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Puhar, Mayiladuthurai

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"Poompuhar" redirects here. For other uses, seePoompuhar (disambiguation).

Puhar(also known asPoompuhar) is a town in theMayiladuthurai districtin the southern Indian state ofTamil Nadu.[2]It was once a flourishing ancient port city known asKaveri Poompattinam,which is described inPost Sangam literaturelike Silappadikaram, Manimekalai,Paṭṭiṉappālai(Sangam Literature) andAkananuru(Sangam Literature) as the capital of theEarly Cholakings inTamilakam.[3]Puhar is located near the mouth of theKaveririver, on the sea coast. It is mentioned in thePeriplus of the Erythraean Sea.

Puhar
Town
Puhar is located in Tamil Nadu
Puhar
Puhar
Puhar is located in India
Puhar
Puhar
Puhar is located in Asia
Puhar
Puhar
Coordinates:11°08′38″N79°51′18″E/ 11.144°N 79.855°E/11.144; 79.855
CountryIndia
StateTamil Nadu
DistrictMayiladuthurai
Elevation
1 m (3 ft)
Language
• OfficialTamil[1]
• Additional officialEnglish[1]
Time zoneUTC+5:30(IST)
Telephone code04364
Vehicle registrationTN-82-Z
Nearest cityMayiladuthurai,Sirkazhi
Lok SabhaconstituencyMayiladuthurai

Marine archaeological research (conducted by the National institute of marine archaeology, Goa) indicates that much of the town was washed away by progressive erosion and floods. In the 1960s and 1970s, archaeological research was conducted under the archaeologist K. V. Soundararajan. Submerged wharves and several meter lengths of pier walls excavated in recent times have corroborated the literary references to Poompuhar. It was rebuilt several times after that. Pottery dating back to the 4th century BCE has been discovered off shore by marine archaeologists east of the town.[citation needed]

City layout

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The general plan of the city of Puhar is described in considerable detail in the fifth book ofSilapathikaram.The town was built on the north banks of the riverKaveri.The town had two distinct districts,Maruvurpakkamnear the sea andPattinappakkamto its west. These two villages were separated by a stretch of gardens and orchards where daily markets were held under the shades of the trees. The market place was known asNaalangadiduring the day and asallangadiby night.[citation needed]

After 2004 tsunami
Poompuhar Beach

Maruvurpakkam

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The district of Maruvurpakkam was near the beach and had several terraced mansions and warehoused with windows shaped like the eyes of thedeer.Maruvurpakkam being close to the shore and hence to the shipyard was naturally preferred by the many overseas travellers, merchants andyavanas(Greeks).[citation needed]

Maruvurpakkam was inhabited by the fisher folk. The town had severalwarehouses.Weavers,silkmerchants,vendors,fishandmeatsellers,potters,grainmerchants, jewellers anddiamondmakers lived in Maruvurppakkam.[citation needed]

Pattinappakkam

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The King andnobles,rich traders,physicians,astrologers,members of the king'sarmyand court dancers occupied Pattinappakkam. The five Manrams - Vellidai Manram, Elanchi Manram, Nedankal manram, Poothachathukkam and Pavaimanram were located in Pattinappakkam. Gardens like Elavanthikaicholai, Uyyanam, Chanpathivanam, Uvavanam, and Kaveravanam added beauty to the town.[citation needed]

In culture

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The city of Poompuhar is a very ancient one.

Descriptions in Tamil poetic works

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APurananurupoem (poem 30) says that big ships entered the port of Puhar without slacking sail, and poured out onto the beach precious merchandise brought from overseas. In the extensive markets of Puhar there were many tall mansions surrounded by platforms reached by high ladders. These mansions had many apartments and were provided with doorways, great and small, and with wide hallways and corridors (Pattinappaalai– II –142-158). In all parts of the town there were flags flying of various kinds and shapes.[citation needed]

Pattinappaalai,a poem that describes the ancient Puhar very vividly, was written by the poet Kadiyalur Uruthirangannanaar is part of theTen Idyllsanthology and was sung in praise ofKarikala Chola,a second-century CECholaking.[citation needed]

In Buddhist literature

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Buddhadatta,the 5th century writer who lived during the reign ofAccutavikkantevividly describes the capitalKaveripattinamin his manuals (Palilanguage) as follows:[4]

In the lovely Kaveripattana crowded with hordes of men and women from pure families endowed with all the requisites of a town with crystal clear water flowing in the river, filled with all kinds of precious stones, possessed of many kinds of bazaars, beautified by many gardens, in a beautiful and pleasant vihara built by Kanhadasa, adorned with a mansion as high as the Kailasa, and having different kinds of beautiful entrance-towers on the outer wall, I lived in an old mansion there and wrote this work..

In theNigamanagāthaof Vinayavinicchaya, Buddhatta describes how he wrote the work while staying at the monastery built by oneVenhudassa(Vishnudasa) on the banks of the Kaveri in a town called Bhootamangalam near Kaveripattinam.[5]

Merchants of Puhar

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Pattinappaalaialso gives an idealised description of the merchants plying their trade in Puhar (Pattinappaalai– II – 199–212):

They shunned murder, and put aside theft, pleased the gods by fire offerings,…they regarded others rights as scrupulously as their own, they took nothing more than was due to them and never gave less than was due from them. Trading thus in many articles of merchandise, they enjoyed an ancient heritage of prosperity and lived in close proximity to one another.

City's destruction

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The ancient city of Puhar was destroyed by the sea around 300 AD. Marine archaeologists from the National Institute of Oceanography have established that this could have been the effects of sediment erosion and periodic tsunamis. Such a tsunami is mentioned in the Tamil poemManimekhalai(see below), which relates that the town Kāveripattinam or Puhār was swallowed up by the sea. This event is supported by archaeological finds of submerged ruins off the coast of modern Poompuhar.[6][7] The town of Kāveripattinam is believed to have disappeared around 300 AD due to this tsunami[8]

Manimekalai

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The ancient Tamil poemManimekalaiby the poetSeethalai Saathanaris set in the town of Kaveripattanam.[9][10] Ancient ruins of a 4th-5th-century Buddhist monastery, a Buddha statue, and a Buddhapada (footprint of the Buddha) were found in another section of the ancient city, now at Pallavanesvaram.[11] Also some claim that Manimekalai attained Mukti there.[citation needed]

Geography

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Kaveripattanam is located at11°08′21″N79°50′57″E/ 11.13917°N 79.84917°E/11.13917; 79.84917.[12]It has an average elevation of 1 m (3.3 ft).

It is at a distance of 24km from Mayiladuthurai and 40km Chidambaram.[citation needed]

Politics

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Poompuhar assembly constituency is part ofMayiladuturai (Lok Sabha constituency).[13]

Tourism

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A sign board

Attractions in Poompuhar include:[14]

  • Silappathikara Art Gallery: scenes fromSilappadikaramare depicted in sculptures carved by the students of the Mamallapuram Art College.
  • Masilamani Nathar Koil, Tarangambadi: built in 1305 by Maravarma Kulasekara Pandiyan, this temple has been heavily eroded by the sea.
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  • Fishermen's vessels
  • Ilango Adigal (poet prince)
  • Kannagi In Pandya Court
  • Sculpture of Kovalan and Kannagi at the art gallery entrance

Notes

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  1. ^ab"52nd Report of the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities in India"(PDF).nclm.nic.in.Ministry of Minority Affairs.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 25 May 2017.Retrieved21 July2019.
  2. ^":::TTDC - Places".
  3. ^Ajay Mitra Shastri, R. K. Sharma, Devendra Handa (2005).Revealing India's Past Recent Trends in Art and Archaeology: Prof. Ajay Mitra Shastri Commemoration Volume · Volume 1.Aryan Books International. p. 33.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ^The March of India, Vol 8.Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, 1956. p. 52.
  5. ^Mu Aruṇācalam.The Kalabhras in the Pandiya Country and Their Impact on the Life and Letters There.University of Madras, 1979. p. 53.
  6. ^Gaur A. S. and Sundaresh,Underwater Exploration off Poompuhar and possible causes of its Submergence,1998,Puratattva,28: 84-90. Available online at[1]
  7. ^Marine archaeological explorations of Tranquebar-Poompuhar region on Tamil Nadu coast,Rao, S.R..Journal of Marine Archaeology,Vol. II, July 1991, pp. 5–20. Available online at[2]Archived24 January 2011 at theWayback Machine
  8. ^"Indian town sees evidence of ancient tsunami", Associated Press report, Poompuhar,14 January 2005. Available online at[3]
  9. ^Rao Bahadur Krishnaswāmi Aiyangar,Maṇimekhalai in its Historical Setting,London, 1928. Available at archive.org[4]
  10. ^Hisselle Dhammaratana,Buddhism in South India,Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, 1964. Available on Buddhist Publication Society Online Library[5]Archived4 March 2016 at theWayback Machine
  11. ^Marine archaeological explorations of Tranquebar-Poompuhar region on Tamil Nadu coast.,Rao, S.R..Journal of Marine Archaeology,Vol. II, July 1991, pp. 6. Available online at[6]Archived24 January 2011 at theWayback Machine
  12. ^"Maps, Weather, and Airports for Kaveripattanam, India".fallingrain.
  13. ^"List of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies"(PDF).Tamil Nadu.Election Commission of India. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 4 May 2006.Retrieved12 October2008.
  14. ^":::TTDC - Places".

References

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  • Mudaliar, A.S, Abithana Chintamani (1931), Reprinted 1984 Asian Educational Services, New Delhi.
  • Nilakanta Sastri, K.A. (1935). The CōĻas, University of Madras, Madras (Reprinted 1984).
  • [7]
  • Wayback Machine
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