Kuttralanathar Temple, Courtrallam – Inscriptions
Kutralanathar
Temple has 89 inscriptions in total. Of the 89, ten inscriptions
discovered on the east and west walls of the first periphery records the gifts
of cow, sheep, goat, buffalo for burning perpetual lamp and endowments of land,
gold and coins to the Tirukutrala Perumal temple by the Chola monarch Madiraikonda Ko-Parakesarivarman aka
Parantaka Chola I (907–955 A.D.). In the entire Pandya country, the
inscriptions of Parantaka Chola I in Tamil Vattezhuthu script were discovered
only in Kutralanathar Temple.
Inscriptions
in Vattezhuthu script on the east wall of the first prakara Kutralanathar
Temple were assignable to Parantaka I. It records a gift of 26 cows for burning
a perpetual lamp in the temple of Tirukkurralattu-Perumal by Adittan
Muvenda-Pallavaraiyan of Arrur in Tiruppanangattu-nadu in Solanadu (The
inscription mentions the name of the Lord as ‘Tirukkurralattu-Perumal’).
Another Inscription records a gift of 26 cows for burning a perpetual lamp in
the temple by Dharma-setti alias Sadaiyan Kavayan a member of the Manigramam (guild)
from Tenvara-nadu.
Another Vatteluthu
script and is damaged. It records a gift of cows for burning a perpetual
lamp in the temple by a lady by name Ariyampoduviyar wife of Naranappallavaraiyar.
Another inscription records a gift of 25 sheep for burning a lamp with an Ulakku
of ghee every day in the temple of Mahadeva at Tirukkurralam by one Nakkan Appi
Tirumurtti (This inscription observe the Lord's name as ‘Mahadeva at Tirukkurralam’).
An
inscription dated to 22nd regnal year of Parantaka I. and it is
damaged, records gift of 16 ma of land for burning a perpetual lamp in the
temple at Tirukkurralam in Tenvari-nadu by Kandan Iravi, made on the day of a
solar eclipse. An inscription dated to 35 regnal year of Parantaka I records a
gift of 6 buffaloes for burning a perpetual lamp in the temple at Tirukkurralam
in Tenvari-nadu by Kovadi Kdnra, Vellala resident of Vallapuram in Mala-nadu. The
inscriptions of Parantaka also cite the date and time of the 'solar eclipse'
which enabled the scholars to precisely compute the period of Parantaka I. There
is also another one inscription in Tamil script.
Three
inscriptions of Rajaraja Chola I discovered on the western wall of the first
periphery records the renovation work carried over the dilapidated structure as
well as the construction of new Mandapams. The Chola monarch also copied the
Vattezhuthu Tamil inscriptions and inscribed back after renovation. The prime
deity was mentioned in his inscriptions as 'Kutralathu Bhattaragar'. The Chola
emperor also left an inscription (which is not readable now) to tell us about
structural additions made to this temple as well as the transformation of
Tamil script from Vattezhuthu Tamil script. The fragmented inscription of
Rajendra Chola I discovered on the third pillar of the eastern corridor in the
first periphery.
