Sthanu Ravi Varma ( Early Malayalam and

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 ...

: Ko Tanu Iravi), known as the Kulasekhara, was the

Chera Perumal Cheraman Perumal dynasty, also known as the Perumal dynasty of Kerala, or the Chera Perumals of Makotai or MahodayapuramNoburu Karashima (ed.), A Concise History of South India: Issues and Interpretations. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 20 ...

ruler of Kerala in southern India from 844/45 to ''c.'' 870/71 AD.Noburu Karashima (ed.),
A Concise History of South India: Issues and Interpretations
'' New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2014. 146-47.'Changes in Land Relations during the Decline of the Cera State,' In Kesavan Veluthat and Donald R. Davis Jr. (eds),
Irreverent History:- Essays for M.G.S. Narayanan
'' Primus Books, New Delhi, 2014. 74-75. He is the earliest

ruler known to scholars. Sthanu Ravi famously helped 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 ...

ruler

Aditya I Aditya Chola I, the son of Vijayalaya Chola, was the Chola king who laid the foundation of the Chola Empire with the conquest of the Pallava Kingdom and the occupation of the Western Ganga Kingdom and Kongu Nadu. Aditya Chola I was succee ...

(c. 871–907 AD) to conquer the Kongu country from the

Pandyas 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 ...

in c. 885 AD. The famous Quilon Syrian Christian copper plates are dated in the fifth regnal year of king Sthanu Ravi. Two more inscriptions dated in the regnal years of Sthanu Ravi can be found at

Irinjalakuda Irinjalakuda is a municipal town in Thrissur district, Kerala, India. It is the headquarters of Irinjalakuda Revenue Division, Thrissur Rural Police and Mukundapuram Taluk. After Thrissur, this town has most number of administrative, law-enfor ...

Kudalmanikyam Temple, and at Thiruvatruvay,

Thiruvalla Thiruvalla, () also spelled Tiruvalla, is a Municipalities of Kerala, municipality in Pathanamthitta district, Kerala, India. The town is spread over an area of and has a population of 52,883 people, down from 56,837 in 2001. It is also the H ...

.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

972 Year 972 ( CMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Byzantine Empire * Spring – Emperor John I Tzimiskes divides the Bulgarian territories, recently held by the Kievan Rus', into six ...

436. Koyil Adhikarikal (the Royal Prince) during the time of Sthanu Ravi was his son-in-law (husband of his daughter) Vijayaraga.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

64-66 and 78-79. Sthanu Ravi had a son born to him in or about 870 AD.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

79-80. He was succeeded by

Rama Rajasekhara Rama Rajasekhara (''fl.'' 870/71 – c. 883/84 AD) was a Chera Perumal ruler of medieval Kerala, south India. Rajasekhara is usually identified by historians with Cheraman Perumal Nayanar, the venerated Shaiva ( Nayanar) poet-musician of the B ...

(c. 870/71–c. 883/84). Sthanu Ravi probably abdicated the throne toward the end of his reign and became a

Vaishnavite Vaishnavism () ), also called Vishnuism, is one of the major Hindu denominations, Hindu traditions, that considers Vishnu as the sole Para Brahman, supreme being leading all other Hindu deities, that is, ''Mahavishnu''. It is one of the majo ...

alvar An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, alvars support a distinctive group of prairie ...

saint known as

Kulasekhara Alvar Kulasekhara ( Tamil: ''குலசேகரர்''; IAST: Kulaśekhara) (''fl.'' 9th century CE), one of the twelve Vaishnavite alvars, was a bhakti theologian and devotional poet from medieval south India. He was the author of " Perumal Ti ...

(seventh of the twelve mystic

alvars The Alvars () are the Tamil poet-saints of South India who espoused '' bhakti'' (devotion) to the Hindu preserver deity Vishnu, in their songs of longing, ecstasy, and service. They are venerated in Vaishnavism, which regards Vishnu as the ...

).'Changes in Land Relations during the Decline of the Cera State,' In Kesavan Veluthat and Donald R. Davis Jr. (eds), ''Irreverent History:- Essays for M.G.S. Narayanan,'' Primus Books, New Delhi, 2014. 74-75 and 78. He is also identified with playwright Chera king "Kulasekhara Varma".

Background

Present-day central Kerala likely detached from the larger Kongu Chera or Kerala kingdom around the 8th–9th century AD to form the Chera Perumal kingdom.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

89-90 and 92-93. Central Kerala was perhaps under some form of viceregal rule prior to this period.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

80-93. The direct (sovereign) authority of the Chera Perumal king was perhaps restricted to the country around capital Makotai (Mahodaya, present-day Kodungallur) in central Kerala.Noburu Karashima (ed.), ''A Concise History of South India: Issues and Interpretations.'' New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2014. 146-47. His pan-Kerala kingship was perhaps only ritualistic, remaining nominal compared to the power that local chieftains (the Udaiyavar) wielded politically and militarily in distant regions. Nambudiri Brahmins also held significant authority in religious and social matters (a system often described as "ritual sovereignty combined with Brahmin oligarchy")

Chola contemporary of Sthanu Ravi

Sthanu Ravi was a partner in the

king Rajakesari Varma's campaign in Kongu country (central

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 ...

).Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

435-437. It is known that the two rulers jointly conferred military honours on a chief of

Tanjore Thanjavur (), also known as Thanjai, previously known as Tanjore,#Pletcher, Pletcher 2010, p. 195 is a city in the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the 12th biggest city in Tamil Nadu. Thanjavur is an important center of South Indian c ...

called Vikki Annan (who was the husband of "Kadamba Mahadevi"), probably a

Ganga The Ganges ( ; in India: Ganga, ; in Bangladesh: Padma, ). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international which goes through India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China." is a trans-boundary riv ...

prince. Vikki Annan, son of Prithvipati, is mentioned in a Ganga inscription of the mid-9th century AD. The title " Kadamba" suggests a relationship with the Kadamba lineage.Menon, A. Sreedhara (1967). ''A Survey of Kerala History.'' Kottayam (Kerala): DC Books, 2007

King "Rajakesari Varma" can be identified either with Aditya Chola (c. 871–907 ADAli, Daud. “The Death of a Friend: Companionship, Loyalty and Affiliation in Chola South India.” ''Studies in History'', vol. 33, no. 1, Feb. 2017, pp. 36–60.) or with

Srikantha Chola Srikantha Chola (Telugu: శ్రీకంత చోళుడు) (Tamil: ஸ்ரீகந்த சோழன்) was a Telugu Chola ruler belonging to Pottapi Chola family which claims descent from ancient Tamil king Karikala Chola. He was ...

(817–845 AD).Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

436-37. * Identification of Rajakesari Varma with Aditya Chola (c. 871–907 AD) (followed Elamkulam P. N. Kunjan Pillai) – Pillai thus assumes that Sthanu Ravi ruled Kerala up to 885 AD to be able to become the junior partner in Aditya Chola's wars in Kongu Nadu (conquest of the Kongu Nadu from the Pandyas, c. 885 AD). – this view is found acceptable by the recent scholarship. * Identification of Rajakesari Varma with

(817–845 AD) – this puts the joint action in the Kongu country in c. 844/45 AD. – this view was found acceptable by M. G. S. Narayanan (following T. V. Mahalingam).

Astronomy

Astronomer-mathematician Sankaranarayana (c. 840 – 900 AD) was a member of the royal court of Kulasekhara (at the Chera capital Mahodayapuram-Kodungallur). Sankaranarayana is best known as the author of ''Laghubhaskariyavyakha'', a detailed commentary on the works of mathematician Bhaskara I (early 6th century AD).Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

78-79. An astronomical observatory functioned at Mahodayapuram under the charge of Sankaranarayana. There are references to an instrument called "Rashichakra" marked by a "Yanthravalaya" in the ''Vyakha''. This instrument might be the same as the Golayanthra/Chakrayanthra mentioned by famous polymath

Aryabhata Aryabhata ( ISO: ) or Aryabhata I (476–550 CE) was the first of the major mathematician-astronomers from the classical age of Indian mathematics and Indian astronomy. His works include the '' Āryabhaṭīya'' (which mentions that in 3600 ' ...

. The Chakrayanthra was developed further and called Phalakayanthra by Bhaskara I.

Inscriptions

As Sthanu Ravi

Ayyan Adikal, the chieftain of Quilon (

Kollam Kollam (;), is an ancient seaport and the List of cities and towns in Kerala, fourth largest city in the Indian state of Kerala. Located on the southern tip of the Malabar Coast of the Arabian Sea, the city is on the banks of Ashtamudi Lake ...

) under Sthanu Ravi, issued the famous Quilon Syrian Christian copper plates in c. 849 AD. The inscription records that Ayyan Adikal granted land and serfs to a Christian church at Quilon, built by Mar Sapir Iso, and entrusted its maintenance to trade guilds

anjuvannam Anjuvannam (in Malayalam, from Persian anjuman, and hanjama or hanjamana in Telugu or Kannada or hamyamana) typically refers to a medieval merchant guild, consisting of non-Indian traders — principally ethnic Persians and Arabs — primarily ...

and

manigramam Manigiramam, or manigramam, typically refers to a medieval merchant guild organized by itinerant ethnic Indian traders, primarily active in southern India. Along with the ainurruvar (the Ayyavole Five Hundred) and the anjuvannam (the anjuman), ...

. The grant was made in the presence of Chera Perumal prince

Vijayaraga Vijayaraga (''fl. c.'' 849—895 AD) was the Chera Perumal ruler of Kerala from ''c.'' 883/84—''c.'' 895 AD. The reign of Vijayaraga probably witnessed the expansion of Chera Perumal influence into the neighboring Ay and Mushika countries (so ...

.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

435 and 37. Daughter of Kulasekhara, with the title Kizhan Adikal Ravi Neeli, was married to Vijayaraga (who was probably the son of the sister of Kulasekhara also).

As Kulasekhara

Literary references

Contradicting testimonials

* An anonymous work called "Padmapadacharyacharita" says that the protagonist (who was the disciple of philosopher-theologian Shankara) flourished in time of king "Kulasekhara". However, "Shivanandalahari", attributed to Shankara, indirectly mentions the Kerala ruler as Rajasekhara. "Shankaravijaya" by Vidyaranya also refers to a Kerala king named Rajasekhara, who was a contemporary of Sankara.Narayanan, M. G. S. ''Perumāḷs of Kerala.'' Thrissur (Kerala): CosmoBooks, 2013

65-66, 95-96, 383-5, 436. * Vasubhatta, a famous Yamaka poet of medieval Kerala (author of "Tripuradahana" and "Saurikathodaya"), names his patron king as "Rama". "Vijayadarsika" by Acynta, a later commentary on the poem "Yudhisthiravijaya" by Vasubhatta, says that "Kulasekhara" was the coronation title of king Rama (the name given to the king by his parents was "Ramavarman" - "Kulasekhara ityabhisekakrtam nama; pitradikrtam theramavarmeti"). "Ratnapradipika" by Sivadasa, another commentary (which later to "Vijayadarsika") says the same - "Kulasekharasya Kulasekhara iti namavatah, etadabhisekakrtam nama. Pitradikriam tu ramavarmeti" Modern scholars generally consider this a result of confusion on the part of the commentators Acynta and Sivadasa (between Sthanu Ravi Kulasekhara and

) who were separated in time from Vasubhatta. * Some scholars also identify king

Rama Kulasekhara Rama Kulasekhara (''fl.'' late 11th century CE) was the last ruler of the Chera Perumal dynasty of medieval Kerala. He was a contemporary of the Chola kings Kulottunga I (1070–1120) and Vikrama Chola (1118–35 AD). Rama Kulaskehara is best k ...

as the patron of poet Vasubhatta (and thus placing Vasubhatta in 11th-12 centuries AD). This view is generally found unacceptable on several counts.

''Laghubhaskariyavyakha''

Sankaranarayana says that he was patronized by king "Ravi", who had the title "Kulasekhara" (and thus helps in the identification of "Sthanu Ravi" with "Kulasekhara"). The opening verse of the commentary also gives an indirect invocation to the lord called "Sthanu" (carefully composed to be applicable to god Siva and the ruling king). The commentary also gives the two dates in the Kali Era and as the

Saka Era The Shaka era (IAST: Śaka, Śāka) is a historical Hindu calendar era (year numbering), the epoch (its year zero) of which corresponds to Julian year 78. The era has been widely used in different regions of the Indian subcontinent as well a ...

. * "Angartvambara nanda devamanubhir yate dinanam gane" ** Anga = 6, Rtu = 6, Ambara = 0, Nanda = 9, Veda = 4, and Manu = 14 ** Order - 6609414 ** Reverse Order - 1449066 * Kali Date - 3967 years and 86 days = 25 Mithuna,

Kollam Era The Malayalam Calendar, or the Kollam Era (), is a sidereal solar calendar used in Kerala. The origin of the calendar has been dated to 825 CE, commemorating the establishment of Kollam. There are many theories regarding the origin of ...

41 = 866 AD * "Sakabdah punariha candra randhramuni sankhyaya" ** Candra = 1, Randhra = 9, and Muni = 7 ** Order - 197 ** Reverse Order - 791 (

Saka Year The Shaka era (IAST: Śaka, Śāka) is a historical Hindu calendar era (year numbering), the epoch (its year zero) of which corresponds to Julian year 78. The era has been widely used in different regions of the Indian subcontinent as well a ...

) = 870 AD ''Laghubhaskariyavivarana,'' according to the commentary itself, was composed in the 25th regnal year of king Ravi Kulasekhara (thus dating the coronation of Ravi Kulasekhara in 844/45 AD). * Meeting of Guru (=Jupiter) and Sauri (=Saturn) in Capa (Dhanu) = 25th regnal year of the king. In the 9th century AD, these Jupiter and Saturn came to Dhanu Rasi simultaneously only in 869 AD.

References

{{Reflist People from the Kodungallur Chera kingdom 9th-century Indian monarchs Kodungallur Chera kings