A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar c11.61

c11.61

Between the kingdom of the Vishnukundins in the north and that of the Pallavas in the south there rose, early in the sixth century, a small kingdom ruled by kings of the Ānanda gōtra. The first of the line was Kandara who gave his daughter in marriage to a Pallava prince and who, after sharp battles with the Vishnukundins on the banks of the Krishna, wrested from them the title ‘Lord of Trikūtaparvata’. His kingdom was nevertheless small, probably comprising no more than the modern taluks of Guntur and Tenali. Other kings of the line were Dāmodaravarman, whose father performed many sacrifices, Attivarman and Kandara's grandson whose name is not known but who has left at Chezarla a stone inscription which may be assigned to the last quarter of the sixth century. The capital of the kingdom, Kandarapura, is mentioned in inscriptions and must have been founded by king Kandara. The kings of this house were generally Śaivites, though Dāmodaravarman was a Buddhist; and whatever their own predilections may have been they patronized all sects impartially.