History of the Pallavas of Kanchi c16.70

c16.70

The seal bears the usual Pallava symbol the seated bull facing the left. The language is partly in Sanskrit verse and prose and the rest Tamil and the script Pallava-Grantha. The Sanskrit portion opens with benedictory verses of which the first two are addressed to Śiva. Then follows a mythical genealogy from Brahma to Pallava after whom are mentioned Mahēndravarman, his son Narasimhavarman, who is stated to have repeatedly defeated the Cholas, the Kēralas, the Kalabhras and the Pāṇḍyas, and who vanquished Pulakēsin in the battles of Pariyaḷa, Maṇimaṅgala, and Śūramāra and destroyed his capital Vātāpi. Of Paramēśvaravarman himself is given a long description of military exploits which mentions that he made Vikramāditya whose army consisted of several lakshas take to flight covered only by a rag. The object of the Kūram grant is a gift of the village of Paramēśvaramaṅgalam made to the temple of Śiva which had been built at Kūram by Vidyāvinīta-Pallava. The village was evidently named after the king himself and divided into twenty-five parts of which three were to be enjoyed by two Brahmans Anantaśivāchārya and Pullaśarman who looked after the divine service of the temple. The fourth part was set aside for the cost of providing water and fire for the temple maṇḍapa, the fifth for the reading of the Bhārata at this place while the remaining twenty parts were given to twenty Chaturvēdins. Kūram is mentioned as belonging to Manyavāntararāshṭra of Nirveḷur, a division of Uṛukāṭṭukkōṭṭam. The village of Paramēśvaramangalam belonged to Panmā-Nāḍu Patmamānyāvāntararāshṭra, a sub-division of Manavīrkoṭṭam.