Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c10.s4.44

v1.c10.s4.44

We gather that there was a tax called sōmaśūlavari, in Saka 1452 (A.D. 1530-1), from the fact that the lands of the temple of Jambunātha of Jambai were exempted from it on the representation of Vaiyappa Nāyaka Aiyyan, during the rule of Vēlūru Bommu Nāyaka.³ Under Achyuta Rāya there was a tax called durga-daṇāyani-vartana. This is made out from the remission of 235 varāhas in Saka 1452 (A.D. 1530) by Rāyasam Ayyaparusugāru, son of Rāyasam Koṇḍamarusayya, from seven villages belonging to the Bhairavēśvara temple at Mompūru, when he was in charge of the fortress of Ghaṇḍikōṭa.⁴ Carpenters in A.D. 1544 had to pay a tax.⁵ Jōḍi and bēḍige are mentioned in A.D. 1545 as having been current in the various parts of Male-nāḍu.¹ The Tammalas and others of Muḍiyyam gave as a gift in Śaka 1473 (A.D. 1551-2) the tax called vira-musṭi-pannu to the Sōmēśvara temple of Raṇāṭasīman, in Ghaṇḍikōṭa-rājya.² It seems that there was no tax on shepherds in certain parts of the Vijayanagara Empire. Thus a śāsana granted by Kṛṣṇappa Nāyaka's Agent Dammappa Nāyaka to the Bili Kurubaru in A.D. 1554 affirms: "In our Biliehēḍ country, for the kurubaru (shepherds) in the Benasāyar villages there is no sheep tax".³ Some of the items which came under taxes and dues in A.D. 1563, under Sadāśiva Rāya, were the following: tribute, quit rent, alms, watchman's dues, loss, injustice, miscellaneous tolls for the council and account, remission and such other imposts.⁴ The dues mentioned in A.D. 1565-6 were the aḍḍagaḍa-suṅkam (the tax levied on the sellers of sheep and similar things?), kaḷnālu, (presents?), suṅkam from the bharilas (residents?) of the sthala, and the mūle-viśālbaḍi (i.e., the original tax levied proportionately upon the profits of traders).⁵