Early Cholas

[4][5] The king of Kalinga, Kharavela, who ruled around 150 BCE, mentioned in the famous Hathigumpha inscription of the confederacy of the Tamil kingdoms that had existed for over 100 years.

Periplus is a work by an anonymous Alexandrian merchant, written in the time of Domitian (81–96 CE) and contains precious information of the Chola country.

[8] Mahavamsa, a Buddhist text, also recounts a number of conflicts between the inhabitants of Ceylon and the Tamil immigrants from Chola Country.

Chronicles such as the Yalpana Vaipava Malai and stone inscriptions like Konesar Kalvettu recount that Kulakkottan, an early Chola king and descendant of Manu Needhi Cholan, was the restorer of the ruined Koneswaram temple and tank at Trincomalee in 438 CE, the Munneswaram temple of the west coast, and as the royal who settled ancient Vanniar.

These historic incidents speak of the Chola king Kantaman, supposed contemporary of the sage Agastya, whose devotion brought the river Kaveri into existence.

[citation needed] These historic incidents received enormous emphasis in the later Chola period in the long mythical genealogies incorporated into the copper-plate charters of the 10th and 11th centuries.

The earliest version of this is found in the Anbil Plates which gives fifteen names before Vijayalaya Cholan including the historical ones of Karikala, Perunarkilli and Kocengannan.

[citation needed] The Chola kings namely Dharmavarcholan and Killivalavan developed the shrine of Srirangam into big temple seen now.

[14][15][16][17] The earliest Chola kings of whom we have tangible evidence are those mentioned in the Sangam literature, written in the period 600 BCE–300 CE.

They attribute to him the conquest of the whole of India up to the Himalayas and the construction of the flood banks, Grand Anicut, of the Kaveri River with the aid of his feudatories.

The poet Kovur Kilar mentions a protracted civil war between two Chola chieftains Nalankilli and Nedunkilli.

[citation needed] Sangam literature gives an unusually complete and true picture of the social and economic conditions during the early Chola period.

Sangam poems say that in the Chola country watered by the river Kaveri, in a space in which an elephant could lie, one can produce enough grain to feed seven.

[citation needed] The trade that flourished between the Chola country and the ancient Roman Empire is given in much detail by Periplus of the Erythraean Sea (c. 75 CE).

Srirangam Ranganathaswamy temple is the largest functioning religious complex in the world and mentioned in the Sangam literature of the Sangam era (500 BCE - 300 CE [ 11 ] ), there are mentions in many books like Akanaṉūṟu , Purananuru , Paripāṭal and Silapadikaram . [ 12 ] The temple was first built by the Chola ruler, Dharmavarma . The Kaveri river flood destroyed the temple, and later, the early Cholas King Killivalavan rebuilt the temple complex after seeing the Golden Vimana directed by a parrot. Beyond the ancient textual history, archaeological evidence such as inscriptions refer to this temple, and these stone inscriptions are from late 100 BCE to 100 CE . [ citation needed ] Hence, making it one of the oldest surviving active temple complexes in South India. [ citation needed ] there are many mandapas which were built near the main Sanctum Sanctorum which dates around 100 CE to 300 CE built by Uraiyur Cholas .
Kallanai / Grand Anicut built by Karikala Cholan, on the River Kaveri, near Tiruchirappalli