History of the Pallavas of Kanchi c5.17.4

c5.17.4

This precarious condition of the Pallava power, as in the case of all other Indian imperial powers, brought about a dismemberment, which began usually with an independence of the provinces constituting the empire more or less definite, and this dismemberment is what is in evidence in our having a certain number of rulers in the Pallava territory, each issuing inscriptions, almost on his own authority simultaneously, when the power of the Choḷas, newly come into existence under Vijayālaya, advanced northwards under his successor Āditya, and put an end to the crumbling empire of the Pallavas and annexed the whole of their territory to their own dominions, thus introducing a new overlordship, which was symbolized by the name Jayamkoṇḍacholamaṇḍalam given to the Pallava terrritory which till then was known Toṇḍamaṇḍalam. The existence therefore of several Pallava princes marks nothing more than a mere stage in the dismemberment of the kingdom or empire, and need not be regarded as the establishment of a separate dynasty of rulers distinct from the one who held rule from Kanchi. That seems the general trend of Pallava History, which Mr. Gopalan’s work indicates. The purpose of this introduction is merely to supply a few gaps in the narrative, and thus to provide the few links required for the continuous story of the rise, growth, and the dissolution of the power of the Pallavas of Kanchi.