The Early Cholas : History, Art and Culture

Contents: Preface. 1. Introduction and sources. 2. Political history before Parantaka I. 3. Political history during the age of Parantaka I. 4. Political history after Parantaka I. 5. Administration of Parantaka I. 6. Social and religious conditions. 7. Economic conditions. 8. Art and architecture. Resume. Appendix: 1. List of Chola temples. 2. Texts of some of the inscriptions of Parantaka I. Bibliography. Index.

"The period of early Cholas (850 A.D.-970 A.D) forms an important epoch in the history of Tamilnadu. Starting from a scratch the early Chola rulers exerted to establish a vast empire by their conquests. Rulers like Vijayalaya I, Aditya I and Parantaka I were great warriors who built the Chola empire inch by inch. Vijayalaya conquered Tanjavur, Aditya I annexed Tondaimandalam and Parantaka I occupied Madurai. During the reign of Parantaka I his empire extended up to Nellore in the north to Kanyakumari in the south. Though the Takkolam battle put a poke into the expansion of the Cholas, it did not exhaust the vitality of the Chola empire. The Cholas recovered remarkably from the disaster and emerged like a phoenix and rebuilt the empire quickly.

"The early Cholas are best remembered for their signal contribution in the sphere of local administration. The rules relating to the mode of local administration best averred in the celebrated Uttaramerur inscriptions were conceived during the reign of Parantaka Chola I. The early Cholas also left their imprints on art, architecture and sculpture. (jacket)