Ariyanatha Mudaliar
Encyclopedia
Ariyanatha Mudaliar was the Vellala
Delavoy (General) and the able Chief Minister of the greatest of the Nayaka
domains established by the Vijayanagar
viceroy and later ruler of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak
(1529–64). He is renowned as the founder of the quasi-feudal organization of regions called poligar or the palayakkarar system where the regions are divided into palayams (small principalities) and are independently governed by poligars or palayakkarars (petty chiefs).
He organized the Pandyan kingdom into 72 palayams and ruled over the 72 dry-zone poligars chiefs for over fifty years. Ariyanatha Mudaliar was not only the pre-colonial military man but also enjoyed a cult status in southern Tamil Nadu
and became a tutelary patron figure amongst some of the region's cattle-keeping predator groups. The feudal chiefs of southern Tamil Nadu continue to be specially attached to his memory to this very day.
The Aiyaram Kaal Mandapam, or Thousand Pillared Hall, in the famous Meenakshi Temple was constructed by him in 1569. At the entrance of the Mandapam, we can still see his statue; the majestic pose of Ariyanatha Mudaliar seated on a beautiful horse-back.
family in Meippedu village, Tondaimandalam(the present day Kanchipuram
district). He learned Tamil
and Mathematics
from a teacher for free and in his spare time mastered the ancient Tamil
martial art of Silambam
and others like sword fight and wrestling. At the age of 16, he was encouraged to go the court of Krishnadevaraya
, the king of Vijayanagara
. Ariyanatha soon rose to prominence and became the chief accountant of the Vijayanagara
empire.
When the Vijayanagara empire fell, he became the Delavoy(General) and the second-in command to the Vijayanagara
viceroy Viswanatha Nayaka of Madurai.
The process of consolidation of the Tamil region under the Vijayanagara
empire started in the beginning of the 16th century. The regions were brought primarily under the control of the Nayaka
kingdoms of Madurai
, Tanjore and Senji. Though the different Nayaka
regions were autonomous, they all acknowledged the sovereignty of the Vijayanagara and its emperor Krishnadevaraya
.
During the process of consolidation, Krishnadevaraya
dispatched one of his most successful generals, Nagama Nayaka, on a campaign to punish Virasekhara Chola who had plundered the petty Pandyan regions. The Pandyas were under the protection of the Vijayanagara empire. Having put down Virasekhara, the general Nagama Nayak claimed Madurai for himself. Viswanatha Nayak, the son of Nagama Nayak was more loyal to the king Krishnadevaraya
than to his father. He overthrew his father and handed him over to Krishnadevaraya and as a reward for his loyalty the king appointed Viswanatha Nayaka as the governor of Madurai
and other provinces in the neighboring Tamil country.
Ariyanatha Mudaliar who led Viswantha Nayak's army became second in command and took power along with the latter in Tirunelveli
in southern India. Viswantha Nayak was then succeeded by his son Krishnappa Nayak who along with his father's able minister Ariyanatha expanded the Madurai
Kingdom under the Nayaks and brought most of the ancient Pandyan territory under its rule.
, we have a record of one Kalahastiyappa Mudaliar, described as Viswanatha Nayak's Prime Minister. He donated the village of Kondaranji Karanur as a free gift to the Brahmins. During the reign of Viswanatha Nayak's successor Chokkanatha Nayaka, we have one Chinnathambi Mudaliyar who is described as the Vassal Pradhani, i.e., the Prime Minister or the Gate keeper to the Nayaka. He is described as the Dalavay or Pradhani for seven years. For example Rahm Emmanuel, the former White House
Chief of Staff, was also described as the Gate keeper to the Oval Office
.. Again, an inscription from the Sri Ranganathaswami temple we have one Muthuna Mudaliyar who is described as the Vassal Pradhani of Ramakrishnappa Nayaka.
Thondaimandala Mudaliars
Thondaimandala Mudaliar is a Tamil caste in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. They trace their lineage to the ancient Chola Velirs...
Delavoy (General) and the able Chief Minister of the greatest of the Nayaka
Nayak (ethnic group)
-History and origin:The word nayak means a head of a regiment. This word is derived from the Sanskrit senanayaka, which means head of a regiment. The community trace there descent from the Vaghela Rajputs who converted to Islam in the 12th Century. They established a number of petty states in...
domains established by the Vijayanagar
Vijayanagara Empire
The Vijayanagara Empire , referred as the Kingdom of Bisnaga by the Portuguese, was an empire based in South Indian in the Deccan Plateau region. It was established in 1336 by Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I of the Yadava lineage. The empire rose to prominence as a culmination of attempts...
viceroy and later ruler of Madurai, Viswanatha Nayak
Viswanatha Nayak
Viswanatha Nayak was the Vijayanagara viceroy to Madurai in south India during the 16th century. He later became the ruler of Madurai after the fall of the Vijayanagara empire...
(1529–64). He is renowned as the founder of the quasi-feudal organization of regions called poligar or the palayakkarar system where the regions are divided into palayams (small principalities) and are independently governed by poligars or palayakkarars (petty chiefs).
He organized the Pandyan kingdom into 72 palayams and ruled over the 72 dry-zone poligars chiefs for over fifty years. Ariyanatha Mudaliar was not only the pre-colonial military man but also enjoyed a cult status in southern Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
and became a tutelary patron figure amongst some of the region's cattle-keeping predator groups. The feudal chiefs of southern Tamil Nadu continue to be specially attached to his memory to this very day.
The Aiyaram Kaal Mandapam, or Thousand Pillared Hall, in the famous Meenakshi Temple was constructed by him in 1569. At the entrance of the Mandapam, we can still see his statue; the majestic pose of Ariyanatha Mudaliar seated on a beautiful horse-back.
Early life
Ariyanatha Mudaliar was born in a VellalaThondaimandala Mudaliars
Thondaimandala Mudaliar is a Tamil caste in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. They trace their lineage to the ancient Chola Velirs...
family in Meippedu village, Tondaimandalam(the present day Kanchipuram
Kanchipuram
Kanchipuram, or Kanchi, is a temple city and a municipality in Kanchipuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a temple town and the headquarters of Kanchipuram district...
district). He learned Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
and Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
from a teacher for free and in his spare time mastered the ancient Tamil
Tamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
martial art of Silambam
Silambam
Silambam or silambattam is a weapon-based Dravidian martial art from Tamil Nadu in south India but also practised by the Tamil community of Sri Lanka and Malaysia. In Tamil, the word silambam refers to the bamboo staff which is the main weapon used in this style...
and others like sword fight and wrestling. At the age of 16, he was encouraged to go the court of Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya
Śrī Kriṣhṇa Devarāya , , , and also known as Krishna Devarayulu in some inscriptions was the famed Emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire who reigned from 1509–1529 CE.He is the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians...
, the king of Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. It is the name of the now-ruined capital city "which was regarded as the second Rome" that surrounds modern-day Hampi, of the historic Vijayanagara empire which extended over the southern part of India....
. Ariyanatha soon rose to prominence and became the chief accountant of the Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. It is the name of the now-ruined capital city "which was regarded as the second Rome" that surrounds modern-day Hampi, of the historic Vijayanagara empire which extended over the southern part of India....
empire.
When the Vijayanagara empire fell, he became the Delavoy(General) and the second-in command to the Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. It is the name of the now-ruined capital city "which was regarded as the second Rome" that surrounds modern-day Hampi, of the historic Vijayanagara empire which extended over the southern part of India....
viceroy Viswanatha Nayaka of Madurai.
Rise to power
Vijayanagara
Vijayanagara is in Bellary District, northern Karnataka. It is the name of the now-ruined capital city "which was regarded as the second Rome" that surrounds modern-day Hampi, of the historic Vijayanagara empire which extended over the southern part of India....
empire started in the beginning of the 16th century. The regions were brought primarily under the control of the Nayaka
Nayak (ethnic group)
-History and origin:The word nayak means a head of a regiment. This word is derived from the Sanskrit senanayaka, which means head of a regiment. The community trace there descent from the Vaghela Rajputs who converted to Islam in the 12th Century. They established a number of petty states in...
kingdoms of Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
, Tanjore and Senji. Though the different Nayaka
Nayak (ethnic group)
-History and origin:The word nayak means a head of a regiment. This word is derived from the Sanskrit senanayaka, which means head of a regiment. The community trace there descent from the Vaghela Rajputs who converted to Islam in the 12th Century. They established a number of petty states in...
regions were autonomous, they all acknowledged the sovereignty of the Vijayanagara and its emperor Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya
Śrī Kriṣhṇa Devarāya , , , and also known as Krishna Devarayulu in some inscriptions was the famed Emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire who reigned from 1509–1529 CE.He is the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians...
.
During the process of consolidation, Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya
Śrī Kriṣhṇa Devarāya , , , and also known as Krishna Devarayulu in some inscriptions was the famed Emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire who reigned from 1509–1529 CE.He is the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians...
dispatched one of his most successful generals, Nagama Nayaka, on a campaign to punish Virasekhara Chola who had plundered the petty Pandyan regions. The Pandyas were under the protection of the Vijayanagara empire. Having put down Virasekhara, the general Nagama Nayak claimed Madurai for himself. Viswanatha Nayak, the son of Nagama Nayak was more loyal to the king Krishnadevaraya
Krishnadevaraya
Śrī Kriṣhṇa Devarāya , , , and also known as Krishna Devarayulu in some inscriptions was the famed Emperor of the Vijayanagara Empire who reigned from 1509–1529 CE.He is the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty. Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many Indians...
than to his father. He overthrew his father and handed him over to Krishnadevaraya and as a reward for his loyalty the king appointed Viswanatha Nayaka as the governor of Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
and other provinces in the neighboring Tamil country.
Ariyanatha Mudaliar who led Viswantha Nayak's army became second in command and took power along with the latter in Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli
Tirunelveli , also known as Nellai , and historically as Tinnevelly, is a city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the headquarters of the Tirunelveli District and the sixth biggest city in Tamil Nadu...
in southern India. Viswantha Nayak was then succeeded by his son Krishnappa Nayak who along with his father's able minister Ariyanatha expanded the Madurai
Madurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
Kingdom under the Nayaks and brought most of the ancient Pandyan territory under its rule.
Palayams or Poligar System
Ariyanatha Mudaliar founded the palayam or poligar system which was widely used to govern the Nayak kingdom during the late 16th centuries. The system was a quasi-fedual organization of the country, which was divided into multiple palayams or small provinces and each palayam was ruled by a palayakkarar or a petty chief. The Madurai Nayak kingdom was accordingly divided into 72 palayams and Ariyanatha ruled over them for over 50 years along with Viswanatha and then with his son Krishnappa Nayak.Epigraphs
According to an inscription from Kiranur, MaduraiMadurai
Madurai is the third largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. It served as the capital city of the Pandyan Kingdom. It is the administrative headquarters of Madurai District and is famous for its temples built by Pandyan and...
, we have a record of one Kalahastiyappa Mudaliar, described as Viswanatha Nayak's Prime Minister. He donated the village of Kondaranji Karanur as a free gift to the Brahmins. During the reign of Viswanatha Nayak's successor Chokkanatha Nayaka, we have one Chinnathambi Mudaliyar who is described as the Vassal Pradhani, i.e., the Prime Minister or the Gate keeper to the Nayaka. He is described as the Dalavay or Pradhani for seven years. For example Rahm Emmanuel, the former White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
Chief of Staff, was also described as the Gate keeper to the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
.. Again, an inscription from the Sri Ranganathaswami temple we have one Muthuna Mudaliyar who is described as the Vassal Pradhani of Ramakrishnappa Nayaka.