Early Tamil Epigraphy: From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. c23.s12.t3.3

c23.s12.t3.3

The earliest epigraphic evidence for the construction of temples and monasteries in brick and mortar is found in the Pulankurichi inscription of King Cēntaṉ Kūṟṟaṉ (ca. 500 A.D.).¹ There is now a general consensus that he was a Kalabhra ruler as the name Kūṟṟaṉ does not occur in the Pāṇḍya dynasty, and as there is clear Kannada influence on the language of the inscription (e.g. *avaru*, *ūru*, *aruḷḷittār*, etc). The inscription relates to the administrative arrangements made for three places of worship, two of them Hindu (*dēvakulam*) and the other Jaina (*tāpata-p-paḷḷi* which was located in Madurai). The inscription provides evidence that the Kalabhras, acting in the tradition of the rulers of the land, did not discriminate between the Hindu and Jaina places of worship.