Studies in Cola History and Administration c14.78

c14.78

It is thus clear that, saving some uncertain services in Veṅgi and Orissa, the chief claim of Naralōkavīra to recognition at his king's hands lay in his expedition into the Pāṇḍya country and the subjugation of the rebellious Vēṇād. It is instructive to compare the position of Karuṇākara Toṇḍaimāṉ in the Kaliṅga campaign with that of Naralōkavīra in the subjugation of the south, and though no special eulogy like the Kaliṅgattup-paraṇi was evoked by his achievement, * still we can see from the length and eloquence of the two inscriptions in Cidambaram and Tiruvadi and from the extent and variety of his charitable endowments and constructions (which we proceed next to consider in detail), that he must have occupied a prominent place in the Cōḷa court and held a rank not much below that of the conqueror of Kaliṅgam. The manner in which he is mentioned in the Vikramaśōḻan-ulā among those who followed Vikrama in his ulā seems to confirm this.