Sadayavarman Kulasekaran I () was a

Pandyan 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 ...

king, who ruled regions of

South India South India, also known as Southern India or Peninsular India, is the southern part of the Deccan Peninsula in India encompassing the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana as well as the union territories of ...

between 1190–1216.

Accession and background

Kulasekaran acceded to the Pandyan throne after his father Vikkirama Pandyan in 1190. Vikkirama Pandyan had gained the throne of

Madurai Madurai ( , , ), formerly known as Madura, is a major city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Madurai District, which is ...

with the help of Kulothunga Chola III. Kulothunga had defeated the rebellion of Vira Pandyan and his Sri Lankan allies and awarded the throne to Vikkirama Pandyan. Vikkiraman's son Kulasekaran became the ruler in 1190. He was a brother-in-law of the Chera prince Kothai Ravivarman.

War and defeat

Kulasekaran was a vassal of the

Chola empire 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 ...

. When Kulothunga was warring with

Hoysala The Hoysala Kingdom was a kingdom originating from the Indian subcontinent that ruled most of what is now Karnataka, India, Karnataka, parts of Tamilnadu and South-Western Telangana between the 11th and the 14th centuries Common Era, CE. The c ...

s in the north, he refused to pay tribute to the Cholas. This led to a Chola invasion in retribution. In 1205, the Chola armies defeated the Pandyan army and sacked Madurai. The ancient coronation hall of Pandyan kings was destroyed, the remains plowed with asses and sowed with weeds. Inscriptions found at Kudimiyanmalai and Cheranur give graphic descriptions of the invasion and the sacking of Madurai. Kulasekaran and his younger brothers fled Madurai to the ''Palai'' (desert wastes) lands. The invaders looted Madurai and distributed the wealth to the destitute. Kulothunga performed a ''Virabhishekam'' (tribute of bravery) and crowned himself as ''Thiribhuvana veeran'' (Lord of Three Worlds). Kulasekaran surrendered to Kulothunga with his wife and son. Kulothunga acknowledged the surrender and gave his kingdom back. Madurai remained under Chola dominance until 1216. These excesses of Kulothunga directly led to the later Pandyan reprisal under Kulasekaran's younger brother and successor Maravarman Sundara Pandyan I.

Distinction from other Kulasekarans

There are records of at least three later Pandyan kings bearing the same name ''Jatavarman Kulasekaran''. This king is identified and distinguished using his '' meikeerthi'' which starts with the words ''poovin kizhathi'' (). He is the Kulasekaran who donated the village ''"Rajaghambeeera Chathurvedi Mangalaam"'' to 1080 Brahmins in 1214 Bhadra, Prakash and Tharu, p.127

Notes

References

* * * * * * {{s-end Pandyan kings Tamil history Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown 12th-century Indian monarchs 13th-century Indian monarchs