Age of the Nandas and Mauryas c11.s38.35

c11.s38.35

Much discussion has taken place on the name Satiyaputa; it is now generally recognised that the ending -puta signifies membership of a tribe as demonstrated by Lüders. Satiya (which occurs as sātiya in Khālsi) must be sanskritized into satya-truth, though the formation satiya or sātiya must be held to be unusual. And the only tribe known to early Tamil literature, and answering to this description—‘members of the fraternity of truth’—are the Kōśar who were well known for their unswerving fidelity to the plighted word in assemblies and halls of justice, as well as for their heroism in war¹. The land of Koṅgu, modern Salem and Coimbatore districts roughly, is said to have been their home, and in the early centuries A. D. they seem to have overrun the Tuḷu country on the West coast. After the three well-known Tamil kingdoms, Pāṇḍya, Chōḷa and Chera (Kēraḷa), the tribe of the Kōśar may be said to occupy a considerable place in the literature of the Saṅgam period, and it seems highly probable that they should find a place in the earliest enumeration of the political divisions of the Tamil country. It has been suggested that Satyamangalam in the Coimbatore district, the home of a subdivision of the Bṛhat-caraṇa sect of the Brāhmaṇas of South India, has something to do with this name Satiyaputra²; there is little direct evidence in support of the view, and it is difficult to trace the antiquity of Satyamangalam or the sub-sect which bears its name to such remote times; but we know of several instances from the mediaeval period of Brahmin clans and groups distinguished for the very qualities of excellence in council-room and on the field of battle for which the Kōśar were celebrated, and there is no intrinsic improbability in the suggestion that Brahmins maintained this tradition continuously from the days of Bhīshma and Drōṇa of legendary fame. The Satputes among modern Marathas may have been emigrants to Mahārāṣṭra from the South³.