  ed.,  Through  the  Thread  of Time , p. 111.

12 SRI LANKA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA DURING THE PERIOD OF THE POLONNARUVA KINGDOM Anura Manatunga

Polonnaruva  was the capital  city of Sri Lanka for about  two and half centuries  from the late  tenth  century  AD to the mid-thirteenth  century AD. It was the centre  of the Chola administration  of the governors  of King Rajaraja  I (AD 985–1014)  and his successors  for over  seventy  years after  which  it became  the centre  of the second  Sinhalese  kingdom  under King Vijayabahu  I (AD 1055–10).  It was  then ruled  by seventeen  kings and queens  including  the Great Parakramabahu  (AD 1153–86)  and Nissankamalla  (AD 1187–96),  until  it was  usurped  by Magha  of Kalinga  in AD 1215  who  ruled  for twenty-one  years.  Though  the  city  was  restored  and reoccupied  for some  time  in the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries,  it was gradually  abandoned  and forgotten  (pp. 54–90;UCHC 1959,  pp. 392– 580). It  was rediscovered  in the early nineteenth  century  by a British military  officer,  and at that time,  was  only a ruined  city in a forest  area (Ievers  1899,  p. 213;  Forbes  1994,  p. 391). Polonnaruva  contains  both  Hindu and Buddhist  monuments  and they have  been  preserved  in fairly good condition.  The largest  collection  of inscriptions  in Sinhala  or Tamil from Sri Lanka  was  found  in Polonnaruva. The history  of Polonnaruva  has been relatively  well documented  in the Mahavamsa , the Pali chronicle  of the Island.  The large-scale  archaeological investigations  of the site started  at the beginning  of the last century  and 193

194

Anura Manatunga

systematic  excavations  with regular  recordings  have  been  carried  out since 1980  (Burrows  1899;  Bell 1903;  Prematilleke  1982). The city has appeared  in history  since  the seventh  century  AD as a regional  centre  of the  Anuradhapura  kingdom  and  developed  gradually  during the following  centuries  as an alternative  city to Anuradhapura  (UCHC 1959, pp. 333–38).  Some kings of the late Anuradhapura  period  favoured Polonnaruva  and periodically  settled  there  for ruling  the country,  although Anuradhapura  was  still the capital  city of the island.  Unlike Anuradhapura, Polonnaruva  was  not a holy city for Buddhists;  hence  its selection  to replace Anuradhapura  would have been understood  in a different  paradigm (Manatunga  2007,  pp. 1–5). Recent  studies  show  that  Polonnaruva  would  have  been  the Pana  Nagara referred  to in the Vansattappakasini in relation  to the battles  of Prince Pandukabhaya  in the fourth  century  BC (Manatunga  2004,  pp. 112–16).  If we accept  this identification,  it could  be surmised  that  Polonnaruva  was  a market  town,  as the name  Pana  Nagara  has  that  meaning  (Monier-Williams 2001,  p. 615).  The location  of Polonnaruva  reinforced  this  idea  as it had  been a nodule  point in a trade  network.  Polonnaruva  is relatively  closer  to the eastern  coast  of the  island  than  Anuradhapura  and  it is approachable  through the  river  Mahaveli,  from the  Gokanna  port,  the  later  Trincomalee  that  has  the best  natural  harbour  in the region. The eastern  coast  and  the  ports  in eastern  Sri Lanka  would  have  prospered from the trade  boom  in the Malay  Archipelago  and the rise  of the Srivijaya kingdom  from about  the seventh  century  AD  onwards.  Therefore,  easy accessibility  to the eastern  coast  would  be one of the advantages  offered  by Polonnaruva  for emerging  as the capital  city of the island.  Apart from economic  considerations,  political  and  cultural  conditions  favoured  the  eastern coast  during  this period.  With the decline  of Buddhism  on the Indian mainland,  Sri Lanka  emerged  as the protector  of Buddhism  in the South Asian Region  (Coedès  1968,  p. 149). Therefore,  cultural  ties with other Buddhist  countries  across  the Indian Ocean  improved  during  this period. Ocean  currents  and  monsoon  winds  also  favoured  direct  contact  between  Sri Lanka  and  Myanmar  as well  as with the  Malay  Peninsula  (Aung  1967,  p. 23). The Chinese  traveller  monk,  Hsuen  Tsang,  who was  a pilgrim  in India and Myanmar  in the  seventh  century  AD, has  noted  that  lower  Myanmar  was  also known  as Kama  Lankawhich  means  “Love  of Lanka”  (Aung  1967,  p. 23). The names  of two Malay  kingdoms,  Lanka  Suka  and Srivijaya,  might  also testify  to the cordial  relationship  with Sri Lanka as Lanka Suka means “Happiness  of Lanka”,  and  Vijaya  was  the founder  of the Sinhalese  people  of Sri Lanka  in the sixth  century  BC (Aung  1967,  p. 23).

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

195

Politically,  the  rise  of the imperial  Cholas  in South  India was  a danger to the existence  of the Sinhalese  kingdom  of Anuradhapura  (UCHC 1959, pp. 333–38).  As the Cholas  subdued  other South Indian kingdoms (Nilakanta  Sastri  1955,  p. 197)  the  Sinhalese  could  not seek  the  support  of their old allies,  Pandyas  or Cheras.  Only Southeast  Asia could render support  against  the Cholas;  hence  Polonnaruva  would have  been  seen  as more  convenient  than  Anuradhapura  by the  Sinhalese  kings  of Anuradhapura in the troubled  period. By the end of the tenth  century  AD, Polonnaruva  would  possibly  have developed  as  the  chief  administrative  centre  of the  island,  though  Anuradhapura was  still considered  the capital.  It has  been  recorded  that  Anuradhapura  had become  a home  of unruly  mobs  of soldiers  by the time of King Mahinda (AD 982–1012)  who happened  to be the  last  king of Anuradhapura  (Mv. 54, pp. 1–2; Nilakanta  Sastri  1955,  p. 173).  King Mahinda  deserted  Anuradhapura in AD 982  and  sought  asylum  in ar  emote  place  in southern  Rohana  as he was unable  to control  the prevailing  situation  in Anuradhapura  (Mv. 54, p. 7). Thus, in AD 993,  when  the powerful  Cholas  invaded  Sri Lanka,  they were  able  to capture  both Anuradhapura  and Polonnaruva  easily  (Mv. 54, pp. 13–22).They  ransacked  Anuradhapura  and selected  Polonnaruva  as the  chief  administrative  centre  of the  island  (Nilakanta  Sastri  1955,  p. 199; UCHC 1959,  p. 338).  This brought  an end  to the  kingdom  of Anuradhapura which had lasted  for about a thousand  five hundred  years  from the fourth  century  BC to the  end  of the  tenth  century  AD. King Mahinda  was taken  prisoner  in 1012  or so, and deported  to Tanjore  as a prisoner,  which resulted  in Sri Lanka  becoming  a part  of the  Chola  Empire  (UCHC 1959, pp. 336–38). The Chola  rule  of Sri Lanka  had  been  administered  by av   iceroy  appointed by the  emperor  of Tanjore.  Polonnaruva  was  known  to the  Cholas  as Jananatha Mangalam  or Jananatha  Puram,  while  Sri Lanka  was  named  Mummudi  Sola Mundelam  (UCHC 1959, pp. 393–96;  Nilakanta  Sastri  1955, p. 173). During this period,  Buddhism  had been  suppressed  and some  monasteries were  given  to officers  to settle  in (Mv. 54, pp. 19–22).  Buddhist  monks  had to seek  asylum  in southern  Rohana  or the countries  of Southeast  Asia  where they  were  welcomed  (UCHC 1959,  p. 535). The selection  of Polonnaruva  as the capital  of Sri Lanka  made  it easy  for the Cholas  to control  the  eastern  coast  of the island.  This must  have  been  an advantage  for them in their expedition  towards  Srivijaya,  from both the military  and economic  perspectives.  The area  around  Trincomalee  was  full of activity  during this period as testified  by some  construction  work and inscriptions  there  (Nicholas  1963,  pp. 44–46).  It is interesting  to note  that

196

Anura Manatunga

the Cholas patronized  a Buddhist  monastery  at Velgam  Vehera  near Trincomalee  despite  their  antagonism  towards  Buddhism  in other  areas  of the island.  This temple  was  given  some  land  and renamed  Rajaraja  Perum  Palli in consecration  of King Rajaraja,  father  of Rajendra  Chola (UCHC 1959, p. 413). Sri Lanka  was  under  Chola power  for over seventy  years.  Though  the Sinhalese  were  constantly  in struggle  against  Cholas  throughout  this period, it was  only King Vijayabahu  I (AD 1055–1110),  hailing  from  a royal  family in exile in Rohana,  who was successful  in AD 1070 in defeating  them (UCHC 1959,  pp. 397–406;  Nilakanta  Sastri  1955,  pp. 45–71).  For this endeavour,  Vijayabahu  sought  the help  of the  king of Ramanna  country,  and it marked  the first  recorded  incident  of Sri Lanka’s  political  alliance  with any Southeast  Asian  country  (Mv. 57, pp. 8–10).  Rammanna  or Aramana  country is none  other  than  Burma  or present  Myanmar  which  was  under  the Pagan Kingdom  at that  time.  King Anawrahta  (AD 1044–77),  who is known  in Sri Lankan  sources  as  Anuruddha,  was  the  king  of Pagan  (Aung  1967,  p. 35; Mv. 60, p. 5). By that  time  Pagan  was  a powerful  kingdom  in Southeast  Asia  under Anawrahta,  which had conquered  Thaton  and successfully  expelled  Khmer invaders  and  emerged  as the rising  power  of that  region  (Aung  1967,  p. 35)). According  to the Mahavamsa , the chronical  of the Sinhalese,  King Vijayabahu,  while  staying  at a place  called  Siptala  with his large  platoons, had sent  a number  of people  and costly  gifts  to the king of Ramanna  and (in return)  received  ships  loaded  with various  gifts  including  fine  costumes, camphor,  and  sandalwood  (Mv.57, pp. 8–9).  The next  line of the  chronicle says  that  the soldiers  were  entertained  by the king,  who gave  them  various costly  gifts,  and  had thereafter  left for the village  called  Tammala  (Mv. 57, p. 10). This description  in the  Mahavamsa does  not refer  to any  military  support given  by king Anawrahta.  As Nilakanta  Sastri  surmised,  the mission  sent  by Vijayabahu  got him no additional  military  strength  and virtually  resolved itself into a trade  or courtesy  enterprise  (Nilakanta  Sastri  1955,  p. 49). However,  the Glass  Palace  Chronicle of the Burmese  kings  refers  to generals bringing  some  Tamil-Indian  prisoners-of-war  to the presence  of King Kyanzittha  (AD 1084–112)  — the  successor  of Anuwrahta  and  contemporary to Vijayabahu  — on the  occasion  of his anointing  ceremony,  and  saying  they had  conquered  the  Indian  country  in places  called  Thandars  and  Ngathonpinle (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 20–21).  This reference  shows  that the Burmese  were engaged  in a war with the Tamils during  this period,  but it was not clear whether  it is in Sri Lanka,  India,  or Burma  itself.

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

197

After the victory  over  the Cholas,  Vijayabahu  too made  his abode  in Polonnaruva  (Mv.59,  pp. 1–11).  Before  that  he was  anointed  in Anuradhapura, the  old city  of the  Sinhalese,  possibly  because  of the  emotional  affiliation  with the  holy  city. It is said  that  he spent  three  months  in Anuradhapura  worshipping sacred  monuments  and had  entrusted  a minister  to look after  the  restoration work of the city before  he left for Polonnaruva  (Mv. 59, pp. 1–11). In Polonnaruva,  Vijayabahu  again  turned  to Burma  appealing  for Anawrahta’s support  for restoring  Buddha  Sasana  in Sri Lanka  (Mv. 60, pp. 4–8). Due to the negligence  and suppression  during  the period  of the Chola occupation, not even  five elderly  monks  were  available  to sit in, at the Upasampada ceremony,  which  was  essential  for ordaining  monks  from their  novice  state  to monkshood  (Pujavaliya 1930,  p. 732). At Vijayabahu’s  request,  Anawrahta  sent  twenty  learned  monks  who  were well versed  in  the Buddhist  Tripitaka (Pujavaliya 1930, pp. 732–33; Nikayasangrahaya 1997, p. 24). This helped  Vijayabahu  to perform  the Upasampada  ceremony  and reform  the Buddha  Sasana  to its former  glory.  It is believed  that  some  of these  monks  would  have  been  Sinhalese  monks  or their  pupils  who  sought  asylum  in Burma  during  the  Chola  occupation  of the island,  or their  Burmese  students  (UCHC 1959,  p. 536). According  to Burmese  sources,  it seems  that  Anawrahta  was  eager  to have the  Tooth Relic  of Buddha,  which  was  highly  venerated  in Sri Lanka  (UCHC 1959, pp. 535–36).  He sent envoys  with a white elephant  as a gift to Vijayabahu,  but had to be satisfied  with a replica  of the Tooth relic  (UCHC 1959,  pp. 535–36).  After having  made  some  duplicates  from this replica,  it was  enshrined  in the Shwezigon  Pagoda  by Anauwratha  in a great  ceremony (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 63–65).  Anawrahta’s  successor,  Kyanzittha,  who is also contemporary  to Vijayabahu,  received  nine other  relics  from Sri Lanka to enshrine  in the Minochant  Pagoda,  which  was  built by him (Sirisena  1978, pp. 63–65). After  Vijayabahu,  his brother  Jayabahu  (AD 1111)  and  son  Vikramabahu I (AD 1111–32)  ascended  the throne  in Polonnaruva  successively  (Mv. 61, pp. 1–53).  A fragmentary  inscription  of Vikramabahu’s  wife,  Sundara  Maha Devi, found at the Royal  precinct  of Polonnaruva,  refers  to Thambaratta and  a great  monk  called  Ananda  who had  been  introduced  as  “a banner  that rose  over  the land of Lanka”  (Paranavitana  1943,  pp. 67–72).  Though  the relationship  with this  monk  and  Thambaratta  has  not been  clear  due  to the fragmentary  nature  of the inscription,  it is interesting  to note that Thambaratta  is identified  as Tambalinga,  which is Ligor or Nakhon  Si Thammarat  in the Malay  Peninsula  where  Theravada  Buddhism  flourished

198

Anura Manatunga

and  was  a centre  for diffusion  of the religion  in the  Southeast  Asian  region (Paranavitana  1943,  pp. 67–7; Coedès  1968,  p. 178). The next series  of events  in Sri Lanka  — Southeast  Asia relations  — comes  from the  period  when  King Parakramabahu  I (AD 1153–86)  ruled  in Polonnaruva,  and King Alaungsithu  (AD 1112–67)  ruled in Pagan.  Both these  kings  were  considered  great  kings  in their  respective  countries  (Aung 1967,  pp. 44–45;  UCHC 1959,  p. 438),  but they  were  hostile  to each  other due to some  misunderstanding  on the political  and trade  activities  between the two countries. The Mahavamsa (Mv. 76, pp. 16–35)  gives  a detailed  account  on how the  hostilities  grew  between  the  two monarchs.  First,  King Alaungsithu  broke the  custom  of giving  an elephant  to each  Sri Lankan  ship  that  sailed  to Burma with gifts.  Thereafter  he stopped  the selling  of elephants  in the open  market and made  it a king’s  monopoly.  Having  done  so, he increased  the price  of elephants,  which  could  not be afforded  by Sri Lankan  traders.  On another occasion,  the king accepted  items  brought  by Sri Lankans,  promising  to pay them  the  cost  in silver,  and  give  them  fourteen  elephants,  but none  was  given to them.  An Indian  chief  called  Kasyapa,  presumably  a Parakramabahu  envoy who brought  a letter  on a gold  sheet  to present  to the king, was  not allowed to enter  the country,  but was  later  received  in an insulting  manner.  Some  of the Sri Lankan  envoys  had to face  bitter  experiences  as they  were  exiled  to a palace  in the remote  mountains  and asked  to water  flowering  plants  with a log bound  to one of their legs.  He then called  the Sri Lankan  envoys  and informed  them  that  he now prohibited  Sri Lankan  traders  from entering  his country  and  if someone  ignored  his order  and entered  the  country,  he would impose  the death  penalty  on the culprits.  He then  made  the envoys  enter  a written  agreement  stating  that the king was not guilty,  if he imposed  the death  penalty  on those  traders.  Two Sri Lankan  scholars,  named  Vageeshvara and Dharmakirti,  were  deported  in a leaking  vessel.  Also, a princess  being brought  to Cambodia  from  Sri Lanka  was  kidnapped  while  travelling  through the Burmese  territory. The repercussion  was  the  punitive  raid  sent  to Burma  by Parakramabahu in his eleventh  or twelfth  regal  year,  that  is, 1164–65  (UCHC1959,  pp. 449– 51). A chief  of accountants  (ganaka-amachcha ), Adiccha  Damila  Adikari  by name,  willingly  undertook  the raid,  saying  that  it was  not worthwhile  for it to be led by seniors.  A fleet  of war ships  set  sail from Pallavavankka,  a port north  of Trincomalee,  after  five  months  of preparation,  but most  of the  ships were  driven  off course  by winds  and landed  on foreign  shores.  One ship reached  an island  called  Kakadvepa  (Crow’s  Island)  and it returned  with captives  of war of that  island.  Only six ships  reached  Burma,  of which  five

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

199

landed  at Kussumi  and  one  at Pappalama.  Kusumi  was  raided  by the solders led by Kitti Nagaragiri  and it is said that  they  destroyed  half the country, killing thousands  of solders,  breaking  trees  like drunken  elephants,  and burning  villages.  The soldiers  under  the  command  of Adiccha  Damila  Adikari fought  a fierce  battle  at Pappalama  and  killed  the  enemy  and  captured  a large number  of people.  Then they  raided  Ukkama  and  killed  the  lord (Himiya ) of Aramana.  While capturing  the city, they moved  it on a white elephant, declaring  the sovereignty  of the Sinhalese  king by beating  drums  (Mv. 76, pp. 36–66).  The Burmese  approached  Buddhist  monks  in Sri Lanka and through  the mediation  of all three  chapters  of Sangha,  a settlement  was reached  with the Sri Lankan  king who was  promised  elephants  every  year. Thus, friendly  relations  were  restored  (Mv. 76, pp. 69–75). The above  is the Sinhala  version  of the episode;  hence  it would be highly  biased.  The Burmese  chronicle  is silent  about  any raid from Sri Lanka,  but does  say  that  the Indian  envoy  who was  stationed  in Sri Lanka had  misled  them  by false  reports  (Aung  1967,  p. 47).  Though  the  Mahavamsa (Mv. 76, p. 66) says  that  the  Sinhalese  killed  the  lord of Aramana  (Burma), it is clear  from Burmese  sources  that  Alaungsithu  lived  on for some  years, and his death  occurred  in different  circumstances  (Aung 1967, p. 49). Therefore,  the victim  would  have  been  a subordinate  or a local  chief,  and the raid would  have  been  limited  to some  localized  stations.  The Burmese source  says  that Alaungsithu  had once visited  Sri Lanka and had even married  a Sri Lankan  princess  (Aung  1967,  p. 45). It also  says  that  he had brought  back  to Burma  a statue  of Kassyapa  Maha  Thera,  which  was  highly venerated  in Burma  (Sirisena  1978,  p. 23). Sri Lankan  chronicles  are  silent about  this  event  which  would  probably  have  taken  place  before  Alaungsithu ascended  to the throne. An inscription  found  at Devanagala,  Sri Lanka,  belonging  to the twelfth year  of Parakramabahu’s  reign,  refers  to al and  grant  given  to one  Kit Nuvaragal in appreciation  of his service  in the successful  Burmese  raid (Paranavitana 1934,  p. 312)  This proves  the authenticity  of the event  in general  and  helps to date  it into a fairly  reasonable  time  frame. The flow of Buddhist  monks  between  two countries  continued  in the post-war  period  (Aung  1967,  p. 48).  The arrival  of Sangaraja  Panthagu  while king Parakramabahu  was  still ruling  the island  was  a landmark  in this  regard. Panthagu  was distressed  with King Narathu  —  who murdered  his father, Alaungsithu,  and brother  Minshinsaw  — ascending  the throne  and exiled himself  to Sri Lanka,  where  he was welcomed  (Aung 1967, p. 50). As Narathu  had  forced  some  monks  to disrobe  because  they  were  not in support of him, some  other  monks  also  escaped  to Sri Lanka  to avoid  this malice.

200

Anura Manatunga

Panthagu  has  returned  home  only after  the end of Narathu’s  reign,  but soon died  thereafter  (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 65–66;  Aung 1967,  pp. 51–52). Panthagu’s  successor,  Uttarajiva,  also  made  a pilgrimage  to Sri Lanka  with ten other  monks  (Coedès  1968,  p. 177).  Among  them  there  was  one  novice, Chappata,  who was  admitted  to the higher  order  (Upasampada ) in Sri Lanka with rituals  performed  jointly by Sinhalese  and Burmese  monks in Polonnaruva.  Chappata  was  left  behind  in Sri Lanka  for his studies  while  the other  monks  returned  to Burma  with Uttarajiva  who was  honoured  with a title of “First Pilgrim  of Lanka”  on his return  (Coedès  1968,  pp. 177–78; Sirisena  1978,  pp. 66–67). Chappata  studied  in Sri Lanka  for about  ten years  and was  well known among  Buddhist  scholars  by the name  of Saddarma  Jotipaha (Coedès  1968, Sirisena  1978).  In order  to perform  ecclesial  ceremonies  in the Sri Lankan manner  in Burma,  he was accompanied  by four other monks  when he returned.  These  four  monks  were  Seevali,  a native  of Tambralipti,  Thamalinda, a son of the Cambodian  king who was  most  probably  Jayawarman  VII (AD 1181–1218),  Ananda,  a native  of Kanchipuram,  and  a Sinhala  monk,  Rahula. While in Burma,  Rahula  fell in love  with a dancing  girl; hence  he disrobed and left for Malaya  as a layman.  Chappata,  who was  honoured  with the title of “Second  Pilgrim  to Lanka”,  and three  others  — though  each  of them departed  later  — were  highly  influential  in Burma  and  other  Southeast  Asian countries  as propagators  of the Theravada  school  of Buddhism,  which  they had learnt  in Sri Lanka.  They were  the founders  of the fraternity  called Sinhala  Sanga  in Southeast  Asian  countries  (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 72–75;  Coedès 1968,  p. 178). Though  religious  and  trade  links  continued,  the  damage  in relations  due to the  raid of Parakramabahu  had  to be set  right.  A section  of the society  felt guilty o ver t he e vents  between  the two friendly  countries  during Parakramabahu’s  reign. This is clearly  shown by the actions  taken by Parakramabahu’s  successor  and  nephew  Vijayabahu  II (AD 1186).  One of his first deeds  was to write  “an excellent  letter”  (“pravarau  sandesayak”)  in his own hand  in Magadhi  to the  king  of Aramana,  and  “bound  him in friendship, gently,  as one of his ancestors  Vijayabahu  the Great  had done”  (Mv. 80, pp. 7–8).  The chronicle  further  says  that  the  king  had  advanced  Buddhism  to “the  happiness  of both Sinhalese  and Burmese  monks”  (Mv. 80, pp. 9–10). A new chapter  of Southeast  Asian  relations  began  with Nissankamalla (AD 1187–96),  another  nephew  of Parakramabahu.  Two of his inscriptions, found  in Polonnaruva,  refer  to Aramana  and  Kamboja  among  countries  with which he formed  friendly  alliances  (Wickremasinghe  1928 a, pp. 148–52, 1928 b, pp. 153–56).  Another  source  reveals  that  there  was  a building  called

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

201

‘Kamboja  Vasala’  in Polonnaruva  which  has  been  understood  as the “gate  of Cambodia”  (Wickremasinghe  1928 c, p. 74). It could  well be the “Abode  of Kamboja”  as Vasalaalso  means  abode,  residence,  or even  palace. Another  interesting  reference  on Kambojin  comes  from his inscription found in Ruvanweliseya,  Anuradhapura  (Wickremasinghe  1928 d, pp. 70– 83). In this inscription,  Nissankamalla  says  that  he bestowed  Kambojin  with gold,  cloths,  and  such  things  as  they  wished  and  commanded  them  not to kill birds.  This indicates  that Cambodians  practised  bird hunting  possibly  as a custom  even  when  they  lived  in foreign  countries.  It might  have  a logical relationship  with the name  of Vyadhapura,  the first capital  of Khmers,  as it has  the meaning  of “city  of hunters”  (Coedès  1968,  p. 36). Nissankamalla  had  repeatedly  mentioned  that  he was  born  in Sinhapura in Kalinga and h is parents  were King Sri Gopa a nd Parvati  Devi (Wickremasinghe  1928 e, p. 87; 1928 f, p. 104).  Though  this  royal  family  has not been  traced  and a city called  Sinhapura  has not been  identified,  it is widely  believed  that  Kalinga  is the  famous  Kalinga  of India.  Contrary  to this, Paranavitana  (1960,  pp. 1–43)  has  argued  at length  that  Kalinga,  in this  case, would be Srivijaya  in Malaya,  and another  scholar,  Rohanadheera  (1998, p. 39), suggests  that  Sinhapura  is Sing Buri near  Lopburi,  which  was  a part of Khmer  empire  at that time.  Though  these  two interpretations  have  no wide  acceptance,  their  attempts  are  important  in view  of the  investigation  on the Southeast  Asian  influence  towards  Sri Lanka. After  Nissankamalla,  Polonnaruva  declined  due  to the  power  struggle among  Kalinga,  Pandya,  and  Sinhala  aspirants  to the throne,  which  none could hold for a long period  (UCHC 1959, pp. 492–500).  Though religious  and trade  relations  with Southeast  Asia would  have  continued, there  is no specific  reference  to substantiate  this after  Nissankamalla.  The kingdom  ended  as a result  of the disastrous  invasion  of Kalinga  Magha who ransacked  Polonnaruva  in 1215  and  ruled  for twenty-one  years  (Mv. 80, pp. 54–79). Just like Nissankamalla,  Magha  of Kalinga  has  also  been  attempted  to be identified  as a king from  Srivijaya  by Paranavitana  (1960,  p. 42),  but counter arguments  of Nilakanta  Sastri  (1962,  p. 127) have  won wider  acceptance. Nevertheless,  Chandrabhanu,  a Malay  king, who invaded  Sri Lanka  in the mid-thirteenth  century  is a landmark  in Southeast  Asian  relations  (UCHC 1959,  pp. 590–91),  but that  is beyond  the scope  of the present  paper. An investigation  into archaeological  remains,  such  as monuments  and sculptures  both  in Sri Lanka  and  Southeast  Asia,  which  would  have  influenced each  other  during  the Polonnaruva  period,  is attempted  hereafter.  This is a difficult  task  since  the  art and  architecture  of Polonnaruva  are  not significantly

202

Anura Manatunga

different  from the Sinhalese  tradition  of the Anuradhapura  as well as later periods.  Furthermore,  the Sinhalese  tradition  is not much different  from Amaravati  of South  India (Coedès  1968,  p. 18), hence  assigning  something to Polonnaruva  is tentative  and  depends  on supplementary  historical  evidence. On the other  hand,  the Southeast  Asian  countries  with which  Sri Lanka  had contacts  in the Polonnaruva  period  already  had a highly  developed  art and architectural  tradition  of their own, which was inspired  by early  Indian influence.  Thus, it is Thailand  which  developed  her tradition  which  shared having  a significant  Sri Lankan  influence  a little later,  but it was  mainly  a post-Polonnaruva  phenomenon,  rather  than  one  from  the  Polonnaruva  period (Sirisena  1978,  p. 112). However,  the bell-shaped  or bubble-shaped  stupas  of Southeast  Asia, which  were  known  as the “Sinhala  Type”, should  be understood  as having been  inspired  by the stupas  in Polonnaruva  (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 114–16). Though  the  Sanchi  stupas  were  the prototype  for bubble-shaped  stupas,  they were  developed  in Sri Lanka  during  the Anuradhapura  period,  with a spiral top on the  bubble  shaped  garbha , and  some  more  features  added  to the  stupa architecture  (Paranavitana  1946,  p. 12). The building  of large-scale  stupas came  to a halt  in the third century  AD, after  the construction  of the massive Jetavana  stupa  at Anuradhapura,  but was  restarted  in the Polonnaruva  period (Paranavitana  1955,  p. 77). The Kiri Vehera,  built by Nissankamalla,  which is believed  to be the work of one of the queens  of Parakramabahu  and Rankoth  Vehera,  are  the  best  examples  of bubble-shaped  stupas  in Polonnaruva (Paranavitana  1955,  p. 77). As similar  stupas  in Anuradhapura  were  already in a ruined  condition  and there  were  no such  magnificent  stupas  built after the Polonnaruva  period,  both Kiri Vehera  and Rankoth  Vehera  would  have been  models  for the “Sinhalese  type”  stupas  in Southeast  Asia.  It is clear  that the Chappata  Stupa  at Pagan  in Burma  is considered  as one of the best examples  of such  stupas  in Southeast  Asia.  This stupa  has  been  consecrated  to the famous  Chappata  who resided  in Polonnaruva  for ten years  (Sirisena 1978,  p. 121). There are a number  of stupas  of the Sinhala  type in Sajjanalaya  in Thailand  (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 117–21).  Wat Cang  Lom is a good example among  them.  Wat Phra Sri of Ayodhya  is also  of the Sinhalese  style.  There were  miniature  models  of similar  stupas  among  the ruins  of this stupa.  It is believed  that some  of these  models  were  taken  from Sri Lanka.  Wat Phra Singh Luang of Northern  Thailand  where  a Sinhala  Buddha  image  was found,  has  a bell-shaped  Sinhala  stupa  (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 117–21).  The Phra Tat monastery  in Nakhon Si Thammarat  in the Malay Peninsula  has a Sinhala-type  stupa.  It is interesting  to note  that  the stupa  has  been  compared

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

203

with Kiri Vehera  and  Rankoth  Vehera  in Polonnaruva  and  it is believed  that the stupa  has been  built on the instructions  of Rahula,  the disrobed  monk who went  there  with a dancing  girl (Sirisena  1978,  pp. 117–21).  Nakhon  Si Thammarat  is identified  as one  of the  centres  that  diffused  the  Sinhalese  style in Southeast  Asia  during  this period. Some  of the temple  plans  and architectural  details  of the Sukhothai period  of Thailand  have  been  influenced  by the Viharas  of Polonnaruva (Sirisena  1978,  p. 132).  Wat Maha  Tat in Sukhothai,  built by Indraditya,  the founder  king of the kingdom,  is similar  to the Thuparama  and other gijjakavastha type of viharasin Polonnaruva  (Hocart 1996, pp. 8–18). This temple  has b een modified  by a Maha T hera(abbot)  named Srisradharajaculamani  Sriratana  Lankadeepa  Mahasamy  who visited,  and brought  back  some  relics  from, Sri Lanka  (Sirisena  1978,  p. 132). Wat Sri Jum, which  has  been  built in the fourteenth  century  AD in Sukhothai  also has similarities  with the above  mentioned  viharas  in Polonnaruva  (Sirisena 1978,  p. 132). Buddha  statues  of Southeast  Asia  can  be shown  as  an example  of sculpture having  some  influence  from Polonnaruva.  The most  common  posture  of the seated  figures  of Southeast  Asia is the virasana , which is common  in Sri Lanka,  but rare  in India.  In the  virasana posture,  the  legs  are  not interlocked, but the right foot lies on top of the left calf with its sole  turned  upwards (Sirisena  1978,  p. 146).  The classic  example  for this is the colossal  seated image  of Gal Vihara  in Polonnaruva.  Gal Vihara,  which  has  no parallels  in South  Asia in craftsmanship  (Bell 1907,  p. 7) must  have  been  a model  for these  statues. The ushnisha , the flamelike  object  on the head  of Buddha  statues,  is a prominent  feature  of Southeast  Asian  Buddha  statues.  As this feature  was  not so prominent  in India,  and  was  in vogue  in Sri Lanka  since  the  late  Anuradhapura period,  it suggests  a Sri Lankan  influence  on Southeast  Asia.  Though  it is not visible  on the statues  of Gal Vihara  (Le May 1962,  p. 119),  a hole  on top of the head  of statues  shows  that  there  would  have  been  a ushnisha fixed  onto these  statues  made  by wood or other  perishable  materials.  It is noteworthy that  an ushnisha made  of bronze  has  been  found  among  materials  unearthed in Polonnaruva  (Prematilleke  1988,  p. 91; Fig. 52. pl. 137). As Gal Vihara  statues  would  have  had an impact  on Southeast  Asia,  an influence  the other  way around  has  also  been  suggested.  The round  face  of the seated  statue  at Gal Vihara  seems  rather  alien  to Sri Lanka  and  is believed to be an expression  of Southeast  Asian  influence  (Manatunga  2007,  p. 26). The peculiar  hand  posture  of the  standing  figure  at Gal Vihara,  which  keeps both arms  across  the chest,  has been  interpreted  as Vajrahumkara Mudra,

204

Anura Manatunga

which is possibly  a result  of Mahayana  influence  from Southeast  Asia (Manatunga  2007,  p. 26). Besides  the Gal Vihara  statues,  two other  places  in Polonnaruva  show Southeast  Asian  affinities.  These  are the Sathmahal  Prasada  and the Pothgul Vehera.  Both have  no parallels  in Sri Lanka or South Asia, but only in Southeast  Asia. The Sathmahal  Prasada  (Bell 1903,  p. 14) is a solid  brick  structure  with seven  storeys  that  diminished  in width  and height  stage  by stage.  The top of the building  has  collapsed,  but it is still high,  at 53 feet.  At the ground  level it is a 39 ft 2 inches  square  building.  The centre  of the each  storey  of the building  has  niches  on all four sides.  A standing  figure  of a deity  made  of bricks  and  stucco  is projected  on these  niches.  A stairway  of brick  is found  on the west  side  of the building  for climbing  up to the first storey. This pyramid-like  building  is situated  at the Sacred  Quadrangle  where the  Tooth Relic  of Lord Buddha  was  housed  (Bell  1903,  pp. 14–15).  Therefore, it is clear  that  this building  too is a religious  edifice  like all other  buildings  on the premises.  Though  most  of the  buildings  have  been  identified,  Sathmahal Prasada  is still unidentified  and remains  an ambiguous  monument. The Quadrangle  is situated  just north  of the  royal  precinct  of the  citadel of Polonnaruva.Thus,  it can  be identified  as the  principal  royal  monastery  of the kings of Polonnaruva.  Therefore  Sathmahal  Prasada  must be a very important  monument  though  we cannot  identify  the builder,  purpose,  or even  the ancient  name  of the building. As epigraphical  sources  reveal  that King Nissankamalla  built a sevenstorey  palace  for himself,  Wickremasinghe  believes  the Sathmahal  Prasada would have  been  this palace  (Wickremasinghe  1928,  pp. 92–93).  But the solid  tower-like  building  is not habitable  and,  therefore,  cannot  be a residential building.  Ananda  Coomaraswamy’s  idea  was  that  this was  a representation  of the mythical  Mount Meru (Coomaraswamy  1965,  p. 165).  Bell,  the pioneer archaeologist  who cleared  these  monuments  at the Quadrangle  in 1903, identified  the similarities  of this building  with Khmer  pyramidal  edifices  of Cambodia  (Bell  1903,  pp. 14–15).  As Bell says  “…It stands  as an architectural link between  the simplest  form  of rectangular  pyramid  such  as Ka Keo with plain vertical  walls  and strait  of stairs  up the middle  of each  side  and the elaborate  towers  at Mi-Baume  and other  similar  shrines”  (Bell 1903,  p. 14). Le May (1962,  pp. 97–98)  noticed  the similarity  of this building  with Wat Kukut in Northern  Thailand.  Wat Kukut is bigger  and taller  than Sathmahal  Prasada,  but contemporary  to Polonnaruva  period  as it was  built by king  Adittaraja  of Haripunjaya  in Central  Thailand  in mid-twelfth  century. Besides  Wat Kukut, there  are some  other  buildings  in Southeast  Asia  with a

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

205

resemblance  to Sathmahal  Prasada  of Polonnaruva.  Wat Phra  Tat Haripunchai in North Thailand,  Wat Phra Pathon,  and Wat Pa Deng  in Nakhon  Pathon are  some  of them  (Sirisena  1978,  p. 123). The other monument  which shows  Southeast  Asian affinities  in Polonnaruva  is the  Pothgul  Vehera  (Burrows  1905,  p. 111;  Bell  1906,  pp. 11– 12; 1910,  pp. 10–11).  It is an isolated  monastery  about  a mile southwards from other  monuments  of the ruined  city. There  is a rotunda  with an oblong vestibule  on the central  terrace  of this monastery.  At four corners  of this squire  terrace,  there  are four small  stupas.  The central  rotunda  is an empty brick  building  and  it has  had  a dome-shaped  superstructure  of brick  work.  In lower  terraces  there  are other  buildings  of a square  plan in a symmetrical manner.  Both the upper  terrace  and the lower  terraces  were  enclosed  by a thick brick wall in which the main gateway  is found  in the middle  of the northern  wall,  and two small  openings  in the south  and east  walls. A monastery  similar  to this plan is not found  in any other  place  in Sri Lanka,  whereas  the Mebon  and Pre Rup temples  in Angkor  have  a similar layout  (Bell 1906,  p. 11). Due to this similarity,  Bell who excavated  this monastery,  thought  that  this  could  be the  Kambodian  Wasala in Polonnaruva, that was believed  to be in Polonnaruva  during  King Nissankamalla’s  time (Bell 1910,  pp. 10–11). Unfortunately,  the early  excavators  of these  monuments  have  not paid attention  to artefacts  found  in those  places.  Recent  excavations  at the  Alahana Parivana  and other  places  in Polonnaruva  have  unearthed  a large  number  of Chinese  ceramics  and coins belonging  to the Song and Southern  Song dynasties  which  were  contemporary  to the Polonnaruva  period  (Prematilleke 1982,  p. 15; 1985,  p. 60; 1989,  p. 49).  These  findings  show  a busy  trade  with the East  Asia  via the Malay  Archipelago  during  this period.

Abbreviations Mv = Mahavamsa UCHC = History  of Ceylon

References Aung  Maung  Htin. A History  of Burma . New  York: Columbia  University  Press,  1967. Bell, H.C.P.  Annual  Report  of the Archaeological  Survey 1903, 1906, and 1910. Government  of Ceylon. Burrows,  S.M. The Buried  Cities  of Ceylon . Colombo:  Ferguson,  1905. Coedès,  G. The Indianized  States  of Southeast  Asia . Honolulu:  East-West  Center, 1968.

206

Anura Manatunga

Coomaraswamy,  A.K. History  of Indian and Indonesian  Art.  New York: Dover Publication,  1965. Forbes,  J. Eleven  Years  in Ceylon . New Delhi, Asian  Education  Services,  1994. Hocart,  A.M. Three  Temples  at Polonnaruva . Memoirs  Volume  II, Department  of Archaeological  Survey,  Government  of Ceylon,  1996. History  of Ceylon . The University  of Ceylon Edition, Volume 1, Parts 1 &  2, Peradeniya,  1959. Ievers,  R.W. Manual  of the  North-  Central  Province,  Ceylon . Government  of Ceylon, 1899. Le May, Reginald.  A Concise  History  of Buddhist  Art in Siam . Tokyo: Charles  E. Tuttle, 1962. Mahavamsa.  Sinhala  Translation  of Sumangala  and Batuwantudavwa .  Colombo: Government  of Ceylon,  1912. Manatunga,  Anura.  “Puravidyathmaka  Praveshayaka  Avasyathava”.  Nissanka  Journal of the  Polonnaruva  Project , No. 1, Central  Cultural  Fund, 2000. ———. Polonnaruva  Purana  Pana  Nagaraya  Lesa  Handunageneema.  Essays  In Honour of Professor  H.T. Basnayaka . Colombo:  Godage,  2004. ———. Pulatisipura  Puranaya . Colombo:  Ministry  of Religious  Affairs,  2007. Monier-Williams.  A Sanskrit  Dictionary . New Delhi: Asian  Education  Services, 2001. Nicholas,  C.W. “Historical  Topography  of Ancient  and Medieval  Ceylon”.  Journal  of theCeylon  Branch  of the  Royal  Asiatic  Society , Volume  XXI (Special  Number), 1963. -las.  Nilakanta  Sastri,  K.A. The Co edition.  Madras : University  of Madras, . 2nd revised  1955. ———. “Ceylon  and Sri Vijaya”.  Journal  of the  Ceylon  Branch  of the  Royal  Asiatic Society. Volume  VII, Part III, 1962. ———. Nikaya  Sangrahaya . Dehiwala:  Buddhist  Cultural  Centre,  1997. Paranavitana,  Senarath.  “Fragmentary  Slab-Inscription  of Sundara  Mahadevi”. Polonnaruva:  Epigraphia  Zeylanica , Volume  II, 1943. ———. Stupa  in Ceylon . Memoirs  Volume  IV. Department  of Archaeological  Survey, Government  of Ceylon,  1945. ———. “The Art and Architecture  of the Polonnaruva  Period”.  Special  Issue  of the Ceylon  Historical  Journalon the Polonnaruva  Period  Volume.  Dehiwala:  Tissara Publishers  1955. ———. “Ceylon  and Malaysia  in Mediaeval  Times”.  Journal  of the  Ceylon  Branch of the  Royal  Asiatic  Society . Volume  VII, Part I, 1960. ———. Ceylon  and Malaysia . Colombo:  Lake  House,  1966. ———. Glimpses  of Ceylon’s  Past.Colombo:  Lake House,  1974. Prematilleke,  P.L. First Archaeological  Excavation  Report . Alahana  Parivena,  Project, Central  Cultural  Fund, Government  of Sri Lanka,  1982. ———. Fourth  Archaeological  Excavation  Report . Alahana  Parivena,  Project,  Central Cultural  Fund. Government  of Sri Lanka,  1985.

Sri Lanka and Southeast  Asia

207

———. Fifth Archaeological  Excavation  Report . Alahana  Parivena,  Project,  Central Cultural  Fund. Government  of Sri Lanka,  1988. ———. Sixth  Archaeological  Excavation  Report . Alahana  Parivena,  Project,  Central Cultural  Fund, Government  of Sri Lanka,  1989. ———. Pujavaliya . Bentota  Saddhatissa  Edition.  Colombo,  1930. Rohanadheera,  Mendis.  Nissanka  Malla:  Polonnaruva  Period . Maharagama:  Taranjee Printers,  1988. Sirisena,  W.M. Sri Lanka  and South-East  Asia . Leiden:  E.J. Brill, 1978. Wickremasinghe,  D.M.De Z. The slab  inscription  of Kirti Nissanka  malla  at Ruvanvali Dagaba,  Anuradhapura.  Epigraphia  Zeylanica . Volume  II. Government  of Ceylon, 1928 a. ———. Polonnaruva:  A slab  inscription  of Nissanka  Malla. Epigraphia  Zeylanica , Volume  II. Government  of Ceylon,  1928 b. ———. Polonnaruva:  Kiri Vehera  slab  inscription.  Epigraphia  Zeylanica , Volume  II. Government  of Ceylon,  1928 c. ———.  Hatadage  portico slab-inscription.  Epigraphia  Zeylanica ,  Volume II. Government  of Ceylon,  1928 d. ———. Polonnaruva:  Galpota  slab inscription.  Epigraphia  Zeylanica , Volume II. Government  of Ceylon,  1928 e.

13 INDIA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia P. Shanmugam

Tracing  early  Indian contacts  with countries  in Southeast  Asia is still an ongoing  debate,  although  some  of these  contacts  are reflected  in the archaeological  artefacts  belonging  to the third century  BC. However, archaeological  evidence  for understanding  cultural  relations  particularly  of the Tamil country  with Southeast  Asia is available  from the first century AD. This new evidence,  mostly  in the form of early  epigraphs  and coins, was  brought  to light  by the  intense  archaeological  field  work  undertaken  by teams  of archaeologists  during  the last  few decades  in Southeast  Asia.  The most important  artefact  reported  was one touchstone  (Figure 13.1), discovered  at an ancient  port called  Khuan  Luk Pat in Thailand.  It has  a small  inscription  in Tamil Brahmi  characters,  which is read as follows: perumpatan  kal.The inscription  could  be rendered  as “touchstone  of Perum patan”.  There  is no doubt  in considering  the first part  of the inscription, namely,  Perum  patan  as the personal  name  of a gold merchant  from the Tamil country  (Shanmugam  1996; Karashima  2002). Considering  the palaeography  of the inscription,  we could assign  the touchstone  to the early  centuries  of the Christian  era  (1 C AD). A few  more  inscriptions in Tamil Brahmi  characters  scratched  on ceramic  vessels  and assignable  to the early  centuries  of the Christian  era  were  reported  in recent  years  from other  places.  With this, the discovery  of one coin of the Sangam  Cholas 208

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

209

FIGURE 13.1 with Tamil Brahmi Inscription,  Khuan Luk Pat, Thailand Touchstone 

(Figure  13.2)  from Khuan  Luk Pat, Thailand,  can be added.  It has  on the obverse,  a horse-drawn  chariot  and  on the  reverse,  the royal  emblem  of the Sangam  Cholas,  namely  the image  of a tiger  (Shanmugam  1994). Early trade  contacts  of the Tamil region  with Southeast  Asia are also -lai, reflected  in the Sangam  literature  of the Tamil country.  In Pat ..tinappa one of the works  of the Sangam  anthology,  datable  to the early  centuries  of -lagam  the Christian  era, a mention  is made  of a country  called  Ka and the mercantile  goods  traded  from that country  in  the Tamil region. -lai).The country  -lagam”,  (Pat mentioned  as “Ka is generally  identified ..tinappa with a region  called  Kedah  (Kad However  we . aram in Tamil) in Malaysia.  have  no information  about  the type of merchandise  brought  from that country.  Though  we may  understand  the existence  of trade,  the  source  is not clear  enough  to explain  the nature  of the trade  that  existed  between  the two countries  or the traders  involved  in the mercantile  transactions.  However, from the archaeological  materials  mentioned  above,  it is clear  that  maritime trade  relations  existed  between  the  countries  of Southeast  Asia  and  the  Tamil country  as early  as the first few centuries  of the Christian  era.  It is possible that some  traders  settled  in parts  of Southeast  Asia and engaged  in trade, though  details  of their  settlements  are not available. The maritime  trade  between  the  two countries  continued  during  the  rule of the Pallavas  (AD 600–850).  To support  the existence  of trade  we can  cite a few inscriptions  and sculptures  and other  cultural  materials  from both

210

P. Shanmugam FIGURE 13.2 Sangam  Chola Coin, Khuan Luk Pat, Thailand 2a. Obverse: horse drawn chariot 2b. Reverse: tiger emblem

2a

2b

countries.  Apart  from the  use  of the Grantha  script  and  Sanskrit  language  by the Southeast  Asian  dynasties  to write  their  inscriptions,  Tamil inscriptions were also noticed  there.  The Takuapa inscription  of the Pallava  king, Nandivarman  III  (AD 846–69),  is well known and many  scholars  have discussed  its importance  since  its first publication  in 1913  (Hultzsch  1913; Karashima  2002).  In a recent  excavation  at the port city of Khuan  Luk Pat, Thai archaeologists  unearthed  several  artefacts  belonging  to the  Pallava  period (Srisuchat  1990).  Among  those  is a copper  coin (Figure  13.3) of a Pallava king, with a double  masted  ship motif on the obverse  and a bull on the reverse  (Shanmugam  1994).  A few stone  sculptures  suggest  the influence  of Pallava  sculptural  idiom used  in the making  of sculptures  in this part of Southeast  Asia. It has  been  generally  suggested  that  during  the Chola period  (the  ninth to thirteenth  centuries  AD) Southeast  Asian countries  turned  out to be a good  market  for traders  from the  Tamil country.  That trade  and  commercial activities  were  maintained  at a much  higher  level  than  ordinary  merchants  is supported  by few inscriptions  found  in these  areas.  Traders  from Southeast Asian  countries  visited  some  ports  in the  Tamil country  and  mercantile  guilds such  as aiñur r uvar  actively  participated  in the  trade.  Tamil  i nscriptions  from -Nakon Si Thammarat  (Thailand),  Barus  (Sumatra,  Indonesia),  and Jakarta Museum  in Indonesia  suggest  the presence  of Tamil merchant  guilds  and possibly  their settlements  in Southeast  Asia. The Chola kings,  especially Rajaraja  I  and Rajendra  I, maintained  cordial  political  relations  with the countries  of Southeast  Asia.  Envoys  of both  countries  visited  and  strengthened the ties  of commerce.

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

211

FIGURE 13.3 Pallava Coin, Khuan Luk Pat 3a. obverse: ship 3b. bull emblem

3a

3b

Among the kingdoms  of Southeast  Asia, the Srivijaya  kingdom established  itself  as a supreme  power  in the Malay  Archipelago.  Srivijaya dominated  maritime  trade  passing  through  Southeast  Asia between AD 670 and 1025 (Hall 1985).  Their supremacy  was  recognized  by the Chinese  court  also.  Cordial  relationship  existed  between  the kingdoms  of Cholas  and Srivijaya  and both the countries  exchanged  merchants  and trade  goods.  More than  this,  the  Srivijaya  king made  a request  to the  Chola king, Rajaraja  I, to build a Buddha  viharaat Nagapattinam,  an important port of the  Tamil country.  This request  was  accepted  without  delay  and  the - l-aman -ra was  Chu i Viha built.  The  C hola  kings,  Rajaraja  I and  R ajendra  I, . . granted  lands  (EI, 22a), and  supported  the construction  and  maintenance of the  vihara . Later,  during  the  rule  of Kulottunga  I, additional  grants  were made  for its maintenance  (EI, 22b). The emissaries  of the  Srivijaya  king  also donated  gold and other  ornaments  to temples  in Nagapattinam  (Annual Report  on Indian  Epigraphy , 1956–57).  The above  activities  could  suggest the  existence  of a good  relationship  between  the  kings  of the  two countries, despite  a period  of hostilities  during  the later  part  of the rule of Rajendra I. We have  no evidence  for understanding  the development  of hostilities between  the two. Inscriptions  in the  Tamil country  attribute  the conquest -ram)  of Srivijaya  (Kad to the  Chola  king  Rajendra  I. His inscriptions,  from .a the thirteenth  year  of his rule,  narrate  the Chola  invasion  on a grand  scale and  the conquest  of several  places  in Southeast  Asia.  His conquest  over  the Srivijya  kingdom  could  be placed  some  time  between  1022  and  1025  (K.G. . Krishnan).  He conquered  the  king of Kad a ram  (Srivijaya)  named  San gra ma .

212

P. Shanmugam

. -ttun Visaiyo ga varman.  The inscription  gives  an account  of several  places conquered  by him during  the military  action.  The following  names  of -visaiyam, places  in Southeast  Asia  could  be collected  from  the  inscription:  Srı . gam, Ilan . ga -r, Tonmalaiyu -r, Ma-yirudin -so -kam, (Ma -)  Pappa -l.am, Panaiyu . Mevilimbangam,  Val.aippandu ru, Takkolam,  Mad.ama lingam,  Ilamur -idesam, -) Nakkavaram,  -aram. With some  (Ma and Kad difficulty,  it is possible  to . identify  some  places  mentioned  in the  above  list, but in general,  it may  be suggested  that  the  conquests  covered  a large  area  in the  Malay  Archipelago. The reasons  for the hostilities  between  the two kingdoms  are  unknown. It is suggested  that  Rajendra’s  expedition  was  to suppress  the  sea  power  of the Srivijayan  empire.  Some  scholars  suggest  that  the expedition  was  aimed  at plundering  the riches  of Southeast  Asian  countries.  Other  scholars  are  of the view that the expedition  was  to demonstrate  the supreme  naval  power  of the Cholas  to the Southeast  Asian  countries.  It is well  understood  that  after the conquest  of Srivijaya,  Chola rule was  not established  there.  After some years  of conquest  or immediately  after  the conquest,  hostilities  between  the two disappeared  and  cordial  relations  seem  to have  been  restored.  However  it is not clear  from  sources,  when  and  how  the hostility  between  the  two ended, but we may  notice  the  emergence  of a good  relationship  between  Kulottunga I  (1070–1120)  and the Srivijayan  Empire  earlier  than 1090.  This is well reflected  in his smaller  Leiden  plates  (EI, 22b) wherein  Kulottunga  I provided in his 20th  regnal  year  additional  grants  for the maintenance  of the Buddha viharaestablished  by the Chola  kings,  Rajaraja  I and Rajendra  I. The existence  of normal  cultural  and trade  relations  between  the two countries  could  have  induced  the  traders  to carry  on their  commercial  activities. By engaging  in trade,  the merchants  carried  with them the beliefs  and customs  of the  Tamil country.  Though  the nature  of trade  and  merchandise traded  are difficult  to understand,  the material  evidence  so far available suggests  the acceptance  of Tamil forms of architecture,  sculpture,  and iconography  in different  parts  of Southeast  Asia. Numerous  temples  and sculptures  found  in several  parts  of Southeast  Asia  suggest  in clear  terms  the influence  of cultural  elements  of the  Tamil country.  Although  cultural  themes of the Tamil country  can be looked  into and studied  throughout  Southeast Asia,  this study  is limited  to some  areas  in Indonesia. The Tamil cultural  influence,  especially  the Chola school  of art, can be noticed  in a few artefacts  from the island  of Sumatra.  Barus  (Lobu  Tua), an important  eleventh-century  mercantile  settlement  of the Tamil merchants (Subbarayalu  2002),  and an important  port from the early  times,  is situated on the  western  coast  of northern  Sumatra.  Palembang,  situated  in the  southern part  of Sumatra,  was  the capital  of the  Srivijayan  kingdom.  In between  these

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

213

two important  centres  is located  the central  Sumatran  port city of Jambi,  on the banks  of Batang  Hari river.  Notwithstanding  its strategic  location,  there is no evidence  of a Tamil mercantile  settlement  at Jambi.  However,  a small bronze  image  kept  in the local  museum  seems  to reflect  some  traces  of Chola art.  This bronze  image  is as   tanding  female  figure,  usually  known  as  dipalakshmi . She holds  in her left hand  a big rounded  lamp,  and in her right hand,  a flower.  She  has  a round  face,  and her hair is securely  made  into a large  bun, a characteristic  feature  of medieval  Chola  stone  sculptures.  Her facial  features are  well  portrayed  and  she  is decorated  with neck  ornaments,  bangles,  and  leg ornaments.  Her dress  was  neatly  arranged  in beautiful  folds  and tassels  hang on her sides  and  also  in between  her thighs  (Figure  13.4).  It is well  modelled, but lacks  the charm  of Chola bronzes. FIGURE 13.4 Bronze, Jambi, Indonesia Dı- palakshmi, 

214

P. Shanmugam

The Dieng Plateau,  located  in central  Java, has several  Pallava-style temples.  Those  temples  are  situated  on ah   illock  and  are  mostly  of single-cella - suramardini,  shrines.  Images  of Agastya,  and Durga  as Mahisha are found  in the  niches  of these  temples;  however  some  images  such  as the  Uma  Mahesvara, -suramardini,  Ganesa,  and Mahisha kept in the local museum,  reflect  the influence  of the Chola school  of art. These  images  seem  to have  been collected  from places  in and around  the Dieng  Plateau. -suramardini  About  three  Mahisha images  are found  in the local  museum (Figure  13.5).  Among  the three,  the head  of one image  is broken.  All the images  depict  Durga  as standing  on the  slain  Mahisha  (buffalo-headed  demon). His human  form  is portrayed  as emerging  from  the  buffalo.  In her  right  hand,

FIGURE 13.5 Indonesia Mahishasuramardini, Dieng Plateau, 

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

215

she  holds  the tail of Mahisha,  and her left hand  holds  the tuft of the  demon, suggesting  the  ultimate  conquest  of the  evil  demon.  On considering  the  form of the demon  depicted  in these  images,  scholars  have  attributed  a Gupta  or post-Gupta  influence.  However,  these  figures  are  sculptured  on slab  stones  in their  frontal  form as found  in many  images  of Durga  in the Tamil country. The back  is almost  plain.  Durga  is portrayed  with several  ornaments.  These slab  stone  sculptures  should  be recognized  as images  to be kept in niches. Among  the other  figures,  one image  of Ganesa  (Figure  13.6)  is depicted with a long  trunk  and  two hands  holding  a broken  tusk  in his right  hand  and a modaka(steamed  rice cake)  in his left. He is portrayed  as seated  on a pedestal.  In one of the images,  his left hand  is broken.  Another  significant image  is that of Uma Mahesvara.  Both the heads  of Uma and Siva are damaged  and  no facial  features  can  be recognized.  The hands  are  also  damaged and,  therefore,  the  attributes  held  by Siva  cannot  be recognized.  However,  the skull  depicted  on the  head  of Siva  suggests  that  it was  an image  of Siva.  In this image  Uma is shown  seated  on the lap of Siva  and holding  him in embrace.

FIGURE 13.6 Ganesa,  Dieng Plateau,  Indonesia

216

P. Shanmugam

There  are a few more  images  kept in the local  museum  which  also  exhibit influence  of the medieval  Chola  school  of art. The Prambanan  temple  complex  in central  Java  was  constructed  during the  eighth  to ninth  centuries  AD. It reflects  the  early  Chola  style  of architecture. The temple  complex  comprises  three  major  shrines  dedicated  to Siva,  Vishnu, and Brahma,  with numerous  sub-shrines.  The central  and the biggest  one  is the temple  of Siva.  The central  image  of Siva  is beautifully  sculptured  in the human  form (Figure  13.7).  He stands  with four hands  on a lotus  pedestal. FIGURE 13.7 Indonesia Siva, Prambanan, 

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

217

His neck  is encircled  by a snake.  The jat dressed  like a crown) .a makut .a (hair,  and  his lower  garment  are  very  well  arranged.  The architectural  feature  of the - il at Kodumbalur three  shrines  reflect  early  Chola  features  found  in Mu-varko (Pudukkottai  district)  in the Tamil Nadu (Nilakanta  Sastri  1955). At Kodumbalur,  the  temple  was  built  during  the  period  of Sundara  Chola.  Here, all the  three  shrines  are  dedicated  to Siva.  Though  there  exist  some  deviations from the  Chola  idiom,  the  concept  and  execution  of various  parts  and  also  of the sculptures  suggest  the influence  of Chola  features. One of the  most  important  figures  is the  image  of Durga  standing  on the body  of Mahisha,  whose  tail is held  in her right hand.  The human  form of Mahisha  is held  in her left hand,  by his tuft. She  is depicted  with a charming face  and eight  hands  holding  the attributes,  cakra(discus),  dagger,  arrow, conch,  shield,  and  a long  bow.  The image  of Ganesa  is majestically  represented with all attributes  (Figure  13.8). FIGURE 13.8 Ganesa,  Prambanan,  Indonesia

218

P. Shanmugam

The walls  around  the basement  of these  temples  are sculptured  with scenes  from  Ramayana (Figure  13.9).  These  are  sculptured  beautifully  and in well laid out panels,  and the features  are executed  with charm.  However aspects  of local idiom is also noticed  in the sculptures.  The small  panel sculptures  reflect  those  of the panel  sculptures  at Gopurappatti  (Lalgudi taluk,  Tiruchirappalli  district)  (Hariharan  1973)  and other  places. One head  of Siva discovered  from the Garuda  temple  at Prambanan (Chandi  Loro Jongrang)  exhibits  the  Chola  features.  Only the  head  is available and the  other  parts  of the  sculpture  are  lost.  O.C. Ganguly,  who studied  this excellent  piece,  said  that  it could  represent  one  of the  most  beautiful  pieces  of Siva  sculpture  of the  early  Chola  school.  It has  an elaborate  coiffure  bedecked with a single  human  skull beautifully  sculptured  on the head.  The jat .amakut arranged  (Ganguly  1927). .a is neatly  In the  temple  at Candi  Singasari  there  are  several  images  suggesting  the influence  of the  Chola  school  of art.  The standing  image  of Agastya  (Figure 13.10)  with a short  beard  was  sculptured  in the  usual  pattern.  His left hand is partly  broken  and has  a big jata makuta . The short  and  stumpy  Agastya with a big belly  has  been  sculptured  with a diaphanous  lower  garment  as FIGURE 13.9 A Scene  from Ramayana, Prambanan,  Indonesia

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

219

FIGURE 13.10 Indonesia Agastya, Chandi Singasari, 

found  in other  images.  Two images  of Surya  (Figure  13.11)  riding  on seven horses  are  also  found  there.  The prancing  horses  pulling  a chariot  are  poorly modelled  and the figures  of Surya  are damaged  in both the images. The National  Museum  in Jakarta  has  a good  collection  of sculptures  with Chola  features.  One seated  image  of Ganesa  (Figure  13.12)  is with four hands .kusa -la(rosary  and holding  usual  attributes,  akshama beads),  broken  tusk,  an -daka (elephant  goad),  and  mo . His karanda  makut with diminishing .a (crown  tiers)  is well portrayed.  He is seated  on a lotus  pedestal  and wears  a thick

220

P. Shanmugam FIGURE 13.11 for Surya, Chandi Singasari,  Indonesia Pedestals 

-tha(sacred  yajñopavı thread).  The modelling  has  been  beautifully  executed. Another  image  of standing  Agastya  (Figure  13.13)  also  exhibits  Chola  features. Agastya  has been  depicted  as of medium  height  with two hands,  holding akshamala in his right hand,  and the kaman pitcher)  in his left .d . ala (water  hand.  He has  tall jata  makuta , a thick yajnopavitha , and  a short  beard,  and  is standing  on a lotus  pedestal.  Two of his devotees  are shown  as kneeling  and worshipping  him with folded  hands.  Among  the two Mahishasuramardini images,  the one  image  of Durga  is sculptured  on a slab  stone  as seen  similar Durga  images  in the  Tamil region.  She  has  been  depicted  as standing  on the body of Mahisha,  with eight  hands  holding  the attributes,  conch,  dagger, -la (triple  trisu forked  weapon),  and cakra(Figure  13.14).  She is also  shown piercing  the fallen  demon  with the trisu laheld  in her left hand.  The demon is depicted  in his animal  form  and his tail is lifted  up and held  by Durga  in her right  hand.  The demon,  after  his defeat,  is emerging  in his human  form. In another  stone  figure  of Mahishasuramardini,  a similar  episode  has  been depicted  with more  artistic  detail.  She is shown  wearing  rich ornaments  on the neck,  hands,  and  hip. Her dress  is gracefully  arranged  and  she  is standing on the slain Mahisha,  who is emerging  as a human  being  from the earlier animal  form. However,  the beautiful  body  of the Durga  is damaged  on the

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

221

FIGURE 13.12 Ganesa,  Jakarta, Indonesia

right side.  These  figures  could  suggest  the influence  of the Chola style  of sculptures. One image  of Ganesa  from  the  Jakarta  National  Museum  can  be assigned to the late  Chola  period  (thirteenth  century  AD). The date  could  be assigned to the image  on account  of a small inscription  found on its body. The inscription  consists  of two parts;  one in Tamil language  and script,  and the

222

P. Shanmugam FIGURE 13.13 Agastya, Jakarta, Indonesia

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

223

FIGURE 13.14 Mahishasuramardini, Jakarta, Indonesia

other  in old Javanese  characters  (Karashima  2002).  The head  of Vinayaga  was sculptured  with a long trunk  on the top of the slab  stone. One of the significant  cultural  aspects  of the Tamil merchant  groups  in general  was the adoption  of Tamil names  and/or  Sanskrit  names  in their foreign  settlements.  This practice  seems  to have  been  followed  uniformly  by Tamil merchants  all over  Southeast  Asia  and  they  used  these  names  to denote other  parts  of their  settlements  also.  When  man igra mam  merchants  occupied .

224

P. Shanmugam FIGURE 13.15 Mahishasuramardini, Jakarta, Indonesia

South Indian Cultural Links with Indonesia

225

Takuapa  (Thailand),  one of them  excavated  a tank  in the settlement,  which was  named  Avan after  the  title  of the  Pallava  king  Nandivarman  III. .inaran . am,  However,  the name  of the settlement  is not known  from the inscription.  In the Barus  (Indonesia)  inscription,  we could make  out the name  of the . -tan -ci uyyakkon mercantile  settlement  as Ma kari vallavat  te .d . a pat . t.inam . (Varocana Matankari vallavat  teci Uyyakkon d a pat t inam).  The Pagan .. .. (Myanmar)  inscription  mentions  that  the mercantile  settlement  occupied  by -na the Tamil merchant  group was known as arivattanapuram  (pukkama arivattanapuram).  These  names  could  suggest  the  practice  of Tamil merchants naming  their settlements  in Southeast  Asia with a Tamil name.  Although details  about  the population  and members  of the different  mercantile  guilds are  not forthcoming,  it can be assumed  that  these  settlements  had a sizable population  of Tamil merchants,  both  settled  and itinerant  groups. In Indonesia,  cultural  elements  seem  to have  been  introduced  from the early  centuries  of the Christian  era.  However,  elements  of the Pallava  style  of art are  present  in several  places.  The Chola  art style  of Indonesia  seems  to be a continuation  of the Pallava  style  of art.  The lingamotifs  are  not numerous, but are  found  in different  places.  However,  it is difficult  to identify  the  Chola idiom  in these  icons.  Vishnu  images  are  also  not numerous,  but his incarnations and  stories  seem  to have  been  well  known  and  represented  in a few  sculptures and  panel  sculptures.  The other  important  figurines  are  the  images  of Agastya, Ganesa,  and  Mahishasuramardini.  Throughout  Southeast  Asia,  Ganesa  figures are  represented  with  four hands.  The tantric  form  of Ganesa  image,  with  skull decoration,  found  in other  parts  of Southeast  Asia,  are  not well  represented  in the Chola  style  images  in Indonesia.  It is generally  believed  that  most  of the Mahishasuramardini  images  depict  the Gupta or post-Gupta  influence. However,  for depicting  the images,  slab  stones  were  used,  a feature  known from Pallava  times.  The demon  Mahisha  was  depicted  in a few sculptures  at Mahabalipuram  in his semi-human  form.  The female  figure  depicts  almost similar  features  comparable  to the  pre-Chola  and  early  Chola  images.  It seems that  the  Mahishasuramardini  form  was  standardized  during  the  Chola  period. She is always  depicted  with eight  hands  and standing  on Mahisa  (buffalo). His human  form is also  depicted  in the sculpture. An important  aspect  of the  art style  of Southeast  Asia  was  the mixing  up of the  local  idiom  with the  Pallava  as well  as Chola  art styles.  Its introduction in the art forms  has  played  a significant  role in the  development  of Southeast Asian  art in general.  However,  it can  be noticed  that  the local  idiom  has  not been  well  represented  in the  modelling  of the  icons  and  sculptures  in Indonesia. In the depiction  of these  figures,  it was  not popularly  used.  In other  parts  of

226

P. Shanmugam

Southeast  Asia, especially  in Thailand  and Vietnam,  the dress,  and facial features  are  mostly  representative  of the  indigenous  population.  In Indonesia, such  a clear  transformation  to the native  features  cannot  be seen.

Note All the  figures  in this  chapter  were  photographed  by the  author  on his visits  to those places  in 1993 and 1994. Permissions  were granted  by the respective  museum authorities.

References Annual  Report  on Indian  Epigraphy . 1956–57,  nos.  161, 164,  166. EI. 22a.  Epigraphia  Indicavol. 22, pp. 213–66. EI. 22b. Epigraphia  Indicavol. 22, pp. 267–72. Ganguly,  O.C. “A Head  of Shiva  from  Prambanam”.  In Rupam , no. 32, 1927,  p. 97. Hall, Kenneth  R. Maritime  Trade and State  Development  in Early  Southeast  Asia . Honolulu,  1985. Hariharan,  S. “Some  Sculptured  Epic Panels  in Gopurappatti”.  In Damilica , Vol II, edited  by R. Nagaswamy,  pp. 77–81. Madras:  Department  of Archaeology, 1973. Hultzsch,  E. “Note  on a Tamil Inscription  in Siam”.  Journal  of Royal  Asiatic  Society (1913):  337–39. Karashima,  N. “Tamil Inscriptions  in Southeast  Asia and China”.  In Ancient  and Medieval  Commercial  Activities  in the  Indian  Ocean:  Testimony  of Inscriptions  and Ceramic-sherds , edited  by Noboru Karashima,  pp. 11–14.  Taisho University, 2002. Krishnan,  K.G. “Chola  Rajendra’s  Expedition  to South-East  Asia”.  Journal  of Indian History , Golden  Jubilee  volume,  p. 116. Nilakanta  Sastri,  K.A. The Colas . Chennai:  University  of Madras,  1955. Pattinappalai , ll.191. Shanmugam,  P. “Two Coins of Tamil Origin from Thailand”.  In Studies  in South Indian  Coins , edited  by A.V. Narasimha  Murthy. Vol. IV (1994):  97–99. Shanmugam,  P. “An Early  Tamil Brahmi  Inscription  from  Thailand”.  In Journal  of the Epigraphical  Society  of India, edited  by M.D. Sampath.  Mysore,  Vol. 22 (1996): 100–3. Srisuchat,  Tharapong.  “Thailand  and the Maritime  Silk Route:  The Role of the Ancient  Ports and Harbour  Cities  in Thailand”.  The Silpakorn  Journal , Vol. 33 (1990). Subbarayalu,  Y. “The  Merchant-guild  Inscription  at Barus,  Indonesia:  A Rediscovery”. In Ancient  and Medieval  Commercial  Activities  in the  Indian  Ocean:  Testimony  of Inscriptions  and  Ceramic-sherds , edited  by Noboru  Karashima,  pp. 19–26.  Taisho University,  2002.

14 RAJENDRA CHOLA’S INVASION AND THE RISE OF AIRLANGGA Ninie Susanti

The trade  network  of India and Southeast  Asian  lands  and islands  in early history  gave  rise to the growth  of trade  centres  visited  by various  foreign peoples.  Around  the  fifth century  two famous  routes  known  as  the  (overland) “silk  roads”  stretched  from  China,  through  Central  Asia,  and  Turkestan  to the Mediterranean  Sea.  These  roads  were  connected  to the Indian  caravan  tracks. Another  route ran through  the sea,  extending  from China, through  the Malacca  Strait  and Indonesian  waters,  towards  India and  the western  Indian Ocean  (Sjafei  1981–82,  pp. 49–50). The continuous  trade  activities  and voyages  caused  the emergence  of a number  of seaports  in the Indian Ocean.  According  to Wolters,  this development  was  responsible  for the  birth  of the  Sumatran  Sriwijaya  kingdom (Wolters  1967).  Indeed,  Sriwijaya  came  to be a significant  transitory  trading seaport  much  frequented  by merchants  from across  the globe.  Sriwijaya  was the first power  in Indonesian  history  successful  in dominating  the Malacca Strait  areas  and  in holding  the key  to the  trade  and passages  to China,  India, and other  countries. Sumatra  had  been  strategically  located  for international  trade  across  the oceans  since  prehistoric  times,  most likely due to the trade  of spices,  a commodity  much  sought  after  across  the  world.  Rouffaer’s  research  unfolded (1900) a series  of findings  of bronze  drums  from Southeast  Asian soil, continuing  along  a curved  line through  Sumatra,  Bali,  Nusa  Tenggara,  to the Kei Island in Southeast  Maluku,  demonstrating  evidence  of a busy spice 227

228

Ninie Susanti

trade.  Rouffaer  also  mentions  that  some  European  sources  had  knowledge  of spices  produced  by the Indonesian  archipelago  (Lapian  1979,  p. 96). A country  that relies  entirely  on trade  heavily  depends  on the trade patterns  it develops.  Inscriptions  from the time Sriwijaya  was enjoying  its peak  of prosperity  (early  seventh  century)  suggest  the kingdom’s  expansion into surrounding  territories.  Its northern  extension,  for instance,  was not only intended  to keep  watch  over  the exit  and  entrance  to the strait,  but was also  meant  to control  the  overland  crossing  of Tanah  Genting  Kra. In addition, the  expedition  planned  to conquer  Bhumi  Jawa  may  be construed  as an effort to subdue  West  Java,  that  is, a strategy  to annex  the  lands  on both  sides  of the Sunda  Strait  to the kingdom  (Lapian  1979,  p. 97). The conquering  mentioned  in the  Sriwijaya  inscriptions  strongly  suggest that  it was  related  to the control  of international  trade  and navigation  in the Malacca  Strait.  For example,  Bangka  Island  was  invaded  because  of its strategic location.  The invasion  of other  territories  near  Sriwijaya  also  showed  that  the kingdom  was  capable  of controlling  the  trade  and  navigation  between  western powers  and China since  foreign  vessels  had to sail  through  the Malacca  and Bangka  Straits  (Wolters  1967, p. 246). Yijing records  that foreign  ships visited  Kedah  and  Malayu  at regular  intervals.  The ships  stayed  there  for some time,  waiting  for favourable  winds  before  proceeding  to their  destinations. When moored  they b usily loaded  and unloaded  their m erchandise (Soemadio,  ed. 1984,  p. 61). Sriwijaya  produced  pepper,  cloves,  nutmeg,  cardamom,  etc.,  spices  much in demand  internationally.  Other sought  after commodities  consisted  of natural  resources  such  as forest  products,  animals,  gold, silver,  aloe wood, camphor,  turtles,  and other  items  (Wolters  1967,  pp. 65–70).  These  goods were  sold  or traded  with  porcelain,  cotton,  or silk cloths  among  the  merchants. According  to Yijing, foreign  boats  visited  Kedah  and Malayu  during  certain seasons,  while  Sriwijayan  ships  made  similar  voyages  to China. Sriwijaya  was internationally  recognized  as a great  maritime  kingdom and was  held  in high  esteem  by foreign  powers  such  as China,  Persia,  India, and Arabia  that  had  established  trade  relations  with it. Political  relations  and good trade  connections  were  primarily  maintained  with China and India, rather  than  with Arabia  and  Persia.  Arab  source  mentions  Sriwijaya  as Sribuza, a kingdom  that produced  commodities  such  as camphor,  gold, and silver (Soemadio,  ed. 1984,  pp. 67–68). After the highly  informative  Sriwijaya  inscriptions  of the late seventh century,  subsequent  ones  were  rarely  found,  so the kingdom’s  history  of the ninth  century,  written  by local  chronicles,  was  not much  known.  Information about  Sriwijaya’s  relations  with other  countries,  such  as India and  Java,  in the

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

229

tenth  and  eleventh  centuries,  is in fact,  acquired  from  foreign  sources.  Records from the Song  dynasty  period  say  that  in AD 960 the Sriwijaya  (San-fo-qi) king was  Se-li Hu-ta-hsia,  and in 962,  She-li  Wu-yeh.  Both names  may  be equated  to Sri Udayadityawarman.  In the years  971, 972, 974, and 975, several  envoys  were  sent to China, but they never  mentioned  the king’s names.  However,  envoys  from 980 and 983 said  that  their  king’s  name  was Hsia-She.  In 983 Chinese  priest  Fa-Yu visited  San-fo-qi  on his return  from India where  he had studied  holy books.  In this country  he met the Indian priest  Mi-mo-lo-shi-li  (Vimalasri)  who wished  to travel  to China to translate holy books  (Coedès  1968,  pp. 131–32;  Soemadio,  ed. 1984,  p. 66). In 988,  a Sriwijayan  envoy  travelled  to China.  After  a two-year  sojourn in that  country  he went  to Guangzhou  where  he learned  that  his country  had been  attacked  by She-po  (Java),  which forced  him to stay  another  year  in China.  In 999  the envoy  sailed  to Champa  where  he received  no news  about his country’s  condition.  He then  returned  to China  and  requested  the  emperor to issue  an announcement  stating  that Sriwijaya  was under  the emperor’s protection.  This data  agrees  with chronicles  of the Song  era  that  mention  the battle  between  She-po  and San-fo-qi.  The information  was  obtained  from a She-po  envoy  who arrived  in 992  and  who told  about  the  continuous  fighting with San-fo-qi.  It is believed  that at the time,  Ancient  Mataram  was  ruled by King Dharmawangsa  Teguh (Soemadio,  ed. 1984,  pp. 66–67).  Chinese sources  from the Song period  record  that in 1003 Sriwijaya  King Sri Cudamaniwarmadewa,  who claimed  to be a Sailendra  descendant,  sent  an envoy  to China.  The records  mention  that the envoy  from San-fo-qi  was dispatched  by king Si-li-zhu-luo-wu-ni-fo-ma-tiao-hua.  A second  envoy  was sent  during  the reign  of king Sri Marawijayottunggawarman,  who was  called king Si-li-ma-luo-pi  (Coedès  1989,  p. 8). Sriwijaya  kings  established  friendly  relations  with the Cholas  and China,  the then  two powerful  states  in Southeast  Asia.  Direct  connections between  Sriwijaya  and China were  confirmed  in writings  of Buddhist priests  such as Faxian  and Yijing, or by Song priests  who had visited Sriwijaya.  The reason  of their  visit  to the kingdom  was  usually  to spread Buddhist  teachings  and enhance  trade  and political  relations.  Friendly ties between  Sriwijaya  and India are written  in a number  of Sriwijayan inscriptions,  such  as  the  Ligor  A, as  well  as  Indian  ones,  such  as  the  Nalanda and  Tanjore  inscriptions.  The friendly  relations  were  in anticipation  of the imminent  threat  of a Javanese  invasion. Sriwijaya-India  ties  date  back  to the  early  years  of the  Sriwijaya  kingdom, when Indian culture,  along with the Hindu and Buddhist  beliefs,  was introduced  in Indonesia.  These  friendly  ties  are also  stated  in the Nalanda

230

Ninie Susanti

inscription  dated  AD 860, discovered  in the East  Indian  region  of Bihar;  it tells of the construction  of a monastery  at Nalanda  at the order  of King Balaputradewa,  a Sriwijaya  king, who professed  Buddhism.  The inscription also mentions  that Balaputradewa’s  grandfather  was a Javanese  king titled Sailendrawangsatilaka  Sri Wirawairimathana  (Sailendrawangsatilaka  means ornament  of the Sailendra  Dynasty).  King Balaputradewa  asked  King Dewapaladewa,  known  as the  guardian  of Buddhism,  to donate  a part  of his field  as simafor the maintenance  of the  monastery.  At the  time,  Nalanda  was home  to aB   uddhist  college  where  many  Southeast  Asian  and  Chinese  monks pursued  their  studies  (Budi-Utomo  2002,  p. 56). Sriwijaya-India  ties  further  developed  into close  relations  between  Sriwijaya and Chola, a South  Indian  kingdom.  This relation  is stated  by a Chinese source,  stating  that the Sriwijaya  King, Si-li-ma-luo-pi,  sent an envoy to China in 1008 to pay tribute.  The Sriwijaya  king could be Sri Marawijayottunggawarman.  In the year  1005  or 1006,  that  is, the twentyfirst year  of the reign  of Chola King Rajaraja  I, King Marawijayottunggawarman  had a Buddhist  temple  built in Nagapattana  with the help  of the former  king. This structure  was given  the name Cudamanivarmavihara (Soemadio,  ed.  1984).  Hall interprets  it as Culamanivarmavihara  (Hall 1976, p. 57).  This information  can be found  in the Leiden  inscription,  written  in Sanskrit  (1044),  and Tamil (1046)  (Menon  2001,  pp. 292–93). Sriwijaya-Chola  ties  ended  when  Rajendra  Chola  I attacked  Sriwijaya  in 1017 and 1025.  The 1030  Tanjore  inscription  issued  by Rajendra  Chola I mentions,  among  other things,  that in the battle,  Sriwijayan  King Sri Sanggramawijayottunggawarman  was captured  by Chola troops.  Rajendra Chola I   also c onquered  Kadaram  (Kataha-Kedah),  Panai, Malayu, Ilamuridesam  (Lamuri),  Ilankasokam  (Langkasuka),  Madalingam (Tambralinga)  and  other  regions  (Coedès  1968).  Though  defeated,  Sriwijaya was  not occupied  by Rajendra  Chola I, as Chinese  sources  report  the arrival of a Sriwijaya  envoy  in China in 1028.  The Sriwijaya  king,  who ruled  at that moment,  is believed  to be the son of Sanggramawijayottunggawarman,  who was  captured  during  the 1025  assault  (Wolters  1967,  pp. 250–51). Scholars  have  presented  various  views  about  Rajendra  Chola I’s reason for attacking  Sriwijaya.  They  generally  agree  that  political  interests  and  trade competition  were  the main motivations.  The Chola kingdom  reached  its golden  years  under  the rule of Rajaraja  I (985–1014)  and his son Rajendra Chola  I (1014–44).  In the Chola  period,  especially  under  the  reigns  of these two kings,  South  India enjoyed  a period  of unprecedented  achievements  in politics,  literature,  and  arts.  The Cholas  were  the  first  Indian  kings  to appreciate marine  power  and to apply  naval  politics;  they  also  showed  great  interest  in

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

231

building  public  facilities.  For example,  they  supported  the construction  of irrigation  works  in the Kaveri  delta,  the kingdom’s  wheat  producer.  The Cholas were consequently  considered  the initiator  of the delta’s  water mechanism,  ensuring  the  proper  irrigation  of farmlands  (Panikkar  1962,  p. 37). Rajaraja  I  had great  ambitions  to spread  his influences  when  he first became  king. He conquered  the whole  of South India and parts  of the Deccan  region.  He encouraged  international  trade  and supported  a Tamil businessman  who  had  designed  and  revived  the  splendid  Puhat  seaport  in the Kaveri  delta  (Rawlinson  1957,  p. 181).  Rajaraja  I ordered  the  fortification  of the navy and sent ships to conquer  Sri Lanka.  After his death  he was succeeded  by his son Rajendra  Chola  I who followed  in his father’s  steps  in political  affairs.  He subdued  Bengal  King Mahipala,  conquered  the Nicobar Islands,  Kadaram,  Malayu,  Sriwijaya,  and other  port cities.  Chola soldiers demanded  tributes  from the Thai and Khmer  kingdoms  (Panikkar  1962, p. 136;  Majumdar  et al. 1958,  p. 180). During its heyday,  Sriwijaya  managed  to gain control  of the Malacca Strait  and surrounding  areas  by using  its navy  and  the trust  of foreign  states. Consequently,  merchandise  could be transported  to the various  seaports. Chinese  sources  note  that  Sriwijaya  was  one of the most  important  trading centres  in Asia.  But in the interest  of its trade  activities,  Sriwijaya  did not object  to acknowledging  China’s  tributary  rights.  This was  part  of ad   iplomatic means  to ensure  that  China  did not establish  equally  favourable  trade  relations with other  Southeast  Asian  countries  (Wolters  1967,  p. 152; Soemadio  ed. 1984,  p. 78). The Cholas  conducted  business  with the support  of Tamil merchants who are  known  to have  spread  across  Southeast  Asia  from  the end  of the first millennium  AD. Tamil inscriptions  are  scattered  all over  Sri Lanka,  Thailand, China,  and Indonesia  (Sumatra),  demonstrating  that  Tamil merchants  had been  entering  Southeast  Asia at the latest  by the ninth century,  and had settled  in regions  near  the  Malacca  Strait  (Budi-Utomo  2002).  Some  scholars maintain  that  Chola kings  frequently  worked  with and acted  as protector  of Tamil merchants.  On their  part,  Sriwijaya  kings  made  alliances  with pirates in order  to protect  the kingdom’s  maritime  territory  (Soemadio,  ed. 1984, p. 78). As the Malacca  Strait was under  Sriwijaya  control,  ships sailing through  the  Strait  were  subject  to the  kingdom’s  rules.  Urged  by high  tributes, strict  rules,  and the initial  conflict  between  Sriwijaya  authorities  and Tamil traders,  Rajendra  Chola  I launched  attacks  on the kingdom.  The 1017  and 1025  assaults  on Sriwijaya  were  indirectly  responsible  for the decline  of the kingdom  and contributed  to the rise  of Java,  then  ruled  by King Airlangga (1019–43).

232

Ninie Susanti

Direct  relations  between  Sumatra  and  Java,  in fact,  existed  from  around the sixth  and seventh  centuries  AD, as manifested  in the friendly  as well as hostile,  relations  between  the two islands.  The Kota Kapur  stone  inscription of AD 686 reports  of Sriwijaya’s  efforts  to subdue  Bhumi  Jawa,  which  had refused  to surrender.  Its authorities  also  denounced  disloyal  citizens  threatening them  with  a distressful  fate.  Coedès  maintains  that  the  Kota Kapur  inscription was  written  at the time when  Sriwijaya  troops  set  out to invade  Java.  They attacked  Tarumanagara,  a state  which  had stopped  sending  envoys  to China since  666 and 669 (Coedès  1968,  p. 83; Soemadio,  ed. 1984,  p. 58). Some centuries  later,  the above  mentioned  Nalanda  inscription  praised  Sriwijayan King Balaputradewa  of Suvarnadvipa,  who claimed  to be the  grandson  of the Sailendra  king,  Sri Wirawairimathana  of Yavabhumi  or Ancient  Mataram.  In subsequent  years  Chinese  sources  recorded  that the two kingdoms  were constantly  at war. Records  from the Lampung  region  (the Hujung Langit  inscription) issued  in the Saka  year 919 (AD 997) are indications  of Sumatra-Java relations,  as they  were  written  in old Malay  using  old Javanese  vocabulary in sentences,  as well  as the authorities’  ranks.  The records  were  released  by a local  official  by the name  Pungku  Haji Yuwarajya  Sri Mahadewa  on the occasion  of the  sima  land  confirmation  for the  construction  and  maintenance of Buddhist  temples  (vihara ) (Tobing  2004,  pp. 74–78).  Damais  has  rendered the first three  lines of the document  from Pallava  to Latin script.  He maintains  that  the great  number  of old Javanese  words  was  evident  of the close  ties between  Sumatra  and Java, suggesting  that Sumatra  was once defeated  by, and came  under,  Javanese  rule (Damais  1962/1965).  These events  bear  relations  with Chinese  sources  of the  Song  dynasty  period  that report  of a She-po  envoy’s  arrival  in China in 992,  who mentioned  that  his homeland  was  constantly  engaged  in war with San-fo-qi.  Having  lived  in China for two years  in AD 988, a San-fo-qi  envoy  also stated  that his country  had been  attacked  by She-po  troops,  forcing  him to put off his return  journey  and to request  the Chinese  emperor’s  protection  of his country.  At the  time,  the  Javanese  King Dharmawangsa  Teguh  reigned  over the island,  and driven  by strong  ambitions,  he expanded  his influence beyond  Java  (Soemadio  ed. 1984,  pp. 172–73). The highs  and  lows  of Sumatra-Java  relations  stimulated  Airlangga  to rise from the devastation  (pralaya ) of his kingdom  caused  by in 1016. Dharmawangsa  Teguh’s  kingdom  suffered  attacks  from the minor  king Haji Wurawari  not long after  the wedding  celebrations  of Airlangga  (a Balinese prince)  and  Dharmawangsa  Teguh’s  daughter.  Haji Wurawari  is believed  to be a Sriwijaya  ally in Java who intended  to inflict retaliating  actions  on Dharmawangsa  Teguh (Boechari  1965).

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

233

The Pucangan  records  of the Saka  year  959 (AD 1037)  mention  that both  the king and his daughter  were  killed  in the pralaya incident,  and that Airlangga  managed  to escape  to the forest,  where,  for three  years,  he led a priest’s  life. In 1019, priests  of the Siva, Buddhist,  and Mahabrahmana orders,  and  his people  visited  him and  gave  their  blessings  and  welcomed  him as king since  the kingdom  was  on the brink of disintegration. During  his reign,  King Airlangga  is believed  to have  issued  thirty-three inscriptions  found  scattered  in Surabaya,  Mojokerto,  Krian,  Jombang,  Babat, and  Tuban.  But from these  thirty-three  records,  only eighteen  are  legible,  the remaining  being  too time-worn.  The records  suggest  that  since  his ascension to the throne,  Airlangga  had carried  out some  reforms,  particularly  in the areas  of politics,  economy,  religion,  and social  issues.  Political  actions  were carried  out by subduing  disloyal  regions  after  the  pralaya  incident.  Battle  after battle  was  waged  to establish  the  kingdom’s  hegemony,  so that  three  quarters of his  reign  was  spent  in waging  wars.  But his victories,  which  were  excellently recorded  in his inscriptions  and in later  literary  sources,  led him to become Java’s  greatest  sovereign  of the eleventh  century. From 1021 (the  Cane  inscription)  to 1035  (the  Sanskrit  inscription  of Pucangan)  Airlangga  launched  no fewer  than  nine attacks  on neighbouring territories.  The Cane inscription  (1021)  suggests  that he made  incursions into the  regions  west  of his kingdom,  but fails  to mention  the  regions’  names. In 1022  Airlangga  gained  another  victory  and  felt the  need  to confer  the  sima status  to the  Dyah Kaki Ngadu  Le˘nge˘n  family  for its support  in the fighting — thus the Kakurugan  inscription  report.  Also, the Sanskrit  inscription  of Pucangan  mentions  his successful  invasion  of Wuratan  in 1029.  He defeated Haji We ˘ngke ˘r in 1031  and his archenemy  Haji Wurawari  in 1032.  A queen was  also  Airlangga’s  targeted  victim,  although  no mention  has  been  made  of her name  or her kingdom.  But in the  same  year,  Airlangga  was  subdued  by a lesser  king and had to flee  from his palace.  In a second  assault,  however,  he emerged  again  victorious,  as stated  in the  Te˘re ˘p inscription  of 1032.  The Baru inscription  of 1030  states  that  the king  won the  battle  against  King Hasin.  In 1035 another  fight broke  out between  Airlangga  and Haji We ˘ngke ˘r, who turned  rebellious  after  his 1031  defeat  and who was  eventually  subdued  and killed.  The inscriptions  also say that after  ending  the wars,  “he sat on his throne  and placed  his feet on his enemies’  heads”,  signifying  Airlangga’s success  in defeating  all his enemies  coming  from the east,  south,  and west (Soemadio,  ed. 1984). In several  documents  Airlangga  considered  himself  the manifestation  of Visnu, Ksatria  Mahapurusa,  and Cakravartin.  These  manifestations  may validate  Airlangga’s  legitimate  position,  that  is, the supreme  power,  guardian of the  world  (Visnu).  Equating  himself  with  Visnu  involves  political  issues  —

234

Ninie Susanti

Airlangga  wished  to demonstrate  that  he did not perish  in the 1016  pralaya and that  he had  the responsibility  to restore,  keep,  and guard  the world  and ensure  his people’s  welfare.  His role as a perfect  human  being  (mahapurusa ), responsible  for the  protection  of the  world,  required  courage  and  the  boldness to save  his country  which  was  suffering  from the absence  of a leader  and a lack of confidence  (Susanti-T.  2003,  pp. 106–12). ´aka year of The Pucangan  inscription  written  in Sanskrit  in the S ´ 959 (AD 1037)  and those  written  in old Javanese  in the Saka year  of 963 (AD 1041)  were  highly  important  documents  issued  by Airlangga,  as the former  inscriptions  contain  family  tree  chronicles  of kings  beginning  from King Pu Sindok,  the  great-grandfather  of the king  of Ancient  Mataram.  Both inscriptions  also  include  lists  of regions  defeated  by Airlangga  in his efforts  to establish  hegemony.  He also  instructed  the  court  poet  Mpu Kanwa  to compose the Kakawin  Arjunawiwaha.  Some  scholars  maintain  that  the exquisite  piece of poetry  describes  Airlangga’s  biography,  that is, the years  he lived in the forest  as an exile. The Airlangga  kingdom  included  the highly  fertile  Brantas  River  delta. Thanks  to the numerous  small tributaries  that served  as good irrigation networks,  it is extremely  favourable  for paddies.  The Kamalagyan  inscription (AD 1037)  mentions  the proper  cultivation  of farmland  and efficiency  of irrigation  (Susanti-T.  2003,  p. 119).  Airlangga  also  established  measures  to promote  maritime  trade.  During this period  other  Southeast  Asian  powers too tried to promote  their  maritime  trade.  Conducting  business  across  the seas  was  an important  operation  as Sriwijaya  showed  signs  of deterioration caused  by Rajendra  Chola’s  attacks  in 1017 and 1025.  Casparis  maintains that Airlangga’s  attempts  to boost  international  trade  were  sparked  by his obsession  of snatching  Sriwijaya’s  position  as an international  transitory seaport.  In order  to achieve  this objective,  Airlangga  developed  and  prepared seaports  for regional  as well as international  trade. Judging  from  the  spread  of inscriptions  and  lists  of place  names  contained in the inscriptions,  it has  been  estimated  that  the Airlangga  kingdom’s  centre was  named  Wwatan  Mas, located  near  today’s  Surabaya.  The estimation  is based  on the fact that this location  has yielded  his oldest  inscriptions:  the ´aka,  ´aka,  Silet inscription  941 S the Cane inscription  943 S the Kakurugan ´aka,  inscription  945 S and the Baru  inscription  952 S´aka. In his efforts  to promote  rice cultivation  and revive  both local and regional  ports  of trade,  the  king  moved  the  kingdom’s  centre  deeper  inland  to be near  the Brantas  River. With its fertile  lands,  it proved  to have  a high potential  for the cultivation  of rice  fields.  Regions  in the  Brantas  River  basin were  conquered  and subsequently  formed  a second  kingdom:  Kahuripan.

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

235

The kingdom’s  original  centre  is strongly  believed  to have  been  near  the modern  day Mojokerto,  where  the following  Airlangga  inscriptions  were disclosed:  the Te˘re˘p  inscription  (G. Penanggungan),  the Turunhyang  A inscription  (Truneng Mojokerto  village),  the Pucangan  inscription (G. Penanggungan),  the Pandan  inscription  (Pandan  Krojan Mojokerto village),  and the Gandhakuti  inscription  (Keboan  Pasar  Mojokerto  village). These  inscriptions  were  spread  over  the  Mojokerto  and  Mount Penanggungan areas.  The king then  moved  the  kingdom’s  centre  to Kahuripan.  He also  had a dam  built there,  and inaugurated  the Hujung  Galuh  regional  seaport.  The port is believed  to be located  on the  Brantas  River  banks,  frequented  only by medium-sized  vessels  that provided  inter-insular  transportation.  The Kamalagyan  inscription  containing  all this data  was  possibly  found  in Krian Sidoarjo  village  (Susanti-T.  2003,  pp. 273–74). The Pamwatan  inscription  in 964 S´aka or AD 1042  discloses  that  the kingdom’s  centre  was  moved  again  westward  and was  named  Dahana  Pura. This inscription  was issued  by King Airlangga  after the release  of the ´aka,  Gandhakuti  inscription  in 964  S announcing  his withdrawal  from office. Based  on its analysis,  it is estimated  that King Airlangga  issued  eighteen stone  inscriptions,  spread  across  the areas  of Ngimbang  (Lamongan  region), Sambeng  (Lamongan  region),  and  Kudu (North  Jombang).  The inscriptions of Munggut,  Katemas,  and Kusambyan  were  discovered  on the Brantas River  banks.  Towards  the basin  of the Solo River  were  spread  inscriptions of Drujugurit,  Pasar  Legi,  Lawan,  Lemahbang,  Sendang  Gede,  Sumber  Sari (I-II), and  Sugio.  On the  Solo  River  banks  were  unearthed  the  inscriptions of Rengel,  Pucak  Wangi  (Babat),  and  Brumbun.  To the  north  was  Kesamben village,  possibly  the origin of the Kusambyan  inscription,  not far from Tuban (Susanti-T.  2003,  p. 274). Kambang  Putih, a seaport  of international  importance,  was  built near Tuban on Airlangga’s  instruction.  Occupied  regions,  as well as lands  with a sima  status,  served  as a convenient  access  to the Kambang  Putih seaport.  Two great  rivers,  the  Bengawan  Solo and Brantas  Rivers,  together  with numerous small  streams,  provided  convenient  waterways  for boats.  The relocation  of the kingdom’s  centre  was certainly  intended  to shorten  the transportation channel  that  ran from Hujung  Galuh  and small  ports  to transit  stops  in the Bengawan  Solo basin,  before  ending  at Kambang  Putih. Regrettably,  the Kambang  Putih port failed  to be completed,  when Airlangga  abdicated. Mention  of the port is made  in the Kambang  Putih inscription  issued  by King Garasakan,  Airlangga’s  son, who ruled Janggala  (Susanti-T.  2003, p. 275). Casparis  maintains  that the use of the Tuban seaport  had been adapted  to the pattern  of waterways  that linked  Tuban to the kingdom’s

236

Ninie Susanti

centre  possibly  located  near Mojokerto/Jombang  (1958,  p. 20). This demonstrates  Casparis’  unawareness  of the  Pamwatan  inscription  mentioning the relocation  of the kingdom’s  centre  to Dahana  Pura, closer  to Tuban. Airlangga’s  preparedness  to conduct  international  trade is confirmed  in contemporary  documents  that  mention  the presence  of foreigners  who were subjected  to tax.  These  aliens  were  people  from  Kliη (Keling),  Aryya,  Singhala, Pandikira,  Drawida,  Campa,  Kmir, and Re˘me˘n  (Cane  Inscription,  Patakan Inscription  and  Turunhyang  A inscription).  They  resided  inside  the  kingdom and could  have  been  trade  representatives,  professionals,  or artisans. Archaeological  findings  consisting  of ceramics  from China,  Cambodia, and the Middle East,  have  been  unearthed  near  Tuban and in the interior regions.  Imported  artefacts  were  also  found  in great  numbers,  made  up of Southeast  Asian  fine  pink pottery  (mercury  bottle  shaped).  These  findings  are indicative  of a smooth  running  commercial  network,  connecting  the area  to other  regions  that  were  linked  by sea.  A research  of the artefacts’  age  led to a site  chronology  and arrived  at the conclusion  that  seaports  between  Tuban and Gresik  had been  operating  since  the ninth or tenth  centuries  AD, saw their  busiest  years  between  the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries,  and  experienced a decline  in subsequent  years  (H. Wibisono  2004,  p. 8). This information tallies  with that in the inscription  mentioning  the construction  of the international  harbour  of Kambang  Putih on the order  of the previous  king, and its inauguration  during  King Garasakan’s  reign,  as mentioned  in the Kambang  Putih inscription  (Susanti-T.  2003,  pp. 278–79). King Airlangga  showed  a capacity  to maintain  religious  harmony  among his people.  His chronicles  invariably  suggest  a great  esteem  for prominent religious  figures  and  priests  who  acted  as  witnesses  or advisory  board  members. Although  the  Siva  belief  developed  swiftly  and  was  adhered  to by the  majority of the  population,  other  Hindu denominations,  Rsi, Mahabrahmana  religions, Buddhism,  and  the  worshipping  of Bhatari  also  flourished.  Places  of worship were  carefully  maintained.  All these  matters  were  recorded  in inscriptions released  by Airlangga. Airlangga  paid great  attention  to social  issues  and introduced  special rights  as additional  awards  to individuals,  families  or groups  of people  for rendering  service  to him or the state.  The rights  could be constituted  in various  forms,  such  as  lifestyle  and  ownership,  allowing  people  to have  special rights  to wear  certain  dresses  or jewellery,  own houses  with certain  features, eat  special  food,  own special  seats,  sofas,  umbrellas,  and other  special  items (Sedyawati  1994,  pp. 297–301).  It is interesting  to note that only during Airlangga’s  reign  was  detailed  mention  made  of the names  of family  heads  in a village  that  had  received  a simastatus,  when  the  reward  was  intended  for the

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

237

entire  village,  giving  the impression  that  the king cared  for each  and every citizen.  Such conduct  caused  the king to be loved by his subjects  and protected  wherever  he went  to fight  a battle. Casparis  was a scholar  who discussed  Airlangga’s  rule and called  him “a true  personality”,  because  he succeeded  in helping  his people  go through difficult  times  when  facing  devastation.  He was  a prominent  figure  and was successful  in reuniting  his kingdom,  and also  responsible  for improvements in politics,  economy,  religious  and  social  affairs  (1991).  Coedès  places  Airlangga in a position  equal  to that  of other  kings  on mainland  Southeast  Asia and South  Asia,  such  as  King Suryavarman  I of Khmer  (1002–50),  King Aniruddha of Pagan  (1044–77),  King Rajaraja  Chola (983–1014),  and King Rajendra Chola I (1014–44)  (Coedès  1968). Agreeing  with Casparis’s  views,  we should  also note that Airlangga’s accomplishments  were  initially  caused  by the  kingdom’s  deteriorating  political condition,  partially  brought  about  by attacks  of Rajendra  Chola I in 1017 and  1025.  This state  of affairs  forced  Airlangga  to bring  improvements  swiftly in political  affairs,  the country’s  economy,  and religious  and social  issues,  in order to replace  Sriwijaya’s  position  as the trade  centre  and international transit  seaport.  Documents  issued  by Airlangga  suggest  his success  in realizing, albeit  not all, his ambitions.

References Basham,  A. L. The Wonder  That  Was  India:  A Study  of the  History  and Culture  of the Indian Sub-continent  Before  the Coming  of the  Muslims . New York: Hawthorn Books,  Inc, 1963. Boechari. “Rakryan Mahamantri I   Hino  Sri  Sanggramawijaya Dharmmaprasadottunggadewi”.  Laporan  Kongres  Ilmu Pengetahuan  Nasional II, Report  on the National  Science  Congress  II, Jakarta,  1965. ———. “Sri Maharaja  Mapanji  Garasakan”.  In Majalah  Ilmu-ilmu  Sastra  Indonesia . (Journal  of Indonesian  Literary  Sciences),  IV (1, 2). ´aka:  ———. “The Inscription  of Garaman  Dated  975  S The Evidence  on Airlangga’s Partition  of His Kingdom”.  In Monumen (Monument),  pp. 125–45. ———. Seri  Penerbitan  Ilmiah(Scientific  Publication  Series)  No. 9 FS-UI. Depok: Faculty  of Letters,  The University  of Indonesia. Bronson,  Bennet.  “Exchange  at the  Upstream  and  Downstream  Ends:  Notes  toward a Functional  Model  of the  Coastal  State  in Southeast  Asia”.  In Economic  Exchange and Social  Interaction  in Southeast  Asia;  Perspectives  from  Prehistory  History  and Ethnography , edited  by Karl L. Hutterer,  pp. 39–52.  Ann Arbor: Michigan Papers  on South  and Southeast  Asia,  1977. Budi-Utomo,  Bambang.  “Komunitas  Tamil di Barus  dan Peranannya  dalam

238

Ninie Susanti

Perdagangan  di Nusantara”  [The Tamil Community  in Barus  and its role in Nusantara  trade].  Paper  at the International  Seminar  on “Great  Barus’s  Role as Centre  of Civilization  and Trade Port (Emporium)  in the Years  1–17 AD”, Jakarta,  12–15  October  2002. De Casparis,  J.G. “Airlangga”.  Inaugural  Lecture,  Airlangga  University,  1958.  Surabaya: Airlangga  University’s  University  Publications , 1991. ———. “The Year 1000  A.D. in Southeast  Asia”.  Paper  at Seminar  on “Philippine Palaeographs”.  Manila,  19–20  January  1991. ———. “Beberapa  Tokoh Besar  dalam  Sejarah  Asia  Tenggara  dari kira-kira  1000– 1400 M”. [Some  Prominent  Figures  in Southeast  Asian History of Around 1000–1400  AD]. Amerta , No. 16. Puslitarkenas,  Jakarta. ———. “Airlangga,  The  Threshold  of the  Second  Millennium”.  Article  in International Institute  for Asian  Studies  Bulletin,  Leiden,  1999. Coedès,  G. The Indianized  States  of Southeast  Asia . Honolulu:  East-West  Center Press,  1968. Coedès,  G. and L. Ch. Damais.  “Kedatuan  Sriwijaya”  [The Sriwijaya  Kingdom]. Research  on Sriwijaya.  Seri  Terjemahan  Arkeologi  (Series  of Archeology  Translations) No. 2 Joint project  of The National  Research  Center  for Archeology  & EFEO and The Department  of Education  and Culture,  1989. Damais,  L.  Ch. “Tanggal  Prasasti  Hujung Langit (Bawang)”  [The Date of the Hujung Langit (Bawang)  Inscription].  In  Epigrafi  dan Sejarah  Nusantara [Epigraphy  and the History of Nusantara]:  Pilihan Karangan  Louis-Charles Damais [Selected  writings  of Louis-Charles  Damais]”.  In Seri  Terjemahan  Arkeologi [Series  of Archeology  Translations],  No. 3 Joint Project  of The National  Research Center  for Archeology  and Ecole  Française  d’Extrême-Orient,  1995. Groeneveldt,  W. P. Historical  Notes  on Indonesia  and Malaya  Compiled  from  Chinese Sources . Jakarta:  Bhratara,  1960. Hall, D. G. E. A History  of South-East  Asia . London:  Macmillan  Press  Ltd, 1976. Hall, Kenneth  R. “State  and Statecraft  in Early Sriwijaya”.  In Exploration  in Early South  East  Asian  History:  The Origins  of South  East  Asian  Statecraft , edited  by Kenneth  R. Hall and John K. Whitmore.  Ann Abor: Center  for South  East Asian  Studies,  The University  of Michigan,  1976. Kern, H.  “Een Oud-Javaansche  Steen  Inscriptie van Koning Erlangga”  [An Old Javanese  Stone  Inscription  of King Erlangga].  Verspreide  Gechriften  (Scattered Writings) , VI, 1971. ———  1917. “Sanskrit-Inscriptie  ter eere  van den Javaanschen  vorst Erlangga” [Sanskrit  Inscription  in honor  of the  Javanese  King Erlangga].  Verspreide  Geschriften (Scattered  Writings) , VI, pp. 85–101. Lapian,  A. B. “Pelayaran  dalam  Periode  Sriwijaya”  [Navigation  in the  Sriwijaya  Era]. In Pra Seminar  Penelitian  Sriwijaya  [Pre-Seminar  on a Research  on Sriwijaya] National  Research  Center  for Archeology,  Jakarta,  1979. Leirissa,  R. Z. “Dr. J. C. van  Leur  dan  Sejarah  Ekonomi:  Suatu  Tinjauan  Historiografi” [Dr J. C. van  Leur and  The History  of Economy:  A Historiographical  Review].

Rajendra Chola’s Invasion and the Rise of Airlangga

239

In Sejarah  Indonesia;  Penilaian  Kembali  Karya  Utama  Sejarawan  Asing[History of Indonesia:  A Re-evaluation  of aF   oreign  Historian’s  Principal  Writing].  Jakarta: PPKB-LPUI. 1997. Majumdar,  R. C., H. C. Raychaudhuri,  and Kalikinkar  Datta.  An Advanced  History of India. London:  Macmillan  and Co. Ltd, 1958. Menon,  A. G. “Copper  Plates  to Silver  Plates:  Cholas,  Dutch and Buddhism”.  In Fruits of Inspiration,  Studies  in Honour  of Prof. J. G. De Casparis , edited  by Marijke  J. Klokke  and Karel  R. van  Kooij. Groningen:  Egbert  Forsten,  2001. Sastri,  K. A. Nilakanta.  A History  of South  India:  From  Prehistoric  Times  to the  Fall of Vijayanagar . Madras:  Oxford  University  Press,  1958. Panikkar,  K. M. A Survey  of Indian  History . London:  Asia  Publishing  House,  1962. Rawlinson,  H.G. India:  A Short  Cultural  History . 1957. Sedyawati,  Edi. “Arsitektur  Indonesia  Masa  Hindu-Budha:  Tinjauan  Fungsi  Sosial” [Indonesian  Architecture  of the  Hindu-Buddhist  Era:  A Social  Function  Review]. In “Lembaran  Sastra”  Seri  Penerbitan  IlmiahFSUI [“Literary  Sheets”  in Scientific Publication  Series  Faculty  of Letters,  The University  of Indonesia].  Depok,  1990. Sjafei,  Soewadji.  “Catatan  Mengenai  Jalan  Pelayaran  Perdagangan  ke Indonesia  sebelum Abad  ke-16”  [Notes  on the  Trade’s  Navigation  Channel  to Indonesia  before  the Sixteenth  Century].  Journal  of Indonesian  Literary  Sciences, X no. 1 (1981–82): Faculty  of Letters,  University  of Indonesia. Soemadio,  Bambang.  “Jaman  Kuno” [The Ancient  Period].  In Sejarah  Nasional Indonesia [Indonesian  National  History]  Vol. II, edited  by Bambang  Soemadio, with Marwati  D. Poesponegoro  and Nugroho  Notosusanto.  Jakarta:  PN Balai Pustaka,  1984. Susanti-T.,  Ninny. “Airlangga:  Raja Pembaharu  di Jawa pada  Abad  ke-11  Masehi” [Airlangga:  The Reformer  King of Java  in the  Eleventh  Century  AD]. Unpublished dissertation,  Faculty  of Humanities,  The University  of Indonesia,  2003. Tobing, Binsar  D.L. “Prasasti  Hujung Langit”  [The Hujung Langit  Inscription]. Unpublished  paper,  Faculty  of Humanities,  The University  of Indonesia,  2004. Wibisono,  Naniek  H. “Pola Perdagangan  Abad  ke-10–14  Berdasarkan  Bukti-bukti Tinggalan  Arkeologi”  [10–14 Centuries’  Trade Patterns  as Evident  from Archaeological  Relics].  Paper  at a panel  discussion  on “Airlangga  sebagai  Tokoh” (Airlangga  as a Figure),  Jombang,  2004. Wolters,  O. W.  Early Indonesian  Commerce:  A Study  of The Origins  of Sriwijaya . Ithaca,  New York: Cornell  University  Press,  1967.

15 RETHINKING COMMUNITY of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings  Risha Lee

INTRODUCTION In the late thirteenth  century,  a Tamil-speaking  community  in southern China’s  coastal  city of Quanzhou  built a temple  devoted  to the Hindu god Siva.  The temple  is no longer  intact,  but over  300  carvings  are  still within  the city, on display  in the collection  of the local  museum,  and rebuilt  into the 1 walls of the city’s  main Buddhist  temple. The known carvings  are distinguishable  by their  South  Indian  style,  with its closest  parallels  in thirteenth century  temples  constructed  in the Kaveri  Delta  Region  in Tamil Nadu, and are dispersed  across  five primary  sites  in Quanzhou  and its surroundings. Almost  all are  carved  with greenish-gray  granite,  which  was  widely  available in the nearby  hills and used  frequently  in the region’s  contemporaneous 2 architecture. The remains  attest  to the presence  of a settled  South  Indian community  in southern  China  during  the  late  thirteenth  century  and  indicate an even  longer  history  of cross-cultural  exchange  between  China and India. Scholars  have  charted  the movement  and  motivations  of the  twelfth  to thirteenth  century  Sino-Indian  exchange,  analyzing  the Indic carvings  to show  persistent  cultural  and  mercantile  relations  between  the two regions. However,  existing  scholarship  stops  short  of reading  from the carvings  a fresh  politics  of culture  and identity,  one that challenges  today’s  regnant theories  in philosophy,  history,  and  political  theory.  For, as I will show,  the carvings  resist  a binary  understanding  of cultural  interaction,  where  bounded, 240

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

241

definable  cultures  or ethnicities  “influenced”  one another.  Indeed,  I argue that neither  the temple  patrons  in Quanzhou,  nor the city’s  local  artisans, viewed  themselves  as  culturally  distinct  selves  or others  when  they  interacted. Quanzhou’s  Indic carvings,  I argue,  index  an active  translation  of ideas  and 3 images  in built-form.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND What little we know of the community  of Siva  worshippers  in Quanzhou comes  directly  from  the carvings  themselves;  apart  from  the material  remains of a Siva  temple,  history  has  not documented  or referenced  its creators.  The strongest  evidence  for its construction  date  is a bilingual  inscription  found  in Quanzhou,  written  in both  Chinese  and  Tamil on a block  of diabase  stone, 4 which records  the consecration  of a Siva temple  in 1281. This date is appropriate,  given  the striking  stylistic  correspondence  of Quanzhou’s  Indic carvings  with contemporaneous  temples  in Tamil Nadu,  India. Although  it impossible  to know  for certain  where  the  temple  was  originally  located  since it is now dismantled,  many  sources  suggest  the southern  part of the city.5 Most of the carvings  were  found  within the Tonghuai  gate,  located  in the 6 southeastern  part of the city, when  the city wall was  demolished  in 1947. This gate  was  erected  during  the  Ming dynasty  (1368–1644),  and  the  carvings were  used  as building  materials  to expand  the city wall.  Although  we do not know  the exact  dates  for the dismantling  of the temple,  this suggests  that  it 7 could  have  occurred  between  the late  fourteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries. Additionally,  there  are scattered  historical  references  to Indians  living  in the southern  part  of Quanzhou.  Zhao  Rugua  records  in his ca. 1225  Description of Barbarian  Peoples that  foreign  merchants  living  in Quanzhou  revered  an Indian monk who arrived  by sea  in 985 and bought  a plot of land in the southern  part of Quanzhou,  aiming  to build a temple.  Furthermore,  a gazetteer  from Jingzhang  county  —  perhaps  referencing  a Hindu temple tank8 — notes  that  in ancient  times  a pool  of the  “foreign  temple  of Buddhism” existed  in the city’s  south.  Several  sources  suggest  that  the southern  suburb was  the city’s  commercial  centre  throughout  the Song  (960–1279)  and  Yuan (1279–1368)  dynasties,  which has led scholars  to believe  that the temple was  once  located  in the city’s  southern  sector  since  the community  of Siva 9 worshippers  most  likely  comprised  merchants. In Chinese  history,  the 1281 inscription  date  places  the temple  in the Yuan dynasty  period,  initiated  by Genghis  Khan, a member  of a nomadic tribe of ethnic  Mongols.  After uniting  Mongolia  in 1206,  Genghis  Khan extended  his empire,  which  came  to include  large  parts  of Asia,  the Middle

242

Risha Lee

East,  and some  parts  of Europe.  While Genghis  Khan did not live to see  a complete  conquest  of China,  after  his death  in 1259  Kublai Khan (r.1260– 1294)  continued  his grandfather’s  war against  the Song  empire  until 1279, when he took the last Song outpost  in Guangzhou  in southern  China. Ultimately,  it was  the foreign  community  in Quanzhou,  composed  of South Indians,  Arabs,  Persians,  and  others,  that  played  a pivotal  role  in the  Mongols’ political  takeover.  Trade encouraged  these  foreign  merchants  to emigrate  to Quanzhou,  where  many  chose  to live before  the Mongol  takeover,  enjoying financial  success  and ascension  in the local  government’s  ranks.  One of these foreign  traders,  Pu Shougeng,  stands  out in his work to secure  the Mongol takeover  of southern  China,  the last  outpost  of Song  power.  In 1276,  Song loyalists  launched  a resistance  against  Mongol efforts  to take  over Fuzhou (near  Quanzhou).  The Yuanshi (the  Yuan dynasty  official  history)  records  that Pu Shougeng,  with the  support  of the  local  elite,  “abandoned  the Song  cause and rejected  the emperor  … by the end  of the  year,  Quanzhou  had formally 10 submitted  to the Mongols.”In abandoning  the Song  cause,  Pu Shougeng mobilized  troops  mostly  from the community  of foreign  residents  and local elite, who massacred  Song clansmen  and loyalists.  Pu Shougeng  and his troops  acted  without  the help  of the Mongol  army. Pu Shougeng’s  support  of Mongol  conquest  comes  without  surprise,  for the  Mongols,  themselves  foreign  to China,  favoured  foreigners  for prestigious positions  in their  bureaucracy.  Up until the  Yuan Dynasty’s  fall, Quanzhou’s foreigners,  or semuren (literally,  “people  with coloured  eyes”),  had occupied most  of the  local  government’s  official  positions.  Moreover,  several  genealogies and histories  show  that many  locals  adopted  foreign  Chinese  names  and converted  to foreign  religions,  hoping  to enjoy  the privileges  reserved  for 11 members  of registered  foreign  households. Pu Shougeng  himself  was  lavishly rewarded  by the Mongols.  He was  appointed  military  commissioner  for the provinces  of Fujian  and  Guangdong.  Additionally,  in 1278,  Pu Shougeng  and the Mongol  general,  Sogetu,  were  given  official  positions  in the Quanzhou 12 government  for promoting  maritime  trade. The period  of Mongol  rule is marked  by increased  Chinese  mercantile activity  along  the South  Indian coastline.  Ibn Battuta,  Wang Dayuan,  and Marco Polo all provide  eye  witness  accounts  of Chinese  merchants  in the 13 Indian  ports. The Kublai  Khan  court  considered  trade  with  India  so important that it dispatched  an unprecedented  sixteen  official,  diplomatic  envoys  to 14 India, primarily  along the Coromandel  and Malabar  coasts. The Yuan official  Yang Tingbi led several  missions  to these  regions,  determined  to expand  China’s  political  connections  with India. Yang’s  missions  are also suggestive  of India’s  pluralistic  landscape,  for he reports  meeting  with Syrian

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

243

Christian  and Muslim  communities  in South  India,  undoubtedly  comprised 15 of diaspora  traders.Moreover,  Yuan officials  travelled  to India on private trading  ships,  affirming  a connection  between  court  and  merchant  endeavours 16 to expand  their  reach  in Indian  markets  and politics. From the Indian  vantage  point,  1281  marks  the end of the late  Chola period  in Tamil Nadu,  which  began  in 1070  with Kulottunga  I and ended  in 17 1280  with Rajendra  III’s demise.Thanks  to John Guy, whose  stylistic  and iconographic  analysis  convincingly  threads  the  Quanzhou  carvings  to temples in Tamil Nadu,  we  know  that  the  Siva-worshipping  community  in Quanzhou 18 was  probably  from Tamil Nadu. At the very  least,  its members  had strong  ties  to this region.  As overseas commercial  ventures  became  crucial  to ensuring  the economic  well-being  of their polity, the Chola monarchs  pursued  aggressive  foreign  policies  that established  trading  networks  and  political  relations  with China.  The Chinese scholar  Ban Gu shows  that,  as early  as the first century,  South  China and 19 South  India were  connected  by maritime  trade  routes;however,  Quanzhou only emerged  as a port of international  importance  between  the twelfth  and thirteenth  centuries,  during  the  Song  dynasty  and  the  Mongol  Yuan dynasty. In 1292,  it received  Marco  Polo, who  commented  on the  substantial  presence of Indian ships  loaded  with pepper  in the port.20 Archaeological  evidence found  on the Tamil Nadu coast,  including  hoards  of Chinese  ceramics  and coins,  attest  to the vibrant  trade  between  southern  India and China,  which 21 began  in the eleventh  century  and continued. In a book on Sino-Indian  relations,  Tansen  Sen argues  that the Chola kingdom  contributed  to the development  of the world market,  and that “the  trading  ports  and mercantile  guilds  of the Chola kingdom  played  a 22 significant  role in linking  the  markets  of China to the rest  of the  world”. From 1015  onwards,  Chola  monarchs  sent  envoys  to southern  China and actively  protected  their  commercial  interests  through  warfare.  In fact,  writing on merchant  guilds,  Meera  Abraham  has  suggested  that the Chola naval raid  on the  Malay  Peninsula  and  Indonesia  in 1025  was  an effort  to protect Indian commercial  interests  from interference  by the Srivijaya  kingdom, which  occupied  an intermediary  trade  position  between  China  and  India.23 The Cholas  also invaded  Sri Lanka  to expand  their control  of overseas ports.  Furthermore,  the  Chola  monarchs  did not act  independently  in their relations  with China; rather,  South  Indian merchant  played  a significant role  in facilitating  cultural  exchanges  between  China  and  India.  In fact,  the patrons  of the  Hindu temple  in Quanzhou  were  most  likely  members  of a merchant  guild  that  had  established  a permanent  trading  post  there.  Meera Abraham  charts  the  intimate  relations  between  king and  merchant,  putting

244

Risha Lee

into question  the commonly  held view  of the king as a totalitarian  ruler bent on absolute  overseas  authority  through  military  conquest.  On the contrary,  merchant  guilds  wielded  an immense  amount  of power  in South India’s  Hindu temples,  as well as overseas. Chinese  envoy  records  illuminate  the close  relationship  between  the Chola monarch  and merchant  guilds.  Indeed,  Chinese  officials  could not distinguish  between  Chola monarch  and merchant-sponsored  envoys  since the identities  and affiliations  of those  present  were  lost in clerical  error  and often  deliberate  misinformation.  Competition  for larger  shares  of the  market drove  individual  missionaries  to misrepresent  themselves.  For instance,  a Srivijayan  envoy  succeeded  in convincing  Chinese  officials  that the Chola kingdom  was  a vassal  state  of Srivijaya  in the height  of the former’s  power, 24 resulting  in the official  mistreatment  of the first Chola envoy  in 1015. Merchant  groups  were intensely  competitive,  so much so that they appealed  to culture  to ensure  their  position  in foreign  markets  and  encourage foreign  diplomacy:  they  built their  own religious  monuments  and  patronized others.  For instance,  the fourteenth  century  Chinese  travel  writer,  Wang Dayuan,  claims  to have  seen  a pagoda  in Nagappattinam  in Tamil Nadu, built  by Chinese  sojourners  and  inscribed  in Chinese  characters,  which  reveal 25 a construction  date  of 1267. Additionally,  in the  eleventh  century,  Srivijayans built a Buddhist  monastery  in Nagapattinam  using  a Chinese  architectural 26 style. An inscription  found in Guangzhou  (ca. 1049)  records  donations made  to aT   aoist  monastery  on behalf  of the Chola  monarch  Kulottunga  I.27 More  interestingly,  these  monuments  were  not culturally  distinct  entities, for the presence  of personnel  and iconography  from multiple  cultures  is evident  in their built-form.  For example,  the Kaiyuan  Temple’s  gazetteer records  that  a “Master  from India”  served  as the  chief  architect  in renovating its East  pagoda  in 1238.  Additionally,  a bas  relief  of Hanuman,  the monkey 28 prince  of the Ramayana , appears  on one  of the temple’s  pagodas. Although it is beyond  this paper’s  scope  to analyse  material  from Central  or Southeast Asia, it is worth mentioning  that representatives  from these  regions  were present  in Quanzhou  and  may  have  contributed  directly  and  indirectly  to the Siva  temple’s  appearance.  Multilingual  inscriptions  and Indic carvings  have been  found  across  Southeast  Asia,  indicating  a wider  pattern  of migration  and settlement  by merchants  across  culturally  permeable  borders.  We suspect  the influx  of bodies  and  ideas  from Southeast  Asia  also  affected  the  appearance  of 29 the temple  and the community  of worshippers  within  Quanzhou. Indeed,  it appears  that  the categories  of “foreigner”  and  “merchant”  were more salient  than “ethno-cultural”  identities.  While the large  volume  of literature  theorizing  merchant  networks  outpaces  this  paper,  we  might  simply

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

245

note  that  this scholarship  indexes  how merchant  trade  entailed  collaboration between  multiple,  interdependent,  and close  knit groups,  and it cautions against  the  anachronistic  temptation  to separate  these  networks  into ethnic  or nationally  defined  entities.

STYLISTIC ANALYSIS OF THE INDIC CARVINGS IN  QUANZHOU Using  the  word  “temple”  itself  overstates  the  form  of the  architectural  remains today.  The carvings  are  dispersed  across  five primary  sites  in Quanzhou  and its surroundings. The Kaiyuan  Temple,  which  is still  an active  Buddhist  temple  built  in the 30 Tang period  in 686 CE, houses  the largest  repository  of Indic carvings. There,  153 of these  carvings,  mostly  installed  in the  temple’s  front  hall, have been used  as part of the basement  frieze  (Figure 15.1).  Their style  and placement  suggest  they  were  not part  of the  temple’s  original  conception,  but are  instead  reused  materials  from an Indian  temple.  The Kaiyuan  Temple  has survived  numerous  natural  disasters  and renovations,  recorded  in the Ming dynasty  gazetteer,  the Record  of the Kaiyuan  Temple .31 Two separate  patrons renovated  the temple  in 1389  and 1408;  the Indic carvings  may  have  been 32 installed  in the temple  during  this time. The basement  frieze  in the Kaiyuan  Temple mirrors  its anticipated placement  in the Indian  temple.  Lotus-shaped  mouldings  frame  a sculptural bas-relief  panel  frieze  of lions  alternating  with half-female,  half-lion  figures.  A complete  panel  is consistent  in length,  rectangular,  evenly  bordered,  and has the figural  sequence  of a lion separated  by a column,  followed  by a leonine figure.  Upon close  inspection,  the varying  lengths  and breaks  in the panel suggest  that  the stones  are  not in their  original  position.  More interestingly, the artisans  who installed  the stones  in the basement  clearly  followed  the “original”  alternating  pattern:  lion … column  … leonine  figure.  Moreover, they used  panel  fragments  when  needed  in order to avoid upsetting  the sequential  order.  Two citrakhanda columns  with sculptural  reliefs  of Hindu gods  appear  in the back  of the first hall (Figure  15.2).  Scholars  of the  Tamil speaking  community  in Quanzhou  have  paid the most attention  to these 33 columns, which  frame  the  back  entrance  to the  main  hall and  sit on a raised stone  platform  that served  as an open air walkway  circumambulating  the main  building. The second  largest  repository  of Indic carvings  exists  in the Quanzhou Maritime  Museum,  located  in the city centre.  In the 1950’s,  Quanzhou

Risha Lee

246

FIGURE 15.1 Kaiyuan  Temple, Quanzhou View of reused  Indic carvings  in basement  frieze,  possibly  installed  in 1389  or 1408.

FIGURE 15.2 Kaiyuan  Temple, Quanzhou View of reused  citrakhanda type  columns  in back  of main hall.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

247

citizen  and collector,  Wu Wenliang,  first took an interest  in unappreciated antiquities  lying  idle  in fields  or reused  as  building  materials  in local  residential homes.  He mostly  acquired  stone  carvings,  some  dating  back  as early  as the eleventh  century,  which  the  city’s  inhabitants  had  used  to build  local  structures. The Indic carvings  comprise  about  a fourth  of his collection,  which also includes  carvings  bearing  Christian,  Islamic,  Manichean,  and Nestorian iconography,  inscribed  with languages  such  as Persian,  Arabic,  Tamil, Italian, Latin,  and  Syriac.  Indeed,  many  of the  carvings  bear  multilingual  inscriptions, attesting  to a high level  of fluidity  between  ethno-cultural  borders,  as well as the presence  of non-Chinese  individuals  with local  power.  For example,  “the gravestone  of Ahmad”  narrates  a family  who lived  in Quanzhou  for several generations.  Written  in Persian,  Arabic,  and Chinese,  we know  that  the  elder Ahmad  “married  a woman  from Quanzhou  and that  the younger  generation 34 became  proficient  in Chinese”. A number  of the collection’s  Indic carvings were  moved  from  the  Kaiyuan  Temple,  whose  grounds  also  contain  a museum. The Quanzhou  Maritime  Museum  also continues  to acquire  new carvings 35 through  random  finds  and contributions. The 117  pieces  of the  museum’s  carvings,  are  clearly  architectural  fragments from a South  Indian  style  temple.  They  include  fluted  pilasters,  puspapotika (capitals  with flower  blossom  extensions),  citrakhanda pillars  (square  columntype  with carved  central  band),  padma (lotus  petal  carved  base  mouldings), vyalabas reliefs  (composite  leonine  figure),  kapota (cornices),  door jambs, lasuna(vase  shaped  pillar part), ghata(cushion  shaped  pillar part above lasuna),  malasthana (decorated  pillar part below  ghata ), finials,  sculptural panels,  hastihasta (stairway  banister),  jali(grill pattern  window  screens),  and a five-foot  tall Vishnu  statue,  carved  in the  round,  complete  with a lotus  petal base.  The carvings  are  in a small  exhibition  room  in the  museum’s  rear;  apart from a few display  podiums,  they are disordered  and stacked  one upon another  (Figure  15.3). Also in Quanzhou,  the Tianhou  gong  temple  holds two citrakhanda columns  with  dimensions  roughly  approximating  the  columns  in the  Kaiyuan Temple  and  Quanzhou  Maritime  Museum  (Figure  15.4),  which  suggest  they are  originally  from the same  temple.  The temple  dates  to the second  year  of Qingyuan  and the Southern  Song  dynasty  (c. 1196),  and is dedicated  to the local  goddess  Mazu, traditionally  worshipped  by sailors  seeking  protection against  harsh  waters.  The most  noticeable  difference  between  the temples  is seen  in the medallions  of the Tianhou  gong  temple,  which  are carved  with floral  and vegetal  motifs  and  exclude  figurative  imagery  of and references  to Hindu iconography.  As in the Kaiyuan  Temple,  the Tianhou  gong  temple’s pillars  sit atop  a raised  stone  platform  and form part  of an ambulatory  hall

Risha Lee

248 FIGURE 15.3 Quanzhou Maritime Museum,  Quanzhou Display  of Indic carvings.

FIGURE 15.4 Tianhou gong Temple, Quanzhou Citrakhanda type  pillars  in back  hall.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

249

that  surrounds  the main  building.  The pillars  stand  out insofar  as they  frame the front door  of the rear  building. About 15 kilometres  outside  of Quanzhou’s  city centre,  in the rural Chidian village  of Jinjiang county,  a small shrine  known as the Xingji pavilion  is dedicated  to the Buddhist  goddess  Guanyin;  however,  there  is a large  sculptural  panel  of the Hindu goddess  Kali, painted  in red and gold  in place  of the Guanyin  icon (Figure  15.5).  The goddess  bears  the iconographic features  of Kali, since  she  has  a skull necklace,  wild hair,  female  attendants, and a demon  underfoot.  As early  as seventy  years  ago,  the panel  was  installed as a shrine  next  to a small  bridge,  located  about  one  kilometre  away  from the 36 village. During the Cultural Revolution,  the bridge  and pavilion  were dismantled,  and the carvings  were  cemented  into a wall surrounding  the village.  In the  1980s,  the  village  residents  dismantled  the  wall,  found  the Kali carving,  reconsecrated  it as the goddess  Guanyin,  and built a shrine  for it. The Xiamen  University  Museum  has  a small  holding  of carvings,  including the original  bilingual  inscription  (Figure  15.6)  and a door jamb.

FIGURE 15.5 Xingji pavilion, Chidian village,  Jinjiang county Indic sculptural  panel  of Hindu goddess  Kali with attendants.

250

Risha Lee

FIGURE 15.6 Xiamen University Museum Bilingual  stele  in Tamil and Chinese,  recording  consecration  of Siva  temple  in 1281.

That the temple  was  disassembled  generates  at least  a partial  history  of the carvings.  At some  point,  these  carvings  ceased  to be Hindu in a religious sense.  After the temple  was  disassembled,  they  no longer  served  a religious purpose;  rather,  their  symbolism  changed  and the  stones  were  infused  with a new set  of meanings.  It was  only over  the past  century,  when  these  carvings were  gathered  in a museum  setting,  that they  once  again  received  a Hindu identity.  However,  looking  at the stones  closely,  it is clear  that  even  in their original  position  in a consecrated  Hindu temple,  they w ere n ever unambiguously  “Hindu”.  Rather,  they  are  the  products  of several  communities and  cultural  practices  whose  boundaries  are  far from  clear.  Despite  the  lack  of traditionally  historical  “texts”  establishing  a Tamil community  living in Quanzhou,  the  stones  themselves  serve  as a text,  providing  information  about their  patrons’  politics  with respect  to medieval  Quanzhou  society. Among  the surviving  Hindu carvings  is an inscription,  written  in both Tamil and  Chinese,  establishing  the  consecration  of aS   iva  temple  in Quanzhou in 1281.  The main  portion  of the text  is written  in Tamil, and  the last  line is written  in Chinese.  The Tamil text  reads: Obeisance  to Hara  (Siva).  Let there  be prosperity!  On the day  Chitra  in the  month  of Chittirai  in the  Saka  year  1203,  the  Tavachchakkarvarttikal . -l graciously  Sambandapperuma caused,  in accordance  with the firman . (written  permission)  of Chekachai  Khan (the Mongol ruler), the -nis -yana -r (Siva), installation  of the  God Ud.aiyar  Tiruk-ka ´varam  Ud.aiya-na 37 for the welfare  of the king Chekachai  Khan.

This Tamil text offers  us several  valuable  pieces  of information:  it praises Siva, the primary  deity of the temple,  names  the primary  patron,

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

251

Sambandhaperumal,  a common  Tamil name,  and  asserts  that  the installation of Siva’s  image  enjoyed  the  grace  of the  imperial  Mongol  authority  (Chekachai Khan). Clearly,  Indian patrons  responsible  for building  the temple  acted under  the auspices  of the Chinese  imperial  authorities.  Though  the Chinese text has  proved  elusive  for scholars,  the disagreements  over  its appropriate 38 translation  reveal  in form more  than  they  obscure  in substance. Although the substance  of the  text  is opaque,  its form  begs  a number  of questions.  The Tamil letters  are poorly  formed,  suggesting  that  the scribe  was  not formally trained  in the Tamil script.  The ethnicity  of the scribe,  however,  is indeterminable  and actually  irrelevant  for our purposes.  Rather,  that these two languages  appear  side  by side  attests  to the salience  of both languages within the community. The bilingual  inscription  indicates  that  the temple’s  patrons  spoke  to at least  three  linguistic  audiences:  Chinese  speaking,  Tamil speaking,  and  a third bilingual  space.  Whether  the temple’s  patrons  used  Chinese  or Tamil to communicate  with  other  members  of the  Quanzhou  society  cannot  be known for sure.  Furthermore,  Tamil may not have  been  the worshippers’  mother tongue.  For temple  inscriptions,  Tamil language  inscriptions  may index symbolic  reverence  rather  than  actual  vernacular  use.  However,  at the very least,  the Tamil portion  of the inscription  —  and not the Chinese  — recognizes  and  salutes  the  Mongol  Khanate.  For Phil Wagoner,  who  writes  on a mosque  built in the medieval  Deccan,  “[the]  architectural  action  is part  of a symbolic  political  transaction,  in which  the  merit  accruing  from  the  building’s 39 foundation  is dedicated  to… [the] overlord”. In my case,  the dharmaaccruing  overlord  is the Mongol  Khanate,  Chekachai  Khan,  suggesting  that the temple’s  inscribed  tribute  was  intended  for him. This is not to say  that Quanzhou’s  non-Indian  inhabitants  were  proficient  in Tamil. Rather,  the Tamil homage  suggests  that  a knowledgeable,  perhaps  bilingual  community was  present  to recognize  the  significance  of the  inscription  and  to convey  that significance  to the Mongol  authority.  In other  words,  by the  time  the  temple was built, Quanzhou’s  South  Indian merchant  community  had engrained itself  in the city’s  social  fabric,  so much  so that it was  not only capable  of recognizing  the Chinese  authority’s  political  sovereignty:  but it was also recognizable  in the Chinese  community. Building  a temple  is a serious  commitment,  in terms  of patronage, planning,  and construction,  suggesting  that Quanzhou’s  South Indian merchant  community  considered  itself  a permanent  part  of the city’s  fabric. And yet,  many  of Quanzhou’s  Indic carvings  are strikingly  South  Indian  in style,  so much so that art historian  Coomaraswamy  remarked  that “the Chinese  work so closely  reproduces  Indian  … formulae  and style  as to give

Risha Lee

252

40 the impression  of Indian workmanship,  at first sight”. For example,  the Quanzhou  columns  (Figure  15.7)  almost  mimic  in form those  found  at the Airavatesvara  temple  in Darasuram  in Tamil Nadu (Figure  15.8),  a twelfth century  imperial  temple  built by Rajaraja  II. 41 However,  a closer  look at some  of Quanzhou’s  columns  reveal  conceptual and craft contributions  from multiple  communities.  While the “cultural” identities  of the temple’s  builders  are difficult to determine  definitively, evidence  exists  to suggest  that  they  included  artisans  knowledgeable  of both South Indian and Chinese  building  techniques.  Consider  the two Indian columns  in Quanzhou’s  Buddhist  temple,  of the citrakhanda type, used 42 extensively  in the mandapas of late  Chola temples, and unprecedented  in

FIGURE 15.7 Kaiyuan  Temple Citrakhanda column.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

253

FIGURE 15.8 Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram, Tamil Nadu ca. 12th century  Citrakhanda type  columns  in mandapa ,

Chinese  architecture.  The columns  are chamfered  to a sixteen-sided  form, possess  three  cubical  blocks  bearing  medallions,  and contain  forms  derived from both Chinese  and Indian precedents.  Images  in the centre  of each medallion  alternate  between  Chinese  and Indian motifs.  For example,  one medallion  depicts  an image  of Krishna,  an avatar  of Vishnu,  felling  the Arjuna  tree  (Figure  15.9),  and another  contains  a Chinese  chasing  phoenix motif  (Figure  15.10).  This is not to say  that  similarities  between  the  Darasuram and the Quanzhou  temples’  columns  do not exist.  Indeed,  looking  at the columns’  capitals,  extremely  precise  parallels  clearly  exist.  The capitals,  no longer  attached  to the columns,  are currently  housed  in the Quanzhou Maritime  Museum  (Figure  15.11).  They consist  of petalled  “spouts”  from which  pendant  lotuses  hang.  Put next  to the capitals  of a non-Imperial,  late Chola temple  of Tiruvilimilalai,  the Quanzhou  capitals  appear  as precise mimicries  (Figures  15.12  and 13).43

Risha Lee

254 FIGURE 15.9 Kaiyuan  Temple Medallion  on column;  Krishna  felling  Arjuna  tree.

FIGURE 15.10 Kaiyuan  Temple Medallion  on column;  Chasing  phoenix  motif.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings  FIGURE 15.11 Quanzhou Maritime Museum Capitals  of Indic Columns

FIGURE 15.12 Tiruvilamilalai  Temple,  Tamil Nadu Capital, ca. 13th century

255

Risha Lee

256 FIGURE 15.13 Capital and column in mandapa Tiruvilamilalai 

The artistic  climate  in the thirteenth  century  Quanzhou  was clearly multicultural.  The temple  patrons  comprised  but one of the many  foreign communities  living  there  at the  time.  As already  mentioned,  in the  thirteenth century,  Quanzhou  served  as one  of the world’s  largest  port cities.  It housed Arabs,  Persians,  Europeans,  and other minority  groups,  in addition  to a substantial  Indian population.  All of these  groups  commissioned  buildings and monuments  that can be seen  in Quanzhou  today.  Looking  at these monuments’  ornaments,  in particular,  alongside  that of the Quanzhou columns,  we see  similarities.  For example,  bands  containing  a scrolling  peony and  lotus  motif  (Figure  15.14)  encircle  the  chamfered  parts  of the Quanzhou columns.  This ornamental  motif  appears  on a Christian  gravestone  from  the 44 same  period  (Figure  15.15).The cloud  motif  is also  ubiquitous  on a variety of Quanzhou’s  cultural  monuments.  It appears  clearly  on the  writing  support on the side  of a colossal  statue  of a Daoist  deity,  located  in the hills outside of the city  (Figures  15.16  and  17),  in an Indic carving  (Figure  15.18),  as well as on the bottom  portion  of a gravestone  with Arabic  script,  dated  to 1302

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings  FIGURE 15.14 Kaiyuan  Temple Band on column  with scrolling  peony  and  lotus  motif.

FIGURE 15.15 Quanzhou Maritime Museum Christian  gravestone  with scrolling  peony  and lotus  motif.

257

Risha Lee

258 FIGURE 15.16 Qingyuan shan slope, Quanzhou Colossal Daoist deity

FIGURE 15.17 Detail of Daoist deity armrest  showing  cloud motif

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

259

FIGURE 15.18 Quanzhou Maritime Museum Indic carving  with cloud  motif

(Figure  15.19).  Considering  that  identical  forms  of ornament  were  used  to adorn  a variety  of city monuments,  regardless  of cultural  origin,  it seems likely that patrons  of diverse  communities  employed  the same  group of artisans. Furthermore,  these  artisans  were  probably  local Chinese,  evident,  for instance,  through  comparing  the  execution  of Chinese  and  Indian  ornamental medallions.  Consider  the Chinese  chasing  phoenix  pattern  that  appears  both on a medallion  of the Indic, Kaiyuan  Temple column,  and on a Southern Song  dynasty  (1127–1279)  silver  box, taken  from a tomb  in nearby  Fuzhou (Figure  15.20).  The chasing  phoenix  appears  regularly  in Chinese  —  not 45 Indian  — imagery  from this period. On both,  the phoenix  is balanced  and symmetrical;  its wings  are positioned  seamlessly  against  a border;  and, its feathers  are sharply  defined.  By contrast,  the image  of Krishna  felling  the Arjuna  tree  (new  to Chinese  artisans),  located  on a medallion  of the temple’s Indic column,  lacks  the same  degree  of symmetrical  organization:  the image of Krishna  exists  within  blank,  unornamented  space. Moreover,  comparing  Indian images  found on the Kaiyuan  Temple columns  with the  same  images  regnant  on late  Chola  temples  in India further

Risha Lee

260 FIGURE 15.19 Quanzhou Maritime Museum Detail  of gravestone  with Arabic  script  and cloud  motif,  c. 1302.

FIGURE 15.20 Fuzhou Museum Fuzhou  Box with chasing  phoenix  motif,  ca. 1127–1279

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

261

accentuates  the former’s  lack of precision.  A Quanzhou  medallion  depicting wrestlers  (Figure  15.21)  bears  a striking  resemblance  to a bas  relief  of wrestlers from the late Chola temple  of Darasuram  (Figure 15.22).  In  both, the wrestlers’  bodies  form  a circle  and  the limbs  cross  one  another  at the central point;  however,  in the Darasuram  carving,  the bodies  are  carved  precisely,  in a continuous,  fluid circle,  while the Quanzhou  wrestlers  appear  crammed inside  the border,  struggling  awkwardly  against  the medallion’s  confines. It seems  the craftsmen  responsible  for carving  the medallions  were  not accustomed  to carving  Indian  subject  matter  and relied  on a medium  other than  sculpture  for design.  But, as we saw,  the columns’  capitals  nearly  mimic those  in Tamil Nadu.  Perhaps  the columns  were  built by Chinese  and  Tamil artisans  in collaboration:  the latter  responsible  for their  overall  form and  the former  for the ornament.  But this answer  only begs  more questions.  For instance,  did the temple’s  patrons  recognize  Chinese  and Indian motifs  as

FIGURE 15.21 Kaiyuan  Temple Detail  of medallion  on column  with wrestlers.

Risha Lee

262 FIGURE 15.22 Airavatesvara Temple at Darasuram, ca. 12th century Detail  of bas-relief  panel  with wrestlers.

“culturally”  distinct?  What criteria  determined  image  selection?  If nothing else,  by grafting  local  Chinese  iconography  onto  their  religious  centre,  South Indian  patrons,  consciously  or not, effectively  forged  their  identities  in relation to southern  China’s  cultural  landscape. More pointedly,  the built-form  of Quanzhou’s  columns  appears  immune to cultural  hierarchy:  Indian and Chinese  subject  matter  are nearly interchangeable.

CONCLUSION Quanzhou’s  Siva temple  is a comment  on visual  translation  in the late thirteenth-century  world.  At points,  the temple  appears  strikingly  South Indian in style.  At others,  the form reveals  alteration  and innovation, situated  in a“  multicultural”  context.  Questions  linger:  why  does  the  temple

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

263

appear  mimetically  South  Indian  where  it does,  especially  since  a Chinese artisan  majority  appears  to have  led the construction  effort?  On the one hand, one would expect  that Mongol policies  privileging  foreigners encouraged  foreign  patron  communities  to adopt  an aesthetics  of difference, to denote  an elevated  status.  Though  if this were  the case,  why does Quanzhou’s  Siva temple  refuse  to mimic a typical  Tamil temple  style? Here,  I offer  one  of many  possible  hypotheses:  the  temple  patrons’  reliance on a shared  community  of local  Quanzhou  artisans.  When  denied  precise direction,  these  artisans  must  have  relied  on their  own understanding  of 46 ornamentation. A more  robust  answer  to this  question  requires  knowledge of the  temple’s  appearance  in full, in order  to uncover  the  political,  social, cultural,  and economic  “logics”  of aesthetic  variation  in the temple’s built-form. So as not to overdetermine  the explanatory  power  of aesthetic  variation in the  temple’s  built-form,  I want  to conclude  by reiterating  that  my analysis is one,  complementary  dimension  of a larger  picture.  I read  Quanzhou’s  Siva temple  as a historical  moment,  instantiating  an otherwise  typical  movement of people  and ideas  in the thirteenth-century  world.  This moment  factors into a much  longer  history  (preceding  and subsequent)  of the exchange  of commodities,  personnel,  knowledge,  and  gods,  between  India  and  its outside 47 world. While the late  thirteenth  century,  when  the Quanzhou  Siva  temple was  built, marks  a period  of heightened  relations  between  China and India, it was  by no means  a singular  moment.  After all, people  and practices  had been  circulating  between  India and China since  at least  the third century. Quanzhou’s  Siva  temple,  as  a historical  moment,  narrates  the  inextricable  link between  circulation  on the one hand,  and transformation,  on the other.

Notes 1. I am  indebted  to Barry  Flood,  Katherine  Kasdorf,  and  Vidya  Dehejia  for reading versions  of this chapter,  offering  bibliographic  suggestions,  and productive conversation.  Any remaining  shortcomings  are  my own. I was  able  to travel  to Quanzhou  in the  summers  of 2006  and 2007  through the  generous  grants  of the  Weatherhead  East  Asian  Institute  and  the  Art History Department  at Columbia  University.  I am especially  grateful  to Wang Lianmo and Ding Yuling, the directors  of the Quanzhou  Maritime  Museum,  for their gracious  hospitality,  encouragement,  assistance,  and support  of this project.  I thank  Robert  E. Harrist  and  his family  for accompanying  me on my first  trip to Quanzhou  and their  encouragement  of the project. 2. The use  of granite  is unique  to the region.  The most  concise  English  language Quanzhou  archaeological  survey  is Richard  Pearson,  Li  Min, and Li  Guo,

264

Risha Lee

“Quanzhou  Archaeology:  A Brief Review”,  International  Journal  of Historical Archaeology 6, no. 1 (March  2002). 3. My work owes  much  to Phil Wagoner  and Barry  Flood’s  scholarship  which,  in studying  the  art object,  takes  seriously  movement  and  the  remapping  of cultural boundaries.  Barry  Flood,  “Pillars,  Palimpsests,  and  Princely  Practices:  Translating the Past  in Sultanate  Delhi”,  Res 43 (Spring  2003).  Phil Wagoner,  “Fortuitous Convergences  and Essential  Ambiguities:  Transcultural  Political  Elites  in the Medieval  Deccan”,  International  Journal  of Hindu Studies 3, no. 3 (December 1999). 4. T.N.  Subramaniam,  “A Tamil Colony in Medieval  India”. In South  Indian Studies , edited  by R. Nagaswamy  (Madras,  1978),  pp. 1–52. 5. Hugh Clark, “Muslims  and Hindus in the Culture  and Morphology”  (1995); Dasheng  Cheng,  Quanzhou  yisilanjiao  shike [Islamic  Stone  Reliefs  in Quanzhou] (Fuzhou:  Fujian People’s  Press,  1984);  Ellen Wang, “Quanzhou  Kaiyuan Monastery:  Architecture,  Iconography,  and  Social  Contexts”,  unpublished  Ph.D. dissertation  in East  Asian  Languages  and  Civilizations,  University  of Pennsylvania, 2008. 6. Hugh Clark,  “Muslims  and  Hindus  in the  Culture  and  Morphology  of Quanzhou from the Tenth to Thirteenth  Century”,  Journal  of World History6, no. 1 (Spring  1995):  49–74. 7. Most Quanzhou  scholars  believe  that the temple  was  dismantled  in the late sixteenth  century,  owing  to a local gazetteer  that records  a renovation  of the Buddhist  temple  at this time.  Scholars  have  assumed  that the Indic carvings installed  into the  foundation  of the  Buddhist  temple  were  a part  of this  renovation; however,  there  is no other  material  evidence  as yet to prove  this conclusively. 8. Qingzhang  Yang,  “Quanzhou  Yindujiao  Diaoke  Yuanyuan  Kao”,  Quanzhougang Yu Haishang  Sichouzhilu , edited  by Zhongguo  Haiyang  Xuehui,  Quanzhou Shizhengfu  (Beijing:  Sheke  Chubanshe,  2002),  pp. 427–39. 9. John Guy, “Tamil Merchant  Guilds  and the  Quanzhou  Trade”.  In Emporium  of the  World:  Maritime  Quanzhou,  1000–1400 , edited  by Angela  Schottenhammer (Leiden  and  Boston:  Brill, 2000),  pp. xi, 449;  Qinzhang  Yang,  “Cultural  Contacts Between  China’s  Quanzhou  and South  India During the Yuan Period:  New Evidence”,  Asia-Pacific  Studies (1991):  99–111. 10. The Mongols  also  gained  control  of Fuzhou  and Guangzhou,  two vital  ports. The merchant,  Pu Shougeng,  is believed  to have  been  of either  Arabic  of Persian background.  His great  grandfather  traded  in the South  Seas  and gained  great success.  The successive  generations  then moved  first to Guangzhou,  then to Quanzhou.  Billy K. L. So, Prosperity,  Region,  and Institutions  in Maritime  China (Cambridge,  MA and London:  Harvard  University  Press,  2000),  p. 108. 11. Ibid. 12. Tansen  Sen,  “The Formation  of Chinese  Maritime  Networks  to Southern  Asia, 1200–1450”,  Journal  of the  Economic  and Social  History  of the  Orient49, no. 4 (2006):  432.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

265

13. Tansen  Sen, “The Yuan Khanate  and India: Cross-Cultural  Diplomacy  in the Thirteenth  and Fourteenth  Centuries”.  Asia  Major19, no. 1-2 (2006):  299– 326. 14. Ibid. 15. The Yuanshi records  Tingbi’s  visits  to India.  Also  attesting  to the  close  relationships between  the countries  is Yang  Tingbi offering  asylum  to a local  Muslim  official, Sayyid,  who was  at odds with the south  Indian court  (Ma’abar).  Sayyid  was brought  to China and granted  a Korean  bride  by Kublai Khan. Ibid, 317. 16. Ibn Battuta  writes  of “Chinese  merchants  offering  clothes  to Yuan envoys  whose belongings  were  lost in a shipwreck”.  Ibid., p. 323. 17. It is probably  no coincidence  that  the  temple  in China  is founded  so soon  after the dissolution  of the Chola  empire.  Sen also  notes  that  the temple  is erected only  a few  years  after  Yang  Tingbi’s  first  mission  to India.  In Tansen  Sen’s  article, “The Yuan Khanate  and India”. 18. John Guy, “The Lost Temples  of Nagapattinam  and Quanzhou:  A Study  in Sino-Indian  Relations”,  Silk Road  Art and Archaeology 3 (1993/1994). 19. Ban Gu, “who lived  not later  than the end of the first century  A.D.” writes  of trade  with India in his work,  Qian Hanshu . Quoted  in K. A. Nilakanta  Sastri, Foreign  Notices  of South  India(Madras:  University  of Madras,  1972),  p. 44. 20. John Guy, “The Lost Temples  of Nagapattinam  and Quanzhou”. 21. It might  be productive  to investigate  the continued  trade  between  India and China, even  though  it  postdates  the foundation  inscription  of the Hindu temple.  We know for a fact that Chinese  silk was  an important  part of court ritual  in India as late  as the Vijayanagar  period.  See  Phil Wagoner,  “Lord of the Eastern  and Western  Oceans:  Politics  and the Indian Ocean  Trade in South India,  1400–1600”,  paper  presented  at the  Association  for Asian  Studies  Annual Meeting,  26–29  March 1998,  Washington,  D.C. 22. Tansen  Sen, Buddhism,  Diplomacy  and Trade:  The Realignment  of Sino-Indian Relations  600–1400 (Honolulu:  Association  for Asian Studies:  University  of Hawai’i  Press,  2003),  p. 156. 23. A kingdom  that  is believed  to have  been  located  in the  Southern  Malay  peninsula and Sumatra.  Meera  Abraham,  Two Medieval  Merchant  Guilds  of South  India (New Delhi: Manohar  Publications,  1988). 24. Tansen  Sen,  Buddhism,  Diplomacy,  and  Trade, p. 224. 25. This structure  was  demolished  in 1867.  There are other  Chinese  records  that describe  Chinese  temples  being  built  in South  India  at the  bequest  of the  Pallava king, Narasimhavarman  II  (690–720).  Guy, “Lost Temples  of Nagapattinam and Quanzhou”. 26. Recorded  in the larger  Leiden  Grant.  Meera  Abraham,  Two Medieval  Merchant Guilds . 27. There  are  even  earlier  records  than  this:  a Chinese  source  states  that  in 720 the Pallava  king Narasimhavarman  II  “constructed  a temple  [in Tamil Nadu] on account  of the empire  [i.e.  China]”,  and  another  text  cites  the existence  of three

266

Risha Lee

Hindu temples  in southern  China where  “Brahmans”  resided  during  the eighth century.  Chinese  patrons  also established  Buddhist  temples  in Tamil Nadu during  the Pallava  and Chola periods.  See  John Guy, “The Lost Temples  of Nagapattinam  and Quanzhou”,  p. 293 and “Tamil Merchant  Guilds and the Quanzhou  Trade”,  in Foreign  Notices  of South  India, by K. A. Nilakanta  Sastri, p. 118. 28. Many scholars  believe  that Hanuman  became  incorporated  into Chinese Buddhism  and  became  Sun Wukong,  the  monkey  assistant  to Hsuan  Tsang.  For a summary  of the debates,  see  Victor Mair, “Suen  Wu-kung  or Hanumat?  The Progress  of a Scholarly  Debate”,  in Proceedings  of the Second  International Conference  on Sinology (Taipei:  Academia  Sinica,  1989),  pp. 659–752. 29. Tansen  Sen notes  a number  of stones  along  the South  Indian  coast  that  have been  inscribed  in Arabic  and  South  Indian  languages,  such  as  the Galle  inscription of Tamil, Chinese,  Persian,  and Sinhalese.  This is not to mention  the numerous multilingual  inscriptions  found  throughout  Southeast  Asia.  Moreover,  Sen  suggests that  at least  by the  Ming dynasty,  Chinese  merchants  had established  mercantile bases  in Southeast  Asia,  making  the Indian coastline  much more  accessible. There  is equal  evidence  for the south  Indian merchants  having  set up similar settlements.  See  Sen, “Formations  of Maritime  Networks”;  H.P. Ray, “Indian Settlements  in Medieval  China: A Preliminary  Study”,  Indian  Journal  of Asian Studies 1, no. 1 (1989):  68–82,  and Jan Wisseman  Christie,  “The Medieval Tamil-language  Inscriptions  in Southeast  Asia  and China”,  Journal  of Southeast Asian  Studies 29, no. 2 (1998):  239–68. 30. Shi Yuanxian,  Quanzhou  Kaiyuansi  Zhi [Record  of Kaiyuan  Temple]  (1643 Nian, Mukeben),  1–4 Juan,  Xiamen  Daxue  Tushuguan  Cang.  Gustav  Ecke  and Paul Demiéville  argue  that  its current  plan  is no earlier  than  the Song  dynasty. In The Twin Pagodas  of Zayton:  a Study  of Later  Buddhist  Sculpture  in China (Cambridge,  MA: Harvard  University  Press,  1935). 31. The gazetteer  dates  to 1643,  but it incorporates  versions  authored  as  early  as  the Tang dynasty.  It was  written  by Shi Yuanxian,  a monk from Fuzhou,  Fujian province. 32. These  dates  are tentative  since  no written  record  specifies  the Indic carvings’ installation  date.  Ellen Wang, “Quanzhou  Kaiyuan  Monastery:  Architecture, Iconography,  and Social  Contexts”  (unpublished  Ph.D. dissertation,  University of Pennsylvania,  2008). 33. See  T.N. Subramaniam,  “A Tamil Colony  in Medieval  India”,  in South  Indian Studies , edited  by R. Nagaswamy  (Madras,  1978);  A.K. Coomaraswamy,  “Hindu Sculptures  at Zayton”,  Ostasiatische.  Zeitschrift , Vol. 9 (1933),  p. 5; and John Guy, “The Lost Temples.” 34. Pearson  et al., p. 41. There  are also  twenty-eight  gravestones  that record  five generations  of af amily  from Sri Lanka  with the  surname  “Shi,”  gravestones  from the Ming and Qing dynasties.  There  are mentions  of the Sri Lankan  family  in genealogies,  and a land contract  from Guangzhou.  Recorded  in Wenliang  and

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

267

Youxiong  Wu’s, Quanzhou  Zong  Jiao Shi Ke, Zeng  ding ben, Di 1 ban. Ed. (Beijing:  Kexue  chubanshe,  2005). 35. During  my stay  in Quanzhou,  the  museum  received  two new  carvings,  both of which  appeared  to be portions  of temple  base  moulding.  These  were  gifted  by a resident  who had found them  underneath  their house.  Since  Quanzhou  has been continuously  occupied  from the Tang dynasty  onwards,  there are unquestionably  more  carvings  that have  been  reused  as building  materials  for private  homes. 36. This is from my talk with a resident  of the village,  who had lived  there  from childhood  and remembered  seeing  the panel  in situby the bridge.  I estimated him to be about  75 years  old. Although  we cannot  determine  the construction date  of this  bridge  because  it has  been  dismantled,  we can  assume  that  it was  an older  bridge  because  it was  targeted  by Mao Zedong’s  anti-culture  campaigns. Monks  traditionally  built bridges  to accrue  dharma , or religious  merit  and  small pavilions  near  to the bridges  containing  sculptures  are  a common  architectural feature.  To  my knowledge,  there  has been  no involved  scholarship  of either bridges  or pavilions  of Fujian province;  however,  the region  is renowned  for its profusion  of extant  bridges,  many  of which  date  as early  as  the  Song  dynasty.  See Hugh  Clark,  Community,  Trade,  and  Networks:  Southern  Fujian  Province  from  the Third  to the  Thirteenth  Century (Cambridge  and  New York: Cambridge  University Press,  1991). 37. Barry  Flood  has  noted  that  the term  firman , is a Persianized  Arabic  term,  which furthers  my argument  that Indic temple  patrons  did not view themselves  as culturally  distinct  selves;  rather,  such  terms  were  transcultural. 38. Tansen  Sen uses  the following  translation:  “Lu-ho-chih-jih,  [who  was]  good  in Chinese  [language],  compiled  the sutra  of the Great  mountain  without  the  help of a Guru.”  David  Yu, an independent  scholar,  has  recently  suggested  that  it is a phonetic  version  of the  title,  “Tavachhavartigal,”  intelligible  when  the  characters are read in Fujianese  dialect.  Most Chinese  speaking  scholars,  however,  are unable  to read  anything.  Tansen  Sen,  “Maritime  Contacts  between  China and the Cola Kingdom  (AD 850–1279)”,  in Mariners,  Merchants,  and Oceans: Studies  in Maritime  History , edited  by Kuzhippalli  Skaria  Mathew  (New  Delhi: Manohar,  1995),  p. 33. 39. Wagoner  also  writes  about  this  mosque  or dharmasale as evidence  of “the  fluid nature  of individual  identity  and the permeability  of cultural  boundaries  in the Deccan”.  Phil Wagoner,  “Fortuitous  Convergences  and Essential  Ambiguities: Transcultural  Political  Elites  in the Medieval  Deccan”,  Internationl  Journal  of Hindu Studies 3, no. 3 (December  1999):  253. 40. A.K. Coomaraswamy,  “Hindu Sculptures  at Zayton”,  p. 5. 41. See  Françoise  L’Hernault,  P.R., Srinivasan,  and Jacques  Dumarçay,  Darasuram: epigraphical  study,  etude  architecturale,  etude  iconographique , Publications  de l’ecole Française  d’extreme-Orient.  Memoires  Archéologiques  16. Paris:  Ecole  française d’extreme-orient:  Depositaire  Libr. A.: Maisonneuve,  1987.

268

Risha Lee

42. Michael  W.  Meister  et al., Encyclopaedia  of Indian  Temple  Architecture (New Delhi, Philadelphia:  American  Institute  of Indian Studies;  University  of Pennsylvania  Press,  1983),  p. 294. 43. S.R. Balasubrahmanyam,  S.R. Natarajan  B., B. Venkataraman,  and  Ramachandran B., Later  Chola  Temples:  Kulottunga  I to Rajendra  III  (AD 1070–1280) (Madras: Mudgala  Trust, 1979). 44. Iain Gradner,  Samuel  Lieu, and Ken Parry,  From Palmyra  to Zayton:  Epigraphy and Iconography (Belgium:  Brepols  Publishers,  2005). 45. It has  been  suggested  that  this  motif  came  into fruition  during  the  Yuan dynasty. Jessica  Rawson,  Chinese  Ornament:  The Lotus  and the  Dragon (London:  British Museum  Publications,  1984)  and James  C. Watt, When  Silk Was  Gold:  Central Asian  and Chinese  Textiles (New York: H.N. Abrams,  1997). 46. Rawson,  The Lotus  and the  Dragon . 47. Claude  Markovits,  Jacques  Pouchpadass,  and Sanjay  Subrahmanyam,  Society and Circulation:  Mobile  People  and Itinerant  Cultures  in South  Asia,  1750–1950 (Delhi;  Bangalore:  Permanent  Black,  2003).

References Abraham,  Meera.  Two Medieval  Merchant  Guilds  of South  India. New  Delhi:  Manohar Publications,  1988. Balasubrahmanyam,  S. R. Natarajan  B., B. Venkataraman,  and Ramachandran  B. Later  Chola  Temples:  Kulottunga  I to Rajendra  III  (AD 1070–1280) . [Madras]: Mudgala  Trust, 1979. Ban Gu, Qian Han Shu. Beijing:  Zhonghua  shuju,  1985. Champakalakshmi,  R. Trade, Ideology  and Urbanization:  South  India 300 BC to AD 1300 , Oxford  India Paperbacks.  Delhi and Oxford:  OUP India  and Oxford University  Press,  1999. Christie,  Jan Wisseman.  “The Medieval  Tamil-Language  Inscriptions  in Southeast Asia  and China”.  Journal  of Southeast  Asian  Studies 29, no. 2 (1998):  239–68. Clark,  Hugh R. Community,  Trade,  and  Networks:  Southern  Fujian  Province  from  the Third to the Thirteenth  Century ,  Cambridge  Studies  in Chinese  History, Literature,  and  Institutions.  Cambridge  and  New York: Cambridge  University Press,  1991. ———. “Muslims  and Hindus  in the Culture  and Morphology  of Quanzhou  from the  Tenth to the  Thirteenth  Century”.  Journal  of World  History 6, no. 1 (Spring 1995):  49–74. Coomaraswamy,  Ananda  K. “Hindu Sculptures  at Zayton”.  Ostasiatsche  Zeitschrift 9 (1933):  5–11. Dean,  Carolyn  and Dana Leibsohn.  “Hybridity  and Its Discontents:  Considering Visual  Culture  in Colonial  Spanish  America”.  Colonial  Latin American  Review 12, no. 1 (2003). Ecke, Gustav  and Paul Demiéville.  The Twin Pagodas  of Zayton;  a Study  of Later Buddhist  Sculpture  in China. Cambridge,  MA: Harvard  University  Press,  1935.

of Quanzhou The Indic Carvings 

269

Flood,  Finbarr.  “Pillars,  Palimpsests,  and Princely  Practices:  Translating  the Past in Sultanate  Delhi”.  Res43 (Spring  2003). Guy, John. “The Lost Temples  of Nagapattinam  and Quanzhou:  A Study  in SinoIndian  Relations”.  Silk Road  Art and Archaeology 3 (1993/1994):  291–310. ———. “Tamil Merchant  Guilds  and the  Quanzhou  Trade”.  In The  Emporium  of the World:  Maritime  Quanzhou,  1000–1400 , edited  by Angela  Schottenhammer, pp. xi, 449. Leiden  and Boston:  Brill, 2000. Karashima,  Noboru.  “Trade Relations  between  South  India and China During 13th–14th  Century  A.D.”. Journal  of East-West  Maritime  Relations 1 (1989): 59–81. ———. Ancient  and  Medieval  Commercial  Activities  in the  Indian  Ocean:  Testimony  of Inscriptions  and  Ceramic-Sherds . Report  of the  Taisho  University  Research  Project, 1997–2002.  Tokyo: Taisho University,  2002. L’Hernault,  Françoise,  P. R. Srinivasan,  and  Jacques  Dumarçay.  Darasuram:  Epigraphical Study:  Étude  Architecturale:  Étude  Iconographique , Publications  De L’ecole  Française D’extrême-Orient.  Mémoires  Archéologiques;  16. Paris: Ecole française d’Extrême-Orient:  Dépositaire  Libr. A. Maisonneuve,  1987. Mair, Victor  H. “Suen  Wu-Kung=Hanumat?  The Progress  of a Scholarly  Debate”.  In Proceedings  of the Second  International  Conference  on Sinology , pp. 659–752. Taipei Academia  Sinica,  1989. Markovits,  Claude,  Jacques  Pouchepadass,  and Sanjay  Subrahmanyam.  Society  and Circulation:  Mobile  People  and Itinerant  Cultures  in South  Asia,  1750–1950 . Delhi; Bangalore:  Permanent  Black;  Distributed  by Orient Longman,  2003. Meister,  Michael  W., Madhusudan  A. Dhaky,  Deva  Krishna,  and  American  Institute of Indian Studies.  Encyclopaedia  of Indian Temple  Architecture . New Delhi, Philadelphia:  American  Institute  of Indian  Studies;  University  of Pennsylvania Press,  1983. Nilakanta  Sastri,  K. A. Foreign  Notices  of South  India;  from  Megasthenes  to Ma Huan. Madras:  University  of Madras,  1972. Parry,  Ken. “The Iconography  of the Christian  Tombstones  from Zayton”.  In From Palmyra  to Zayton:  Epigraphy  and Iconography , edited  by Samuel  Lieu Iain Gardner  and Ken Parry,  pp. 229–46.  Turnhout:  Brepols,  2005. Pearson,  Richard,  Li Min, and Li Guo. “Quanzhou  Archaeology:  A Brief Review”. International  Journal  of Historical  Archaeology 6, no. 1 (March  2002). Qinzhang,  Yang. “Cultural  Contacts  between  China’s  Quanzhou  and South India During  the Yuan Period:  New Evidence”.  Asia-Pacific  Studies (1991): 99–111. ———. “Quanzhou  Yindujiao  Bishinu  Shen  Xingxiang  Shike”.  Shi jije zong  jiao yan jiu (1988):  96–105. Rawson,  Jessica.  Chinese  Ornament:  The Lotus  and  the  Dragon . London:  Published for the Trustees  of the British  Museum  by British  Museum  Publications  Ltd., 1984. Ray, Haraprasad.  “Indian Settlements  in Medieval  China: A Preliminary  Study”. Indian  Journal  of Asian  Studies 1, no. 1 (1989):  68–82.

270

Risha Lee

Sen,  Tansen.  Buddhism,  Diplomacy,  and  Trade:  The  Realignment  of Sino-Indian  Relations, 600–1400 , Asian  Interactions  and  Comparisons.  Honolulu:  University  of Hawai’i Press,  2003. ———. “The Formation  of Chinese  Maritime  Networks  to Southern  Asia,  1200– 1450”.  Journal  of the  Economic  and Social  History  of the  Orient49, no. 421–453 (2006). ———. “The Yuan Khanate  and  India:  Cross-Cultural  Diplomacy  in the  Thirteenth and Fourteenth  Centuries”.  Asia  Major19, no. 1-2 (2006):  299–326. ———. “Maritime  Contacts  between  China and the Cola Kingdom  (AD 850– 1279)”.  In Mariners,  Merchants,  and Oceans:  Studies  in Maritime  History , edited by Kuzhippalli  Skaria  Mathew,  pp. xiii, 488.  New Delhi: Manohar,  1995. So, Billy K. L. Prosperity,  Region,  and Institutions  in Maritime  China: The South Fukien  Pattern,  946–1368 , Harvard  East  Asian  Monographs;  195.  Cambridge, MA: Published  by the Harvard  University  Asia  Center:  distributed  by Harvard University  Press,  2000. Subramaniam,  T.  N. “A Tamil Colony  in Medieval  India”.  In South  Indian  Studies , edited  by R. Nagaswamy,  pp. 1–52. Madras,  1978. Wagoner,  Phil. “Fortuitous  Convergences  and Essential  Ambiguities:  Transcultural Political  Elites  in the Medieval  Deccan”.  International  Journal  of Hindu Studies 3, no. 3 (December  1999):  241–64. ———. “Lord of the Eastern  and Western  Oceans:  Politics  and the Indian  Ocean Trade  in South  India,  1400–1600”.  Paper  presented  at the  Association  for Asian Studies  Annual  Meeting,  Washington,  D.C., 26–29  March  1998. Wang,  Ellen.  “Quanzhou  Kaiyuan  Monastery:  Architecture,  Iconography,  and  Social Contexts”.  Unpublished  Ph.D. dissertation,  University  of Pennsylvania,  2008. Wu, Wenliang,  and  Wu Youxiong.  Quanzhou  Zongjiao  Shike . Zengdingben.  Beijing: Kexue  chubanshe,  2005.

APPENDIX I Ancient and Medieval Tamil and Sanskrit  Inscriptions  Relating  to Southeast  Asia and China Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

INTRODUCTION We have  assembled  here  sixteen  Tamil and Sanskrit  inscriptions  relating  to Southeast  Asia  and China during  the ancient  and medieval  periods.  Out of the sixteen  inscriptions,  seven  come  from Southeast  Asian countries  and China,  and  the  remaining  nine  from South  India.  We have  given  the full text and English  translation  for the inscriptions  from Southeast  Asia  and China, except  for one  in Champassak,  but we have  given  the text  and translation  of only  the  relevant  parts  of the  inscriptions  from  South  India  and  Champassak, as their references  to Southeast  Asian matters  are very short  and casual, though  the inscriptions  are long. The sixteen  inscriptions  are  divided  into two broad  categories:  Nos. 1–9 come  from South  India and relate  to Kadaram  (Srivijaya)  or Kamboja,  and nos. 10–16 are all those  discovered  in Southeast  Asia or China. In each category,  we have  arranged  the inscriptions  in chronological  order.  Most of the  inscriptions  are  written  in Tamil, but two copper-plates  (nos.  1 and  3) are partly  in Sanskrit,  and  the  Champassak  inscription  (no.  9) is fully in Sanskrit. Except  for nos.  2–4 (Nagapattinam),  no. 6 (Tirukkadaiyur),  and  no. 16 (Neusu  Aceh),  the text and translations  of all the inscriptions  have  been published  in some  epigraphical  journals  or books  that we have  given  for reference  at the beginning  of each  section,  or in footnotes.  However,  we have  made  some  alterations  in the text  and  translations  wherever  necessary. Texts and/or  translations  of nos.  2–4, 6, and  16 are  prepared  here  by us for the first time.

272

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

Though  the date  of the Kadaram  expedition  made  by Rajendra  I  has 1 been  controversial, we may  suggest  the date  as sometime  in 1026,  since  the first reference  to the expedition  in stone  inscriptions  appears  only in those which  have  the date  of the fourteenth  regnal  year  of Rajendra  I (1026).  Its appearance  in inscriptions  of the thirteenth  year  is doubtful.  Even in the fourteenth  year,  up to the seventieth  day  of that  year,  only the pre-Kadaram expedition  is given  (South  Indian  Inscriptions , V, No. 651).

No. 1: Larger Leiden Copper-plate  Inscription  of Rajaraja  I Epigraphia  Indica, Vol XXII, No. 34. Referring  to the construction  of a Buddhist  temple  by a Kadaram  king and the grant  of a village  by Rajaraja  I. Dated  in the twenty-first  year  of Rajaraja  I  (c.1006)  [the Sanskrit  prasasti  having  been  added  posthumously early  in the reign  of his son Rajendra  I, about  1019  — See  nos. 2–4].

Text of the Sanskrit  Section [lines  73–86] --kala -pa-pa -ra -va -ra-pa -ra -dris´v=a - s´e - sha-nripa-cakra-ca -ruso=yam=akhila-kala camıkara-kirı t.a-kot.i-ne -ka-ma -nikya-marı -ci-puñcarı -krita-pa -da-pı -tho - - -jo - ra -jake -carivarmma ghat it-a . . . rajara -mra -jya-varshe - -ekavims - nikhila-dharan - yama -ne sva-sa ´atitame . i-tilaka - rrakshatriya-s ´ikha man t.u-na mni mahati  janapada-nivahe pat . i-val .ana .t.ana-kku -namni -=ne -ka-sura-sadana-satra-prap-a -ra -m-a -bhira -me - vividha-savudha  -jijanapade ra rajama ne -gı-pattane - nija-mati-vibhava-vijita-suragurun na .a -cima - lin=a -dape -na budha-jana-kamala-vana-marı - - rtthi-jana-kalpapa -tanvata ´aile s ndra-vams ´a-sambhu ten ´rıvishay-a dhipatina Kat dhipatyam=a .aha-a -a s -n=a -javidyasya  -l.a -man -n makara-ddhvaje cu . ivarmman . ah putre .a - dhigata-sakala-ra ´rı-mara-vijayo s ttumgavarmman mna . a sva-pitur=nna -pitam=adharı -krita-kanakagirı --samunnati-vibhavam=atiraman nirmma . -ıyañ= cul.aman . ivarmma-v - buddha -ya tasminn=e -va janapada-nivahe - pattana-kku - rraiharamadhivasate .. -namni janapade . gal-a -ma - -catusht - naiman -bhidha -nam karin . -ı-parikraman . a-vispasht .a-sı .ayam=a gra mam=ada t. -ve -na dattasya  - cakravarttina - gra -masy=a -sya  itthan=de sva-pitra gate

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

273

-vabhu -yam=mahaujasi  -hsanam=a -ru -dhas=tat-putro tasmin=de [v.35] tat-sima . -ntakah madhura -ma -n ka -rayitv=a -dis -=s -sha -m= ´asanam  s ´-asvatan=dhı s ´a[n*]=nripah  [v.36] s ´-esho ´e -m mahı -=s´e - sh-o -rag-e -s - ya -t=ta -van -ro - =yam  -na sah= yavad=dhatte ´varah  sthe vibhave -=viha -avanau  [v.37] - - - sa-bhu - mir=mmahita-prabha -vah so=yam  kat .ah-adhipatir=ggun . anan=niva -aga -minah -rtthayate - nare -ndra -n dharmmam  -mam=mama  -ti [v.38] pra sad=e rakshat=e

Translation  of the Sanskrit  Section [lines  73 to 86] - carivarman - -ja, who had seen  He, this R-ajake the other  shore  of the - Rajara ocean  of the collection  of all sciences,  whose  foot-stool  was  made  yellow  by the cluster  of rays  [emanating]  from many  a gem  set on the borders  of the beautiful  gold  diadems  worn  by the  entire  circle  of kings,  gave,  in the  twentyfirst year  of his universal  sovereignty  — - l-aman -ra - of to the  Buddha  residing  in the  surpassingly  beautiful  Cu . . ivarma-viha [such]  high loftiness  [as  had]  belittled  the Kanakagiri  (that  is, Me-ru), which - rahad b een built in  the n ame  of his father,  by the g lorious  Ma . vijayo ttungavarman by the  greatness  of his wisdom,  had  conquered  the -, who,  teacher  of the gods,  who was  the sun to the lotus-forest  [viz.] the learned -ndra ´aile men,  who was  the kalpa-tree  to supplicants,  who was  born in the S ´ family,  who was  the lord of the Sri-vishaya  (country),  who was  conducting the rule of Kat crest,  [and]  who was the son of .aha, who had the makara  - l-aman -gı -pattana, Cu ivarman that  h ad  m astered  all the  s tate-craft  —  at Na . . delightful  [on account  of] many  a temple,  rest-house,  water-sheds,  and pleasure  garden  and brilliant  with arrays  of various  kinds of mansions, - rra [included]  [situated]  in the division  called  Pat in the bigger .t.ana-ku --man district  Kshatriyas´ikha i-val ana t u, which  was  the  f orehead-mark  of the . . . whole  earth,  — . the village  An galam  [which  had its] four boundaries  defined  by the -aiman circumambulation  of the female  elephant  and [which  was situated]  in the said  division. -jara -ja] had  [verses  35–36]  When  that  powerful  [Ra obtained  divinity,  his wise son, king Matura ntaka,  who ascended  on his throne,  caused  an enduring

274

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

edict  [to be made]  for this  village,  which  had  thus  been  granted  by his father, the king-emperor,  and  ordered  thus:-  [verse  37] As long  as Sesha,  the lord of -ra last  all serpents,  holds  the  entire  earth,  so long  may  this  Viha in [this]  world with its endowment.  [verse  38] This lord of Kat a ha of great  valour,  the . abode  of virtues,  thus prays  to all future  kings:  “Protect  (ye) for ever  this my charity”.

Text of the Tamil Section [lines  1–18] - ko -ne - maikon -man -t.t.up pat -rrattu svasti  ´rı s . t.-an . i-val .ana .t.an - rin - kshattiriyasikha -a-kku --t.t.unat.t.arkkum  brahmade ya-kkil tevata n ap pal liccanta-kkan i-mur r-u . . . -avarkkum  . -rr-u - .ila -rkum nakaran -rkkum vet kal .t.appe .ila -- rkal -ntu irupatt-on -l tonnu -rr-iran -vu -rp purampat namakku  ya r--avatu  na .. . t.inal tañca .i ma.likai -ja -s -m irukka=kkit - - . ipanman ra ´rayanil  ter na . t.apattu  .-aratt-araiyan -kkil man - cul.aman - - man -t.t.u=ppat kshatriyas´ikha . i-val .ana .t.an .t.an - a-kkur- r-attu n akapat -attu et .uppikkin -r-a - l-aman -rattu=ppal - tum nivantattukku cu ipan . . -ma-viha .l.ikku ven .. . -man -ttu=ppat - rrattu  -anaiman kshatri[ya]  ´ikha s i-val ana t.an a-kku kalam  pal . . . . . ..liccantam . kal=ul . kal nı-kki nilan tonnu-rre ir-an pat a al antapat i  nı n l e -iran . . . . . . -- . t.u-ma -n -n mukka . iy=araikka .i - nru-ma - mukka -n -l araiye -=iran -vin-al muntirikai=kkı l--mu . i  muntirikai=kı . t.u-ma -ir-ai-kat a .t.in -nikkatan nellu e nn-ayirattu=ttol -rpattu mu-kkalane - iruka na . . .l.ayirattu  -tun l-iyum . i=kkur . i oru-na -un -man -t.t.u=ppat - rrattu  -kapat kat na .-aratt-araiyan . i-val .ana .t.an .t.an - kshatriyacika -a-kku -- attu et r a .uppikkin -- l.a -man -rattu=ppal -ka y-an cu . ipan .l.ikku ir-uppata . t.u irupatt-on -ma-viha -r-avatu-mutal pal ka variyil=it .l.iccanta-ir .t.u-kkut .ukkav=en -ai-iliy-a -r-u nam colla

Translation  of the Tamil Section -ne -rin-maiko Hail! Prosperity!  [this is the order of] the matchless  king (ko - -d n of the na . t.a-n . u)  of Pat .t.an - ) to the nat.t.ar  (i.e., the chief landholders  -akur-r-am, a sub-division  in Kshatriyas ´ikhman t.u, the headmen  of . i-val .ana

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

275

-vada -na, palliccanta -, brahmadeya s, the representatives  of the u-r  in de .. -ru (villages)  kan and of the Nagaram. . imur .t.u and vet .t.appe --rut In the twenty-first  year  and ninety-second  day of our [reign]  when  we were -ja -s in the pavilion  in the southern  part  of the Ra ´rayan palace  in the  outskirts . -vu - r, we have  of Tañca ordered  the  village  of An aiman galam  in Pat .t.an -- a-kur-r-am [a sub-division]  of Kshatriyas´ikhman t.u as a tax-free  pal . i-val .ana .l.iccanta from the twenty-first  year  [of our reign]  to meet  the necessary  requirements - l.a -man -ra which is being built by of the pal .l.i  of the Cu . ivarma-viha -kapat Cu.laman at Na . ivarman . , the king of Kit.aram,  .t.an .t.an - am in Pat - a-kur-r-am -man -t.u, in Kshatriyas ´ikha . i-val .ana and [therefore]  let the income  of eight  thousand  nine hundred  and fortythree  kalam , and  odd  of paddy  accruing  from  the  payment  of land  assessment -li) of land  on ninety-seven  and odd (ve of that  village,  inclusive  of those  that had ceased  to be pal and exclusive  of those  that  had been  removed  in .l.iccanta  survey  be entered  in the (revenue)  register  as a tax-free  pal l iccanta  from  the .. twenty-first  year  [of our reign]  and the same  be paid over  to the Pal..li.

No. 2: Nagapattinam  inscription  (1) ARE 1956–57,  No. 161. (Karonasvamin  temple,  Nagapattinam,  Thanjavur District) Referring  to the grant  made  by an agent  of the Srivijaya  (Kidaram)  king. Fragmentary  due to the damage  to stone.  Dated most probably  in 1014 or 1015.

Text - ko -pparake -caripan -na s ---larkku  -n 1. Svasti  s´rı co ya . -mara - ´rırajentira  2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ttu -kapat -ro -n -de -var tiruccur na maha .t.in . amut .aiya  -attu tirukka -r-u mal.ikai vacal -man kshatriyacika . i yi . . . . . -n] s´rı - vishaiyattaraiyar  3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [kon kan ´rı . t.a ceyvitta -mi s mulan ´aran s cantira tittavar - akattı - ittan -mam  - ni . . . . . . . . -ka -riyan 4. itin ukku  .  . . . . . . . . . . . kalvet t ikkut r-u ivva n ´rı .. .ukkaven . t.u s . -ttu puttaman -n ceykin kalamut aiya .. . -r-a a.lana . -ca -riyat  -va 5. nakkan . . . . . pañca te - kumaran - cen. . . . . . . . . . . . tamu.  -n, ivvu -r taccan kan ipparicu  kalvat . collavum  .t.ine -mikal - er-an 6. cat n .aiyan . t.a acariye -en - tevar kan - e…

276

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

Translation [Section  I, lines  1–6] - Ra - je - ndracho - lar …Srı - Mu-lan Hail, Prosperity.  In  the year …  of Srı ´ Agattı s´varan,  who is an agent  (kanmi )  of the king of Srıvishayam ´rı-vishayattarayar)  (S arranged  to erect  a gateway  to the compound  wall of Tirukka ron Maha devar (temple)  in Nagapat . amud . aiya  .t.inam … This charity [should  remain]  as long  as the  moon  and sun  exist.  Under  the  instructions  of . -n Nakkan  -du, who is the officer  Puttaman galamud aiya Kumaran  of Al ana of . . . temple  affairs  (srı kariyam )  this year, and the temple  functionaries - -cha -riya de -vakanmigal -varkan (pañcha ) I, Er an  C had ayan  alias  De . . . d.a Achari, carpenter  of this village,  have  engraved  this charity  on stone.  This is my signature. (The rest  [Section  I, lines  6–7, Section  II, III, and  IV] which  is omitted  refers to a number  of other gifts such as silver  vessels  and brass  lamps,  most probably  by the same  agent.)

No. 3: Nagapattinam  inscription  (2) ARE1956–57,  No. 164. (Karonasvamin  temple,  Nagapattinam,  Thanjavur District) Referring  to the grant  made  by an agent  of the Srivijaya  (Kidaram)  king. Dated  in the third year  of Rajendra  I (1015  CE).

Text -cari pan -na s --late 1. Svasti  s´ri kopparake co -mara - ´ri rajentira  - varkku yan kshatriyacika man t.t.u . . . . . . . . pat . t.u 3-avatu  . ival .ana .t.in - ak. . . . . . . . ron . a . . . . . . . . . vel .l.itti-ni  na - kaiyal - 2. rume akar kan . t.alattu - - -ku s´rıvijaiyattaraiyar  -mi rajarajaman kıt.cempin a t t u - .. -nro - nri pat 3. me kshe  . . . . . . ca. . . . . nir -- - -- .t.in - at. . . . . . . . . . yvitta  -ai[po]n patina lk kal añcarai - -n itil v-ırapat kat patin nat .t.attuk  .t.in . ikkam  .uvil makarattu  .uvu - a catima -on -r-u nat kat .t.in -a - . ik. . . . . . . . . .. . . . [upa -ya] marakata.  . . . . . . . . . . . . n --a -man -yk. . . . 4. t.in mun r-u itin melvayk kat a paccai  makarattin kı-l-va . ikkam  .t.in -a man -nikkam  - . . . . n añcu  itin valapakkat[tu . .t.in -a ma - kı-lvayk kat - a car -pamotti  vat t appu vil]  k at t in a  mara.  . . . .. .. -lu it.appakkattu  - vil kat - ikkam  -lu pinpil paruttakkur 5. e vat e .t.appu .t.in .il -a man -al

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

277

-lu maka -man -ti ma -kkallu kat a m-an na a m-an ca .t.in . ikkam  . iyakak kat .t.in . ikkam  -rpa. . . . . . verri….. na --ka nirai a - -- -t.i kallut -cu nirai patina -rkkalañce - mukka -le 6. ma .pat .a ka - r-u mañca - -t.i m.. . .ca - . t.u s -ka -riyañ  ipparicu  kalvet ven ´rı ceykin .t.uka  - r-u ivan -r-a arumol -i. . . . . . nat.t.u. . . . . . - aya - 7. ka . . . . . rattu  kan . t.iyurut . r centan .um collak, - ca. . . . ittevakan -mikal kalvet e n .t.in - -kapat -erañcat -ana na attu  .t.in .aiyan -[ca -]riyan -n. 8. kan e . t.ara - -

Translation [lines  1–2] -rsarivarmar Hail, Prosperity.  In the third year  of [the reign of] Ko-pparake -man alias Sri Rajendaracho lade var …  (Naga)pattinam  (in) Kshatriyasika . ival ana d u,  …  for  t he  purpose  of  [ decorating]  a  s ilver  image  of  N a gaiyal agar,  an . . ´ agent  (kanmi ) of the king of Srıvijaya  (Srıvijaiyattaraiyar)  (whose  personal 2 -nro -nripat -jara -janame  is lost)  hailing  from  Me t inam in  K ı t -chembina d u  i n  Ra . . - .. man gifted  a collection  of jewel-stones,  like ruby,  emerald,  etc.  weighing .d . alam,  14 and 1/2 kal -añju. [The middle  part  [lines  2–6] is omitted] [lines  6–8] - aiya -r Che -ndan  By the  instructions  of Kan … of … Arumol .d . iyurud . .a] -i[devaval nad ´srıkariyamofficer  and the temple  functionaries,  I, Er-añ Chad . u, the  . aiyan -cha -riyan  alias  Kan of Nagapattinam  have  engraved  this on stone. .d . ara

No. 4: Nagapattinam  inscription  (3) ARE1956–57,  No. 166. (Karonasvamin  temple,  Nagapattinam,  Thanjavur District) Referring  to the grant  made  by an agent  of the Srivijaya  (Kidaram)  king. Dated  in the seventh  year  of Rajendra  I (1019  CE)

Text [lines  1–15, pra[asti  in Tamil] -pparake -ca 16.ko -na s - --late - ku ya -n 17.ripan co . t.u [7] -mara - ´rı rajentira  - var -

278

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

-man -ttu pat 18.avatu  kshatriyacika . i val .ana .. . -rrattu na -kapat -ron 19.t.in ak  k u t in attu  tirukka . . .a -- - - yilil  -rattaraiyar  20.. . t.aiya  maha devar ko kit.a kanmi - kuruttan -cuvan -na agrale -kai eluntaru 21.s ´rı ke na - -rikal 22.l.ivitta  arttana arccan .ukku avibali  - aikku -rpatiya -n varakka -ttina c-ınakkanakam  23.en r u me e .. -- - - . -24.n lum mer . patte .iya[n -lu kal -añcemukka -pat -] -var  - yilil  -kram  25.itte ko uttama iran . t.u kala - kattukku  -t.t.ina cı26.mun en r-u varakka .n . a po - -lu kalañce - mukka 27.n ak  k an akam  en patte lum . -n te -varkkum  -man 28.mer pat iya bra arkkum . . -t.t.ina un 29.. . . . . tayiru.  . . . . . en -r-u varakka - . t.ikaippon 30.[a]rupatin kal añce mukka l um  a ka  i ppon - - - -rru muppattar 31.irunu u kal añce kalum tiruk -ro - namut -rkku ven -para 32.ka . .aiya . t.um tiruva 33.n kon . am u.l.it.t.an . t.u ittevar - a ceyyak  34.pan … …. . t.arattai 

Translation [The pras ´asti  [lines  1–16] omitted] [lines  16–31] - pparake -rsaripanmar  In  the seventh  year of [the reign of] Ko alias Sri Rajendiracho l-ade var,  for the purpose  of offering  food (avibali ) to (the  image of) Arttana rigal Kesuvan  alias  Agrale kai, an agent . set up by Srı Kuruttan  -ro - namud (kanmi ) of the king of Kid.-aram (Kid in Tirukka . rattaraiyar),  . . aiya Maha devar temple  in Nagapat t inam  i n Pat t ina-ku r r am  i n Kshatriyas ´ikha .. .. -d -nakkanakam man gold  (chı ) weighing  87 and  3/4 kal . i-val .ana . u, Chinese  -añju was  sent  by the aforesaid  agent;  for the purpose  of providing  good  meals  to two persons  in this temple,  Chinese  gold  weighing  87 and 3/4 kal añju  was sent  by the aforesaid  man;  and for the purpose  of … [feeding]  the deity  and -hman Bra as,  s tamped  gold  w eighing  60  a nd  3 /4  kal anju  w as  also  sent  by . - Kuruttan the same  person.  Together,  the total  weight  of the gold  (sent  by Srı -suvan  -kai), therefore,  Ke alias  Agrale amounts  to 236 and 1/4 kal -añju. [The rest  [lines  31–84]  omitted]

No. 5: Karandai  Copper-plate  Inscription of Rajendra  I K.G. Krishnan,  Karandai  Tamil Sangam  Plates  of Rajendrachola  I, (Memoirs of Archaeological  Survey  of India,  No. 79, New Delhi, 1984.) Referring  to the present  of a chariot  to Rajendra  I by a Kamboja  king.  Dated in the eighth  year  of Rajendra  I (1020  CE).

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

279

Text [verse  48] -jo - ripu-ra -ja-se - na -=jaitre -n -n=a -jayad=a -have - shu tam pra -hin -t kamboja-ra . a ye .o prartthita-mitra-bha voyasmai  ratham  ratshitum=a tma-lakshmı m.

Translation -mbo - ja king, aspiring  The Ka for his (Rajendra’s)  friendship  and in order  to save  his own fortunes  sent  him a triumphant  chariot,  with which he had conquered  the armies  of the enemy  kings  in the battles.

No. 6: Tirukkadaiyur  Inscription  of Rajendra  I South  Indian Inscriptions , Vol. XXII, No. 20. (Thanjavur  [old] District, Amritaghateshvara  memple  — On the north  base  of the Central  Shrine) Describing  the Kadaram  expedition  conducted  by the Chola army  sent  by Rajendra  I. Dated  in the fifteenth  regnal  year  of Rajendra  Chola  I (c. 1027).

Text (lines  4–5) . kira . kavanmana -ma vicaiyo -ttun —  alaikat kalañ  celutti  can .al nat .uvut . pa[la]  3 kiya kat porukat t.u]m . arattaracan . al kumpakkariy[o - ai vakaiyam  -arttavana[ka]nakar akappat utt=urimaiyil  pir akkiya  peruneti  pir akkamum  . - - rttolir va -calil vicca -tirato po ran amum  moyttol . .ir  pun . ip putavamum --aiman -vijaiyamum  -r pan kanaman ikkatavamum  nir ai s ´ rı tur ainı n aiyum  panmalaiyu . - . - -. reyir rum al-kat kavalvin .alakal .inkamum kalan -- r--onmalaiyu - cul- -mayirut - ai. 4 ilankacokamumkappur l.amum  kavalam  puricai  me -u ni[r -ai]pun -al mappappa . kamum  - rut.ai val vilimpan vil.aippantu aippantu r um kalaittakko r  pukal . . kamum  - lamum]  -valvin -]lin -mutir kat talai[ttakko titama kala .untir -ai ma[tama -al -muri[te -]camum  -nakkalar  - nakkava -ramum  ila te pol ma tot .ukat .a[r -il  -]  kaval -r kat maperuntan caripanmara na u.taiya .umurat . kat .aramum  . t.ar- kon . t.a koparake -ra -je -ntiraco -late - ku ya -ntu 15-a -vatu ´rı s .. - var 5 Translation

In the 15th year  [of the reign]  of king Parakesarivarman,  alias  the lord Sri-lade -va,  Rajendracho who  — conquered  with  [ his]  great  and  warlike  army  …. [after  recounting  the king’s  several  victories  ending  with the conquest  of the Ganga  region]  — having  dispatched  many  ships  in the midst  of the rolling . ga . gavarman,  -ma  -ttun sea  and  having  caught  San Vijayo the  king  of Kad (or . -aram 

280

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

Kat along  with [his] rutting  elephants,  [which  were  as impetuous  as] .aram),  ´ the sea  in fighting,  — [took] [1] Srıvijayam  overflown  with large  heap  of treasures,  which  [that  king] had rightfully  accumulated,  and possessing  the -dhara-to - ran [arch  called]  Vidhya of his extensive  city,  the . a at the “war gate”  “jewel  gate”,  adorned  with great  splendour,  and the “gate  of large  jewels”; [2] Pan n ai  w ith  landing  ghats;  the  ancient  Malaiyur  with  the  strong  mountain -. for its rampart;  [3] the  great  Yirud surrounded  by the  deep  sea  as  moat; . ingam,  . . -so -kam (or Lanka -so -ka) that  [4] Ilanka is undaunted  in fierce  battles;  [5] the -l.am, having  great  Pappa abundant  high waters  as defence;  the upper  (or . Western)  Ilimban gam, having  fine walls as defence;  [6] Val.aippandu r-u, - ru (cultivated  possessing  vil.aippandu land  a nd  j ungle  ?);  [ 7]  t he  p remier  or .gam  -lam, praised  -lin chief  Takko by the learned  men;  [8] the great  Tama (or . -muride -sam,  Tamalin gam),  firm in great  and fierce  battles;  [9] Ila of fierce strength  and tempestuous  nature;  [10] the great  Nakkava ram,  full of flowergardens  having  much honey;  and [11] Kad . aram (or Kat .aram), of fierce strength,  which  was  protected  by the deep  sea;  —

No. 7: Perumber  Inscription of Virarajendra South  Indian  Inscriptions , III, No. 84. (Chengalpat  District) Referring  to the  conquest  of Kadaram  by Virarajendra.  Dated  to the seventh year  (c. 1070).

Text [line 4] kal kat er .i pan . inta man .aram  .i -alat -n -arkkuk  -intu kut.uttarul

Translation [Virarajendradevar]  who  conquered  Kat and  was  pleased  to bestow  it on .aram  the  king who  sought  his help.  (A different  interpretation  could  be that  he was pleased  to give  it back  to the king who surrendered  at his feet.)

No. 8: Smaller  Leiden Copper-plate  Inscription  of Kulottunga Chola I Epigraphia  Indica , Vol. XXII, No. 35. Referring  to the grant  of villages  to the Buddhist  temple  constructed  by the Kadaram  king. Dated  in the twentieth  year  of Kulottunga  I (c. 1090).

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

281

Text [lines  3–5] .ka-co -jake -cari pan -na cakkaravartikal --kulo - ttun -late -n kov-ira mara ´rı ya .s . t.u - varkku  irupata vatu -yirattal -na a -la-purattu  - yilin=ul -laiyil a ko .iya - kavamallakulaka - ..lal=ttirumañcan -a-ca pal tam ..lippı . .-lin ka kara jan .i irukka -il el -untarul [lines  6–8] -n -t.t.up pat -rrattu c-olakulavallipkit.arattaraiyan . ikka-val .ana .t.an - geyama -a-kku -pat et .t.anattu  .uppitta -jentiraco - la-pperum-pal -jara -ja-pperum-pal ra ra (p)pal ..likkum  .l.ikkum  .l.iccantam-ana u -rkal . -yamum  -shaiyum  -liyum pal vı-ras ´e pan mai-pan .i-antara . t.ai-vet .t.iyum kunta -.ampat -ra -mum cunka-me -m tavirntamaikkum ul.l.it.t.an -avella [lines  9–13] .kalka .katta -n -l.arai=ttavira  -rkke mun pu  ka ippal .l.iccantan . -n . iyut .aiya  . ia .l.i-ccan - pal kan tamras ´asan ven . iyaka=pper .n . ittara  . t.um e-nr-u . -r-amaikkum  -am pan -tan ra -javidya -dhara-s --sa -mantan -no - ttun -sa kit.-arattaraiyar  tu ´rı um abhima ka-s´rı mantan -um vin n appam  ceyya  ippat .. .i cantivigrahi . -javallabha-ppallavaraiyan - sanam pannira o-t.un ku t.a iruntu t-amras´a .. -rikal kkut r u adhika .ukkaven . -- - . ka-mu -je - ntiracin -.l-arkku-ttirumukam  -tan ra ventave piraca .i varat -=ceytarul tamra-s ´asan añ=ceytapat i . [lines  39–46] -yama -n -t.t.up pat -rrattuc  - lakulavallipat ke co . ikka-val .ana .t.an .t.anattu - ak-ku -´rı--S ´aile -ndra-cu -d.a -man S ivarmma-viha rama n a ra jara ja pperumpal . ..likkup pal .l.inilaiyum pal ut.pat .l.i-vil.akamum  .a ellai -rkk-ellai kı-lpark-ellai  kat ar karaiyil  man pa .. ar .a mer-kum ten --kun -r-ut.pat - .t.-anamut -de pukaiyun itan . i-kkin . ar .akkum  .aiya-maha -r-ukku vat - mer-ku tiruvırat var nilattukku -ra -yankalluvitta  vat itan pparavaikkulal kul vat .akkum  .attu-ma .attil  .akarai - mer-ku=  mer-ku nokki -raikka -r-pperuval -lpa - rku-ellai  -raikka -r-peruval ka ka .akkum me -iyur -a vat -ikkuk kil-akkum

282

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

-rk-ellai  -lakulavallipat -tanpa vat co nilam vat .apa .t.anattu  .a-ka . - t.i  ellaikku=ter -kum -aka -le - iran i-n ut.pat muppatt-on .t.a nilam  . t.u-ma -n -ankellaikku  -r-e mukka

Translation [lines  1–13] -jake -carivarman In the 20th year  of [the reign  of] king ra the emperor - alias  . ´ri-kulo S ttunga co-lade var,  who was  pleased  to be seated  along  with (his  queen) puvan l. on his lion throne,  — — .aiya -amul -utut . gara -lin -janin the When  he was  pleased  to rest  on the  reclining  couch  called  Ka bathing  hall within  the palace  at Ayirattal Ahavamallakulaka la-puram, .i alias  on the representation  made  by the ambassadors  of the king of Kat .-aram . named  Rajavidya dhara-s´rı samantan  and Abhima notunga-s ´rı-samantan  that -je -ntiraco -lapperumpal [all] the villages  which were  the pal l iccantam s of Ra .. .l.i and Rajarajapperumpal by the king of Kat.aram a t .l.i  constructed  -lakkulavallippat -yama -n -t.u be Co t an am  i n Pat t an ak-ku r r am  in Ge .. .. . ikka-val .ana --yam exempted  from the payment  of antara , etc.  and the k-an of the . i  rights  . villages  be given  to the  San gha  of the  Pal..lis themselves  after  freeing  them  from -niya -lar), the king issued  the old k-an i holders  (ka an  o ral  order  to that  effect . . . . -ri  Ra -je -ndracin - ve -ntave -la through  the adika ga-mu . r and the sandhivigrahi Rajavallabha-pallavaraiyan charter  drawn  up in - and this is the copper-plate  pursuance  of this order  — [lines  39–46] The boundaries  of the site and the surrounding  ground  of the glorious ´ Sailendra-cu d.aman ra  alias Rajarajapperumpal . ivarma-viha .l.i  at -lakulavallipat -rram, (a subdivision)  -yaman Co t an am  i n Pat t an a-ku of Ge .. .. . ikka- -val ana t u are:. . [lines  40–46] the eastern  boundary  is to the west of Sand-hill  on the sea-shore.  The southern  boundary  is to the north  of the well called  pukaiyun to .n . i and also  -rat the  north  of the  land  belonging  to the  Tiruvı t a namut aiya-maha de va  situated .. . -raikka -l which proceeds to the west  of this as well as to the high road  to Ka -ra -yanat westward  from the north bank of the tank dug out by Ma par boundary  is to the east  of the high road to .am. The western  -avaikkul -raikka -l. The northern  Ka boundary  is to the  south  of the  boundary  of the  land called  Vat.a-ka t.an within .t.an -pat.i  in Col-akulavallipat -am. The land situated  -li, two ma - and these  four boundaries  measures  thirty-one  and  three-fourths  ve one muntirikai,  etc.  in extent.

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

283

No. 9: Chidambaram  Inscription of Kulottunga  I Epigraphia  Indica , V, No. 13C, p. 106. Referring  to a gemstone  present  by a Kamboja  king. Dated  in the fortyfourth  year  (c. 1114).

Text [lines  9–14] -ntira-co - late -mpo -ca-ra -janka -kak k-attina kallu itu utaiya ´rı raje s ka .. . r -- varkku  - t.ciy-a -r rajentira-co l-a-te var tiruva y mol r  tiruccir .i  ut.aiya .aiya -intarul -r-ampalam-ut - yilil munvaittatu. ko -laip intak kallu tiruv-etir-ampalattu  tirukkal-carattil  tiru-mun me --pattikku  pattiyile vaittatu.

Translation -je -ndracho - lade This stone  that  had been  presented  to king Ra - var by the king of Kamboja was placed,  as per the instructions  of the king, in the front portion  of Tiruchchir r ambalamud aiya r temple  and  subsequently  fixed  in the . -upper  front row of the stone  wall of the front hall (or shrine).

No. 10: Goldsmith’s  Inscription at Wat Khlong Touchstone  Thom Noboru Karashima,  ed., Ancient  and Medieval  Commercial  Activities  in the Indian  Ocean:  Testimony  of Inscriptions  and  Ceramic-sherds,  Taisho  University, Tokyo, 2002  (afterwards  abbreviated  as AMCAIO), p. 10. The Tamil name  of a goldsmith  is inscribed  on a small  oblong  stone  in the collection  of Phra Kru Athon  Sangarakit  Museum,  Khum Luk Pat, Khlong Thom District,  Thailand.  The date  is assigned  to the third or fourth  century palaeographically.

Text perumpatan - kal

Translation The stone  of the great  Patan . or goldsmith.

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

284

No. 11: Champassak  Inscription of Devanika 6 AMCAIO, pp. 150–51. On a stone  pillar set up within the compound  of the residence  of the erstwhile  prince  of Champassak  at Champassak,  Laos.  Dated  palaeographically to the fifth or sixth  century.

Explanation This long Sanskrit  inscription  relates  to the praise  of a prince  called -va -nı-ka in high terms,  De comparing  him to various  Puranic  heroes.  In the -n course  of this narration,  he is said  to be like Kanaka  Pa .d . ya in upholding -n justice  (kanaka-pa n Kanaka  Pa .d . ya iva nyaya-rakshan . e). The name  . d.ya immediately  recalls  to one’s  mind the name  Por kai-Pa n d ya  ( por kai means .. golden  hand)  of the Pandya  king who figures  in the Tamil epic  Silappatika ram of about  the fifth century  CE as cutting  off his own hand  in order  to safeguard  justice. 7 No. 12: Takua Pa Tamil inscription

AMCAIO, p. 11. The stone  was  originally  discovered  in a small  hill along  the  Takua Pa river  of Southern  Thailand  together  with a stone  Vishnu  and  other  statues  of Pallava style.  Presently  kept at the Nakhon Si Thammarat  Museum,  Southern Thailand.  Dated  palaeographically  to c. ninth century  CE.

Text 1 2 3 4 5 6

… [ya]ravarmakku . -n ta - nan … ma [kurut .aiya] - n -er S ´ [n ] tot t a  kul am  p rı- a[vani] . -- .. -matta -rk naran . am man . ikkira kum cen amukatta rkkum --rkkum  … apata at .aikkalam

Translation [In the reign of …varman?]  Nang[u]r-[u]d dug this tank called . ai[yan]  -ranam. [This is] put under the protection  ´rı--[Avani]-Na S of the bodies . 8 Man ikkira mam  (Man igra mam),  Se na mukam and  …apata r. . .

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

285

No. 13: Barus inscription  of a Merchant Guild 9 AMCAIO, pp. 19–26. This Tamil inscription  was found  in Lubo Tua (Loboe  Toewa)  near  Barus (Baros)  in north-western  Sumatra.  The date  in Saka  1010,  corresponding  to 1088  CE, of the text  falls  within  the reign  of Kulottunga  Chola  I of Tamil Nadu. This stone  is presently  housed  at the Museum  Nasional  in Jakatra, Indonesia.  A preliminary  notice  of this inscription  was  made  by E. Hultzsch in Madras  Epigraphy  Report  1891–92 , p. 11 and the same  was  discussed  in detail  in K. A. Nilakanta  Sastri,  “A Tamil Merchant-Guild  in Sumatra”,  TBJ, LXXII, 2 (1932),  pp. 314–27.

Text 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

- cakarai svasti  ´rı s -antu a -yirattu[p  pa].. -ni[n]ttuc cella .gal -cit tin r-a ma .. -ro -ca -na m-atan va -ci ukari vallavat  te yyak  kon . t.a pat .-l-apurattu t.inattu  ve . - ti niranta  -[cit ticai] ku te .. -ayiravil .angu ticai  -ttaiññu r-r-uvaro -r nakara  -na -pam nammakana se ti nat.t.ucet .t.i -rkkum  - mi ya patinen . pu -ci apparkku  -[ve]tte ma tukal navaittuk .ukkum  -vatu  kut utta  parica marak[ka] . la… … … . ke -yanun - vila marakkala  na kal [ri] vilai mu[tala]kappa[t .um kastu .a] añcu  tun pon . [t.a]yam  .u] -n -um ku[t -va -t.ai e -rakkat ttup pa avata kavum . ippat el-uti n-at.t.i .ikku [i]kkal  k kut vil.a .uttom patinen . pumi tecit ticai  .nku ticai  -ayirattainnu -rruvaro - m a --y tun r-amar . ai. -aver -ka a-rame

286

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

10 Translation

In the Saka  year  1010  current,  month  Masi, we, the Five Hundred  of the Thousand  Directions,  having  met  at the Vel.apuram  in Varosu (Barus),  also .kari vallavat  -tan -ci uyyak  called  Ma te kon (literally  “the  pat . t.a pat .t.inam  .t.inam (commercial  town) for the welfare  of the merchant  body blessed  by . Matankari, that is, Durga”),  decided  to grant  as follows  to ‘our sons’,  the -na -pati Na -t.t.u-cet nagara-se t iya r, to Patinen -bu mi-de si-appar,  and  t o the .. . -vettu ma -s (elephant-trainers?):  [On each  of the]  ships’  [cargoes?],  the ship’s captain  and  crew  (kevi) will pay  the  fee  añjutun in gold,  pegged  to the .d . ayam  price  of kasturi  (musk),  and  [then  only]  may  ‘step  on the  cloth  spread’  (that is, enter  the settlement  to trade).  Thus we, the Five Hundred  of the Thousand  Directions,  known  in every  direction  in all the  Eighteen  Lands, had the stone  inscribed  and planted.  Do not forget  charity;  charity  alone will help you.

No. 14: Pagan Inscription  of a Kerala Merchant AMCAIO, p. 15. Dated  palaeographically  to c. thirteenth  century  CE. Originally  part of a Vishnu  temple  in Pagan  in Myanmar,  now  preserved  at the  National  Museum in Pagan.  The Vishnu temple  referred  to in this inscription  was called -na -de -si-vin -na -de -si, a synonym Na obviously  after  the merchant  guild  Na .n . agar,  -vole-ainu - rruvar, the well-known  for Ayya south Indian merchant  guild. . -Magodayar-pat t an am,  the  town  from  which  the  merchant  came  is  t he  medieval .. . - r. Chera  capital  town on the Kerala  coast,  presently  known  as Kod . ungallu

Text [lines  4–9] - tiruccelvam  -na arivattan -n-ate -ci vinnakar svasti  ´rı s peruka.  pukkama apurattu  na .. -lva -r  ko -yil tiru man a t apamuñ  ceytu  tirukkatavumit t u inta  m an t apattukku . . . . . . nin nilai -r-erikaikku  -tayar  -yiranciriya - - a vil.akkon r umit t mako pat ira ..-en . t.alannu  .t.an . attu  -- malaiman - - nan -kara  -n itu s - itanmam  -n ci kulace rampiye ´ rı malaiman t alatta . . -

Translation -yiran Chiriya -kara Nambi, of Let there  be prosperity.  I,  Ira - n alias Kulase

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

287

-dayar-pat Mago in Malai-man erected  the  front  hall  in the  (Vishnu) .t.an . am  .d . alam,  temple,  called  Nanadesi Vin at Pukkam  alias  Arivattanapuram,  fixed  the .n . agar  gate  and  gifted  a lamp  to burn in this hall continuously.  This charity  is to be -n”. (Preceding  known  as “Malaiman this  Tamil text,  there  is a Sanskrit .d . alatta verse  from Mukundama la, referring  to the intense  devotion  of the bhakta towards  Vishnu.)

No. 15: Quanzhou  Tamil inscription AMCAIO, p. 16. (Found  in Quanzhou,  China) Dated in Saka  1203 corresponding  to c. 1281 CE. This inscription  was discovered  in 1956 in a private  house  in Quanzhou,  the famous  medieval port in southern  China.  The inscription  is engraved  on a single  stone  (now broken  into two pieces),  Some  Chinese  characters  are  visible  below  the  Tamil section,  but this Chinese  inscription  does  not seem  to be related  to the present  Tamil inscription.  The inscription  opens  with a Sanskrit  invocation to Hara  (Siva).  The entire  text  is associated  with the remains  of a Siva  temple of Quanzhou.  This was possibly  one of two South Indian style  Hindu temples  that  must  have  been  built in the  south-eastern  sector  of the  old port, where  the f oreign  traders’  enclave  was f ormerly  located.  The title -l, the  Tavaccakkarvarttikal taken  by  S ambandapperuma builder  of  t he  temple, . . suggests  that  he might  have  been  a Saiva  religious  leader.  The text  also  refers to the Mongol  ruler  Chekachai  Khan  (perhaps  Kublai  Khan),  in whose  name -n-ıs the temple  is named  as Tiru-k-Ka ´ varam.  T.  N. Subramanian  first  edited this inscription  and commented  elaborately  on its importance  in “A Tamil Colony  in Medieval  China”,  South  Indian  Studies,  I, edited  by R. Nagaswamy (Madras,  1978), pp. 1–52. H is reading  of the temple’s  name as Tirukkatalisvaram  was  a mistake  due to the incomplete  photo  of the stone 11 available  to him at that  time.

Text 1 2 3 4 5 6

-s -ptam  harah ´rı s ´aga 1203vatu  cittirai . svasti  ccittirai  nal. s ´rı cekaceka n n - tirume -ikku nan --r tirukka -n-ıccuramut r--aka u.taiya aiya  na yan . - arai -eriyarul peruma l. .ap pan .n . in -ar campantap  -a-na tavaccakkaravattikal -n n . cekacaika - parma pat .i

288

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

Translation Obeisance  to Hara (Siva)!  Let there  be prosperity!  On the day  Chitra  in the month of Chittirai in the Saka year 1203, the Tavachchakkarvarttikal . -l. graciously  Sambandapperuma caused,  in accordance  with  the  firman (written permission)  of Chekachai  Khan (the Mongol  ruler),  the installation  of the God Ud Tiruk-ka nis ´varam  Ud.aiya-na yana r (Siva),  for the welfare  of the . aiyar  king Chekachai  Khan. 12 No. 16: Neusu Aceh Tamil Inscription

This inscription  is written  on both  sides  of a tall stone  found  in a mosque  of Neusu  Aceh  in the suburbs  of present  Banda  Aceh,  North Sumatra,  in 1990. The original  stone  is presently  housed  at the  Provincial  Museum  of Nanggroe Aceh,  Banda  Aceh,  Indonesia.  The inscription  written  on one side of the stone  is completely  worn  away.  The second  side  is also  worn  away,  but some lines  on this side  can be deciphered  to some  extent.  This side  contains  the second  half of the  inscription.  Palaeographically  this inscription  can  be dated to c. thirteenth  century  CE. The decipherment  was  done  by Subbarayalu.

Text 1st Face [Completely  effaced  but for a few letters] 2nd Face 01 … … - va - .. 02 vum po - kkavu03 kavum  po 04 l.l.atu kaik05 kol.l.ak kat .a-ka06 vatallata 07 vum itukku 08 urayva[run  ta]09 n kallai  [va ]. -10 kal kammayala 11 r ul.l.ittu [ca12 vattut .aya]var 13 kal ko. vantu  -ka katavar14 t.u po . -kavum  15 kal po.a

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

289

licai kol.l.ak kat .avarkal .al-kavum  lava pir -akum nammakkal. ikkalvet.t.ukkukokkac ceyyak kat .avarkal . subhamastu.

Translation [lines  2–7] … the remaining  shall  not be collected; [lines  7–15] -r shall  the concerned  persons  including  the v-akal-kammayala come  here  and take  [with them]  their  (or your)  rubbing  stone  used  for this. [lines  15–18] interest  shall  not be collected; [lines  18–24] Even  hereafter  “our men”  shall  carry  on [their  duties]  according  to this stone inscription.  Let good  things  prevail.

Explanation As the  first  portion  (on the  first  face)  is completely  illegible,  the  exact  purport of the record  is not clear.  In the available  text  on the second  face,  first some stipulations  are  mentioned.  Something  is mentioned  “as  not to be collected”. . Lines  7–13  seem  to refer  to gold  testers  and  testing  stone  (urayvarum  tankal). -kal-kammayala -r in lines  The compound  term va 9–10 must  be traced  to a local  language;  it does  not seem  to be Tamil. In the context  it may  denote some  officials  or royal  goldsmiths  as they  are  the ones  who are  entrusted  with the testing  stone. It  may be inferred  from the term nam-makkal “our men”) in . (literally  -rruvar lines  19–20  that the record  relates  to the merchant  guild called  Ainu --vole-500  -na -de -si), similar  (Ayya or Na to that  mentioned  in the  Barus  inscription, . as that  term  is the usual  designation  of the agents/servants  of the merchant guild.

290

Noboru Karashima  and Y. Subbar ayalu

Notes -.las, Madras,  1. K.A. Nilakanta  Sastri,  The Co 1955,  p. 211;  Majumdar,  R.C., “The Overseas  Expeditions  of King Rajendra  Chola”,  Artibus  Asiae  XXIV, 1961;  K.G. Krishnan,  “Chola  Rajendra’s  Expedition  to South-East  Asia”,  in K.G. Krishnan, Studies  in South  Indian  History  and  Epigraphy , Madras.  1981.  For the  date  of the expedition,  Sastri  suggests  1026  (Rajendra’s  fourteenth  regnal  year)  and  Krishnan 1025  (thirteenth  regnal  year),  but the  reading  of the  regnal  year  of the  inscription (Epigraphia  Carnatica , vol. IX, Cp 84) on which  Krishnan  depends  is doubtful, and  in another  inscription  (SII, viii, 683),  which  is also  referred  to by Krishnan, there  is no mention  of the  Kadaram  expedition.  However,  Majumdar’s  suggestion of 1018  comes  from  his taking  of the  Sanskrit  part  of the  Tiruvalangadu  copperplate  inscription,  dated  in the sixth  year  of Rajendra  I, as coeval  with the  Tamil part.  But the Sanskrit  prasasti  of this copper-plate  inscription  must  be a later addition,  as in the case  of other  copper-plate  inscriptions  and,  therefore,  cannot be dated  in 1018,  for which  see  the Krishnan’s  paper  mentioned  above. - ipattinam  2. Me-n the place  of the agent,  was  most  probably  the port town of - r-onr - .. Periyapat near  Ramesvaram  Island. .t.inam,  3. A variant  reading  is “kad ..arattarayan -”. -co -pam” 4. A variant  reading  is “ilan ka 5. The translation  is a slightly  modified  version  of the one given  in Nilakanta -” (meaning -las, 2nd ed., 1955,  Sastri,  The Co pp.  2 11–12.  The  attributes  “ma . great  or big) to the place  names  are left untranslated  by him, following  the pioneer  Epigraphist  Hultzsch  in South  Indian Inscriptions , Vol. II,  No. 20, pp. 104–09. 6. The inscription  was  first edited  by G. Coedès  in “Nouvelles  données  sur les origins  du royaume  Khmer:  La stele  de Vat Luong Kau pres  de Vat Ph’u”, BEFEO, XLVIII,  1956, pp. 209–20.  The text and translation  published  in AMCIAO was  made  by K.V. Ramesh. 7. Edited  and discussed  by K. A. Nilakanta  Sastri,  “The Takua-pa  (Siam)  Tamil Inscription”,  Journal  of Oriental  Research,  VI,  1932, pp. 299–310;  Idem., “Takuapa  and Its Tamil Inscription”,  JMBRAS, XXII, 1949,  pp. 25–30. -na -mukam  8. The earlier  treatment  of Se as a military  body is not correct.  The context  of its occurrence  in a few ninth century  Tamil inscriptions  along  with -mam  Man and its association  with several  mercantile  bodies  in a few early . igra Javanese  inscriptions  (H.B. Sarkar,  Corpus  of the  Inscriptions  of Java,  Vol. I, p. 53; Vol. II, p. 276)  would  suggest  that  it was  also  a body  of traders. 9. The text  was  first  published  in Subbarayalu,  Y., “The  Merchant-Guild  Inscription at Barus,  Sumatra,  Indonesia  — a Rediscovery”,  in Claude  Guillot,  ed.,  Histoire de Barus:  Le Site  de Lobu  Tua I: Etudes  et Documents (Cahiers  d’Archipel  30) (Paris,  1998),  pp. 25–33. 10. This is a slightly  modified  version  of Subbarayalu’s  original  translation  in light of the suggestions  made  by Jan Wissemann  Christie  in “The Medieval  Tamil-

Ancient and Medieval  Inscriptions Tamil and Sanskrit 

291

language  Inscriptions  in Southeast  Asia  and China”,  Journal  of Southeast  Asian Studies  29 (1998),  pp. 239–68. 11. The importance  of this inscription  is discussed  also by N. Karashima  in his paper,  “Trade  Relations  Between  South  India and China During  the 13th and th 14 Centuries”,  Journal  of East–West  Maritime  Relations , Vol. 1, 1989,  pp. 59– 81. 12. The text  of this inscription  was  made  by Subbarayalu  using  some  photographs of the  inscriptions  provided  by Dr Claude  Guillot  of Ecole  de Hautes  Etudes  en Sciences  Sociales,  Paris,  and some  recent  photos  exhibited  in the Kaala  Chakra exhibition  in Singapore,  2007.  A partially  deciphered  text  of this inscription  is used  by Jan Wissemann  Christie  in “The Medieval  Tamil-language  Inscriptions in Southeast  Asia and China”,  Journal  of Southeast  Asian  Studies  29 (1998), pp. 239–68.

APPENDIX II Chinese  or Texts Describing  Referring  to the Chola Kingdom as Zhu-nian  (±² ) Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

Introduction 1) The kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Songshi 2) Song  huiyao(lidai chaogong ), the three  parts  pertaining  to Zhu-nian envoys 3) The kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Zhufan  zhi 4) The kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Lingwai  daida 5) Note on Di-hua-jia-luo,  the alleged  Chola king 6) The kingdom  of Pugan  in Songshi

INTRODUCTION In this Appendix  we have  assembled  English  translations  of four Chinese texts  from the Song  (960–1279)  and  Yuan (1279–1368)  periods,  describing or referring  to the Chola  kingdom  as Zhu-nian  (±² ). These  texts  are  Song huiyao (±²° ),1 Songshi (±² ),2 Zhufan  zhi(±²° ),3 and  Lingwai  daida (±²°! ).4 Another  Chinese  text  from this period  that  also  contains  a notice  of the  Chola  kingdom  is Wenxian  tongkao (±²°! ).5 The reason  for not providing  a translation  of the Wenxian  tongkao in this Appendix  is explained  later.  We have  also  included  a note  on Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ), described  in Songshi as the king  of Zhu-nian  and  an English  translation  of the section  of the kingdom  of Pu-gan  in Songshi in relation  to the note  on Di-hua-jia-luo.

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

293

While w e h ave  collaborated  closely  in writing  this Appendix,  the responsibility  for the translation  and argument  rests  with the translator  or author  indicated  in each  section. Songshi is the official  history  of the Song  Dynasty  compiled  by Tuotuo (±± ) et al. and published  in 1345.  It is one of the twenty-five  dynastic 6 histories. The description  of the Chola  kingdom  appears  in scroll  (± ) 489, in the section  dealing  with biographies  and memoirs  (±² ). Wenxian tongkao is an important  work o n Chinese  institutional  history,  with commentaries  that  were  compiled  by Ma Duanlin  (±²° ) and published in 1321.  The description  of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  is included  in scroll 332 in the s ection  called  “Examination  of the Barbarians  in the Four Quarters”  (±²° ). Song  huiyao (±²° ) belongs  to the genre  of official  documents  known as huiyao , which  are  collections  of official  documents  and materials  used  by the  government  of ad   ynasty  and  arranged  according  to administrative  divisions. Therefore,  compilers  of the  Dynastic  Histories  usually  examined  and  depended on huiyao , if available,  in their  compilation.  A large  part  of the original  ten compilations  of Song  huiyao , however,  has  been  lost after  its use  in editing Songshi and  only those  parts  that  were  quoted  or reprinted  in some  later  work remain  today.  Unfortunately,  the description  of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  is not found  in the  extant  Song  huiyao , although  it must  have  been  included  in the original  work.  The only relevant  records  are  the descriptions  of the three diplomatic  missions  from  Zhu-nian  found  in the  section  dealing  with tributary missions  called  lidai chaogong (±²°! ). We have  translated  the description of these  missions  in this Appendix. Besides  the above  three  texts,  there  are  two more  important  works  of the Song  period  which  afford  information  on Zhu-nian.  They are the works describing  the  ethnographic  and  economic  conditions  of the  kingdoms  in the maritime  world  called  nanhai (±² ), meaning  Southern  Ocean,  and  covering Southeast,  South,  and West  Asia  approachable  by sea.  These  two works  are Lingwai  daida(±²°! ) written  by Zhou Qufei (±²° ) in 1178,  and Zhufan  zhi(±²° ) written  by Zhao  Rugua  (±²° ) in 1225.  During  the Song  period,  particularly  in its later  half,  the importance  of the office  called tijushibo (±²°! ),7 controlling  maritime  trade  relations  with foreign kingdoms,  increased  greatly.  Branches  of this  office  were  established  in several trading  centres  in southern  China, including  Guangzhou  (±² ) and Quanzhou  (±² ), for the purpose  of dealing  with the matters  concerning Southern  Ocean  kingdoms.  Zhao  Rugua  worked  for the  tijushibo in Quanzhou, and  Zhou Qufei  was  for some  time  serving  as the  Deputy  Governor  of Guilin

294

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

(±² ) in southern  China.  They  were,  therefore,  able  to gather  information on maritime  kingdoms  from foreign  sailors  and merchants.  Both of them described  the kingdom  of Zhu-nian.  While Zhao Rugua  quotes  several passages  from Lingwai  daida , his description  of Zhu-nian  is longer  and  more informative  than  that  of Zhou Qufei. Among  the Chinese  books  published  during  the  Song  and  Yuan periods, there  are  many  others  which  refer  to Zhu-nian,  including  Xu Zizhitongjian changbian (±²°!"#$ ),8 Yuhai(±² ),9 Shantang  xiansheng  qunshu kaosuo (±²°!"#$% ),10 Shilin yanyu (±²°! ),11 and Wenchang zalu(±²°! ).12 However,  there  is little or no new  information  on Zhunian in these  works.  Therefore,  we have  not included  these  works  in our translations. The common  passages  in some  texts  translated  here  should  be explained in little detail.  The notices  on the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Songshi and Wenxian  tongkao , for example,  are almost  identical.  Other  than  the use  of a 13 few different  Chinese  characters, Wenxian  tongkao omits  some  of the place and personal  names  found  in Songshi . The identical  records  could  be a result of the compilers  of these  works  using  the same  source  material.  It is also possible,  however,  that  the compilers  of Songshi , a later  work,  depended  on Wenxian  tongkao . In fact,  it is clear  that  Songshi , which  was  in fact  compiled hastily,  copied  large  portions  of the  text  from Wenxian  tongkao including  that of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian.  However,  Songshi provides  many  names  of persons  and  places  that  were  omitted  in Wenxian  tongkao . This indicates  that Songshi used  other  sources  in addition  to Wenxian  tongkao in compiling  the Zhu-nian  section. The thirty-one  names  of the  settlements  (buluo ) of the  Zhu-nian  kingdom given  in Songshi , which  are  omitted  in Wenxian  tongkao , correspond  exactly  to those  given  in Zhufan  zhi, with the exception  of just one character.  The source  of these  names  may  have  been  sailors  and merchants  coming  from southern  Asia and collected  by Zhao  Rugua.  Thus,  it would  seem  that  the compilers  of Songshi also  accessed  Zhufan  zhi. As stated  earlier,  some  of the passages  in Zhufan  zhicome  from Lingwai  daida . And it is possible  that  the author  of Wenxian  tongkao had access  to both  Zhufan  zhiand Lingwai  daida . The common  passages  in these  five texts  show  the sharing  of information regarding  foreign  kingdoms  in Chinese  sources.  This also  makes  it difficult sometimes  to identify  the original  source  of notices  on foreign  kingdoms, including  Zhu-nian. The record  of the  kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Wenxian  tongkao was  translated 14 into French  in 1883  by Marquis  d’Hervey  de Saint-Denys. Later,  an English translation  of Wenxian  tongkao was  made,  based  on d’Hervey  de Saint-

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

295

15 Denys’s  French  version. Friedrich  Hirth and W.W. Rockhill  translated 16 Zhufan  zhiinto English  in 1911. Lingwai  dadaihas  been  translated  into 17 German  by Almut  Netolitzky. However,  the text  of Songshi has  never  been translated  into a Western  language.  Although,  as an excellent  piece  of pioneer work,  d’Hervey  de Saint-Denys’s  French  translation  and  its English  version  of Wenxian  tongkao have  been  used  widely  by many  non-Chinese  scholars  since its publication,  there  are  many  mistakes  in them  that  should  be corrected.  We have  not included  the translation  of Wenxian  tongkao because  it is almost identical  with that  of Songshi . The differences  between  the two texts  are explained  in the footnotes.  In other  words,  therefore,  a fresh  translation  of Wenxian  tongkao is actually  included  in this Appendix. For transliterating  Chinese  characters,  we have  used  the Pinyin system, the current  international  standard  rominization,  but which  differs  somewhat from the Wade-Giles  system  employed  in earlier  translations  by d’Hervey  de Saint-Denys  and Hirth and Rockhill.  The pronunciations  in thirteenthcentury  southern  China are  sometimes  retained  more  accurately  in Japanese 18 and Korean  pronunciations  of Chinese  characters. This point should  be kept in mind when  reconstruction  of Tamil place  or personal  names  is attempted  from their  Pinyin transliteration.

1) The Kingdom  of Zhu-nian  (±² ) in Songshi (±² )19 Translated  with notes  by Noboru Karashima To the  east,  the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  (±² ) is at a distance  of five  li 20 from 21 the sea;  to the  west  it takes  1,500  li to reach  Tian-zhu  (±² ); to the south, 22 it is 2,500  li to Luo-lan  (±² ); and to the  north  it is 3,000  li to Dun-tian (±² ).23 Since  ancient  times  it has  had  no contacts  with China.  By water,  it is about  a 411,400  li journey  to Guangzhou  (±² ). In the kingdom  there  is a city which  is enclosed  by seven-fold  walls that are  seven-feet  high.  The length  of the outer  wall is twelve  li from 24 north  to south,  and seven  li from  east  to west. Each  wall is one  hundred paces  from the next.  Four walls  are  made  of bricks,  two are  of mud,  and the innermost  wall is of wood.  Within e ach  wall a re planted  various flowering  plants  and fruit trees.  People  reside  within  the first to third walls,  which  are surrounded  by s mall  streams.  Four m inisters  (±² )25 dwell  within  the fourth  wall,  and four sons  of the king within  the fifth. The sixth  wall encloses  Buddhist  monasteries,  where  one  hundred  monks live.  The seventh  walled  citadel  comprises  the  royal  palace  where  there  are 26 more  than  four hundred  rooms.

296

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

There  are 31 settlements  (buluo±² ) integrated  under  the king’s 27 rule. The twelve  to the west  are:  Zhi-du-ni  (±²° ), Shi-ya-lu-ni  (±²° ± ), Luo-pa-li-bie-pa-yi  (±²°!²" ), Bu-lin-pa-bu-ni  (±²°±! ), Gu-tan-bu-lin-pu-deng  (±²°!"# ), Gu-li (±² ), Suo-lun-cen  (±² ± ), Ben-ti-jie-ti  (±²°² ), Yan-li-chi-li  (±²°! ), Na-bu-ni  ( ±² ), Zhe-gu-lin  (±²° ), and Ya-li-zhe-lin  (±²°! ), The eight  to the south  are:  Wu-ya-jia-li-ma-lan  (±²°!"# ), Meigu-li-ku-di  (±²°!" ), She-li-ni  (±²° ), Mi-duo-luo-mo  (±²°! ), Qie-lan-pu-deng  (±²°! ), Meng-qie-lin-qie-lan  (±²°²! ), Pa-li-pali-you  (±²±°! ), and Ya-lin-chi-meng-qie-lan  (±²°!"# ). 28 The twelve to the north are:  Bo-luo-ye  (±²° ), Wu-mo-li-jiang (±²°! ), Zhu-lin  (±² ), Jia-li-meng-qie-lan  (±²°!" ), Qi-jie-malan (±²°! ), Wo-zhe-meng-qie-lan  (±²°!" ), Pi-lin-qie-lan  (±² ±² ), Pu-leng-he-lan  (±²°! ), Bao-pa-lai  (±²° ), Tian-zhu-li (±²° ), Lu-po-luo  (±²° ),29 and Mi-meng-qie-lan  (±²°! ). The present  king belongs  to the third generation  of the dynasty.  If any offence  is committed  by a commoner,  minister  is ordered  to deal  with it. If the offence  is light,  the culprit  is tied to a wooden  frame  and beaten  with a bamboo  stick  fifty to hundred  times.  If it is a serious  crime,  the criminal  is beheaded  or crushed  under  the feet  of an elephant. At banquets,  the king and the four ministers  prostrate  themselves  at the foot of the steps  (± ).30 Then, they  sit together  and [watch]  music,  song and dance  [performances].  They don’t  drink alcohol,  but eat  meat.  They are accustomed  to wearing  cotton  clothes  and eating  baked  or steamed cakes  made  of rice or wheat  flour.  They  employ  ladies  as attendants  for table 31 (±² ) and personal  service. When arranging  a marriage,  initially  the man’s  family  sends  to the woman’s  family  a female  go-between  with gold  and/or  silver  ring(s).  After two 32 33 days, the woman’s  family meets  with the man’s  family  and ceremoniously announces  the quantity  of fields,  domestic  animals,  and arrack,  which they  can offer  [as bride  price].  In addition  to this,  the woman’s  family  also presents  to the prospective  bridegroom  gold  and/or  silver  ring(s),  a fine cloth (±²° ),34 and the  brocaded  cloth  to be worn  by the bride.  If the man  does not want  to marry  the woman,  he should  not take  the things  offered,  and  if the woman  wants  to refuse  the marriage,  she  has  to return  to him twice  of what  was  received. In warfare,  they  place  elephants  in the front,  followed  by soldiers  holding small  shields.  Then, come  successive  ranks  of soldiers  with lance,  soldiers with long  sword,  and archers.  The four ministers  divide  the command  of all

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

297

of them  between  them.  At a distance  of 2,500  li to the southeast  of this 35 kingdom,  there  is a kingdom  called  Xi-lan-chi  (±²° ). War sometimes breaks  out between  these  two kingdoms. This kingdom  produces  pearls,  elephant’s  tusks,  coral,  transparent  glass, 36 betel  nuts,  cardamoms,  and ji-bei  bu(±²° ). Quadrupeds  include  goats and  tawny  cows  (±² ). Poultry  include  pheasants  and  parrots.  Fruits  include myrobalan,  wisteria,  Persian  dates,  coconuts,  gan-luo (±² ),37 kun-lun  mei 38 (±²° ), and jack fruit. Flowers  include  white  jasmine,  san-si (±² ),39 she-qi (±² ),40 hibiscus,  li-qiu(±² ),41 the blue,  yellow  and green  sal, 42 43 white  lotus,  chan-zi(±² ), and shui-jiao (±² ). Grain crops  include green  beans  (±² ), soybeans  (±² ), wheat  and rice.  Bamboo  also  grows there. Since  ancient  times  this kingdom  had never  sent  tribute  to our country. In the ninth month  of the eighth  year  of the dazhong  xiangfu (±²°! ) reign  period  (1015),  its king Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° )44 sent  to our court  a mission  consisting  of the ambassador  vice  minister  Suo-li  San-wen (±²°! ), the second  ambassador  (±² ) Pu-shu  (±² ),45 the third ambassador  (±² )46 Weng-wu  (±² ), the guard  Ya-le-jia  (±²° ), and others,  with a letter  and tribute  from  the king. San-wen  and others  ascended  the audience  hall holding  up (with both hands)  a tray  containing  pearls  and  green  beads  (±²° ) and  scattered  them in front of the throne.  After descending,  they  again  made  a bow. The interpreter  explained  what  they  had said  as “we,  living  in a remote  region, wish  to express  our sincere  desire  to be enlightened  by the  Chinese  civilization”. The king said  the following  in his letter: Your subject,  I, Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° ), wish  to say  that  a merchant boarding  a small  ship  came  to our country,  from whom  we have  learned  that now the Song  dynasty  is ruling  the Empire  and  Your Majesty  succeeded  the two emperors  who founded  the dynasty.  You venerated  both Heaven  and 47 Earth  performing  appropriate  rituals  in two places. Your virtue  was  heard even  by Heaven,  who gave  grace  to you accordingly.  I expected  to meet  the occasion  and was  favoured  to hear  the auspicious  words  (±² ).48 I wish  to extend  my sincerity  in serving  Your Majesty  like the sun and to express  my great  joy in beholding  Your Majesty  in audience. I humbly  hear  that  Your Majesty’s  rule extends  without  limit a nd people  serve  you submissively  wherever  they  live. I humbly  contemplate your  achievement  which  surpasses  that  of all the rulers  in the past,  your  rule being  righteous.  The merit  of your administration  covers  Heaven  and Earth,  and the force  of your power  gives  discipline  to the universe.  Your divine  power  has never  killed,  your civility  has enlightened,  your high

298

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

virtue  has  been  extended  to your subjects,  and you worshipped  Heaven with submissive  mind.  Your goodness  protected  even  the feeble  reed  and your trust extended  to the f ish in the d eep  water.  Therefore,  Heaven appreciated  your splendid  achievements  and as predicted  in the letter  from Heaven,  you have  accomplished  what  was  never  done  in the past  and are keeping  the base  for the established  rule of the Empire. I presume  to consider  that as your subject  I am a small  being  like a mosquito  and  a humble  creature  like a papier-mache  dog,  having  been  living for generations  in a barbarous  town. My country  is far from Chinese civilization,  having  not been  enlightened  and having  sent  no tribute  to your court.  Now I quietly  listen  to the song  praising  the virtue  of Your Majesty, which  is sung  even  in the frontiers.  Regrettably  I am too advanced  in age  to proceed  to your  court  personally  to offer  tribute.  In addition  I live in a remote country  separated  by the vast  sea  and there  are  many  obstacles  on the way rather  difficult  to overcome.  Therefore,  I am now observing  from after  the gate  of Your Majesty’s  palace  with the strength  of my sincerity.  To present  the products  of my country  is like ants  and crickets  being  attracted  by mutton, and  to pay  tribute  and serve  Your Majesty  is like sun-flower  and  giant  hyssop being  drawn  towards  the sun.  With respect  I send  a mission  of 52 persons  to your  court  to offer  the products  of our country  as tribute,  consisting  of ar  obe and a cap both decorated  with pearls,  21,100  liang(± )49 of pearls,  sixty 50 elephant  tusks,  and sixty  jin (± ) of frankincense. San-wen  and others  also  presented  6,600  liangof pearls  and  3,300  jin of perfumes. In the beginning,  when  Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° ) heard  the story from the  merchant  of a ship  which  arrived  at his country,  it was  also  told that there  had  been  no storms  in the sea  for the past  ten years.  This, according  to an old man  remembering  a legend,  was  because  there  was  a sage  in China. Therefore,  the king sent  San-wen  and others  with tribute. 51 Departing  from his kingdom, San-wen  sailed  on a ship for 77 days and nights,  passed  by the side  of the Isles  of Na-wu-dan  shan  ( ±²° ) and Suo-li-xi-lan  shan  (±²°!" ), and arrived  at the kingdom  of Zhanbin (±²° ). Again,  by travelling  for 61 days  and  nights,  passing  by the  side of the Isle Yi-ma-luo-li  shan  (±²°!" ), he reached  the kingdom  of Gu-luo  (±²° ),52 which  gets  its name  from the Gu-luo  (±² ) Mountain. Again,  he continued  his journey  for 71 days  and nights,  passing  by the Isles of Jia-ba  shan  (±²° ), Zhan-bu-lao  shan  (±²°! )53 and  Zhou-bao-long shan  (±²°! ), and reached  the k ingdom  of San-fo-qi  (±²° ).54 Again  traveling  for 18 days  and nights,  traversing  the mouth  of the river (±² ) near  the hill of Man shan  (±² ),55 and  coasting  the Isle of Tian-zhu

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

299

shan (±²° ),56 he reached  Bin-tou-lang  shan  (±²°! ).57 At the distance  of 100 li from the  ship  to the east,  they  saw  the  tomb  of Xiwangmu (±²°! ).58 Sailing  for another  20 days  and nights,  passing  through  the Isles  of Yangshan  (±² ) and Jiuxingshan  (±²° ), he reached  Pipazhou 61 (±²° )59 of Guangzhou  (±² ).60 Only after  1,150  days since  he left his country,  was  he able  to reach  Guangzhou  (±² ). The Emperor  ordered  Shiyouzhi  (±²° ), the A udience  Usher (gemenzhihou ±²°! )62 to treat  them  with great  regard  and to accord  to them  the  same  honours  as to the  envoys  of Qiu-ci (±² )63 for receptions  and ceremonies.  On the occasion  of the emperor’s  birthday  (±²° )64 in that year,  San-wen  and  others  requested  permission  to join the  Buddhist  monks  of the Qisheng  chanyuan  Monastery  (±²°! )65 in celebrating  the auspicious 66 birthday  of the Emperor.  The embassy  returned  the following  year with an imperial  edict  and rich gifts  for Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° ). In the fourth  year  of the tianxi(±² ) reign  period  (1020),  [the  king of Zhu-nian]  once  again  sent  an envoy  called  Pa-lan-de-ma-lie-di  (±²°!" ± ), to offer  tribute.  But he died of an illness  on his arrival  at Guangzhou (±² ). The governor  of Guangzhou  conveyed  to the Emperor  the letter  [of the king]  which  the envoy  had brought.  The Emperor  ordered  the governor to treat  the retinue  with banquets  and  to send  them  back  with rich presents. In the tenth  month  of the second  year  of the mingdao (±² ) reign period  (1033),  the king Shi-li-luo-cha-yin-tuo-luo-zhu-luo  (±²°!" 68 ±²± )67 sent  the ambassador Pu-ya-tuo-li  (±² ± ) and others with his letter  written  in gold,  with tribute  consisting  of a robe  and  a cap both decorated  with pearls,  105 liangof pearls,  and 100 elephant  tusks.  Fu Wei Zhong  (±²° ),69 who was  the Vice Commissioner  E±² ) of the West  Dyeing  Office  (xiran  yuan±²° ) and  Secretarial  Receptionist  (gemen tongshi  sheren ±²°!"# ),70 received  the envoys  as proxy  for the  Deputy Minister  for the  Court of State  Ceremonial  (honglu  shaoqing ±²°! ).71 Pu-ya-tuo-li  (±² ± ) reported  that  although  he had  tried  several  times to bring tribute,  the rough  seas  had wrecked  his ship and prevented  him from reaching  [China].  He wished  to scatter  the finest  pearls  (± )72 at the feet  of the imperial  couch  in order  to gain  an audience  with the Emperor and express  his adoration  for him. Accordingly,  he was  allowed  to ascend the audience  hall holding  a silver  bowl up [with both hands].  On the floor of the hall, he knelt  down  and scattered  pearls  under  the imperial  couch and retreated. In the second  month  of the first year  of the jingyou (±² ) reign  period (1034),  the ambassador  Pu-ya-tuo-li  (±² ± ) returned  to his kingdom having  been  granted  the [honorific]  titles  of Grand  Master  of the  Palace  with

300

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

Golden  Seal  and Purple  Ribbon  (jinzi guanglu  dafu±²°!"# )73 and Civilizing  General  (huaihua  jiangjun ±²°! ). In the tenth  year  of the xining(±² ) reign  period  (1077),  the king Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! )74 sent  a mission  of twenty-seven  persons.  It consisted  of the ambassador  Qi-luo-luo  (±²² ), the second  ambassador Nan-bei-pa-da  (±²°! ), the third ambassador  Ma-tu-hua-luo  (±²° ± ), and others.  They presented  as tribute  pearls  as big as peas  (±²° ), mazhu  (±² ),75 a large  glass  bowl,  huanao (±² )76 of white  plum,  jinhua (±² ),77 rhinoceros  horns,  frankincense,  pingxiang (±² ),78 rose  water, 79 80 jinlianhua (±²° ), muxiang (±² ), asafetida,  borax,  and cloves.  The first  and second  ambassadors  ascended  the audience  hall holding  pearls  and borneol  (±² ), and scattered  them  on bended  knees.  That act is called sandian (±² ). After they  had descended,  an official  from the Imperial Dispensary  (yuyao ±² ) was  sent  by imperial  order  to entertain  them.  [The two ambassadors]  were  granted  the [honorific]  titles  of Civilizing  General (huaihua  jiangjun ±²°! ) and Maintaining  Submission  Commandant (baoshun  langjiang ±²°! ) respectively.  Based  on their  ranks  (±² ),81 each  [envoy]  was  presented  garments,  vessels  and cloths.  To the king,  81, 82 800 strings  of copper  coins  (± ) and 52,000  liangof silver  were  granted  as return  presents.

±²°! 2) Song huiyao (±²° ±²° ), lidai chaogong  (±²°! ), the to Zhu-nian  (±² ±² ) envoys83 three parts pertaining  Translated  with notes  by Noboru Karashima 1) On the second  day in the ninth month  of the eighth  year  of the dazhong  xiangfu (±²°! ) reign  period  (1015),  a mission  of the kingdom of Zhu-nian  consisting  of the ambassador  Suo-li  San-wen  (±²°! ), the second  ambassador  Pu-jia-xin  (±²° ),84 the third ambassador  (±² )85 Weng-wu  (±² ) arrived  to offer  tribute.  They ascended  the audience  hall holding  up (with both  hands)  a tray  containing  pearls  and  green  beads  (± ± ± ) and  scattered  them  in front of the throne.  [They  presented]  a robe  and  a cap both  decorated  with pearls,  pearls,  elephant  tusks,  frankincense,  and aromatic  medicine. The original  note to the above  paragraph: According  to Shantang kaosuo (±²°! ),86 on the second  day in the ninth month  of this year 87 Luo-da-luo-zha  (±²±° ), the king of Zhu-nian  kingdom,  sent  his envoy  Suo-li  San-wen  (±²°! ) and  others  to offer  tribute  consisting  of a robe  and a cap both decorated  with pearls,  pearls,  elephant  tusks,  and

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

301

aromatic  medicine.  Prior to that,  a merchant  boarding  a ship  reached  that country  and  told [the  king]  that  the Emperor  made  a ritual  for Heaven  in the E ast  and t hat for E arth in the West (±²° ± ). The k ing of that country  said  that  there  had been  no storms  in the sea  for the past  ten years, which,  according  to an old man  remembering  a legend,  was  because  there was  a sage  in China.  Therefore,  the king sent  envoys,  who (also)  ascended the audience  hall holding  up (with  both  hands)  a tray  containing  pearls  and green  beads  and scattered  them  in front of the throne.  After descending, they  again  made  a bow. The interpreter  explained  what  they  had said  as “we, living  in a remote  region,  wish to express  our sincere  desire  to be enlightened  by the Chinese  civilization”. 2) On the twenty-first  day  in the tenth  month  of the second  year  of the mingdao (±² ) reign  period  (1033),  Shi-li-luo-cha-yin-tuo-luo-zhu-luo (±²°!" ±²± ),88 the  king of Zhu-nian,  sent  the ambassador  Pu89 shen-tuo-li (±² ± ) and others  with his letter  written  in gold and tribute  consisting  of a robe  and a cap both  decorated  with pearls,  pearls, and  elephant  tusks.  Tuo-li ( ± ) requested  permission  to conduct  a barbarian ritual  to express  his adoration  for the Emperor.  [The request  having  been accepted,]  he holding  a silver  bowl up (with  both  hands)  knelt  down  on the floor of the audience  hall, scattered  pearls  (± ) under  the imperial  couch, and then  retreated. 3) On the seventh  day in the sixth  month  of the tenth  year  of the xining(±² ) reign  period  (1077),  Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ), the fanwang (±² )90 of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian,  sent  the ambassador  Qi-luo-luo  (±² ± ) to present  his two letters,  one  written  in barbarian  language  and  the  other in Chinese,  and tribute  consisting  of pearls,  borneol  (±² ), rhinoceros horn (±² ), elephant  tusk,  frankincense,  fine cloth  mixed  with gold  thread (±²°! ), a glass  bowl, rose  water,  and m edicine.  On that day the ambassador  and his deputy  were  allowed  to ascend  the audience  hall holding pearls  and borneol  and scattered  them  on bended  knees.  That act is called sandian (±² ). After they  had descended,  the Emperor  especially  sent  a palace  attendant  (±² )91 to entertain  them.

3) The Kingdom  of Zhu-nian  in Zhufan zhi (±²° ±²°

)

Äó= Translated  with notes  Tansen  Sen The kingdom  of Zhu-nian  is the South  Yin-du ±²° of the Western Heaven  ±² . To the  east,  one reaches  the  sea  in five  li; to the  west,  it is 1,500 li to West  Tian-zhu  (±²° ); to the south,  it is 2,500  li to Luo-lan  (±² );

302

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

[and]  to the north,  it is 3,000  li to Dun-tian  (±² ). [The kingdom]  had  no commercial  contacts  [with  China]  in the past.  By water,  it takes  a journey  of more  than  411,400  li to reach  Quanzhou  (±² ).92 [Those]  wishing  to go to this kingdom,  have  to proceed  by changing boats  at Gu-lin (±² ). Alternatively,  it is said  that  [one]  can  also  go [via]  the 93 Pu-gan  (±² ) kingdom. There  is ac   ity in the  kingdom  which  is enclosed  by as   even-fold  wall that is seven  feet  high.  The length  of the  outer  wall is twelve  li from  north  to south 94 and  seven  li from  east  to west. Each  wall  is one  hundred  paces  from  the  next. Four walls  are made  of bricks,  two are of mud,  and the innermost  wall is made  from  wood.  Various  flowering  plants  and  trees  bearing  fruits  are  planted [within]  each  of these  walls.  The dwellings  of the people  are  all [within]  the first  and  the second  walls  that  are  surrounded  by small  trench.  Four ministers reside  within  the third  and fourth  walls.  The four sons  of the  king live  within the fifth wall.  The sixth  wall  is for Buddhist  monasteries,  where  one  hundred monks  live.  The seventh  wall is where  the king resides.  It has  more  than  four hundred  rooms. 95 There  are  31 buluo(±² ) in the kingdom. The twelve  to the west  are:  Zhi-du-ni  (±²° ), Shi-ya-lu-ni  (±²° ± ), Luo-pa-li-bie-pa-yi  (±²°!²" ), Bu-lin-pa-bu-ni  (±²°±! ), Gu-tan-bu-lin-pu-deng  (±²°!"# ), Gu-li (±² ), Po-lun-cen  (±² ± ), Ben-ti-jie-ti  (±²°² ), Yan-li-chi-li  (±²°! ), Na-bu-ni  ( ±² ), Zhe-gu-lin  (±²° ), and Ya-li-zhe-lin  (±²°! ). The eight  to the south  are:  Wu-ya-jia-li-ma-lan  (±²°!"# ), Meigu-li-ku-di  (±²°!" ), She-li-ni  (±²° ), Mi-duo-luo-mo  (±²°! ), Qie-lan-pu-deng  (±²°! ), Meng-qie-lin-qie-lan  (±²°²! ), Pa-li-pali-you  (±²±°! ), and Ya-lin-chi-meng-qie-lan  (±²°!"# ). The twelve  to the n orth are: Bo-luo-ye  (±²° ), Wu-mo-li-jiang (±²°! ), Zhu-lin  (±² ), Jia-li-meng-qie-lan  (±²°±! ), Qi-jie-malan (±²°! ), Wo-zhe-meng-qie-lan  E±²°!" ), Pi-lin-qie-lan  (±² ±² ), Pu-leng-he-lan  (±²°! ), Bao-pa-lai  (±²° ), Tian-zhu-li  (±² ± ), Lu-po-luo  (±²° ),96 and Mi-meng-qie-lan  (±²°! ). When  an offence  is committed  by a commoner,  a minister  (±² ) is ordered  to deal  with it. Those  with lighter  offence  are  tied to wooden  frame and beaten  with a bamboo  stick fifty, seventy  to hundred  times.  Those committing  serious  crime  are  beheaded  or crushed  under  the  feet  of an elephant. At banquets  the king and the four ministers  prostrate  themselves  at the foot of the steps  (± ). Then,  they  play  music,  sing  and dance  together.  They don’t drink alcohol  but eat  meat.  They are  accustomed  to wearing  cotton clothes  and have  baked  and steamed  flour breads.  They employ  female

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

303

servants  (± ) to attend  [to the]  table  (±² ) and [as]  escort[s]  (±² ). There are about  ten thousand  of such  female  servants.  Everyday  there  are three thousand  who are  in attendance  in rotation. When  arranging  a marriage,  initially  [the  boy’s  family]  sends  to the  girl’s family  a female  go-between  with gold  and/or  silver  ring(s).  After  three  days, [the  girl’s  family]  meets  with the boy’s  family  to decide  the quantity  of fields, domesticated  animals,  arrack,  and other  things  which  they  can offer [in marriage].  The girl’s  family,  in return,  presents  to the would-be  bridegroom gold  and/or  silver  ring(s),  a fine  cloth  (±²° ), and  the  brocaded  cloth  to be worn  by the bride.  If the boy doesn’t  wish  to marry  the girl, he does  not dare take  the gifts  offered,  and if the girl wants  to refuse  the marriage,  she  has  to 97 return  double  [of what  was  gifted]. The t axes  imposed  by t he k ingdom  are numerous  and h eavy  [so] itinerant  traders  rarely  go there.  [The kingdom]  is at war with various kingdoms  of Xitian.  The palace  has  sixty  thousand  war  elephants  that  are  all seven  to eight  feet  tall. During  the time  of war,  a lodge,  carrying  soldiers, is placed  on the back  of the elephant.  [When  the enemy]  is far away  they shoot  arrows,  when  near  they  use spears.  The victorious  elephants  are granted  titles  to acknowledge  their  contribution.  The people  value  vigor and are  casual  about  [their]  lives.  Sometimes  in front  of the king they  fight 98 with small  weapons  and die without  regrets. Food for father,  sons,  elder  and younger  brothers  are cooked  in separate woksand served  in different  utensils.  Still they  have  deep  respect  [for each 99 other]. This kingdom  produces  pearls,  elephant’s  tusks,  coral,  transparent glass,  betel  nuts,  cardamoms,  opaque  glass,  colored  silk cloths,  and ji-bei  bu 100 (±²° ). Quadrupeds  include  goats  and  tawny  cows  (±² ). Birds  include pheasants  and parrots.  Fruits include  myrobalan,  wisteria,  Persian  dates, coconuts,  gan-luo (±² ), kun-lun  mei(±²° ), and jack fruit. Flowers include  white  jasmine,  san-si (±² ), she-qi (±² ), hibiscus,  li-qiu(±² F= the blue,  yellow  and green  sal,  white  lotus,  chan-zi (±² ), and shui-jiao (±² ). Grains  include  green  beans  (±² ), soybeans  (±² ), wheat  and  rice.  Bamboo 101 also  grows  there. Since  ancient  times  this kingdom  has  never  sent  tribute  [to China].  In the eighth  year  of the dazhong  xiangfu (±²°! ) reign  period  (1015),  its king sent  envoys  to present  tribute  including  pearls.  The interpreter  explained what  [the  king]  had  said  as:  “we,  living  in a remote  region,  wish  to express  our 102 sincere  desire  to be enlightened  by the  [Chinese]  civilization” The Emperor ordered  Shiyou  zhi (±²° ) of gemen  zhihou (±²°! ) to treat  them  with regard  reception  and to accord  them  the same  honors  as to the envoys  from

304

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

Qiu-ci (±² ). On the occasion  of the emperor’s  birthday  (±²° ), the envoys  from  the [Zhu-nian]  kingdom  received  permission  to attend  birthday celebrations  at the Qisheng  yuan  (±²° ).103 104 In the tenth  year  of the xining(±² ) reign  period  (1077), [the  Zhunian kingdom]  again  sent  tribute.  [Emperor  Shenzong]  sent  an official  in 105 charge  of internal  affairs  (neishi ) to welcome  them.

4) The Kingdom  of Zhu-nian  (±² ±² ) in Lingwai daida ±²°! (±²°! ) Translated  with notes  by Tansen  Sen The kingdom  of Zhu-nian  (±² ) is the  South  India  (±²° ) of the  Western Heaven  (±² ). [Those]  wishing  to go to this kingdom  have  to proceed  by changing  boats  at the Gu-lin kingdom  (±²° ). Alternatively,  it is said  that [one]  can  also  go [via]  the Pugan  kingdom  (±²° ).106 The crown  of the ruler  of this kingdom  [is decorated  with]  luminous pearls  and  rare  precious  stones.  [He] is often  at war  with various  kingdoms  of Western  Heaven.  The kingdom  has  sixty  thousand  war elephants  that  are  all seven  to eight  feet  tall. During  the time  of war,  a lodge,  carrying  soldiers,  is placed  on the  back  of the elephant.  [When  the  enemy]  is far away  they  shoot arrows,  when  near  they  use  spears.  The victorious  elephants  are  granted  titles to acknowledge  their  contribution.  There  are  even  those  to whom  embroidered drapes  and gold  cribs  are presented.  Everyday  the elephants  also  pays  tribute to the king. [The kingdom]  produces  things  like borneol  rings  (±²°! ),107 lids [made  from]  cat’s  eye  (±²° ), pearls,  ivory,  amber  of various  color,  and colored  silk cloth. There  are almost  10,000  female  servants  (±² ),108 3,000  of whom alternate  everyday  to serve  at the court. The people  of the kingdom  value  vigor  and are  casual  about  [their]  lives. There  are  [people]  who refuse  to yield.  Everyday  there  are  about  ten pairs who fight with small  daggers  in front  of the king and die without  regrets. Food for father,  sons,  elder  and younger  brothers  are cooked  in separate woks  and served  in different  utensils.  Still they  have  deep  respect  [for each other]. In the eighth  year  of the dazhong  xiangfu (±²°! ) reign  period (1015),  its king  sent  envoys  to present  tribute  including  pearls.  The interpreter explained  what  [the  king]  had  said  as:  “we,  living  in a remote  region,  wish  to express  our sincere  desire  to be enlightened  by the  Chinese  civilization”.  Then

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

305

in the sixth  lunar  month  of the ten year  of the xining(±² ) reign  period (1077)  of Emperor  Shenzong  (±² ), the  kingdom  again  presented  tribute  of native  products.  The emperor  sent  an official  in charge  of internal  affairs  to welcome  them.

5) Note on Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ±²°!

), the alleged  Chola king

Noboru Karashima Much confused  discussion  has  been  made  in the past  on the envoys  and  the identification  of the king  Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ) who sent  them,  as there is a record  in the Songshi (±² ) and Wenxian  tongkao (±²°! ) of the envoys  sent  by the great  chief  (±²° ) Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ) of Sanfo-qi (±²° ), which  arrived  the same  year  (1077)  as the Chola envoys arrived.  [For San-fo-qi,  see  note  54 to the text.]  Most scholars  identified  Dihua-jia-luo  of Zhu-nian  as Kulottunga-chola,  who is also known as Rajendradeva,  taking  Di-hua-jia-luo  to represent  part of his name,  namely deva(±² ) kulo(±² ). The double  entry  of this mission  as those  of Zhunian  and  San-fo-qi  was  often  ignored  as a mistake  committed  by the  compilers of Songshi and Wenxian  tongkao . However,  the discovery  of a stone  inscription  of the Tianqing  Taoist temple  (±²° ) in Guangzhou  (±² ) in the 1960s  (Tan Yeok Seong,  “The Sri Vijayan  Inscription  of Canton  [AD 1079]”,  Journal  of Southeast  Asian History , 5-2, 1964)  has  clarified  that  Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ) was  the lord (±² ) of San-fo-qi  (±²° ) who helped  the reconstruction  of the Taoist temple  that had been  destroyed  earlier,  by sending  three  of his officers  to Guangzhou.  The names  of the two officers  (Zhi-luo-luo  ±²² and Ma-tuhua-luo  ±²°! ) are again  almost  the same  as the names  of the persons who are  described  as the  first and  the third ambassadors  (Qi-luo-luo  ±²² and Ma-tu-hua-luo  ±²°! ) sent  by Zhu-nian  King Di-hua-jia-luo.  It is evident,  however,  from  the inscription  of Guangzhou  that  Di-hua-jia-luo  was the ruler  of San-fo-qi,  and  not of Zhu-nian.  Then,  why  does  he appear  as the king of Zhu-nian  in the Songshi and Wenxian  tongkao ? This can  be explained  by the  relationship  Zhu-nian  had  with San-fo-qi  in the eleventh  century.  The Chola  invasion  of San-fo-qi  (Srivijaya/Kadaram  in Kedah  in the Malay  Peninsula)  around  1025  is well-known  and so is another invasion  around  1068 made  by Virarajendra  to help a Kadaram  king. Virarajendra  reinstated  the Kadaram  king who had asked  his help,  which indicates  that S an-fo-qi  (Kadaram)  was under  Chola p rotection  as a dependency.  There  is a Tamil copper-plate  inscription  (Epigraphia  Indica ,

306

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

xxii–35:  Smaller  Leiden  plates)  which  shows  that  the  two countries  continued to keep  good  and close  relations  until 1090.  The Chinese  court  must  have known  these  circumstances  to some  extent,  recording  San-fo-qi  envoys  of 1077  also  as the envoys  from  Zhu-nian.  Strangely,  however,  the compiler  of Songshi described  Di-hua-jia-luo  as the king (±² ) of Zhu-nian. Song  huiyao (±²° ) was  the most  important  source-material  which gave  information  to the compiler  of Songshi , and in its lidai chaogong (±² ±² ) section,  which  records  the arrival  of envoys  from foreign  countries, the status  of Di-hua-jia-luo  is described  as fanwang (±² ), a foreign  king or ruler  of Zhu-nian,  thus  distinguishing  him from the king of Zhu-nian. Rajendra  I, in contrast,  is described  as the king of Zhu-nian  in the same section.  Fan(± ) connotes  “subordinate”  and “barbarous”  too. There  is no record  of the arrival  of envoys  from San-fo-qi  as an independent  kingdom in that  year  in Song  huiyao . Confusion  occurred  in past  studies  from  this omission  of “fan” (± ) by the compiler  of Songshi , by mistake  or on purpose.  Songshi ’s description  of Di-hua-jia-luo  as the king  of Zhu-nian  might  have  been  related  to the notion that  Zhu-nian  was  subordinate  to San-fo-qi  (±²°!"#$ ), expressed  in the Pu-gan  (±² Pagan  in present-day  Myanmar)  kingdom  section  of Songshi , which  is translated  into English  in the  sixth  section  of this Appendix,  though it is very  mysterious  how the Chinese  court  conceived  this notion.  It is suggested  by some  scholars  that  San-fo-qi,  which  was  actually  subject  to Zhunian,  tricked  the Chinese  court  into believing  that  Zhu-nian  was  subject  to San-fo-qi  to hold a better  position  in China  trade.  The account  of the 1077 mission  in Wenxian  tongkao , however,  does  not cause  this  problem  because  it describes  the envoy  as the one  sent  by the state,  not referring  to the name  of the sender  and his status. Rokuro  Kuwata  in his article,  “A Study  of Srivijaya”  (in Japanese)  in R. Kuwata,  Studies  on the  History  of East-West  Maritime  Trade , Tokyo, Kyukoshoin,  posthumously  1993  (original  publication  of the article  in 1945,  the gist of which  is translated  into English  and published  in Memoirs  of the Research  Department  of the  Toyo Bunko[The Oriental  Library]  30, 1972), drew  our attention  to the fact that in two Chinese  works  (Shilin yanyu ±²°!"# by Ye Mengde  ±²° , 1123–236  and Wenchang  zalu ±²°!"# by Pang  Yuanying  ±²° , c.1086)  there  are  records  of envoys sent  by a country  called  San-fo-qi  Zhu-nian  (±²°!" ), which  may  be taken  as the vassal  state  of the Cholas  in Kadaram.  Song  huiyao and other works  also  record  the arrival  of envoys  from the kingdom  called  San-fo-qi Zhan-bei  (±²°!" ), that  is, the kingdom  of Jambi.  As stated  in note  54

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

307

to the text,  San-fo-qi  seems  to have  been  a general  name  — whatever  its origin might  have  been  — given  by Chinese  to the kingdom  that was supposed  to be ruling  the area  of the Malacca  Strait,  and,  therefore,  they  had to specify,  whenever  necessary,  a particular  kingdom  by suffixing  something to it, like San-fo-qi  Zhu-nian  (Kadaram)  or San-fo-qi  Zhan-bei  (Jambi).  As the kingdom  of Kadaram  was  a dependency  of the Cholas,  Zhu-nian  was selected  for the suffix,  and  as the new  kingdom  was  established  in Jambi,  that kingdom  was  named  with the suffix  Zhan-bei.  The name  of San-fo-qi  Baolin-bang  (±²°!"# ), meaning  the  kingdom  of Palembang,  is also  seen in a diplomatic  document  in the Ryukyu  kingdom  (Kuwata  1993,  p. 259). The issues  concerning  the relationship  between  Zhu-nian  (Chola)  and San-fo-qi  (Srivijaya/Kadaram)  is discussed  in Noboru  Karashima,  “Indian Commercial  Activities  in Ancient  and M edieval  Southeast  Asia”,  in Contributions  of Tamil Culture  to the  Twenty  First Century:  Proceedings  of the Eighth  International  Conference-Seminar  of Tamil Studies,  Thanjavur,  1995, edited  by Karashima,  Annamalai,  and Rajaram  (Chennai,  2005)  (yet  to be released,  but the same  text  is found  in a booklet,  Plenary  Session  Papers , distributed  on the occasion  of the Conference).

6) The Kingdom  of Pugan in Songshi 109 Translated  with notes  by Noboru Karashima In the  fifth year  of the chongning (±² ) reign  period  (1106)  the kingdom  of Pu-gan  (±² ) sent  envoys  to offer  tribute.  The imperial  order  was  issued  to give  them  the same  treatment  in reception  as given  to the envoys  of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  (±² ). According  to the Department  of State  Affairs (±²° = Shangshusheng ), [however,]  [the  kingdom  of ] Zhu-nian  is subject  to [that  of] San-fo-qi  (±²° ), and therefore,  during  the xining(±² ) reign period  (1068–77),  the imperial  edict  [to it] was  written  on al arge  (plain)  silk backed  with white  paper  (±²° )110 and kept in an [ordinary]  box (± ) covered  with an [ordinary]  wrapping  cloth (± ). Now, Pu-gan  is a large kingdom,  and  [therefore,]  it cannot  be looked  down  as a kingdom  subject  to another.  It is desirable  to treat  it [in reception]  like Da-shi  (±² the Arab country),  Jiao-zhi  (±² the present-day  Vietnam)  and  other  [kingdoms].  All the imperial  edicts  should  be written  on a silk with flower  design  in gold  and backed  with white  paper,  be kept in a gilt box locked  with a silver  key (±²°! ),111be covered  with a brocade  wrapping  cloth  (±²°! ), and be sent  with the envoys.  This suggestion  [made  by the Department  of State Affairs]  was  adopted.

308

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

Notes 1.Important  Documents  of the Song  Dynasty.  This work is also  referred  to as Song  huiyao  jigao(±²°!" ). The edition  used  for translation  in this Appendix  is the annotated  version  by Xu Song  ±² titled  Song  huiyao  jigao ±²°!" , Beiping,  Guoli Beiping  tushuguan,  1936. 2.History  of the Song  [Dynasty].  The edition  used  for translation  in this Appendix is the version  titled  Songshi ±² , Beijing,  Zhonghua  shuju,  1977. 3.Records  of the Barbarous  People.  The edition  used  for translation  in this Appendix  is the annotated  version  by Yang Bowen  ±²° , titled  Zhufan  zhi jiaoshi±²°!" , Beijing,  Zhonghua  shuju,  1996. 4.Information  of what  is Beyond  the Passes.  The edition  used  for translation  in this Appendix  is the annotated  version  by Yang  Wuquan  ±²° , titled  Lingwai daida  jiaozhu ±²°!"# , Beijing,  Zhonghua  shuju,  2006. 5.Comprehensive  Examination  of Literature. 6.Usually  known  as the  twenty-four  Dynastic  Histories,  but with the addition  of the Xin Yuanshi (±²° ) or the New  History  of the  Yuan Dynasty in 1921,  the total  number  of Dynastic  Histories  is now twenty-five. 7.Superintendency  of Maritime  Trade. 8.Long Draft of the Continuation  of the Comprehensive  Mirror for the Aid in Government. 9.Ocean  of Jade. 10.Examination  and  Collection  of the Works of Mr Shantang. 11.The Chatters  of Stone  Forest. 12.Miscellany  Records  of Wenchang. 13.For example,  Songshi uses  ± (feng ) meaning  “to present”  in the description  of the ambassadors’  ascending  the audience  hall holding  a tray,  while  Wenxian tongkao employs  ± (peng ) meaning  “to hold with both hands”  in the same place.  Though  the two characters  are  closely  related  in meaning,  ± is better than  ± in this case. 14.D’Hervey  de Saint-Denys  translated  only the section  of the Barbarians  of Southeast  and Southwest  in the  section  of Examination  of the  Barbarians  in the Four Quarters  (±²° ) of Wenxian  tongkao . See  his Ethnographie  des  peuples étrangers  à la Chine.  Ouvrage  composé  au XIIIe siècle  de notre  ère  par Ma-touanlin traduit  pour  la première  fois  du chinois  avec  un commentaire  perpétuel (Geneva, 1883),  2 vols. 15.The English  translation  of the kingdom  of Zhu-nian  is included  in K.A. Nilakanta  Sastri,  Foreign  Notices  of South  India:  From  Megasthenes  to Ma Huan (Madras:  University  of Madras,  1939),  pp. 319–25. 16.Chau Ju-kua:  His work on the Chinese  and Arab Trade in the twelfth  and thirteenth  Centuries,  entitled  Chu-fan-chi , by Friedrich  Hirth and  W.W. Rockhill (New York 1966)  (first  published  in St. Petersburg  in 1911). 17.Almut Netolitzky,  Das Ling-wai  tai-da  von  Chou  Ch’ü-fei:  Eine Landeskunde Südchinas  aus  dem  12. Jahrhundert (Wiesbaden,  Franz  Steiner  Verlag),  1977.

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

309

18.Zhu-nian  is spelt  Chu-lien  in the Wade-Giles  system  and is pronounced  as Chu-ren  in Japanese. 19.The description  is found  in the fifth group  of the Foreign  Countries  (±²° ) of the Biography  and Memoirs  (±² ) section  in Songshi . 20.A li (± ) in Song-period  China  was  equivalent  to about  550 metres.  Wenxian tongkao (±²°! , afterwards  WXTK) states  the distance  from  the sea  as 5,000 li. 21.In the section  on the  Tian-zhu  (±² ) kingdom  in Songshi (±² ), “Tian-zhu” (±² ) is explained  as being  the same  as the kingdom  also  called  “Shen-du” (±² ) and “Yin-du”  (±² ). All three  are  names  for the Indian  subcontinent derived  from the River  Indus.  Following  previous  Chinese  records  on the Indian subcontinent,  the Songshi also  divides  Tian-zhu  into five  Tian-zhus (±²° ): Northern,  Western,  Middle, Eastern,  and Southern  Tian-zhu. Reflecting  this understanding,  Zhufan  zhi(±²° ) gives  Western  Tian-zhu  in this place.  On these  Chinese  names,  see  P. C. Bagchi,  “Ancient  Chinese  Names of India”,  Monumenta  Serica:  Journal  of Oriental  Studies  of the  Catholic  University of Peking 13 (1948):  366–75. 22.Considering  the  later  reference  to Xi-lan-chi  (±²° ) in the  text,  which  can  be identified  with Sri Lanka  or its Arabic  form “Sirandib”,  the character  luo(± ) should  read  xi (± ) or xi (± ). Alternately,  Luo-lan  (±² ) could  have  been  a mistake  for Wei-lan  (±² ), indicating  Elam,  the Tamil name  for Sri Lanka. Wei (± ) is easily  mistakable  for luo(± ). 23.Dun-tian  (±² ) has  been  identified  as  Tenasserim  in the  Malay  Peninsula.  But that may  be too far, based  on the distance  mentioned  in the text.  Tondai, an alternative  suggestion,  may  be too near.  Thus, the place  has  yet to be properly identified. 24.Archeological  excavations  in Thanjavur,  the capital  of king Rajaraja  I, have  so far f ailed  to locate  the p alace.  On the o ther  hand,  the p alace  site in Gangaikondacholapuram,  the  capital  of Rajendra  I, has  been  excavated  and two brick walls  surrounding  the palace  in rectangular  shape  have  been  recognized, though  the whole  structure  has  not yet been  clarified.  Pierre  Pichard,  et al., Vingt  ans  après  Tanjavur,  Gangaikondacholapuram , Vol. 1 (Paris:  Ecole  Francais d’Extreme-Orient,  1994). 25.In the  officialdom  of the  Song  dynasty,  shilang (±² ) was  the title given  to the officials  of ministerial  rank  3b ( ±² ). The four ministers  in this case  must have  been  the most  important  ones  among  them. 26.WXTKomits  the letter  for “more  than”. 27.Buluo(±² ) means  an area  settled  by the people  who have  some  blood  or religious  tie, and  in Songshi , this word is used  only for regions  outside  China. -du, the basic  In this case,  it seems  to have  meant  na production  unit lived  by . such  people  in the ancient  and medieval  Tamil country,  although  Hirth and Rockhill,  translators  of Zhufan  zhi,  take  it for the t ransliteration  of the Sanskrit  pura , meaning  town  or city. As Zhufan  zhi, the author  of which  may

310

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

not have  had access  to Song  huiyao (±²° ), gives  all these  names,  and as there  is no difference  between  the names  given  in Zhufan  zhiand those  in Songshi , except  for only  one  letter,  the  original  information  must  have  belonged to Zhufan  zhi. As Hirth and Rockhill  write,  there  is nothing  to indicate  how the long list o f characters  should  be d ivided,  where  one name  ends  and another  begins.  They seem  to have  followed  the  division  first made  in the text of Zhonghua  shuju  (±²°! ) edition,  which  shows  exactly  the  same  division, and we also  follow  the same  division  here.  At present  we have  no idea  how to identify  these  names,  but meng-qie-lan (±²° ), which  appears  four times, may be taken  to mean  mangalam , as Hirth and Rockhill  indicated.  The Japanese  pronunciation  of the character  ± (qie) is “ka, ga, or kya ”. WXTK omits  all the buluonames  by giving  only the number  of buluoin each  of the three  directions. 28.WXTKgives  the number  as 11, not 12, making  the  total  number  thirty-one  as stated  at the beginning. 29.The middle  character  ± (po) is for ± (suo ) in Zhufan  zhi. 30.It is not clear  what  was  meant  by ± , which  usually  means  steps  or staircase. 31.For zhangzhuan (±² ), WXTKuses  changzhuan (±² ) meaning  “tasters”  who examine  the food to be offered  to the Emperor. 32.WXTKgives  “three  days”  for “two  days”.jie 33.D’Hervey  de Saint-Denys,  who  translated  WXTK, as  well as  Hirth and  Rockhill, explain  the sentence  as members  of the boy’s  family  assembled  and  decided. 34.It seems  to be fine muslin  cloth  used  in West  Asia,  as yuenuo (±² ) is related to Persia  in medieval  Chinese  sources. 35.Xi-lan-chi  (±²° ) is perhaps  a transcription  of Sri Lanka  or its Arabic  form “Silandib”. 36.Ji-bei bu(±²° ) seems  to be cloth  made  of kapok . 37.It is not clear  what  is meant  by gan-luo (±² ). 38.Kun-lun  mei(±²° ) seems  to be a variety  of plum.  According  to a medieval work  on perfume,  Chen  Jin’s (±² ) Chenshi  xiangpu ±²°! , pieces  of this wood  are  used  to make  perfume. 39.It is not clear  what  is meant  by san-si (±² ). 40.It is not clear  what  is meant  by she-qi (±² ). 41.It is not clear  what  is meant  by li-qiu(±² ). 42.It is not clear  what  is meant  by chan-zi (±² ). 43.Shui-jiao (±² ) seems  to be Japanese  fibre  banana.  Lingwai  daidaexplains  the use  of its leaf. 44.Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° ) is taken  to be Rajaraja  (I), whose  reign  extended from 985 to 1014. 45.WXTKsplits  the  second  character  of this  name  Pu-shu  (±² ) into two characters: ru xin(±² ), and Songhuiyao splits  it into jia xin(±² ). 46.Panguan (±² ) indicates  the deputy  position  of officers  sent  to frontiers.  In this case,  if San-wen  was  in civil service  and Pushu  was  in military  service,

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

311

Weng-wu  would  have  been  the deputy  of San-wen  in civil service,  with Ya-lejia being  deputy  of Pu-shu  in military  service.  Anyway,  we may  be able  to treat him as the no. 3 of the mission, 47.Receiving  a letter  of prophecy  from the  Heavens,  the  Emperor  made  a ritual  for Heaven  at the  Tai mountain  (±² ) in the first  year  of the dazhong  xiangfu reign period  (1008),  and another  for Earth  by the side  of Fen river  (±² ) in the fourth  year  of the same  period  (that  is, 1010). 48.Jiyu(±² ), meaning  “auspicious  words”,  is given  as guyu (±² ), meaning  “old words”,  in WXTK. 49.One liang(± ) is equal  to about  40 grams. 50.One Jin (± ) is equal  to about  640 grams. 51.It is very  difficult  to identify  many  of the place  names  on the route  mentioned here.  If the embassy  traveled  straight  across  the Bengal  Bay,  Na-wu-dan  shan ( ±²° ) , Suo-li-xi-lan-shan  (±²°!" ) and Zhan-bin  guo (±²° ) may  be identified  with places  in the Andaman  and Nicobar  Islands,  and Yima-luo-li  shan  (±²°!" ) with a site at the northern  tip of Sumatra. However,  if the embassy  took the northern  course,  these  places  must  be identified  with those  on the Bengal  Bay coast,  including  Myanmar.  The identification  of some  places  have  been  suggested  in the past  studies  by Pelliot,  Hirth, Rockhill,  et al. but the most  detailed  discussion  on it is found in O.W. Wolters,  “Landfall  on the Palembang  Coast  in Medieval  Times”, Indonesia 20 (1975),  1–57. 52.Gu-luo (±² ) can be identified  with the present-day  Kedah,  known  as Kalah by Arab  traders  in the medieval  period.  The mountain  of the place  seen  from the offing  must  have  been  a landfall  for navigators. 53.Wolters  suggests  Cham  Pulau,  a small  island  off the  west  coast  of Lingga  Island. WXTKgives  gu(± ) for zhan(± ). 54.The name  San-fo-qi  (±²° ), which  appears  in Chinese  records  from the  10th century,  is applicable  to at least  three  kingdoms  which  ruled  in the Malacca Strait  region,  namely,  the kingdom  whose  headquarters  was  in Palembang  in Sumatra,  the kingdom  which  established  its power  in Jambi,  a little north  of th Palembang,  after  the middle  of the  11 century,  and the kingdom  in Kadaram (the  Kedah  area)  in the Malay  Peninsula.  San-fo-qi  in the text  seems  to refer  to Palembang.  In the early  Chinese  sources  the  kingdom  in Palembang  appears  as Shi-li-fo-shi  (±²°! ), which  was  identified  with Srivijaya  by G. Coedes. There  are many  problems  concerning  Srivijaya  and San-fo-qi  including  their relations  and state  structure.  Those  problems  have  been  discussed  by various scholars  in the past  including  O.W. Wolters  (“Studying  Srivijaya”,  Journal  of the Malaysian  Branch  of the  Royal  Academic  Society , LII-2, 1979)  and PierreYves  Manguin  (“Palembang  and Srivijaya:  An Early Malay Harbour-City Rediscovered”,  Journal  of the  Malaysian  Branch  of the  Royal  Academic  Society , LXVI-1, 1993). 55.Interpretation  of Manshan-shuikou  (±²°! ) is problematic.  Wolters

312

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

interprets  shuikou (±² ) as the water  flow of a river  coming  down  from the Palembang  area,  and Manshan  (±² ) as Menumbing  hills at the north-western tip of Bangka  Island.  See  W. Wolters,  “Landfall”,  p. 48 ff. 56.Tian-zhu  shan  (±²° ) is identified  as Pulan  Aur in the vicinity  of the  Tioman Islands,  off the coast  of Pahang.  See  Wolters,  “Landfall”. 57.Bin-tou-lang  shan  (±²°! ) has  been  identified  as Panduranga  on the  Cham coast  of southern  Vietnam  by Pelliot. See  Pelliot, “Textes  Chinois sur Panduranga”,  BEFEO, III-4 (1903),  p. 649. 58.Xiwangmu  (±²° ) is a legendary  nymph. 59.Pipazhou  (±²° ) is an anchorage  of the port of Guangzhou  (±² ). 60.Guangzhou  (±² ) is an important  port which  flourished  in southern  China along  with Quanzhou  (±² ) during  the  Song  and  Yuan period.  Later  Guangzhou was  also  called  Guangdong  (Canton). 61.1150 days  is too l ong for the journey  from t he C oromandel  Coast  to Guangzhou. 62.Gemen  zhihou(±²°! ) was  a title g iven  to low-rank  officers  in the military  service,  irrespective  of their  actual  work.  In the case  of Shiyouzhi (±²° ), however,  we may  consider  him to have  been  in the position  of a Audience  Usher  whose  rank  was  8b ( ±² ), though  there  were  many  gemen zhihou title holders  whose  actual  position  was  different  from that  of Audience Usher. 63.Qiu-ci (±² ) is Kucha,  an ancient  and medieval  oasis  state  in central  Asia, which  was  a tributary  state  of Song  China. 64.Chengtianjie (±²° ) was  the  birthday  (2 December)  of the  Emperor  Zhenzong (±² ). 65.Qisheng  Chanyuan  (±²°! ), the birth-place  of the father  of Emperor Zhenzong  (±² ), seems  to have  been  converted  later  into a Buddhist  monastery. 66.According  to a passage  in Chapter  85 of Xu zizhi tongjian  changbian (±²° ±²°! ), chronicles  of the Northern  Song  dynasty  compiled  by Li Tao (±² ) in 1174,  the envoy  Suo-li San-wen  (±²°! ) died  of an illness  at Rangyi  District  (± ±² ) and was  buried  there.  The Emperor  sent  an officer  to the place  to conduct  a ceremony. 67.Shi-li-luo-cha-yin-tuo-luo-zhu-luo  (±²°!" ±²± ) is identified  as Sri Rajendrachola  (I), whose  reign  extended  from 1012  to 1044. 68.WXTKomits  the name  and  title of the envoy. 69.WXTKomits  the name  and  title of the officer. 70.During  the Song  period,  names  of many  offices  and officers  which  had ceased to function  were  used  for ranks  or honorific  titles  to be given  to elite  officers. Vice-Commissioner  of the  West  Dyeing  Office,  which  dealt  with clothing  and ornaments  in the court  during  the Tang period,  is one such  example,  and Fu Wei Zhong’s  position  was  a gemen  tongshi  sheren (±²°!"# ) ranked  in 7b ( ±² ).

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

313

71.The institution  honglusi (±²° ), to which  he belonged,  was  in charge  of receiving  and entertaining  foreign  guests. 72.Zhu(± ) means  any  small,  ball-shaped  object,  including  pearls. 73.Jinzi guanglu  dafu(±²°!"# ) represents  the third rank  given  to officers in the civil service. 74.Though  Songshi describes  Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ) as the king of Zhu-nian, he was  actually  the  great  chief  (±²° ) of San-fo-qi  (±²° ). In past  studies, much  confused  discussion  has  been  made  on this alleged  Chola  king.  Please  see Note on Di-hua-jia-luo,  the alleged  Chola king. 75.It is not clear  what  sort  of small  ball ma-zhu (±² ) is. 76.Huanao (±² ) is the same  as longnao (±² ) which  is borneol. 77.It is not clear  what  was  meant  by jinhua(±² ). 78.Pingxiang (±² ) seems  to be a variety  of frankincense  (±² ). In a book on incense  (±²°! ) it appears  under  the head  of frankincense. 79.Jinlianhua (±²° ) usually  means  Asiatic  globeflower. 80.Muxiang (±² ) is Saussurea  lappa,  a grass  belonging  to the chrysanthemum group. 81.WXTKomits  the words  youcha (±² ), which  means  “differently  according  to rank”. 82.One min(± ) is composed  of 1,000  copper  coins  tied by a string  through  the central  hole  of each  coin. 83.The three  parts  are  found  in ±²° in Scroll  199 of Song  huiyao  jigao(±² ±²° ). 84.Songshi gives  this name  as Pu-shu  (±² ), and Wenxian  tongkao (±²°! ) as Pu-ru-xin  (±²° ). 85.See  footnote  46 in the Songshi translation. 86.Shantang  kaosuo (±² [±²°! ]±² ) is an encyclopedic  reference  book  on various  publications  and their  contents,  compiled  at the end of the twelfth century  by Zhang  Ruyu (±²° ) aliasShantang  (±² ). 87.Songshi gives  this  name  as  Luo-cha-luo-zha  (±²±° ), which  is more  congruent -jara - ja. with the pronunciation  of Ra 88.Shi-li-luo-cha-yin-tuo-luo-zhu-luo  (±²°!" ±²± ) is identified  as Sri Rajendrachola  (I), whose  reign  extended  from 1012  to 1044. 89.Songshi gives  the name  as Pu-ya-tuo-li  (±² ± ). 90.Songshi describes  Di-hua-jia-luo  (±²°! ) as the king of Zhu-nian,  and he was  also  described  as the great  chief  (±²° ) of San-fo-qi  (±²° ). Here in Song  huiyao , he is recorded  as fanwang (±² ) of the  Zhu-nian  kingdom.  From this discrepancy  much  confused  discussion  has  been  made  on this alleged  Chola king in the past  studies.  See  the separate  note,  5) Note on Di-hua-jia-luo,  the alleged  Chola king,  infra. 91.Neishi(±² ) was  a title given  to eunuchs  in the  palace  during  the  Song  period. 92.For place  names  in this paragraph,  see  notes  4 and 5 in the  Songshi translation

314

Noboru Karashima  and Tansen  Sen

in this Appendix.  In the  Songshi , the destination  in China  is given  as Guangzhou (±² ). 93.These  two sentences  in Zhufan  zhiare  taken  from Lingwai  daida(±²°! ). For Pu-gan  kingdom,  see,  5) Note on Di-hua-jia-luo,  the alleged  Chola king. 94.See  the note  24 in the Songshi translation. 95.See  notes  27–29  in the Songshi translation. 96.The middle  character  ± (suo ) is given  as ± (po) in Songshi . 97.See  the similar  passage  in the  Songshi . The differences  between  the two passages are  pointed  out in the notes  to the translation  of the Songshi . 98.Most of this passage  is taken  from Lingwai  daida . 99.This passage  also  appears  in the Lingwai  daida . 100.Hirth and Rockhill  translate  ji-bei  bu(±²° ) as “cotton  stuffs”.  See  note  36 in the translation  of the Songshi section  for an alternative  explanation. 101.For explanations  of these  products,  see  notes  37–43. 102.This passage  is taken  verbatim  from the  Lingwai  daida . 103.Hirth and  Rockhill  translate  Qisheng  yuan(±²° ) as “Sacred  Enclosure”.  See note  65 in the Songshi translation. 104.Lingwai  daidareports  that  the event  took place  in the sixth  lunar  month. 105.The diplomatic  interaction  between  the  Cholas  and Song  is recorded  in greater detail  in the Songshi . See  the translation  in this Appendix. 106.Gu-lin here  refers  to Kollam (Quilon)  in the present-day  Kerala  state  in southern  India.  Pu-gan  refers  to the Pagan  kingdom  in Myanmar,  for which  see, 5) Note on Di-hua-jia-lou,  the  alleged  Chola  king,  infra.  While  the  route  to the Chola kingdom  through  Pagan  is understandable  (although  a faster  route would  have  been  across  the Bay of Bengal  through  the Nicobar  Islands),  the mention  of a route  through  Quilon on the Malabar  coast  is puzzling.  Those sailing  from China to the southern  coast  of India would first reach  the Coromandel  coast  and then  proceed  to the Malabar  coast.  In the section  on Gu-lin, the author  mentions  that  Chinese  traders  going  to Da-shi  (±² ), indicating  the  Persian  Gulf, changed  to “small  boats”  (±² ) at Gu-lin. Another section  of the book states  that those  coming  from Da-shi  sailed  south  in “small  boats”  (±² ); after  reaching  Gu-lin they  changed  to “large  boats” (±² ) and p roceeded  east.  Based  on these  two n otices,  Yang Wuquan (±²° ), the annotator  of Lingwai  daida , argues  that  merchants  sailed  on large,  Chinese  ships,  to Gu-lin and  from  there  sailed  to various  places,  including the Coromandel  coast  on small  boats.  Other  than  the fact  that  there  may  not have  been  “large”  Chinese  ships  sailing  to south  Asia  at the time  when  Lingwai daidawas  composed  (see  Tansen  Sen  [2006]),  the argument  is unconvincing. Probably  the  author  meant  that  those  coming  from  the  west  would  have  to pass through  Gu-lin to reach  Zhu-nian. 107.Naozi(±² ) should  read  longnao (±² ), which  is borneol. 108.Jinü(±² ) also  indicated  prostitutes.  Here,  however,  the reference  seems  to be to female  servants  at the court.

Chinese  the Chola Kingdom  as Zhu-nian Texts Describing 

315

109.The description  is found  in the fifth group  of the Foreign  Countries  (±²° ) of the Biography  and Memoirs  (±² ) section  in Songshi . 110.±²° = (a big backing  paper)  seems  to be an error  for ±²°!" (a large  silk backed  with white  paper),  considering  the stipulation  of writing  orders  in Zhiguan  fenji(Sun Fengsi  ±²°! F, Songshi (±²°! section)  and  others. 110.For ±²°!" , Wenxian  tongkao (±²°! ) gives  ±²° ± ±²° , which is taken  here  as the phrase  that  is more  understandable.

INDEX

A

Alahana Parivana, 205 Alaungsithu, 198, 199 al-Maqdisi, 2 Alur, 88 Amaravati, xiii, 202 Amoghavajra, 65 Amritaghateshvara temple, 279 Ananda, 197, 200 Anantavarmadeva, 164 Anawrahta, 196, 197 Andaman Islands, xvi, 169, 311n51 Andhra Pradesh, 12, 13, 53t, 54, 141, 170 Angkor emergence, 3–4 Indian textiles in, 182, 185, 187, 188 relations with the Cholas, 7–8, 12, 183 temple layout, 205 Angkor Wat, 188 Aniruddha, 237 Anjuvannam merchant guild, 158–67 activities, 94, 149, 174 grouping of foreign merchants, xviii, 54, 136, 148 other guilds and, 51, 158 see also merchant guilds of South India An Lushan (±²° ) rebellion, 62

Aarayirappadi Guruparampara Prabhava, 118

Abbasid dynasty, 2 Abraham, Meera, xiv, 2, 67, 68, 135– 36, 166n3, 243 Abu-Lughod, Janet L., 64, 155n26 Abu Zaid, 66 Achyudha Vikrantha, 104 Aden, 2, 3, 23 Adittaraja, 204 Agastya, 214, 218, 220, 225 Aihole, 54, 136, 143 Ainurruva merchant guild, 135–57 inscriptions, 93, 183, 289 organization, 51, 174 origins, 54–55, 143, 151, 152 relation with Chola state, xviii, 80, 151, 181, 183 religion, 173–74 trade with Southeast Asia, 210 see also merchant guilds of South India Airavatesvara temple, 252 Airlangga, xvii, 166n8, 231, 232–37 Aiyer, K.V. Subrahmanya, 125, 128, 135 Aja’ib al-Hind, 79 Ajanta Caves, 184 Akkasalai temple, 173 317

318

Annaimangalam, 125 Annamalai, E., 20 Annapota Reddi, 50, 60n12 Anuradhapura art and architecture, 202 Buddhist links, 104, 105, 106 inscription, 88, 201 Sinhalese kingdom, 194, 195, 197 see also Polonnaruva; Sri Lanka Appar, Saint, xvii, 107–108 Arab traders, 160, 162, 165, 180, 242, 256, 311n52 Arabia, 23, 29, 40, 228, 307 Arabic language, xviii, 160, 165, 247, 256, 260f, 266n29, 267n37 archaeological excavations of Ancient Mataram, 236 at Gangaikondacholapuram, 96– 101 at Periyapattinam, 20–60 at Polonnaruva, 193–94, 201–205 in Southeast Asia, 208 in Tamil Nadu, 243 Archaeological Survey of India, 121, 172, 278 Archaeological Survey of Tamil Nadu, xvii architecture brahmanical influence, 186 Chola influence, xiii, 10 Nagapattinam pagoda, 109–18, 128–30 Pallava influence, xiii, 10, 112f Polonnaruva, 202 Quanzhou Siva temple, 245–69 temple construction, 108, 110 Arthashastra, 179 Arunachalam, B., 78, 80, 81, 82, 87, 88, 89n3, 93 Ashoka, 178 Ashokavardhana, 105–106 astronomy, 81, 82–83 Athipatta Nayanar, Saint, 120

Index

Aung Maung Htin, 194, 196, 198, 199, 200 Ayodhya, 202 Ayyanadikal Tiruvadi, 159 Ayyar, Venkatarama K.R., 135, 138 Ayyavole merchant guild community in Barus, 10 disappearance, 166 inscriptions, 93, 163 name, 181 organization, 51, 164–65, 174, 286 peak of activities, 12 relation with Cholas, xviii, 2, 9 see also merchant guilds of South India

B Babat, 233, 235 Baghdad, 2 Balaputra, 17 Balaputradeva, 67, 230, 232 Bali, 181, 184, 186, 227 Ban Gu (±² ), 243 Bana, 185 Banda Aceh, 288 Bangka Island, 228, 312n55 Bangka Straits, 228 Barrett Jones, A.M., 167 Barus Chola attack, 87 inscription, 10, 56, 143, 164, 183, 210, 225, 285–86 situation, 81, 212 batik, 186, 190 Bay of Bandon, 87 Bay of Bengal Chola dominance, 68, 80, 176 cultural exchange across, xiii navigation of, 80–81, 82–83, 87 rivalry in, 5, 6, 8 trade patterns, xviii, 12, 13, 180 Bayon, 188 Bell, H.C.P., 194, 203, 204, 205

Index

Bengal, 14, 100, 169 Bengawan Solo River, 235 Bhagadatta, 187 Bhaskara Ravi, 54, 149, 160, 163 Bhatari, 236 Bielenstein, Hans, 66 Bihar, 169, 230 Bode, Mabel, 104, 105, 107, 130n5 Bodhidharma, 105 Boechari, 232 Borobudur, 4 Brahma, 216 Brahmanism, 180, 184, 186 Brahmi script, 208 Brantas River, 234, 235 Brihadisvara temple, xvii, 78, 97, 184 British Library, 128 Buddhadutta, Thera, 104–105 Buddhaghosa, Thera, 104–105 Buddhamangalam, 104 Buddhism Buddha’s tooth relic, 129, 197, 204 in China, 266n28 iconography, 185 influence in Southeast Asia, xiii, 5 in international relations, 12, 73, 109–18 in Java, 233, 236 literature, 103–105, 109, 179, 185 Mahayana, 204 maritime trade and, 180 in South India, 103–109, 173–74, 194 in Sri Lanka, 193, 194, 195–96, 197, 199–200 in Srivijaya, 65, 67, 79, 229–30 Theravada, 104–105, 197–98, 200 Budi-Utomo, Bambang, 230, 231 Burma Indian textiles in, 185 merchant guilds in, 12, 54, 136, 138, 183, 286–87 navigation routes, 81

319

Pagan empire, 4, 69 place name identification, 194, 196, 311n51 relations with Sri Lanka, 197–200 war with Tamils, 196 see also Pagan Burrows, S.M., 194, 205

C Cakravartin, 233 Cambodia architecture, 204 ceramic finds in Java, 236 Indian influence, 184, 190 Khmer empire, 168 relations with Southeast Asia, 198, 200–201 relations with the Cholas, 12, 183, 184 see also Angkor Candi Singasari, 218 Canton (±² ), 9–10, 87, 118 Cefu Yuangui (±² ± ± ), 110 Central Asia, 227 ceramics archaeology, 20–60, 236 firing techniques, 29 history of trade, 21, 36 in South India, xvi, 13, 183–84 in Sri Lanka, xvi, 205 types found, 26, 29, 36, 40, 51 Ceylon see Sri Lanka Chaffee, John, 65 Chaiya, 4, 87 Chalukya dynasty, 76, 92, 96, 135, 150, 169 Champa, 3, 5, 7, 168, 184, 188, 229. see also Vietnam Champakalakshmi, R., 68, 135, 136, 138 Champassak, 271 Chandrabanu, 154, 201

320

Chao Kang, 62 Chappata, 200 Chappata Stupa, 202 Chekachai Khan, 251, 287 Chennai, 94, 98, 108, 163 Chera kingdoms, 76, 166n5, 169, 195, 286 Chidian village, 249 Chilka Lake, 13 China economic history, 62 importance of markets, 61–65, 175, 180 Indian textiles in, 180 maritime trade, xv, xix, 5, 9, 62–65, 117, 175 relations with Southeast Asia, 5, 6, 8, 9 relations with South India, 57, 176, 242–43 sailing routes, 87 South Indian artefacts in, xix, 13, 231 Chinchani, 161 Chinese language, 22, 244, 247, 250– 51, 295, 301 Chola empire art, xiii, xix, 10–11, 68, 176–77, 184–90, 208–26, 230 concept of kingship, 184 emblem, 209 emergence, 2, 3, 5, 56, 168, 169– 71, 174, 195 military organization, 88, 92–93 peak period, 230 relations with China, xv, 8, 9, 11, 68–74, 183–84 relations with Southeast Asia, xv, 12 taxation system, 85, 92 Chola invasions chronology, xvi, 61, 68 countries affected, xviii, 3, 9, 76, 169–70

Index

historical context, xiii–xv, 1–19, 68 reasons for, xiv, xvi, 61, 68–72, 79– 80, 171–72, 175, 211 Tanjavur inscription, 1, 77–78, 85, 87 Chola navy ensign, 84 logistics and provisioning, 84–86 navigational expertise, xvi, 80–81, 83–84, 91 strength, 88–89 types of vessels, xvii, 77, 83, 93, 94, 179 Chola-Srivijaya relations Chinese misperception of, 68–69, 72 Chola attacks, 68, 70, 79–80, 230 Nagapattinam in, 6, 121–28, 172– 73, 181–82, 211, 230 trade matters, 61, 70–74, 79, 88, 243 Cholamandala, 12, 178 Christian traders, 54, 136, 158–60, 162, 165, 242–43 Christie, J. Wisseman, 10, 166n8, 290n10 Chudamanivarman, 67 Chulamanivarman, 125–26, 128, 172, 176, 273, 275 Chulamanivarma Vihara, 126, 273, 275 Chulias, 14 Chulin, 71 Clark, Hugh R., 73 Cochin, xx, 160 Coedès, George on Airlangga, 237 on art and architecture, 202 on Buddhist history, 194, 198, 200 place name identification, 78, 171, 201, 230, 311n54 on Srivijayan history, 229, 232 colandia, 83, 179

Index

Coomaraswamy, Ananda, 204, 251 Coromandel Coast ceramic finds, xvi, 22, 47 Chola conquest, 3, 178 Kublai Khan’s envoys to, 242 name, 178 textiles, 182, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190 trade restrictions on, 175 trading communities, xviii, 80, 163, 172 vessel types, 94 cotton trade, 179. See also textiles trade Cudamani Vihara, 6, 79, 181, 230, 282 Cultural Revolution, 249

D Da Nang, 188 Da-ba-dan (±²° ), 21–22 Dahana Pura, 235, 236 Dai-Viet (±² ), 3 Damais, L., 232 Dambulla, 106 dance, 184, 190 Dandabhukti, 76 Daoyi Zhilue (±²°! ), 21–22, 38 Darasuram, 252, 253, 261 Davids, Rhys T.W., 104 De Casparis, J.G., 234, 235, 236, 237 Deccan Plateau, 76 Deccan Sultanate, 13 Delhi Sultanate, 13, 14 Description of Barbarian Peoples, 241 see also Zhufan zhi (±²° ) Devanika, 284 Devapala, 67, 132 Devaraya I, 162 Devare, H., xviii, 178–92 Dewapaladewa, 230 Dhammapala, Acharya, 104–107, 130n5

321

Dhammasoka Maharaja Vihara, 105– 106 Dharanindravarman, 67 Dharmadam, 22 Dharmakirti, 198 Dharmawangsa Teguh, 229, 232 Dieng Plateau, xix, 214 Dikshit, G.S., 135 Ding Yuling (±²° ), 263n1 Dravidian language, 180 Drawidas, 10 Durga, 214, 215, 217, 220 Dvaravati kingdom, 190

E East Africa, 14 East Java, xix Egypt, 188 see also Fatimid dynasty elephants, 198–99, 296 Elliot, Sir Walter, 116f, 128–29 Eran Sadaiyan, 124 European traders, 57–58, 74, 135, 256 F Fatimid dynasty, xv, 2, 5 Faxian (±² ), 86, 90n31, 180, 229 Fa-Yu (±² ), 229 Filliozat, Jean, 80 Five Dynasties period (±² ), 62 Forbes, J., 193 Formosa, 176 Fujian (±² ), 29, 31f, 32f, 63, 182, 242, 266n31, 267n36 Funan (±² ), 87 Fustat, 188 Fuzhou (±² ), 242, 259, 266n31 G Gal Vihara, 203 Gama, Vasco da, 153 Ganapati, 13, 47 Gandha Vamsa, 104, 105, 107

322

Ganesa, 214, 215, 217, 219, 221, 225 Gangaikondacholapuram, xvi, xvii, 40, 45f, 96–101, 125, 169, 309n24 Ganges, 9, 76, 96, 170, 171 Ganguly, O.C., 218 Garasakan, 235, 236 Garuda, 186, 218 Genghis Khan, 241–42 Gerini, G.E., 80 Glass Palace Chronicle, 196 Gopinatha Rao, T.A., 158, 161, 166nn1–3 Gopurappatti, 218 Grantha script, 183, 210 Gresik, 236 Guangdong (±² ), 29, 100 Guangzhou (±² ) in China-Southeast Asia relations, 8, 65, 70, 71, 229 inscriptions, 72, 244, 305 in maritime trade, 63, 293, 312n60 sailing to, 295, 299 Song dynasty outpost, 242 Guanyin (±² ), 249 Guilin (±² ), 293–94 Guillot, Claude, 291n12 Gujarat, 2, 108, 149, 182, 189 Gulf of Mannar, 91, 164, 174 Gulf of Siam, 3, 7, 87 Gundert, H., 158, 160¢B Guntur, 47 Gunung Tua, 11 Gupta dynasty, 104, 215, 225 Guy, John, 243

H Haji Wengker, 233 Haji Wurawari, 232, 233 Hall, Kenneth R., 67, 68, 70, 135, 138, 211, 230 Han dynasty, 62, 180 Hanuman, 244, 266n28 Hardy, E., 105

Index

Hariharan, S., 218 Haripunjaya, 204 Harshacharitra, 185 Hartwell, Robert, 63, 64, 66 Hasin, 233 Heitzman, James, 68 He-luo-dan (±²° ), 16n21, 180 Hervey de Saint-Denys, Marquis d’, 294–95, 308n14, 310n33 Hinduism clothing and, 188 iconography, 185–86, 190 influence on Southeast Asia, xiii, 5, 180 mythology, 154n8, 184, 186, 190 in Nagapattinam, 107–34, 174 in Quanzhou, 176, 240–69 in Sri Lanka, 193 Hirth, Friedrich, 295, 311n51 Hocart, A.M., 203 Hoole, Elijah, 129 Hsuen Tsang (±² ), 106, 108–109, 131n10, 131n16, 194, 266n28 Huang Chao (±² ), 63 huiyao ( ±² ), 293 Huizong (±² ), 69 Hujung Galuh, 235 Hultzsch, Eugen, 78, 158, 171, 210, 285

I Ibn Battuta, 38, 163, 242, 265n16 Ibn Khurdadhbih, 66 Ievers, R.W., 193 ikat textiles, 186, 189 Ilamuridesam, 87, 170, 212, 230, 280 Ilankasokam, 174, 212, 230, 280 India maritime trade and, 3, 179–80, 227 relations with China, xiv, 117, 242 relations with Southeast Asia, xiii–xiv, 1, 5, 6, 176–77, 179–80, 228 in Xuanzang’s travels, 194

Index

Indian Ocean trade system arrival of Europeans, xiii, 135 China’s influence, xv, 62–65, 72– 74, 117 commodities, 55, 169, 180 early period, 209, 227, 243 inscriptional evidence, 47 language spoken, 183 major powers, xv, 3, 168 role of Cholas, xviii, 12, 67–72 role of Islam, 13–14 role of Srivijaya, 67–72 Roman period, 135, 179 routes, 76, 174, 243 scholarship on, 135 structure and organization, xviii, 73, 168–69 see also merchant guilds of South India Indonesia Anjuvannam merchant guild, 165 Brahmanism in, 186 Chola expansionism and, xviii, 76, 243 Hinduism and Buddhism in, 229 South Indian cultural links, 208–26 South Indian inscriptions, xiii, 136, 164, 288–89 textiles, 186, 189 Indra, 184 Indraditya, 203 Indrapala, K., 91, 94n1, 135, 138 inscriptions Aihole, 143 Andhra Pradesh, 149–50 Anuradhapura, 88, 201 Ashoka, 178 Baligami, 149 Baru, 233, 234 Barus, 10, 56, 143, 164, 183, 210, 225, 285–86 Bedkihal, 142, 145 Belur, 140

323

Brumbun, 235 Budumuttawa, 138 Cane, 233, 234, 236 Champassak, 271, 284 Chera, 158–61, 163 Chidambaram, 283 content, 92, 137–41 Devanagala, 199 distribution, 53, 136–37, 231 Drujugurit, 235 Esalam, 78, 127 Galle, 266n29 Gandhakuti, 235 Guangzhou, 11, 71, 244, 305 Hujung Langit, 232 Kaikini, 162 Kakurugan, 233, 234 Kalyani, 128, 129 Kamalagyan, 234, 235 Kambang Putih, 235, 236 Kamudi, 142 Kannada, 92, 139, 152, 161, 162, 165 Karandai, 278 Katemas, 235 Kerala, 54, 149 Kochi plates, 54, 149 Kollam plates, 54 Konerirajapuram, 137 Kota Kapur, 232 Kottayam plates, 54, 149, 160 Kovilpatti, 55, 139, 140, 150 Krishnapattinam, 93 Kurugodu, 149 Kusambyan, 235 languages, 241, 244, 247, 250, 266n29 Lawan, 235 Lemahbang, 235 Ligor A, 229 Mayilappur, 163 Motupalli, 12–13, 49f, 50f, 154n15 Munggut, 235

324

Munisandai, 138 Nagapattinam, 121–25, 172–73, 271, 275–78 Nakhon Si Thammarat, 12, 183 Nalanda, 229–30, 232 Neusu Aceh, 271, 288–89 Northern Konkan, 161 Pagan, 12, 54, 55f, 138, 225, 286– 87 Pallava, 121 Pamwatan, 235, 236 Pandan, 235 Pasar Legi, 235 Patakan, 236 Perumber, 280 Piranmalai, 55, 139, 148, 150 Polonnaruva, 155n24 Pucak Wangi, 235 Pucangan, 233, 234, 235 Puttur, 68 Quanzhou (±² ), 13, 57, 250, 287–88 Rengel, 235 Samuttirapatti, 138 Sarkar Periyapalaiyam, 139, 140, 145, 148 scholarship on, 135–36 Sdok Kak Thom, 7 Sendang Gede, 235 Silet, 234 Sirkazhi, 92 Sugio, 235 Sumber Sari I and II, 235 Takuapa, 210, 284 Tanjavur, 1, 77–78, 85, 87 Tanjore, 160, 169, 183, 229, 230 Terdal, 149 Terep, 233, 235 Thiruvarur, 121 Tirukkadaiyur, 271, 279–80 Tiruvalangadu, 68, 290n1 Tiruvidandai, 98 Tittandatanapuram, 148, 150

Index

Turunhyang A., 235, 236 types, 138 Viharehinna, 54, 138–39, 144, 148 Vishakapatnam, 150, 163–64 Vo-Canh, 80 Wat Khlong Thom, 283 Islam, 13, 189 see also Muslim trade Isthmus of Kra, 4, 7, 12, 170, 183 Italian language, 247 Iyer, K.V. Subrahmanya, 125, 128, 135

J Jainism, 154 Jakarta National Museum, 57, 210, 219, 221, 285 Jambi, xix, 12, 87, 213, 306, 311n54 Janggala, 235 Japan, 21 Java art and architecture, 214 He-luo-dan (±²° ), 16n21 Indian cultural influence, 184, 186 Indian textiles in, 183, 186–87, 188, 189, 190 relations with Srivijaya, 228–29, 231–32, 234, 237 sailing to, 81 statuary, 182 Taruma Nagara, 180 trading communities, xviii, 165, 181 see also Airlangga; Mataram Java Sea, xviii, 8 Javanese language, 232 Javanese script, 223 Jayabahu, 197 Jayakumar, P., 121, 124 Jayamkondan, 170 Jayawarman VII, 200 Jeeyar, Pinbazhagiya Perumal, 118 Jesuits, 129 Jewish traders, 54, 136, 158, 160–62 Jinjiang county (±²° ), 241, 249

Index

Jiu Tang Shu (±²°

325

), 110

Johore, 170 Jombang, 233, 235, 236 Joseph Rabban, 54, 149, 160 Jurchens, 63

K Kadaram identification as Kedah, 87, 171, 172, 209, 212 inscriptions, 125, 271 Kulottunga and, 11, 12 Rajendra’s attack, 96, 170, 175, 230, 231, 272, 279–80, 305 Sailendra dynasty, 79, 127 Srivijayan capital, 9, 11, 173 trade, 174, 181 Kadiyalur Uruthirangkannanar, 103 Kahuripan, 234, 235 Kaiyuan Temple, 244, 245–69 Kakadvepa, 198 Kakatiya dynasty, 13, 47, 60n12, 152 Kakawin Arjunawiwaha, 234 Kalabhra dynasty, 104 Kalahasti, 184 kalam, xvii, 93 Kalamkari, 184, 190 Kali, 249 Kalinga, 9, 100, 180–81, 193, 201 Kalingattupparani, 97, 170 Kallanai, 169 Kambang Putih, 235, 236 Kambar, 97 Kamboja, 183, 271, 278, 283 see also Angkor; Cambodia Kanchipuram, 104–105, 106, 109, 185, 200 Kannada language, 92, 139, 152, 161, 162, 165, 181 Kapad, 153 Karashima, Noboru on Anjuvannam merchant guild, 162

on Chinese ceramics, xvi, 20–60, 100 edition of historical texts, xv, xx, 271–315 on merchant guild inscriptions, xvii– xviii, 135–57, 208, 210, 223 on Song shi, 72 Karikala, 103 Karikalan, 169 Karnataka Chola empire, 170 cotton production, 181 inscriptions, xviii, 88, 138, 139, 141–43, 150–52 merchant guild activities, 51, 53t, 54, 149 seat of Chalukya dynasty, 135 Karonasvamin temple, 275, 276, 277 Kasinathan, Natana, 130n1 Kasyapa, 198 Kataha, 172, 273, 274 see also Kadaram; Kedah kattu-maran, 83 Kaveri delta, 171, 174, 231, 240 Kaveripattinam, 179 Kavirippompattinam, 103–105, 107– 108, 111f, 130, 136, 174 Kayal, xvi, 23, 174 Kayarohanaswamin temple, 110, 115f, 118, 121 Kedah historical names for, 68, 87, 124, 172, 209, 305, 311n52 inscriptions, 124–25 strategic location, 87, 228 Kedah Peak, 87 Keezchembi Nadu, 124 Kei Island, 227 Kerala Chola invasion, 9, 170 merchant guild activities, 94, 140, 150, 154n7, 161–63, 286 merchant guild inscriptions, 53, 54, 136, 141, 149

326

name for places of worship, 166n6 place name identification, 22 Khitans, 63 Khlong Thom District, 283 Khmer Empire, 168, 187, 196, 201, 237 see also Angkor; Cambodia Khuan Luk Pat, 183, 208–209, 210 Khum Luk Pat, 283 Kidaram, 87, 172, 275, 276, 277 see also Kadaram; Kedah Kil-Chembinadu, 173 Kilvelur, 103 Kiri Vehera, 202, 203 Klings, 10, 14, 181, 187 Kodiakarai, 82 Kodumbalur, 161, 217 Kollam, 54, 149, 159, 160, 163, 314n106 Kollama, xvi, 29, 36f, 37f, 40 Kondavidu, 60 Konkan coast, 163, 165 Korea, 21 Kosala, 76 Kota Cina, 11 Kottapatnam, 51, 52f Kottayam, 149, 159, 160 Kozhikode, 163 Krian, 233 Krian Sidoarjo, 235 Krishna, 259 Krishnan, K.G., 211, 278, 290n1 Krishnapattinam, 93, 163 Ksatria Mahapurusa, 233 Kshatriyasikamani-valanadu, 121, 126, 274–75, 277, 278 Kublai Khan, xvii, 110, 242, 287 Kucha (±² ), 69, 312n63 Kudu, 235 Kulke, Hermann, xv, 1–19, 72 Kulottunga I inscriptions, 11, 71, 173, 280–82, 283, 285, 305

Index

reign, 11, 98, 125, 127, 243 relations with China, 183 relations with Srivijaya, 11–12, 67, 71, 72 temple grants, 176, 211, 212, 244, 280–82 Kulottunga III, 123 Kumara Gupta I, 104 Kunnattur, 29, 35f Kurakkeni-Kollam, 159, 163 Kuwata, Rokuro, 306 Kyanzittha, 12, 196, 197

L Lakshwadeep archipelago, 76, 169 Lampung, 232 Langkasuka, 187, 194, 230, 280 Laos, 3, 284 Lapian, A.B., 228 Latin language, 247 Le May, Reginald, 203, 204 Lee, Risha, xix–xx, 240–70 Leiden plates larger, 6, 125–27, 172–73, 230, 265n26, 272–75 smaller, 12, 125, 127–28, 129, 176, 280–82, 306 Leiden University Museum, 125 Li Yibiao (±²° ), 117 Liang Wudi (±²° ), 105 Liangshu (±² ), 187 lighthouses, 82 Ligor, 4, 87, 197 Lingwai daida (±²°! ), 29, 292– 95, 304–305, 314n93 Loboe Toewa fragment, 176, 285–86. see also Lobu Tua Lobu Tua, 212, 285 Lokateikpan temple, 185 Lopburi, 201 M Ma Duanlin (±²°

), 110, 293

Index

Maabar, 57 Maclean, C.D., 94 Madamalingam, 170, 212, 230 Madhurantaka, 125 Madras, 94 Madurai, 104, 105, 179 Madurai District, 29, 47, 171 Madurai Government Museum, 29, 47 Madurai Sultanate, 13 Magadhi language, 200 Magha, 193, 201 Mahabharata, 179, 190 Mahabrahmana, 233, 236 Mahalingam, T.V., 162 Mahaprajnaparamita, 118 Maharashtra, 53t Mahavamsa, 193, 196, 198, 199 Mahaveli River, 194 Mahendravarman Pallava, 107 Mahinda, 195 Mahipala, 169, 231 Mahishasuramardini, 214, 220, 225 Mairudingam, 170 Majapahit empire, 187 Majumdar, R.C., xvi, 68, 126, 231 Malabar Coast Anjuvannam merchant guild, 136 ceramic finds, xvi Chola expansionism, 76 importance to Cholas, 2, 3 Kublai Khan’s envoys to, 242 trading communities, xviii, 54 Malacca, 14 Malacca Strait see Straits of Malacca Malaiyur, 174, 280 Malay Archipelago, 211, 212 Malay language, 11, 232 Malay Peninsula Buddhism in, 197–98, 202 Chandrabanu invasion of Sri Lanka, 154n7

327

merchant guild inscriptions, 137 place name identification, 171, 309n23 sailing routes and ports, 87, 174 Srivijayan control of, 7, 9, 11 subjugation by Angkor, 3–4, 7 Tamil expeditions to, xvi, 150, 180 see also Chola invasions; Srivijaya Malaysia, 76, 124, 125, 180, 209 Maldives Chola conquest, 3, 6, 9, 76, 169, 170 identification in sources, 91, 94n1 Tamil expeditions to, xvi Maloney, Clarence, 94n1 Mamallapuram, 108, 110, 118, 174 Manakkavaram, 78, 86, 87, 170, 212 Manatunga, A., xix, 193–207 Manguin, Pierre-Yves, 311n54 Manigramam merchant guild, 158–67 inscriptions, 137, 149, 181, 284, 290n8 in Isthmus of Kra, 10, 225 organization, 51, 54, 150, 174, 181 peak of activities, 12 relations with Chola state, xviii, 2, 9 scholarship on, 135–36 see also merchant guilds of South India Manikapatnam, 13 Manorathapurani, 105 Mantai, 40, 150, 164 Mao Zedong (±²° ), 267 Mapappalam, 170, 174, 212 Mara Vijayottungavarman, 125, 127, 172 marakkalam , xv, 93, 94 Marakkanam, 174 Marathi-Sanskrit, 165 Marco Polo, 23, 47, 110, 128, 182, 242, 243 maritime trade. See Indian Ocean trade system

328

Ma’sudi, 4 Masulipattinam, 182 Mataram, 4, 8, 229, 232, 234 Mathura, 109, 131n16 Mayirudingan, 174, 212 Mazu (±² ), 247 Mebon, 205 Medan, 87 Mediterranean Sea, 62, 64, 77, 174, 179, 227 Meenakshisundararajan, A., xviii, 168– 77 Melthondrip Pattinam, 124 Menon, A.G., 230 Merbok River, 87 merchant guilds of South India competition among, 244 effect on Srivijayan trade, 70 ethno-cultural heterogeneity, 244–45 Europeans and, 58 inscriptions, 10, 47, 50, 51, 53, 54, 93–94 maritime trade system and, xviii organization, 51, 54–55, 136, 138, 144–49 protection, 139, 147, 174 role in Chola power, xiv, xvii, 2, 174, 231, 243–44 scholarship on, 135–36 in Southeast Asia, 80 Zheng He and, 58 Meru, Mount, 185–86, 204, 273 Midnapur, 76 Milinda Panho, 103 Minangkabau, 190 Minayeff, Professor, 107 Ming dynasty, 14, 36, 74, 180, 241, 245, 266n29, n34 Minochant Pagoda, 197 Minshinsaw, 199 Modelski, George, 64 Modi, J.J., 161 Mojokerto, 233, 235, 236

Index

Moluccas, 4 Mongolia, 241 Monier-Williams, 194 Mookerji, Radha Kumud, 82 Motupalli, 12, 47, 51, 60n12 Mpu Kanwa, 234 Mumbai, 161 Muslim trade in Chinese markets, 64–65, 243 influence on Cholas, 2 merchant guilds and, 54, 136, 146, 160, 162, 165–66 Muvar Ula, 97 Muziris, 174 Myanmar see Burma Mysore, 151

N Naga, 186 Nagai, see Nagapattinam Naganatha temple, 118 Nagapattinam, 102–34 archaeological finds, 103 centre of Chola power, xvii, 82, 179 Chinese artefacts in, 13, 109–18, 244 emergence as port, 107–109 historical sources on, xvii, 102–34 identification from sources, 103, 105 textile trade, 182–83 trading communities, xviii, 162 see also Leiden plates Nagaswamy, R., 163, 287 Nakhon Pathon, 205 Nakhon Si Thammarat, 12, 197, 202– 203, 210 Nakhon Si Thammarat Museum, 284 Nalanda, 17, 67, 105, 126, 132n39, 229–30 Nanadesi merchant guild activities, 174–75, 181 inscriptions, 12, 50, 136 meaning of term, 51, 148, 149, 286, 289

Index

see also merchant guilds of South

India Nandhivarman II Pallavamalla, 118, 119 Nandhivarman III, 119, 210, 225 Narasimhavarman Pallava I, 108 Narasimhavarman Pallava II, xvii, 109–18, 119, 128, 265n27 Narathu, 199–200 Narayanan, M.G., 166n5 Nellore, 51, 93, 163 Netolitzky, Almut, 295 Netti-pakarana attakatha, 105 Ngimbang, 235 Nicholas, C.W., 195 Nicobar Islands Chola invasions, 1, 169, 231 place name identification, 78, 170, 311n51 port of call, 81, 86, 314n106 Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. on Barus inscription, 56, 285 on Chinese sources, 110 on Chola art, 217 on Chola ensign, 84 on Chola invasions, xiv, 1, 61, 68, 80, 171, 195, 290n1 on Chola-Srivijaya relations, xvi on Magha of Kalinga, 201 on place names, 78, 91 on the Sinhalese, 196 on South Indian trade, 79 Nissankamalla, 193, 200, 201, 202, 204, 205 Niyogi, Puspa, 67 Northern Song dynasty (±²° ), 312n66 Nusa Tenggara, 227

O Oc Eo, 87 Odra-visaya, see Orissa Onang Kiu, 71

329

Orissa, 3, 13, 76, 100, 154n7, 169 Ottakkoothar, 170 overland trade routes, 63, 73 see also Silk Road

P

padavu, 94

Pagan architecture, 4, 185, 202 relations with China, 11, 69 relations with Chola state, 12 relations with Sri Lanka, 196, 198 role in trade with China, 4 South Indian merchants in, 12, 54 see also Burma Pahang, 312n56 Palaiya-Kayal, 29 Palembang, 12, 66, 81, 87, 181, 212, 311n54 Pali, 103–4, 105, 193 Palk Strait, 91 Pallava dynasty Bodhidharma, 105 contribution to Chola power, 68 cultural influence, xiii, 10, 112f, 184, 210, 225 maritime trade under, 209 Nagapattinam and, 107–18 Pallava Grantha inscriptions, xiii, 232 Pallavavankka, 198 palli , 166n6 Panaimalai, 109 Pandalayini-Kollam, xvi, 38, 39f, 163 Pandarattar, T.V. Sadasiva, 162 Pandukabhaya, 194 Pandya dynasty defeat by Delhi Sultanate, 152 inscriptions, 284 Maabar, 57 maritime trade under, 23, 80 Polonnaruva and, 201 port of Periyapattinam, 23 wars with Cholas, 84, 96, 98, 169, 195

330

Pang Yuanying (±²° ), 306 Panikkar, K.M., 231 Pannai, 87, 170, 174, 230, 280 Panthagu, Sangaraja, 199–200 Papanchasudani, 105 paradesi merchant guild, 148 Parakesari-Varman Rajendra-Chola I, 169 Parakramabahu, 93, 193, 198, 199, 200, 202 Paranavitana, Senarath, 197, 198, 199, 201, 202 Parantaka Chola I, 121 Parsees, 161, 162, 165 Parvati Devi, 201 Pasai, 164, 166n7 Patani, 87 Pathmanathan, S., 136 Pattinak Kootram, 121, 126 Pattinappalai, 103, 171–72, 179, 209 pearl trade, 174 Pelliot, Paul, 311n51, 312n57 Penang, 87, 170 Penanggungan, Mount, 235 Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, 178–79 Periyapattinam, xvi, 21–23, 174, 290 Periyapuram, 97 Persia, 77, 228 Persian Gulf, 2, 14, 23, 63, 68, 176 Persian language, 183, 247, 266n29, 267n37 Persian traders, 160, 165, 242, 256 Perum patan touchstone, 208 Phetchaburi province, 185 Phra Kru Athon Sangarakit Museum, 283 Phra Tat, 202 Polonnaruva, 193–207 archaeological evidence, 193–94, 201–205 architectural influence, 202–203 capital of Sri Lanka, 193, 195 Chola control, xix, 9, 174

Index

seat of Sinhalese dynasty, 154n7 see also Sri Lanka Pompuhar, 183 Porunararuppadai, 179 Potalaka mountains, 109 Pothgul Vehera, 204, 205 Prambanan, xix, 4, 216, 218 Pranarai Hill, 184 Pre Rup, 205 Prematilleke, P.L., 194, 203, 205 Provincial Museum of Nanggroe Aceh, 288 Ptolemy, 80, 103, 179 Pu-gan, 292, 302, 304, 306, 307 Pujavaliya, 197 Purananuru, 171 Pu Shougeng (±²° ), 242, 264n10 Pu Sindok, 234

Q Qianlong (±² ), 110 Qing dynasty (±² ), 266n34 Qingyuan (±² ), 247 Quanzhou (±² ), 240–69 foreign traders in, xix, 57, 65, 241, 242 multicultural nature, 247, 251, 256, 262–63 role in maritime trade, xx, 63, 243, 293, 312n60 sailing to, 302 Siva temple in, 240–41, 244–69, 287–88 South Indian artefacts in, xix, 13, 57, 176 Tamil-speaking community in, 240, 256 Quanzhou Maritime Museum (±² ±²°!"#$% ), 245, 247, 253, 263n1 Quilon, xvi, 29, 175, 314n106 see also Kollama

Index

R Radha, 76 Rahula, 200, 203 Raja Iskandar, 71 Raja Shulan, 71 Raja Vihara, 105 Rajadhiraja I, 68, 98, 122t, 151 Rajadhiraja II, 123t Rajamanickanar, M., 119 Rajaraja art and architecture, 110, 184, 230 expansionism, 3, 68, 79, 91, 96, 169, 174, 231 inscriptions, 121, 122, 169 Leiden grants, 6, 12, 125–28, 172– 73, 212 maritime trade under, 77, 181, 183, 231 Polonnaruva and, 193, 195 relations with Chinese, 8, 151 relations with Southeast Asia, 210 Rajaraja II, 123 Rajaraja III, 13 Rajaram, S., 20 Rajasimha, xvii, 109–18, 119, 128 Rajasuriyar, G.K., 84 Rajendra I capital, xvi culture under, 230 expansionism, 1, 3, 68, 79, 91, 96, 169, 174, 231 invasion of Srivijaya, 1–2, 61–75 maritime trade under, 77 other inscriptions, 68, 121–27, 173–75, 278–79 prasasti inscription, xiii, 1, 77–78, 93, 170, 211, 279–80 relations with China, 40, 84, 100 relations with Khmers, 183 relations with Southeast Asia, 210 relations with Srivijaya, 6, 8, 121– 24 see also Chola invasions

331

Rajendra II, 122 Rajendra III, 243 Ramachandran, T.N., 131n13 Ramanathapuram, 124 Ramantali, 161 Ramayana, 184, 186, 190, 218, 244 Ramesh, K.V., 2, 161, 162 Ramesvaram, 21 Ramnad coast, 163, 173 Rankoth Vehera, 202, 203 Rashtrakuta dynasty, 3, 68, 161 Rawlinson, H.G., 231 Record of the Buddhist Religion , 109 Record of the Kaiyuan Temple , 245 Red Sea, 2, 14, 72 Reinaud, J.T., 66 rice cultivation, 169 Rockefeller, Mr and Mrs John D., 173 Rockhill, W.W., 295, 311n51 Rohanadheera, Mendis, 201 Roman trade, 135, 179, 183 Rouffaer, G.P., 227–28

S Sadasiva, 7 Saddarma Jotipaha, 200 Sailendra dynasty kings, 172, 229, 230 Nagapattinam temple donations, 6, 79, 126, 128, 181 Nalanda monastery, 17n27, 132n39 relations with Cholas, 121, 125, 127 see also Srivijaya Sailendrawangsatilaka Sri Wirawairimathana, 230 Saivism, 108, 120, 130, 184, 233, 236 see also Hinduism; Siva Sajjanalaya, 202 Sakhuja, Sangeeta, xvi, 76–90 Sakhuja, Vijay, xvi, 76–90 Samanta, 183 Sambandar, Saint Thirugnana, 107– 108

332

Index

Sambeng, 235 San-fo-qi ( ), 7, 36, 172, 229, 305–307, 311n54 Sangam Age, xvii, xix, 103, 104, 171 Sangama Vijayottungavarman, 279 sangara, 83 Sangrama Visaiyottunga varman, 211– 12 Sanskrit language names, 86, 87, 223 in Southeast Asia, 184, 210 texts, xv, 86, 118, 186, 287 words, 125, 180, 181, 309n27 Sapir Iso, Maruvan, 159–60 Saratha Pakshini, 185 Sarkar, H.B., 165 Sasanavamsa , 107 Sathmahal Prasada, 204, 205 Satyasraya, 169 Schafer, Edward H., 63 sculpture Chola influence, 183, 184, 213, 217, 225 evidence for clothing styles, 187, 188, 190 Gupta or post-Gupta influence, 215, 225 influence of Indian textiles, 182 localization of styles, 10–11, 225– 26 in Nagapattinam, 124–25 Pallava influence, 210, 225, 284 Polonnaruva influence, 203 Quanzhou Indic style, 13, 176, 240–69 Sedyawati, Edi, 236 Seevali, 200 Sejarah Melayu, 71 Sekilar, 97 Sen, Tansen on Chola conquests, xiv, xvi, 2, 61– 75 on Chola trade, 243

±²

edition of historical sources, xv, xx, 267n38 on multilingual inscriptions, 266n29 on Quanzhou Siva temple, 265n17 on Srivijayan diplomacy, 8, 11 on Tang dynasty economy, 62, 63 on Vajrabodhi’s voyage, 65 Seshadri, G., xvii, 102–34 Sethuraman, N., 108 Settur, 47 Sevuna dynasty, 152 Shanmugam, P., xvii, xix, 136, 208– 26, 209, 210

Shantang xiansheng qunshu kaosuo

±² !"#$% ±² ±² ±² !

( ), 294, 300, 313n86 Shenzong ( ), 304 Shi Yuanxian ( ), 266 Shilin yanyu ( ), 294, 306 ships, xvii, 77, 83, 93, 94, 179, 314n106 see also Chola navy Shwezigon Pagoda, 197 Siku Quanshu ( ), 110 Silapadikaram, 179, 180 Silappatikaram , 284 Silk Road, xiii, 9, 63, 174, 179, 227 Simhalam, see Sri Lanka Sing Buri, 201 Singapore, xiv, 72 Sinhala language, 94n1 Sinhalese dynasty, 76, 154, 193, 195, 201 Sircar, D.C., 161, 162, 166n4 Sirisena, W.M., 196–97, 199, 200, 202, 203, 205 Siva in concepts of kingship, 131n26, 184, 190 depictions of, 112f, 124, 215–18 in Hindu pantheon, 131n26, 154n9 in inscriptions, 287, 288

±² !

Index

333

shrines, 131n23, 216 temples, 45f, 96, 128, 139, 140, 172, 216 see also under Quanzhou Sivakaivalya, 7 Sjafei, Soewadji, 227 Soemadio, Bambang, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, 233 Sogetu, 242 Somavamsa, 3 Song dynasty ( ) artefacts in Sri Lanka, 205 diplomatic relations, 65–67 emergence, xv, 2, 5, 168 Fujian bridges, 267n36 historical sources, xiv, 6, 11, 69, 72, 110, 183, 229, 232, 292 maritime trade, 3, 63–65, 241, 243 official hierarchy, 309n25 relations with Cholas, 56, 67–74 relations with Srivijaya, 68–74 tribute system, 63–64 Song huiyao ( ), 292–93, 300– 301, 310n27 Songshi ( ), 70, 72, 151, 180, 292–95, 305–307, 310n27 South China Sea, xviii South India art and architecture, 97, 186, 202 Chinese artefacts in, 13, 20–60, 109–18, 124, 183–84, 243 Chola expansionism in, 2, 6 dietary habits in, 85, 86 historical evidence, 91, 103 influence on Southeast Asia, xiii, 10–11, 180–92 relations with China, 57, 176, 243 textiles, 178–92 Zheng He’s ( ) expeditions, 14 see also Coromandel Coast; Malabar Coast Southeast Asia Chinese artefacts in, 21

±²

±² ±²

±²

Chola invasions, 68 early contacts with India, 208 foreign traders in, 63, 165 Indian textiles in, 178–92 influence of India, xiii merchant guild inscriptions, 53 Southeast Maluku, 227 Southern Song dynasty ( ), 247, 259 Spencer, George W., xiv, 2, 65, 70, 71, 78, 79, 1712 spice trade, xix, 4, 8, 55, 62, 182, 227 Sri Cudamaniwarmadewa, 229 Sri Gopa, 201 Sri Lanka Buddhism, 104–107, 118, 129 Chinese artefacts in, 40, 205 Chola retreat, 152 cultural links with Southeast Asia, xix, 4 identification in Chinese sources, 309n22 merchant guild activity, 53, 54, 136, 138, 141, 144, 154n7, 231 relations with Burma, 196–200 relations with Cambodia, 201 Tamil expeditions to, xiv vessel types, 94 Zheng He’s ( ) expeditions, 14 see also Anuradhapura; Chola invasions; Polonnaruva Sri Maravijayottungavarman, 6, 229, 230 Sri Ranganatha Temple, 119 Sri Sanggramawijayottungawarman, 230 Sri Tri Buana, 72 Sri Udayadityawarman, 229 Sri Wirawaraimathana, 232 Sribuza, 228 Srimara Vijayatunga Varman, 79 Srinivasanallur, 161 Srirangam, 119

±²

±²

334

Srisuchat, Tharapong, 210 Srivastava Balram, 84 Srivijaya commodities, 228 control of Malay Peninsula, 3–4 emergence, 227 inscriptions, 228 Mataram and, 4, 5 military strength, 4, 231 monopoly on sandalwood, 7, 66 name, 194, 201 peak of prosperity, 228 position in Malay world, 4 relations with China, 5, 8, 10, 11, 66, 228, 229, 231 strategic location, 65–66 taxes and levies, xiv, 79, 175 trade, 2, 64, 65–67, 181, 194, 211, 231 see also Chola invasions; CholaSrivijaya relations Sriwijaya, see Srivijaya Sthanu Ravi, 54, 149, 159 Straits of Malacca importance to trade, 227–28 Isthmus of Kra as alternative to, 7 navigation through, 81, 83, 86–87 San-fo-qi and, 307 Srivijaya’s control of, xv, 3, 10, 66, 80, 227, 228, 231 Tamil merchants in, 10 stupa construction, 186, 202–203 Subbarayalu, Y. on Chola navy, xvi–xvii, 91–95 edition of historical texts, xv, xx, 10, 57, 288, 291n12 on merchant guilds, xviii, 136, 158–67, 212 Subramanian, T.N., 138, 162, 287 Sukhothai, 188, 203 Sulawesi, 189 Sumatra Chola-influenced sculpture, 11

Index

Chola invasion, 1, 9, 76, 78, 169, 170 inscriptions in or concerning, xvii, 10, 56, 164, 183 place name identification, 171, 311n51 sailing to, 81, 83, 86 seat of Srivijayan kingdom, xiii strategic location, 227 textiles, 186 see also Srivijaya Sun Wukong ( ), 266n28 Sunda Archipelago, 81 Sunda Straits, 3, 66, 80, 81, 83, 86, 90n31, 228 Sundara Chola, 217 Sundara Maha Devi, 197 Sundarar, Saint, 108, 119–21 Sunga dynasty, 185 Surabaya, 4, 233, 234 Surya, 219 Suryavarman I, 7, 182, 183, 237 Suryavarman II, 12, 182, 185 Susanti, N., xix, 227–39 Suvarnabhumi, 171, 179 Suvarnadwipa, xx, 171, 232 Syriac language, 247 Syrian Christians, 158–60, 165

±²

T Takkolam, 174, 212, 280 Takola, 180 Takuapa, 10, 87, 137, 175, 183, 184, 210, 284 Talakkadu, 161 Tamil language, 22, 162, 183, 208, 221, 230, 247, 250 Tamil Nadu Buddhist links, 104, 119 Chola rule, 135, 169, 170 cotton production, 181 merchant guild activities, 51, 54, 136, 149, 150, 154n7, 161, 162

Index

335

merchant guild inscriptions, 53t, 138, 141, 151 relations with Southeast Asia, xix sculptural styles and motifs, 124– 25, 185, 240, 251–52, 259–62 temple motifs, 185 Tamil traders cultural influence, 212–13 Muslim, 14 nautical expertise, xvi, 80–81, 89n3 in Quanzhou, 240–69 relations with Chola court, 70, 243 settlements in Southeast Asia, 10, 181, 231 status in foreign countries, 251 Tan Yeok Seong ( ), 12, 71, 305 Tanah Genting Kra, 228 Tang dynasty ( ), 5, 62, 66, 245, 266n31, 312n70 Tangasseri, 36, 37f Tanguts, 63 Tanjavur Chola capital, 56, 96, 125, 169, 178, 309n24 fabrics, 179 inscription, 1, 77–78, 85, 87 merchant guild activities, 164 paintings, 184 Tanjore, 160, 179, 183, 184, 195, 229, 230 Taruma Nagara, 180, 232 Telugu, 14 Telugu language, 14, 47, 49f, 163, 164 Tenasserim, 309n23 textiles trade, 178–92 diplomacy and, 182, 189 importance, xviii, 55, 175 literary references, 179 patterns and motifs, 182, 185–86, 188 prestige in Southeast Asia, 185, 186–87 ritual use, 189–90 techniques, 182, 185

±² ±²

Thailand architectural styles, 202–205 ceramics from, 51, 52f Chola expansionism, 3 Indian artefacts in, 183, 208–209 Indian influence in, 184, 186 Indian textiles in, 180, 185, 186, 188, 190 local idiom in art, 225–26 merchant guild inscriptions, 136, 231, 283 Thambaratta, 197 Thana District, 161 Thanjavur, see Tanjavur Thanjavur District, 92, 275, 276, 277, 279 Thaton, 196 Theravada Buddhism, see Buddhism Thetkyamuni temple, 185 Thevaram, 107 Thirumangai Azhvar, Saint, 118 Thirunavukkarasar, Saint, xvii, 107– 108 Thiruthondar Thogai, 121 Thiruvarur, 121 Thompson, William R., 64 Thuparama, 203 Tianhou gong temple ( ), 247 Timor, 81 Tioman Islands, 312n56 Tiruchchirrambalamudaiyar temple, 283 Tiruchirapalli, 169 Tiruvilimilalai, 253 Tisai-Ayirattainnurruvar, 176 Tittandatanapuram, 148, 150, 163 Tobing, Binsar D.L., 232 toni, 94 Topputorrai, 82 Torajas, 189 Tra Kieu, 188 Trang, 87 Trenckner, V., 104

±² !

336

Index

Trincomalee, xix, 174, 194, 195–96, 198 Tuban, 233, 235, 236 Tuotuo ( ), 293 Turkestan, 227 Twitchett, Denis C., 62

±±

U

Ula, 170

Uma Mahesvara, 214, 215 Uraiyur, 104, 161, 179 Uttam Chola, 84 Uttarajiva, 200

V Vageeshvara, 198 Vaishnavism, 184 see also Hinduism; Vishnu Vajrabodhi, 65, 117 valenjiyar merchant guild, 174 Valentyn, F., 128 Vanjoor, 103 Vansattappakasini, 194 Vasanthi, S., xvii, 96–101 Vedaranyam, 82 Velgam Vehera, 196 Venga, 76 Venkayya, V., 158, 160 Venkiah, 78 Viengsra, 183 Vietnam ceramics from, 51, 52f Champa empire, 168 Indian influence, 184 inscriptions, 80 place name identification, 312n57 relations with China, 11, 64, 307 sailing routes, 80 sculpture in, 188, 225–26 Vijayabahu I, 193, 196–97 Vijayabahu II, 200 Vijayalaya, 178

Vijayanagar dynasty, 152, 161, 162, 184, 265n21 Vikramabahu, 197 Vikramaditya VI, 151 Vira Raghava, 54, 149, 160 Virachola-valanadu, 140 Virarajendra, 123t, 151, 176, 280, 305 Vishakhapatnam, 163, 164 Vishakhapattanam, 12, 150 Vishnu in concepts of kingship, 184, 190, 233 depictions of, 186, 225, 247, 253, 284 devotional songs, 118, 287 names, 108 temples and shrines, 54, 216, 286, 287 Vishnu Dharmottarapurana, 186 Vyadhapura, 201

W Wade, Geoffrey, xx Wagoner, Phil, 251, 267n39 Wang Bangwei ( ), 65 Wang Dayuan ( ), 182, 242, 244 Wang Lianmo ( ), 263n1 Wang Xuance ( ), 117 Wat Boromadhatu, 12 Wat Cang Lom, 202 Wat Kukut, 204 Wat Maha Tat, 203 Wat Pa Deng, 205 Wat Phra Pathon, 205 Wat Phra Singh Luang, 202 Wat Phra Sri, 202 Wat Phra Tat Haripunchai, 205 Wat Sri Jum, 203 Wat Yai Suvannaram, 185 Wenchang zalu ( ), 294, 306 Wenxian tongkao ( ), 8, 110, 292, 294, 305, 315n110

±² ±² ±² ±²

±² ! ±² !

Index

337

West Bengal, 169 Wheatley, Paul, 78 Wibisono, H., 236 Wickremasinghe, D.M.De Z., 200, 201, 204 Wolters, O.W. on Chola raids, 61, 230 place name identification, 311n51, n53, n55 on Srivijaya, 10, 65, 66, 227, 228, 311n54 Wu Wenliang ( ), 247 Wuratan, 233 Wwatan Mas, 234

±²

X Xiamen University Museum ( ), 249 Xiyouji ( ), 109 Xuanzang ( ), 106, 108–109, 131n10, 131n16, 194, 266n28 Xu Zizhitongjian changbian ( ), 294

±² ±² ±² ±²

±² ! ±² !

Y Yang Tingbi ( ), 13, 242, 265n15, 265n17

±²

±²

Yang Wuquan ( ), 314n106 Yavabhumi, 232 Yavadwipa, 180 Ye Mengde ( ), 306 Yijing ( ), 65, 106, 109, 228, 229 Yingzong ( ), 110 Yogyakarta, 4, 189 Yu, David, 267n38 Yuan dynasty ( ), xix, 28f, 57, 74, 241–43, 263, 268n45, 292 Yuan Shi ( ), 57, 242, 265n15 Yuhai ( ), 294 Yule, Henry, 103 Yu Ying-shih ( ), 62

±² ±² ±²

±² ±² ±² ±²

Z Zhang Ruyu ( ), 313n86 Zhao Rugua ( ), 182, 241, 293–94 Zheng He ( ), 14, 57–58, 153 Zhenzong ( ), 312n64, n65 Zhou Daguan, 187 Zhou Qufei ( ), 293–94 Zhufan zhi ( ), xiv, 2, 292–95, 301–304, 309n21, 310n27 Zhu-nian ( ), 292–315 see also Chola empire Zvelebil, Kamil V., 103

±² ±² ±² ±² ±² ±² ±²