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Sittanavasal is a small hamlet in
Pudukkottai district Pudukkottai District is one of the List of districts of Tamil Nadu, 38 districts of Tamil Nadu state in southern India. The city of Pudukkottai is the district headquarters. It is also known colloquially as ''Pudhugai.'' The city is also known ...
of
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. It is known for the
Sittanavasal Cave Sittanavasal Cave (also, Arivar Koil) is a 2nd-century Tamil Śramaṇa complex of caves in Sittanavasal village in Pudukottai district of Tamil Nadu, India. Its name is a distorted form of ''Sit-tan-na-va-yil'', a Tamil language, Tamil word whi ...
, a 2nd-century Jain cave complex. From the 7th to the 9th century A.D., the village flourished as a Jain centre.


Etymology

There are several interpretations of the word Sittanvasal. In
Tamil language Tamil (, , , also written as ''Tamizhil'' according to linguistic pronunciation) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. It is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world,. "Tamil is one of ...
, ''Sit-tan-na-va-yil'' means "the abode of great saints". Another explanation is that this was a suburb of Annalvayil, called ''chiru-annal-vaayil'', meaning "smaller Annalvayil". It is also said that the word Sittanavasal is a derivative from two
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
words, ‘'Siddhanam’' and ‘'vasah'’ meaning "abode of siddhas". Alternative suggestions are that Sittanavasal is a Tamil name that was used in the
Sangam period The Sangam literature ( Tamil: சங்க இலக்கியம், ''caṅka ilakkiyam''), historically known as 'the poetry of the noble ones' ( Tamil: சான்றோர் செய்யுள், ''Cāṉṟōr ceyyuḷ''), connote ...
, or that is a derivative from ''Siddhaanaam-vaasah'', of north Indian origin which was corrupted first to "iddhannavaasah" and finally as "Sittannavasal". In the Brahmi script, the name mentioned in the inscriptions is "ChiRu-posil".


Geography

The Sittanavasal village is about to the northwest of Pudukottai, just before Annavasal village and about from
Trichy Tiruchirappalli (), also known as Trichy, is a major tier II city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Tiruchirappalli district. The city is credited with being the best livable and the cleanest city of T ...
. The entrance to the village has a welcome arch. Within its geographical setting there is a prominent hill of height, which runs in the north–south direction, where many Jaina cave monuments are located. Megalithic sites of the 1st century BC have also been excavated near the village, on the road to the monuments. It was a flourishing village during the Jaina period from the 7th to 9th century AD. Before entering the Sittanavasal and on the road to the monuments, remains of prehistoric burial sites are seen. The Jain natural caverns, called Ezhadippattam are approached from the foothills. On the western slope of the central part of the hill is the cave temple which is approached by climbing a few 100 steps.


History

The village was settled during the megalithic period from the 1st century BC according to excavations of several megalithic sites near the village. Jainism flourished here from 1st century BC to 10th century AD. The Arivarkovil or the Temple cave is initially dated to
Pallava The Pallava dynasty existed from 275 CE to 897 CE, ruling a significant portion of South India, the Deccan, also known as Tondaimandalam. The Pallavas played a crucial role in shaping in particular southern Indian history and heritage. The ...
King Mahendravarman I (580-630AD) prior to his conversion from
Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...
to
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
. The village later fell under the reign of the
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 ...
s in Tamil Nadu, and an inscription attributes renovation of the cave to a Pandyan king, probably Maran Sendan (654- 670AD) or Arikesari Maravarman (670-700AD). The Jain beds on the hill top indicate a Jaina era pilgrimage centre which lasted till the 9th century CE.


Architectural monuments

The archaeological monuments found in the area surrounding Sittanavasal village are the architectural features of the Arivar Kovil (Sittanvasal Cave), on the western side of the hill towards the north and the painting and sculptures found within its precincts, the Jaina beds, also known as Ekadipattam or Ezhadippattam in a natural cavern on the eastern side of the hill, the Samavasarana, a place of assembly of a
tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...
in the form of mural paintings on the roof of the cave temple, megalithic burial urns, stone circles, cairns, dolmens, cists from the Iron Age called ''mudu-makkal-thaazhi'', and a submerged tarn called the ''Navach-chunai'' to the north of the natural cavern in the hill. The Archaeological Survey of India is responsible for the maintenance of the Arivar Kovil and the Jaina beds.


Sittanavasal Cave

The Sittanavasal Cave, also known as Arivar Kovil, is a Jain monastery of the 7th century, small in size, excavated in a bluff on the western slope of the hill in its centre. It is noted for its paintings which have been painted in fresco-secco technique with many mineral colours. The painting themes depict a beautiful lotus pond and flowers, people collecting lotuses from the pond, two dancing figures, lilies, fish, geese, buffaloes and elephants. Mulk Raj Anand said of the paintings, "Pallava craftsmen used greens and browns and puqiles, with a genuine ability and a lyrical flow of line. Lotuses spring up from imaginary ponds amid variegated greenery, under a bluish sheen." In addition, inscriptions of the 9th and 10th century are also seen. The exquisite ceiling of the Ardhamandapam is decorated with murals from the 7th century. The cave temple has placid pillars and sculptures of Jain
Tirthankaras In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', a fordable passage across '' saṃsāra'', the sea of interminable birt ...
. However, most of the frescoes which were covered fully in plaster have been severely defaced or not clearly visible due to inadequate security and maintenance resulting in vandalism in the past five or six decades. Originally, the entire cave temple, including the sculptures, was covered with plaster and painted. The paintings are on the theme of Jaina Samavasarana, the "most attractive heavenly pavilion", referring to the attainment of
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
and Khatika bhumi.


Ezhadippattam

Ezhadippattam or Jaina beds is a natural cave, marked by a horizontal floor space which is laid out with well-polished rock beds that were used by Jaina ascetics. There are seventeen beds at the top marked on the floor. These carved beds have headrests cut in them in the form of a raised pillow. The oldest Tamil
Brahmi Brahmi ( ; ; ISO: ''Brāhmī'') is a writing system from ancient India. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' or ...
inscriptions seen inscribed on the beds are dated to the 3rd century BC, although recent research by Iravatham Mahadevan dates it to the First Century BC and extending to the 10th Century AD. On one of the oldest and largest beds, the inscription in Tamil is of Tamil Brahmi script of the 1st century BC, considered as the oldest lithic record 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 ...
. Also, names of ascetics who engaged in sallekhana (fasting unto death) are written on their respective beds.


Jambunatha Cave

Jambunatha Cave or Navach-chunai, in the style of late Pandya temples of the 13th century AD, is a tarn located between Ezadippattam and Arivar Kovil caves. It is on the eastern slope on the central part of the hills. This is a small rock-cut temple which is submerged in a small lake (tarn). Hill climbing is required to reach the cave temple. An old jambu tree ('' Syzygium jambolanum'') is seen near the lake, which gives its name to the cave. It is a Shiva temple with a
lingam A lingam ( , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or Aniconism, aniconic representation of the Hinduism, Hindu Hindu deities, god Shiva in Shaivism. The word ''lingam'' is found in the Up ...
in the centre, which is worshiped by baling out water from the lake.


Megalithic sites

Excavations carried out in 1934–35 in the Sittanvasal village have revealed many
Megalithic A megalith is a large Rock (geology), stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. More than 35,000 megalithic structures have been identified across Europe, ranging ...
burial sites near the hill, which are in the form of both cist and urn burials. These are located on both sides of the road leading from the monuments to the main road, after about from the Ezhadippattam; more are seen on the left side of the road leading to Pudukkottai. Antiquaries collected from the sites also include specimens of garnet, red jasper and rock crystal at the foot of the hill have been picked up near the foot of the hill, pottery pieces with coating of molten and coloured glass inside, and also small pieces of coloured glass; all these are indicative of glass manufacturing in the area.


References

{{Pudukkottai district Cities and towns in Pudukkottai district Jain rock-cut architecture