The Colas c24.44

c24.44

An inscription from Vēdāraṇyam⁷⁶ states that in the twenty-fifth year of Rājarāja III, a.d. 1241, Singaṇa Daṇḍanāyaka invaded that part of the Cōḷa country, that the inroad led to the cessation of worship in a temple, and that some time later, the temple had to be reconsecrated at a cost of 50,000 *kāśus*. A duplicate inscription from Pudukkottah,⁷⁷ dated in a.d. 1245, mentions the capture some years before of Kāna-nāḍu on behalf of Vīra Sōmēśvara by his *daṇḍanāyaka* Ravi-dēva. We have thus sufficient evidence to show that after Rājēndra came on the field, there was a change in the part played by the Hoysalas. When the Cōḷas showed signs of recovery under the energetic leadership of Rājēndra and the Pāṇḍyas were, in their turn, somewhat weakening, the Hoysalas lent their support without any hesitation to the Pāṇḍyas, as against the Cōḷas. The trend of Hoysala diplomacy is plain. It was to keep the balance even between the Pāṇḍya and Cōḷa powers, to encourage both to look to the Hoysalas for assistance in times of need and thus to secure for themselves a dominant place in the state-system of the south. Evidently, Rājēndra was compelled to give up all claims to supremacy over the Pāṇḍyas after a period of three years, marked by some hard fighting in different areas. We have as yet no clear knowledge of the details.⁷⁸