Southern Kingdoms: Pandyas

Pandya Empire

• The Pandya Kingdom, or Madurai Pandyas, was a medieval Tamil kingdom in South India. It was a prehistoric Tamil nation in present-day South India. 
• The Pandyas were one of three ancient Tamil kingdoms that ruled the Tamil nation from prehistoric times till the end of the 15th century.
• They initially ruled from Korkai, a seaport on the southernmost tip of the Indian peninsula, before relocating to Madurai.

Important Rulers

• Nedunjeliyan I (180 CE)
  • His name appears in Silappadikaram.
  • He lived around the same period as Chera king Senguttuvan.
• Nedunjeliyan II (210 CE)
  • He destroyed a Chola and Chera confederacy near Tiruvarur and seized the majority of Tamil territory.
  • Maduraikkanci explains his deeds in great detail.
• Kadungon (590–620 CE)
  • Also known as  ‘Pandyadhiraja’.
  • He is well known for ending the Kalabhra tyranny and ushering in a new era for the Tamil-speaking region.
• Maravarman Avani Culamani (620–640 CE)
  • He acquired the title Maravarman.
  • A classic Pandyan inscription honors Avani Sulamani, asserting that he became the sole proprietor of the earth and wedded the goddess of wealth.
• Varagunavarman II (862-880 CE)
  • He was a contemporary of the renowned Saivite saint and writer Manickavasagar, who penned the influential work Thiruvasagam.
• Maravarman Rajasimha III (900-920 CE)
  • The last Pandya king.
  • He battled the Chola ruler of Thanjavur at Kodumbalur and pillaged the Chera capital of Vanchi in Kongu Nadu.
  • Following a string of defeats, he escaped to Ceylon but was turned away for asylum. Having some Chera ancestry, he moved to Kerala and lived a modest life there for the remainder of his days.

Administration

• The Pandyas’ territory, also referred to as Pandymandalam, Thenmandalam, or Pandianadu, is situated in rugged, mountainous terrain and mountain ranges, with the exception of parts that get riverine flow. Vaigai and Tamiraparani
• The region known as Pandy Mandalam or Pandy Nadu was split up into numerous valanadus, which were then further separated into numerous kurrams and nadus (meaning groups of villages).
• Brahmin towns called Mangalam or Chaturvedi Mangalam, with irrigation systems, were founded by monarchs and regional heads.
• Both royal and god names were given to these villages.
• Official Titles
  • The Prime Minister – Uttaramantri.
  • The name of the royal secretariat was Eluttu Mandapam.
  • The titles of the military leaders were Palli Velan, Parantakan Pallivelan, Maran Adittan, and Tennavan Tamizhavel.

Socio-Political Life 

• The Tirumaligai and Manaparanan Tirumaligai were the royal palaces and the chiefs of the area designated royal couches used during the Pandya era proving the validity of the kings’ overlordship.
• The political distribution of land was as follows:
  • Brahmins were given land in Salabogam.
  • The land allotted to ironsmiths was known as Tattarkani.
  • The area belonging to the Carpenters was called Taccu-maniyam.
  • The land provided to the Brahmin community for educational reasons was known as Bhattavriutti.
• According to a scholar Wassaff, trading horses was rather widespread during this time. Other commodities that were traded included birds, perfumes, pearls, precious stones, and elephants.
• Under the Pandyas, Kayalpattinam, which is now in the Thoothukudi district, was the busiest port town.
• To encourage literacy, singers were hired to perform Bhakti hymns in temples, and plays based on related themes were produced in theatres.

Coinage

• The Three Crowned Kings, a tiger, a fish, and a bow—representing the Cholas, Pandyas, and Cheras—were shown on early Tamilakam coins.
• The narrative of many Pandya rulers at different periods is depicted on Pandya coins.
• The Pandyas produced copper coins with die-stricken edges and silver punch marks in the early era.
• A handful of gold coins were attributed to the Pandya kings during this era. The picture of a fish, either by itself or in pairs, served as the coin’s emblem.
• A few of the coin designs had the names Sundara, Sundara Pandya, or just the initial ‘Su.’ A boar and the words “Vira-Pandya” appeared on a few of the coins.
• Pandya coins were square. The coins had an elephant imprinted on one side and nothing on the other.
• Copper coins with Tamil legends were seen during the Pandyas,
• The inscriptions on silver and gold coins were written in Tamil-Brahmi.
• “Kodandaraman” and “Kanchi” Valangum Perumal” were the names given to the Pandya coins with fish images.
• Coins with a standing king and a fish on one side bore the word “Ellam Thalaiyangam.”
• The words ‘Samarakolahalam’ and ‘Bhuvanekaviram’ on coins with a Garuda, ‘Konerirayan’ on coins with a bull, and ‘Kaliyugaraman’ on coins with two feet.

Decline of the Pandyas

• Following the death of Maravarman Kulasekara I (1310), his sons Vira Pandya IV and Sundara Pandya IV fought a succession war for control of the empire. Unfortunately, this conflict coincided with the Khalji raids in south India. Ballala III, the neighbouring king of Hoysala, took advantage of the political unrest to invade Pandya territory. 
• Family feuds and sultanate invasions destroyed the Pandya empire beyond repair, and coin discoveries suggest that the Pandyas were limited to the ancient South Arcot region. In 1323, the Jaffna kingdom declared independence from the collapsing Pandya influence.