Vikramaditya (r. c. 884—911/912 AD or 920 AD) — better known as Vikramaditya "Varaguna"— was the last historically attested ruler of the

Ay dynasty Ay dynasty (transliteration: Āy, ), also known as Kupaka in medieval period, was an Indian dynasty which controlled the south-western tip of the Indian peninsula, peninsula, from the early historic period up to the medieval period. The clan tr ...

in south India. His surname indicates that he was a vassal of the

Pandya The Pandya dynasty (), also referred to as the Pandyas of Madurai, was an ancient Tamil dynasty of South India, and among the four great kingdoms of Tamilakam, the other three being the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Cheras. Existing sinc ...

ruler

Varaguna II Varagunavarman II (Tamil:), also known as Varaguna II, and Arimardhana, was a king of the Pandya dynasty in south India whose reign lasted from c. 862 until c. 879 CE. Varaguna II was famously defeated by a contingent of troops led by Pallava ki ...

(r. 862—885 AD). Vikramaditya is described as the ruler of the port of

Vizhinjam Vizhinjam () is an area located in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of the state of Kerala in India. which belongs to Thiruvananthapuram Corporation . It is located 16 km south west from the city centre and 17 km south of Trivand ...

. He was the immediate successor of Karunanthatakkan (r. c. 856/57–884 AD), the Ay ruler associated with the Parthasarathy Vishnu Temple. The

religious pluralism Religious pluralism is an attitude or policy regarding the diversity of religion, religious belief systems co-existing in society. It can indicate one or more of the following: * Recognizing and Religious tolerance, tolerating the religio ...

of the Ay rulers during this period is demonstrated by Vikramaditya's various endowments — not only to

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

temples, but also to a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

vihara in central Kerala and to Jain temples. The act of donation (898 AD) to a

vihara outside the Ay country is considered as a symbol of friendly attitude towards the medieval Chera rulers of Kerala (after the fall of the Pandyas in the battle of Sripurambiyan in c. 885 AD). Later years of Vikramaditya's reign coincided with the

Chola The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...

conquest of the Pandya country under king

Parantaka Parantaka was a name adopted by a number of South Indian kings. It may refer to: * Parantaka I (907–950), Chola king * Parantaka II (957–970), Chola king * Jatila Parantaka Nedunjadayan (765–815), Pandyan king * Parantaka Viranarayanan ( ...

(in 910 AD). It is likely that the Ays were thus liberated from the Pandya rule.

Records of Vikramaditya Varaguna

* Thirupparappu Plates — donation/associated with Thirupparappu Shiva Temple. * Thirunandikkarai Plates (regnal year 8 = 892 AD) — donation to Thirunandikkarai Temple by Murukan Chendi or Ay-kula Mahadevi, the daughter of Thenganadu Kizhavan. * Paliyam Copper Plates (898 AD) * Chitharal inscription (regnal year 28 = 911/12 AD) — donation by Kunanthangi Kurattikal, the disciple of Perayakkudi Arattanemi Bhatara, to the Thiruchanattu Malai Bhatariyar Jain Temple. Certain "Varaguna" — may be Vikramaditya — the disciple of Thirucharanattu Pattini Bhatarar appears as a donor in an inscription discovered from the temple of Thiruchanatu Malai in Chitharal.

Paliyam Copper Plates

Date of Paliyam Copper Plates

The currently accepted date of the Paliyam Copper Plates was fixed by historian M. G. S. Narayanan. According to the plates, the grant was issued on a Thursday, in the Solar month of Makara and the Lunar month of Pushya when the star was Mrigasira n a Sukladwadasi day; falling in the year after the 15th year of Varaguna Three dates are suitable for the astronomical data contained in the plates. * 868 AD - suggested by Gopinatha Rao - historically untenable (within the regnal period of the preceding Ay ruler Karunanthadakkkan). * 925 AD - suggested by Elamkulam P. N. Kunjan Pillai - Outside the regnal period of Pandya king

(r. 862—885 AD). * 898 AD - Currently accepted date (M. G. S. Narayanan) - Within the regnal period of Pandya king

Content

The Paliyam Copper Plates name the Ay ruler with his title "Varaguna", and do not mention the given name Vikramaditya. The ruler was distinguished from the Pandya ruler of the same name on the basis of the reference to the ynasty ofvrishni kula, and the lord of Vizhinjam. The inscription is bilingual — composed in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

and in Sanskrit using the

Nagari script Nagari may refer to: Writing systems * Nāgarī script, a script used in India during the first millennium * Devanagari, a script used since the late first millennium and currently in widespread use for the languages of northern India * Nandina ...

. According to these plates, in 898 AD, Vikramaditya made a donation of certain lands in the Ay country to the deity of Srimulavasa

vihara (somewhere in central

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, in the kingdom of the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

Cheras). * Paliyam Copper Plates open with three Sanskrit ''slokas'' in praise of Soudhodani (

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

), Dharmasangha (Dharma) and Avalokitesvara. * Describe Varaguna as the "Lord of

" and a member of the " Vrisni Race". * Show arrangements made to protect the plot handed over to the Srimulavasa vihara. It is tentatively concluded that the king had appointed Vira Goda, a member of the Chera family, to protect the plot. * Contain request to the king's descendants to "uphold

dharma Dharma (; , ) is a key concept in various Indian religions. The term ''dharma'' does not have a single, clear Untranslatability, translation and conveys a multifaceted idea. Etymologically, it comes from the Sanskrit ''dhr-'', meaning ''to hold ...

" and protect the land of donation * Contain general appeal to all people to turn to "acts of benevolence". * Tamil portions show the details - such as boundaries - of the plot donated

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Varaguna, Vikramaditya 9th-century Indian monarchs 10th-century Indian monarchs People from Kerala Chera dynasty