South India and her Muhammadan Invaders c13.s1.47

c13.s1.47

The explanation of the break in the coinage of the Sultans of Madura.—What actually did take place in the same period on the southern frontier is not equally clear; but a record at Tirukaḷākkuḍi referring itself to the thirty-first year of a Māravarman Vīra Pāṇḍya, which gives details of date to equate it satisfactorily, refers to the conquest of the Muhammadans in the south by Kumāra Kampana, the son of the third of the five brothers, Bukka. This record states ‘the times were Tulukkan (Muhammadan) times; the *dēvadāna* (gifts to gods) lands of the gods were taxed with *kuḍimai* (dues of cultivation); the temple worship, however, had to be conducted without any reduction; the *uḷavu* or cultivation of the temple lands was done by turns by the tenants of the village; at this juncture Kampana Uḍaiyār came on his southern campaigns, destroying Tulukkans, established a stable administration throughout the country and appointed many chiefs (Nāyakkanmār) for inspection and supervision in order that the worship in all temples might be revived regularly as of old.’¹ The date of this record from the astronomical details given has been equated with A.D. 1358 (Friday, September 7). If by 1358 all this had been done by Kumāra Kampana—and there is no particular reason to doubt the record—then the invasion by Kampana of the south must have taken place somewhat earlier. Does this not offer the explanation of the break in the coinage of the Sultans of Madura? If it does, it means the Vijayanagar invasions had taken place during this period, and either the Madura Sultan Nasiru-d-din himself (or his successor) had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Hindus and the rule of the Muhammadans had been put an end to, at least temporarily. Its revival about this time, A.D. 1355-56, in Madura must be a comparatively faint effort, and when even the nominal rule in Madura was put an end to sometime in A.D. 1375-6, the time had arrived for the Vijayanagar ruler Harihara II to announce himself formally to the world as the ‘Emperor of the South’.