Day - 32 | History | Chola Empire | UPSC Foundation | Mr. Kishore Kumar

Greetings to my dear friends. I'm your Kishore Kumar. So, till now we have been looking at the medieval Indian history. We have just started looking at medieval Indian history in the last class. We have looked at the tripartite history in that. I believe that all of you would have understood that. Next, what we are going to look at now is the next important chapter, the Great Cholas. We are going to look at them only. Okay? Let's look at the Great Cholas. In the UPSC point of view, they are asking a little less about the Cholas. But, we can't say that we didn't hear about them in UPSC, so we can read a little less about them. Because, there are many opportunities to hear about them next time. Because, the Imperial Cholas are very, very important in our Indian history. Because, they were the ones who controlled the naval fleet very well. After that, they were an example for the Indian Navy. After this, the one who becomes important in the Navy is Shivaji Maharaj. Before that, the Cholas changed the Bay of Bengal into the Cholas' area. How did they change it? Why did they change it? What is their administrative structure? What kind of role do they play in the art and culture? We are going to look at all these things in this class. Okay? So, the first thing we are going to look at is the third chapter. The third chapter is South India, the Chola Empire. Okay? 900 to 1200 AD. So, this is what we are going to look at. First, let's look at who the founders of the Cholas were. The founders of the Cholas were Vijayalaya Cholan. Vijayalaya Cholan. He was the founder of the Cholas. Vijayalaya Cholan. When did he found this? In 850 AD. So, what were the Cholas before this? They were the feudatories of the Pallavas. The feudatories of the Pallavas. So, who was the last Pallava king? Abarajitha Pallavan. Okay? Abarajitha Pallavan was defeated by Vijayalaya Cholan and he established the Cholas' government. Where is the capital of Vijayalaya Cholan? The capital of Vijayalaya Cholan is in Thanjavur. Okay? Thanjavur is the headquarters of Vijayalaya Cholan. The Cholas rule their empire. Imperial Cholas. They are known as Later Cholas. There were Cholas before this as well. They were Sangam Cholas. Okay? We studied about them in Ancient India. Who was the most important person in Sangam Cholas? Who built the palace? I will tell you in the comments. Okay? Next. Which poet wrote about that Chola? Tell me in the comments. I have told both of them in the lesson of Dawn of Deep South. Okay? Recall it and tell me. Now we come to the Imperial Cholas. If you see, the son of Vijayalaya Cholan is known as Aditya Cholan. Okay? Aditya Cholan. Okay? He is the one who really brought down Abarajith Pallavan. Because he is the Commander in Chief. Okay? He is the Commander in Chief for the Cholas army at that time. He is the one who really brought down Abarajith Pallavan. But the name goes to Vijayalaya. If you take the important contribution of Vijayalaya in Northern culture, he built the Durga Yaman Temple in Thanjavur. This is his important contribution. Next comes Aditya Cholan. He built a small temple. Okay? Next comes Paranthaka. Paranthaka one. Paranthaka Cholan one. He is the one who comes. He has some specialties and some defeats. Okay? So, who does Paranthaka Cholan defeat? He defeats Pandiyas. Pandiyas and then Elam. He brings both of them under his rule. Because he defeats both of them, his name is Irumudi Cholan. Next comes the next important thing. Siddambaram Natarajan Temple. Siddambaram. Siddambaram Natarajan Temple. What does he do for this? He does gold plating. Gold plating. Gold. Gold plating. Okay? So, his name is Ponvendha Cholan. Another name is given to him. Ponvendha Cholan. Okay? Next, Uttramerur inscription. Famous Uttramerur inscription. Uttramerur inscription. What does it say about? It says about local self-government. Okay? The famous Uttramerur inscription which says about local self-government is created during his period. It is created during Paranthaka Cholan's period. Next, his big drawback or his black mark is He is the king of Rashtrakuda, Govindathri. Sorry, Krishnathri. He is the king of Rashtrakuda, Krishnathri. He is going to lose to him in Thakkolam war. Okay? He is going to lose in Thakkolam war. Okay? He is going to lose in Thakkolam war. This is very very important. Thakkolam war. Next, the next important king. After that, small kings come. Okay? You might have seen in Ponniyin Selvan. Okay? Who comes after this? Sundaracholan will come. After that, his cousin. Okay? His younger brother's son. Okay? Uttamacholan will come. Who comes after that? Two important kings will come. They are very very important among the Cholas. The age of Rajaraja and Rajendragun. They are the two who made the expansion of Cholas. Okay? The name Imperial Cholas comes after them. Okay? How far Rajaraja I ruled? He ruled from 985 to 1014. This is very very important. Okay? The year he ruled is important. I have not told the year yet. But note down these years. Okay? He ruled from 985 to 1014. His son Rajendra ruled from 1014 to 1044. He ruled from 1014 to 1044. This is very very important for both of them. What Rajaraja does is, He has many nicknames. Okay? Why these nicknames? Because of his conquest. Okay? These nicknames come because of his conquest. The first important nickname is, MUMMUDI CHOLA. Why does this nickname come? Because he defeated three people. Who all did he defeat? First was CHERA. Bhaskara Ravi Varman, the king of CHERA. He defeated him. In which war did he defeat him? It is called Gandalur war. Okay? In Gandalur war, he defeated Bhaskara Ravi Varman. Next was Pandya king. He defeated Pandya king also. After that, he defeated the king of Sri Lanka, Mahinda IV. Okay? Because he defeated three people, he got the nickname MUMMUDI CHOLA. Okay? After that, he defeated Chalukyas. He defeated Chalukyas also. After that, he overran Chalukyas of Vengi. He defeated Chalukyas and made them his feudator. So, he got the nickname JAYAM KONDAN. JAYAM KONDAN. Okay? After that, he also defeated Maldives. Okay? He defeated Maldives also. So, what happens is, he kept the naval force very strong. Because the naval force, Maldives, Sri Lanka, he had a strong naval force to defeat such places. Okay? Next, the reason why he did all this is, he kept the foreign trade in his mind. Foreign trade. That is, he kept the trade of China in his mind and did all these things. Okay? Next, who comes next? Rajendra I comes. Rajendra I is also a very important person. When his father was alive, when his father was alive, what Rajaraja used to do is, who is going to rule this country next? Rajendra I. He used to say Rajendra I. Okay? Also, he used to be a co-regent. Okay? In the last years, what he used to do is, he used to be a co-regent. After that, after 1014, after the death of Rajaraja, he used to take over. Okay? He also has some names. What are the important names? He has a name called Panditha Chola. Panditha Chola. Okay? This is in Gangaikonda Cholapuram. In Gangaikonda Cholapuram, in that temple, this is there. Who is this? This is Sivan. Okay? What Sivan does is, Rajendra Chola, in Garland, he has a posture like he is Okay? What is Panditha Chola? It means, educated Chola. Okay? Educated. He is an educated king. After that, he has different branches. Because, what he does is, he goes up to the branches and establishes his influence. He goes up to the branches. Very very important. Through the branches and naval expeditions, through the branches, Sailendra dynasty. This is Srivijaya empire. Who is the ruler of this? Sailendra. Sailendra dynasty. What Sailendra dynasty does is, after going through the naval expeditions, the Strait of Malacca, this Strait, he brings it under his influence. His main aim is only that. He doesn't want to rule. This trade route, this trade route goes to China. This trade route going to China, what we should do is, he wants to dominate. That is why he brings this expedition. Okay? This is also said. Similarly, another thing is said is, Kemar, this Cambodian ruler, what he does is, he asks Chola king for help. Because, what Sailendra king does is, he goes to Chinese king and asks him for help, to fight against him. So, what they do as pre-emptive strike is, before China king comes here, he attacks Sailendra dynasty, and appoints a person who is necessary for him. Okay? To ensure the importance of Malacca Strait. Okay? From that time itself, Malacca Strait was an important, important, a choking point. We know that. Okay? After that, he brings Sri Lanka under his rule. After that, he goes till Ganga. That is, he goes till Ganges, and reaches Pala dynasty. Pala dynasty was under Mahipala at that time. I have told you about Mahipala. Okay? Who is he? He is the grandson of Bhoja. Okay? Bhoja or Mahir Bhoja. Mahipala is under his rule. What he has done is, he has defeated him. Okay? If he has defeated him, what he has done is, after defeating him, he has taken the water from Ganges and built Gangaikonda Cholapuram. He has built Gangaikonda Cholapuram. He has built that district, that headquarters. That is Gangaikonda Cholapuram. Now it is a small village But at that time, it was a very big headquarters. There were many palaces. There were many things. Another important thing about Cholars is, Cholars always gave importance to God. Beyond building their houses, they were very good at building temples of God. Because, like the temples built with stones, they could have built their palaces too. But what they do is, they build temples with stones, and their palaces are built with wooden structures. They build them very magnificently, but still they build them with wooden structures. Because, that is permanent. They say, we could have done this because we felt it was temporary. Okay? So, we can understand all this. So, from foreign expeditions, from naval expeditions, internally, Ganga dynasty, Mahipala dynasty, he has defeated them too. Another interesting thing is, Rajendra Cholan, Mahipala, when he attacks the Ganges, simultaneously, this happens in the East. What happens in the West is, in Somnath temple, Mohammad of Ghazni is attacking. So, what the historians feel is, these two are people who have never been defeated. People who have never been defeated. Also, Napoleon of South India. Because, he too has never been defeated. Ghazni too, in his 17 wars, in his 17 raids, he has successfully plundered all 17 raids. So, these two have fought. Otherwise, what would have happened, if a foreigner like him, knew that Rajendra Cholan is attacking the Sivan temple? How would that war have been? They contemplate all this. But, history is, reading what has happened. If we see what is going to happen, or what could have happened, it becomes friction. So, the reason why I am saying this is, Ghazni, is Rajendra Cholan's contemporary. That is enough. Next, what is next is, we have seen their leaders. Then, war and conquest. Then, their administration. We can understand all this. We will see the administration in more detail. Then, the last king is, Rajendra. Rajendra III. The last king is, Rajendra III. He is, defeated by Sadaivarman Sundarapandian. With this, the Cholans, who were very powerful, come to an end. Now, who comes next? Who comes after Rajendra I? Kulothunga. Who is Kulothunga? a member of Chalukya. That is why, he is also called Telugu Cholas. Because, his daughter, because he does not have a son, Rajendra does not have a son, he has a daughter, her name is, Amangadevi. His daughter, Amangadevi, is married to Chalukyan king. The king, and Amangadevi, were born, by, Kulothunga I. What he does is, his wife, Venki, his father, who is on this side, his grandfather, the Cholans, Thanjavur, together, he makes Thanjavur as the capital, and starts his rule. The reason, why he lost his name, is, very very important, he is the one, Sungam. Ok? The Chinese, have lost a lot of emissaries. Three important emissaries, were lost, they say. In 1016, in 1033, and in 1067, such emissaries, were lost. In this, lakhs of emissaries, were lost. But, the emissaries, that, Sungam is a lot, Sungam means, taxes, toll tax, is there, we cannot, profitably, do this, we cannot trade, so, what he does, is, as a way, to stimulate, that is, as a way to stimulate, these taxes. So, that is why, he got a name, Sungam Thavirtha Cholan, he got such a name. Even in Dasavatharam, there is, a dialogue. Ok? So, this is, Sungam Thavirtha Cholan, Kulothunga 1. After this, he is also, a great, pattern of art, and architecture. Great pattern. How do you say, is, many, emissaries are there, see, medieval emissaries, now, the emissaries we know, names, emissaries, all of them, were his emissaries. For example, see, Sekilath, Periyapuram. Ok? Kambar, very important. Kamban's house, is known as, Kavipadum. Ok? That is, even a small thing, is known as, Tamil poems. If you ask for that, he is so famous, a poem in Tamil. Kamban, wrote Ramayanam. Then, Sekilath, Periyapuram. Ok? Then, Ottakuthar. Ottakuthar, if you see, he wrote, Muvarula. Then, Kulothunga Pillai Tamil. He wrote this book. Ok? Then, Jayamkonda. Ok? Sekilath, sorry. Then, Jayamkonda. He wrote, Kalingathuparani. Ok? Then, Pugazhendhi. He wrote, Nala Venba. Which book is this? If you see, so many people, in whose government, if you see, it was, Kulothunga I's government. Then, the next important king, if you see, he did not go for expeditions. But, he went for art and culture. Next, Rajaraja II. Ok? Because, Rajendra I, Rajaraja I, what he did, if you see, Dravid style, that, Brahadeeswara temple, he built. His, model itself, his son, Rajendra, Rajendra I, what he did, if you see, Gangaikonda Cholapuram, he built. Next, if you see, Rajaraja II, in Dharasuram, Airavatheeswara temple, he built a temple. If you see, this is also, approximately, a monolithic structure. Ok? In one stone, carved, intricate temple, is said to be. Why is this famous? If you see, its intricate sculptures, ok? sculptures, then, it is a sculpture, We will see all that. How all, they have done, we will see. Next, what he did, if you see, its musical steps, ok? Musical steps, are very famous. Ok? In Dharasuram, Airavatheeswara temple. Next, last, his, last, line, is Rajendratri. Rajendratri's, end. Their, administrative structure, then, why they are very famous, if you see, local self-government, is famous. So, we will see that once. Shola's, administration. In Shola's, administration, King is a very, very important person. Then, provincial administrations, were there. How they, divided the provinces, if you see, mandalam, then, valanadu, then, nadu. Ok? After nadu, ur, then, sabha, like this. Ok? Like this, they divided. Next, public works, all these, because of us, we, for that, each, department was there. Very important department, if you see, is this tax department. For us, very, very important. Ok? In this tax department, for that, one, department, revenue department, was there. That department's name was, puravu varithinai kalam, they used to say. puravu, varithinai, kalam. Ok? puravu varithinai kalam, this is the name of the revenue department. These people, put a lot of taxes also. What kind of taxes, they put, is, they put cash also, they put kind also. They put cash also, they put kind also. Kind, means, to give our goods. The cash given to the king, tax given to the king, is called as oppadhi. Oppadhi. Ok? What is kind? To give is, irai katti na nelu. ok? irai katti na nellu. Irai, katti na, nellu. To give in net, nothing else. irai katti na nellu. Then also, agriculture and irrigation, they did this too. There are many irrigation works done by the Chola people, they are known for their irrigation works From Veeranarayana Eri to Rajendra Eri, they have their own names Veeranarayana Eri, Rajendra Eri, Madurandhaka Eri Madurandhaka Eri was built by the king Madurandhakan Uthamacholan has a name Madurandhakan Rajendran 1 also has a name Madurandhakan There is a problem in the irrigation works of Rajendra Eri There is a problem and it needs to be fixed For that they call many people They call them and do it like forced labour They call a person to their house and do the work for free That is also like a tax The name of that tax is Eri Aayam Generally, the name of forced labour is Visthi In North India, it is called Kadamai Kadamai is a tax In the irrigation system, they used a different method It is called Criss-cross irrigation Criss-cross irrigation They built a canal It goes from North to South and from East to West One is for the drainage and the other is for the supply It is called Vadi-Vaikal This Criss-cross canal is called Vadi-Vaikal The next important thing in administration is With respect to Cholas Their army We have seen that they had four types of army Elephant army, horse army, horse army Then we have seen the navy They are very famous for their army To save the king There were the real saviours What Marco Polo says is If they could not save the king Or if the king dies They will form an alliance Along with the king, they will close their captivity He has said so Their name is Kaikola Perumbadai They are the protectors of the king Their name is Kaikola Perumbadai They will not allow anyone to approach the king The king will always be surrounded They are very important The next thing we are going to see is With respect to local self-government We will come to local self-government In local self-government Where is this? Where do we see this? We see this in Uttarameru inscriptions In Uttarameru inscriptions In whose period was this built? In whose period was this Uttarameru inscription inscribed? It was inscribed in Paranthaka 1 period This came in the current phase We will take this from that In current phase Solar Kala Kudai Olai Murai Perumai Seerutha Tamizhaga Alangara Oorthi In this year, in 2024 In Republic Day Parade Platoons will be there They will have a beautiful queue Every state will represent The theme we represent is Solar Kala Kudai Olai Murai That is our theme We have kept it in the Mother of Democracy We have kept it in that Mother of Democracy This is Uttarameru temple Uttarameru temple It was inscribed here In this inscription, we say How local self-government was Hanging its head What was it like in Uttarameru inscriptions? It is with respect to The village administration In village administration We had qualifications Membership qualification To be a member You have to be in that Sabha In solar administration There were land grants As far as land grants are concerned They gave it to the peasants They had peasants Apart from that They call it Brahma Daya Brahma Daya is the status Given to Brahmins They call it Devadana Devadana is Given to temples Who looks after all this? The peasants were the village They created their own This Brahma Daya Devadana Sabhas are the ones Who create it What they have done They put committees And took the administrative work In those committees Who should be a member There were qualifications What are the qualifications? To be a member He should have land He should have a house He should have tax He should have knowledge in Vedas He should have moral behaviour He should not have any bad habits Not only him His family should not have any Even if someone in the family Has committed a crime He is not eligible He should have knowledge in Vedas He should have knowledge in language He should not have land ownership Next see how they get disqualified Criteria for disqualification Whenever we say To submit the account He should submit it Otherwise he will get disqualified This is the only criteria Committing major sins Sins like theft, adultery Associating with outcast Consuming forbidden dishes Disqualification Selection process Eligible candidates They are given a piece of paper They are filled up in a box They select the name of the children So, this is the selection process, and the committees, what all committees were there? In several committees, Garden, Tank, the most important committee is the Tank Committee. It is called ERI Aayam, not ERI Aayam, ERI Sabha. This ERI Sabha is very very important. Tank Committee, Justice, Gold, there were 5 fold committees like this. The membership of these committees is very limited. It will be only for 1 year. For 1 year, they will be there for 4-5 days. They will only be there for 360 days. They can only be there as members. They cannot be there continuously. If they are there for 1 time, then they are uneligible for 3 years. There was a cooling off period. So, what they do is, even though it is not fully democratic, Why is it not democratic? Because no one has come to elect. What they do like a lottery system is, In the Kodaivolai method, they pick a name randomly. Not only that, it can only be limited. Not everyone can participate. Only responsible people can participate. So, it is not fully democratic. But, at that time, it was a highly revolutionary step. So, that is why, the local self-government during the solar era, It is an important thing to know. In the film's perspective, what we need to know is, With respect to local self-government, In which inscription was it? In which era was it inscribed? In which temple? In which era? In Paranthaka 1 temple. If there is any disqualification, They will ask in 2-3 words. Disqualification, then membership. They will ask like this. In the Maine's perspective, They will ask to analyze. Is this a democratic method? Was the local self-government based on democracy? They will ask such questions. According to Maine's perspective. Next, we have come to the art and architecture of Cholas. If we take art and architecture, Cholas' temple architecture is very important to us. Because that is what is left in Cholas' work. Temple architecture, Then the sculptures they made, Let it be bone sculptures, Then let it be stone sculptures. After that, we have already seen their literary work. If you take temple architecture, We can divide it into three phases. The first phase is simple temple architecture. The temples will be surrounded by 8 shrub shrines. There will be 8 shrub shrines. Just like how there was a Panchamandapam in North India, Here also there will be 8 shrub shrines. This was the initial phase. The second phase is the temples built by Raja Raja and Rajendran. That is the Dravidian style. We can even say that it is a very important zenith. I will tell you what it is in detail. The Dravidian style of architecture started from the Pallava period. The zenith will be in the era of Cholas. The climax will be in the era of Vijayanagara. Let us see what it is. In the Pallava period, there will be a Garbha Gragam and then a Vimana. In the Vimana, there will be a Shikara and then a Kalasa. In the Kalasa, there will be an intricate style. There will be a lot of sculptures. In the Garbha, there will be a main deity. This is the temple architecture of the Pallava period. After that, the Cholas came and brought the temple architecture to the next level. Let us see what is there in this. This is the original temple. The Cholas built this temple and this structure. In this, there will be a Garbha Gragam. In the Garbha Gragam, there will be a main deity. There will be a main deity. After that, there will be a Vimana. After that, there will be a Shikara. After that, there will be a Kalasa. This is called a Stupa. After that, there will be a Mandapam. This is called an Aradhana Mandapam or a Kalyana Mandapam. After that, there will be a complex. This is the Vellipuram wall. After that, there will be a Gopuram. After that, there will be a Vasal. All these were built by the people who came from different places. This Gopuram was built by the Vijayanagara Empire. In the Cholas period, the Vimana was big. In the Vijayanagara period, the Vimana was small and the Gopuram was big. After that, the Amman shrines were built by the Vijayanagara Empire. After that, the entrance was built by the Marathas. I am not talking about only one temple. There are many other temples like this. All these were built by the people who came from different places. This is how the Dravida architecture was built. This is the Bhagadishwara temple. This is the Gangaikonda Chola temple. This was built with the same blueprint. There is a way to describe the Dravida style of architecture. How can we describe it? How will the blueprint look like? Vimana, Shikara, Stupi, Kalyana Mandapa, Nandi, Vehicle and Gopuram. This is the Karpagraha main shrine. This is the blueprint of the Dravida style of architecture. This is how you can draw. You can draw this in 20 seconds. If you put your answers like this, it will look different. In the third phase, the Airavadeshwara temple in Dharaswaram. Who built this? It was built by Raja Raja II. Look how intricate the structure is. Look how well it is built. This is called embellishment. These are all built in one stone. It is like the Kailasa temple model. It is intricate. It has illusion styles. Look at this. This is called musical steps. This is called illusion. If you look at this side, it looks like an elephant. These are all built in the Airavadeshwara temple. The next important thing is the bronze statue. The famous thing for Chola period is their bronze statues. This was also built using the last wax technique. What they call this is the surrounding. The whole dance is called Nataraja style. Nataraja Natyam. Cosmic dance. Dance of Cosmic. It is the dance of Shiva when he created the world. Shiva dances inside a fire. He dances inside a fire. He has a stick in his right hand. He hits the stick. This is the first sound of creation. Creation is created by hearing the sound. Creation is created by hitting the stick. There is fire on this side. This is the power of destruction. He is the god of destruction. That is why he has fire on this side. He shows Abhayamudra in this hand. There is a small figure. This is an illusion. It is called Mara. He kicks this illusion and kills it. Because he does not want to mislead the people. The person who removes this illusion is this red figure. In the dance, his hair is very intricate. What does it mean? It means that he wants his devotees to bow at his feet. That is why he shows his hand at his feet. You can see these statues in the Egmore museum. There are many statues. These statues are a live demonstration. Many people do not like history. I know it very well. Because there are many facts. That is why I do not like it. But if you learn history live, you will never forget it. You have to study other concepts again and again. But if you forget history, you will never be able to re-do it. You will never be able to forget history. You will always know something. You can go to the Egmore museum and see these statues. There are many statues like this in the Egmore museum. You can go to the temples. You may not be religious. But do not go there for religion. Go there to see the temples. If you go to Mahabalipuram, you can see the architecture there. If you see it with your eyes and register it, you will understand it live. You will never forget it. These are small tips. To remember history. Next we saw in the literary works. We saw Amoghavarsha in Chalukyas. He gave all these in this chapter in NCRT. Amoghavarsha is called Pampa, Ponna, Rana. These are the three gems of Kannada literature. Then Nanayya. All of them were patronized by Chalukyas. In this period, Saiva Thirumurai and Vainava Thirumurai were chosen. Saiva Thirumurai from Devaram and Thiruvasagam. Vainava Thirumurai from Nalaya Thiruvai Parbandham. Who chose Saiva Thirumurai? Nambiyandar Nambiyan. Who chose Vainava Thirumurai? Nathamuni. These are very important. In this period, art and architecture. Let it be architecture, sculptures in art forms, stone sculptures, bronze sculptures, literary works, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada. Dravidic languages were patronized. So, this period is called as great remarkable period. Not for political integration, but cultural, social, architectural, art and architectural integration. If you see in more detail, when it comes to art and architecture, we can see the architecture with more pictures. We can see how it evolves. The question asked in 2023. Any recent question can be asked in Cholas. The question asked in 2023. Cholas defeated Pandyas and Cheras rulers and established their domination over the particular India in the early medieval times. This is correct. We saw about Rajendra Chola. His Kandalur war. Then he defeated Pandyas. His name is Amarabhujanga Pandya. Pandya king's name is Amarabhujanga Pandya. He is the name of Pandya king who defeated Rajaraja Chola. Cholas sent an expedition against Sailendra empire in South East Asia. After that, he named Rajendra as Kadaram Kunda. Both are correct. C is the answer. B is changed. C is the answer. Both 1 and 2 is the answer. Check whether it is correct or not. If it is not correct, neither should be added. We saw about Cholas in detail. I hope you liked this session. If you have any doubts, tell me in the comments. Revise it again and again. All the best. Be free. Be happy. Thank you.