TNPSC Free Notes History – Pandyan Art and Architecture

இந்தக் கட்டுரையில், TNPSC குரூப் 1, குரூப் 2, குரூப் 2A, குரூப் 4 மாநிலப் போட்டித் தேர்வுகளான TNUSRB, TRB, TET, TNEB போன்றவற்றுக்கான  முறைகள் இலவசக் குறிப்புகளைப் பெறுவீர்கள்.தேர்வுக்கு தயாராவோர் இங்குள்ள பாடக்குறிப்புகளை படித்து பயன்பெற வாழ்த்துகிறோம்.

Pandyan Art and Architecture

Education
 Pandyas patronised Tamil from Sangam age itself.
 To promote literacy, many officials were appointed.
 Bhattavirutti and Salabogam were endowments provided for promoting Sanskrit
education.
 Brahmins studied the Sanskrit treatises in educational centres like,
 Kadigai
 Salai
 Vidyastanam
 From 12 th century, monasteries came up, and they were attached to the temples to
promote education with religious thrust.
 A copper inscription says an academy was set up to promote Tamil and to translate
Mahabharatam.
 The important Tamil literary texts composed in the reign of the Pandyas were,
 Tiruppavai – Andal
 Tirvempavai – Manickavasagar
 Tiruvasagam – Manickavasagar
 Tirukkovai – Manickavasagar
 Tirumantiram – Tirumoolar
 Tirupallandu – Nammalvar
 Mahabharata – Villiputhrar
 Naidadham – Adiveerarama Pandya
 Seyur Murugan Ula – Srikaviraya
 Rathingiri – Srikaviraya
Religion
 Pandyas were Jains initially and later adopted Saivism.

 The early rock-cut cave temples were the outcrop of a transitional stage in religion and
architecture.
 Sadaiyavarman Sundarapandyan was anointed in the Srirangam temple, and to
commemorate it, he donated an idol of Vishnu to the temple.
 The inner walls of this temple and three other gopurams were plated with gold.
 Pandyas extended patronage to Vedic practices.
 Palyagasalai Mudukudumi Peruvaluthi performed many Vedic rituals.
 Velvikkudi copper plates as well as inscriptional sources mention the rituals like,
 Ashvamedayaga
 Hiranyagarbha
 Vajapeya yagna conducted by every great Pandya king.
 The impartiality of rulers towards both Saivism and Vaishnavism is also made known in
the invocatory portions of the inscriptions.
 The great Saiva and Vaishnava saints (Nayanmaras and Alwars) combinedly contributed
to the growth of Tamil literature and spiritual enlightenment.
 The period was marked by intense religious conflict.
 The Bhakti movement of the time prompted the heterodox scholars for a debate.
 Many instances of the defeat of Buddhists and Jains in such debates are mentioned in
Bhakti literature.
 The Pandya kings of the period supported and promoted Tamil and Sanskrit.
Art and Architecture
 Pandyas built different models of temples.
 They are,
 Sepulchral temple (E.g. sundarapandisvaram)
 Rock-cut cave temples
 Structural temples
 The early Pandya temples are modest and simple.
 Medieval Pandyas and later Pandyas did not build any new temples but maintained the
existing temples, enlarging them with the addition of gopuras, mandapas and Prakaras.
 The special features of the Pandya temple architecture are,
 Gopuras
 Prakaras
 Vimanas
 Garbhagrahas
 Gateways
 The monolithic mega-sized ornamented pillars are the unique feature of the medieval
Pandya style.

 Notable examples of Pandya architecture,
 Madurai
 Chidambaram
 Kumbakonam
 Thiruvannamalai
 Srirangam
 Pandyas specially patronised the historic Meenakshi temple at Madurai and kept
expanding its premises by adding gopuras and mandapas.
 According to Al Basham, the following are architectural zenith in the Pandya age,
 Meenakshi temple, Madurai
 Aranganathar temple, Srirangam
 Sepulchral temple
Sundarapandisvaram is the best example of a sepulchral temple.
 Structural temples
It consists of,
 Garbagraha
 Arthamandapa
 Mahamandapa.
 Public meetings, social gatherings, religious keerthans, recitals, and Katha-Nataka were
held in the sabha mandapas of temples.
 Temples were built in a planned manner, E.g.,
 Ambasamuthiram
 Thiruppathur
 Mannarkudi
 Madurai
 Alagarkoil
 Srivilliputhur
 Chinnamanur
 Kovilpatti
 Big gopurams and temple mandapams along with gopurams were built in,
 Chidambaram
 Srirangam
 Kulasekara Pandiyan built every temple with
 Arthamandapa
 Manimandapa
 Sannithi
 Rock cut temples

More than 50 rock-cut temples were excavated at several places like,
 Thirupparankundram
 Karaikudi
 Kalugumalai
 Malaiyadikuruchi
 Tiruchirapalli
 Kunnakudi
 Anaimalai
 Sithannavasal
 Pillayarpatti
 Tirumayam
 Tiruchendur
 Kanyakumari
 Prominent cave temples are found at,
 Kalugumalai
 Trichy
 Pillayarpatti
 Tirumayam
 Kundrakkudi
 Tiruchendur
 Kanyakumari
 Sittannavasal
 A 9 th century inscription from the Sittannavasal cave temple informs that the cave was
authored by Ilam Kautamar.
 Another inscription of the same period tells us that Sri Maran Srivallaban renovated this
temple.
Sculptures
 Pandiyas followed the cave temple tradition of Pallavas
 The following,
 Somaskandar
 Durgai
 Ganapathy
 Narasimhar
 Natarajar are good specimens of Pandya sculptures with messages and values.
 The best specimens of sculptures are,
 Siva
 Vishnu

 Kotravai
 Ganesa
 Subramanya
 Surya
 Brahma
 Many sculptures are found at,
 Kalugumalai
 Thiruparankundram
 Thirumalaipuram
 Narttamalai
 Kunnakudi
 Kazhugumalai sculptures are known as Southern Ellora.
 Some Pandya sculptures are as beautiful as Pallava and Chola sculptures. E.g.,
 Vishnu sculpture – Kunnakudi
 Natarajar sculpture – Thirukollakudi
Paintings
 The mural paintings of Srimaran Srivallabha Pandya are seen in the Sithannavasal cave
temples.
 The paintings of Lotus, bathing elephants, and playing fish are noteworthy.
 The fresco paintings on the walls, ceilings, and pillars are great works of art.
 These paintings portray the figures of dancing girls, the king, and the queen.
 Oil paintings were also created.

**************************************************************************