Temple Urbanism in Medieval South India

Abstract

The Tamil country of South India experienced a flowering of political, economic, and cultural forces during the Chola period (849–1279). The environments supporting this expansion were nucleated settlements focused on temples, surrounded by verdant paddy fields with artificial irrigation networks. This article is a study of the sacred sites and nucleated settlements that were the heart of this medieval civilization. The purposes of the study are two: first, to portray the dynamics of early urbanism during a crucial period of regional integration in South Asia, and especially to portray the geography of early centers; second, to provide the basis for a comparative study of early South Indian urbanism and premodern urbanism in other world areas.

Documentary and Literary News on Clysma

“…Given the distribution of Roman coin finds in particular, the Tamil lands may often in modern scholarship be intended as a synonym for the area of India engaged in maritime trade with the west, though this view is undoubtedly too simple, as evidence of coin finds from northern India will demonstrate. 620 Champakalakshmi (1981Champakalakshmi ( , 1987, Gurukkal (1993), Heitzman (1987), Mahalingam (1967Mahalingam ( , 1976, Maloney (1970), Mines (1984), Narayanan (1988), Ramaswamy (2004), Sharma (1988), Stein (1975Stein ( , 1980. Archaeological investigation has focussed most heavily on monumental, elite sites such as Kanchipuram and Gangaikondacholapuram.…”

Hindu Temples and Development of Localities in Tamil Nadu (South India)

“…Temples were also among the most important agencies for agricultural development during the Chola and Vijayanagar periods (900-1610 AD), especially in what concerns irrigation (Stein 1960(Stein , 1961Heitzman 1987). Indeed, neither the Chola nor Vijayanagar empires had a department of irrigation nor public works to deal with agricultural improvements, and irrigation programmes were frequently carried out by temples.…”

Inscriptions as artifacts: Precolonial south india and the analysis of texts

“…Temple precincts do contain a great many inscriptions; indeed, some of the most considered historical analyses of this period are based on studies of single temple complexes containing thousands of inscriptions (e.g., Breckenridge, 1976;Heitzman, 1987;Srinivasan and Reiniche, 1990a, b;Stein, 1980). More modest shrines also may bear inscriptions, either on slabs set up in or near the temple, on the various walls, columned halls, paving stones, and other structures of the temple complex itself, or on nearby natural features such as boulders.…”

“…At this point we must acknowledge the innovative work of a number of historians of South India who have treated inscriptional data in a quantitative way (Heitzman, 1987;Shanmugam, 1988, 1989;Talbot, 1994), breaking free from the practice of using inscriptional data anecdotally. As one might imagine with such a large and diverse body of data, it is easy to support almost any position using a single inscription.…”

“…As one might imagine with such a large and diverse body of data, it is easy to support almost any position using a single inscription. More thorough analysis of the body of texts, however, forces one to come to terms with variability in many areas--political structure (Talbot 1994), temple economies (Heitzman, 1987), and revenue arrangements Shanmugam, 1988, 1989), for example. Our focus on the recovery contexts (el.…”