The Chalukyas of Vatapi ruled over small kingdoms which grew up in the south, between the river Krishna and the Vindhya Mountains in A.D. 600 to A.D.1200. These kingdoms fought for control over the fertile land, other wealth and for territory that includes what is today’s Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.
The Chalukyas
Pulakeshin l established the Chalukya kingdom in the sixth century A.D. He built a fort at Vatapi (Badami) on a hill overlooking the river Malaprabha. Nearby, there are temples of the Chalukyas, that he had built, and various inscriptions at Aihole and Pattadakal. According to an inscription he ruled over 99,000 villages. He even sent an ambassador to the court of Khusro II, the king of Persia.
Pulakeshin ll (608 – 642) whose name means ‘great lion’ was the best known Pallava –) king. He captured Banavasi and took over part of Pallava territory. He defeated Harsha of Kanauj on the banks of the river Narmada. The kings in neighboring states were terrified when they encountered him. Pulakeshin had a very strong army. He performed the horse sacrifice, ashvamedha and the vajapeya yagna to show his power. The Pallava king, Narsimhavarman, defeated and killed Pulakeshin in 642.
Chau-Ju-Kua was a Chinese traveler who came to the Chola court in the thirteenth century. Xuanzang, another traveller, visited Kanchi during the reign of Narasimhavarman ll. The report was that the empire was prosperous, the climate was hot and the people courageous honest and truthful. The soil was fertile, grain plentiful and lots of flowers. Not sure why this is here. There were singers and dancers in the court. Three thousand dancing girls were employed, a different group in attendance each day. Apparently the kings ate meat but did not drink wine.
A number of memorial stones, worshipped, by local people even today record the death of heroes of war or fighting tigers. There is one stone for a faithful dog Kovivan, which died defending his master against robbers. The Pallavas made rock sculptures, rock-cut and brick temples which can be seen at Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram).The shore temple on the beach is built with brick pyramid shaped vimanas (towers) surrounded by Nandi bulls. The most famous rock-cut temples are the five Pandava chariots carved out of a single rock and the rock sculpture of deities, animals, people and the flow of the Ganga.
The Rashtrakutas
The Rashtrakutas ruled over the same territory as the Chalukyas. Dantidurga established a kingdom in western Deccan. The capital was at Manyakheta (Malkhed) The last great king, Kirtivarman ii (of which kingdom?), was defeated by the Rashtrakuta Dantidurga. Amogavarsha was known for his learning and liking for Jainism. Krishna annexed part of the Chola empire in 949. Additions and changes were made to the paintings of Ajanta and to sculptures of the caves of Ellora. The Cheras who were based in Kerala asserted their power following their rivalry against the Pallavas and Pandyas. The Cholas later overpowered them. A dynasty was established by Tailapa, probably a feudatory of the Rashtrakuta. They had their capital at Kuvalala and later Talakad in the Mysore region where they ruled. A later king, Shripurusha (726-76), fought the Rashtrakutas and Pallavas. Shivmara who succeeded him was captured by the Rashtrakutas. Rajamalla (818) recovered territory but by 1004 the Cholas took over some areas.
The Eastern Gangas Another branch of the Chalukyas, the Eastern Chalukyas ruled at Vengi (eastern Andhra). To the north, between rivers Mahanadi and Godavari were the Gangas of Kalinga. Pulakeshin ll conquered the eastern Deccan known as Vengi. He assigned his brother, Kubja – Vishnuvardhana (1070 – 1122) the task of looking after those territories. The Eastern Chalukya dynasty was started by Kubja Vishnuvardhana. The Rashtrakuta kings fought against their neighboring kings, the Pallavas, Palas, Cholas, and Pratiharas. They fought the Chalukyas and kings of the Western Ganga.
Western Chalukyas
The Western Chalukya dynasty, probably a feudatory of the Rashtrakuta, was established by Tailapa . They fought against the Paramaras of Malwa, the Kalachuris of Chedi and the Cholas of the South. Chalukya Someshwara (1042 –1068) and his son Vikramaditya Vl defeated kings of the Gangetic valley. Rajendra of Vengi, descended from the Cholas became Kullotunga (1070 –1122). The Cholas and Vengi were absorbed by Chola. The Gangas of Kalinga ruled the area between the rivers Mahanadi and Godavari. They fought against Pulakeshin and Dantidurga and were defeated. Many Jain sculptures, images and temples were constructed during the reign of the Gangas. The images of the Tirthankara are carved out of black basalt or white marble.
The main image, built by Chamundaraya, a minister of Rajamalla lV is that of the Jain religious leader known as Gomateshwara. The sculpture, 17 m high is carved out of hill. The largest image is of Bahubali, built during the reign of Rajamalla lV (977 –85). The statue was worshipped and milk offered to Bahubali and poured on his feet. Bahubali and Bharata were brothers, sons of the first Tirthankara, Adinath. They went into battle when Bahubali defeated Bharata; he renounced the world thereafter. Chandragupta Maurya starved himself to death here as penance and came to be enlightened. The south Indian dynasties included the Mauryas of north Konkan and those of south Koshala.
Kalachuris Bijjala, the minister of Taila lll, King of the Western Chalukya, founded the Kalachuri dynasty of the South. They were descendents of the Kalachuris of Chedi. The Chalukya Someshwara lV conquered the territories; the dynasty did not last long.
The Pandyas and Pallavas After defeating the Kalabhras, the Pandyas and Pallavas reasserted their power in the sixth century A.D. The Pallavas ‘capital was at Kanchi and the Pandyas at Madurai. Narsimhavarman the Pallava king killed Pulakeshin ll. Put all Pallava information together Vijayalaya a feudatory of the Pallavas took over Tanjavur from the Pandyas in 850 A.D. and laid the foundation of the Chola Empire. The Cholas were the most important of the south Indian dynasties. Aditya Chola took over the Pallava Empire in the ninth century.
Rajaraja l (985 – 1014) and his son Rajendra l (1012 – 1044) are among the most renowned kings who took over the territory of the Pandyas and Cheras, conquered Sri Lanka, the Malay Peninsula, Maldive Islands and Sumatra. They fought against the Chalukyas and the Western Gangas. Rajendra l went up north to Bengal defeating kings there. On his return he built a new capital (Chola conqueror of Ganga) Gangaikondacholapuram. The Chola Empire declined at the beginning of the thirteenth century. The Cholas took over the Pallava territory in the ninth century and the Pandya kingdom in the tenth Century..
Crafts and trade Artisans were organised into guilds and there was trade, both inland and foreign. Arab traders had come to settle on the west coast. There was trade with China and South-East Asia. Pallava ships went to Cambodia, Annam, Sumatra and Malaysia. Indian merchants lived in these places and goods were taken from here to China. Later Chola kings traded with these countries and took over Sumatra. There were regular voyages to China. There is historical evidence to establish that in A.D. 1077 seventy-two merchants reached China taking glassware, camphor, brocades, ivory items incense, rose water, spices and other goods. They received a large amount of copper cash in return.
Cholas
From the ninth century on the Cholas were the most important of the south Indian dynasties. A feudatory of the Pallavas, Vijayalaya Chola took over Tanjavur from the Pandyas in 850 A.D. and laid the foundation of the Chola Empire. Aditya Chola took over the Pallava empire in the ninth century. Rajaraja l (985 – 1014) and his son Rajendra l (1012 – 1044) are among the most renowned kings.
Chola Government The king had a council of ministers to help him in administration. He had a strong army and navy. The empire was divided into mandalams or provinces and sub- divided into valanadus The villages benefitted from local self-government with an Ur or general assembly at that level with sabha or mahasabha Together they took over the territory of the Pandyas and Cheras, conquered Sri Lanka, the Malay Peninsula, Maldive Islands and Sumatra. Rajendra l went up to Bengal defeating kings there and building Gangaikondacholapuram, a new capital. He brought water from the Ganga and poured it into a tank near the city.
Temples
The Cholas built numerous temples. Most famous is the Shiva temple, known as the Rajaraja temple or the Brihadeshvara temple built by Rajaraja l. Another Shiva temple was built at Darasuram decorated with sculptures of saints. Rajendra l built a similar temple, at Gangaikondacholapuram. Chola sculptures and bronze images like those of Natraja have been found. The temples were rich. Grants of land were given to them for their maintenance; cooks The Chola Empire began to decline at the beginning of the thirteenth century. The cities were ports and large administrative centres. Merchants and ministers lived in lavish houses, wore rich clothes and jewels. Artisans, cattle herders and farmers lived in villages. The lower castes were poor. Rainwater was stored in tanks for irrigation. In some areas water collected in natural hollow. The rivers in the south flowed through narrow rocky valleys. Rice, ragi, vegetables, fruit, and spices were grown. Crafts flourished and artisans were organised into guilds there was both inland and external trade. Trade with South-East Asia and China continued. Arab traders had settled on the west coast. Later Chola kings traded with Cambodia, Annam, Sumatra and Malaysia. Kings of earlier dynasties had sent their ships to these places and there from goods were sent to China which included many Chola voyages.
The Chera dynasty was an ancient Tamil dynasty credited as the Creators of land of Kerala as they have unified various regions of the western coast and Western Ghats to form the early Chera empire. The other dynasty, the Pallavas another prominent dynasty became a major South Indian power during the reign of Mahendravarman I (600–630 C.E) and Narsimhavarman (630–668 CE), and dominated the southern Andhra Region and the northern parts of the Tamil region for about 600 years, until the end of the 9th century. Throughout their reign, they remained in constant conflict with both the Chalukyas of Badami in the north, and the Tamil kingdoms of the Cholas and Pandyas in the south. The Pallavas were finally defeated by the Chola ruler Aditya I in the 9th century CE.
(The writer has a Masters in Adult Education from Jamia Milia Islamia. She has many years teaching experience at the school level as also ten years of experience in book publishing and some published writing in newspapers and more students’ books. Lakshmi has retired and lives in Hyderabad.)
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