The Colas c29.27

c29.27

A record of 1215 from Nārttāmalai, Pudukkottah,⁶⁰ relates to a *kuḍi-nīngā-dēvar dānam*, created by the *nagaram*, who sold some land to two merchants. The terms of this sale show how complex, and yet, how equitable to all parties concerned, the regulation of land rights could be. For all the dues to be paid to the king on account of this land, *ulaguḍai nāyanar tiruvāsalāl vanda iṟai kuḍimaiyum maṟṟum eppēṟpaṭṭanavum*, the *nagaram* held themselves responsible even after the sale. The two persons to whom the land was sold in equal shares had to give to the temple 30 *kalams* of paddy each in any year in which the yield of the whole land was normal; in lean years, they had to remit 2½ *kalams* on each *mā* of land actually cropped (*viḷaiñja nilattukku*). The land was declared to be in the last grade (*taram*), and was assessed as such for all time. Clearly here the rights of the temple were confined to the *mēlvāram* at a rate fixed beforehand, the tenants keeping the balance of the yield and not having to pay the taxes due to the central government, as these were paid by the *nagaram*.