Life history of Tamil Buddhist monk BODHIDHARMA/ King of shaolin/ Creation of kung fu

 BODHIDHARMA

Bodhidharma was a Buddhist monk who lived during the 5th or 6th century. He is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chan Buddhism to China, and regarded as its first Chinese patriarch. According to Chinese legend, he also began the physical training of the monks of Shaolin Monastery that led to the creation of Shaolin Kung Fu. It is believed that Bodhidharma was "the third son of a Pallavine king from Kanchipuram", in Kanchipuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, South-South East India.

It is said that bodhidharma was an Indian prince. Bodhidharma was very intelligent and was the favorite son of the king of a region that is now part of southern India possibly a pallava king from kanchipuram . Bodhidharma had two older brothers who feared that their father, the king, would pass them over and bequeath the kingship to Bodhidharma. In their jealousy, the two older brothers often disparaged Bodhidharma while talking with their father, hoping to turn him against their younger brother. The older brothers also attempted to assassinate Bodhidharma but Bodhidharma had very good karma and so the attempts were not successful. Despite being the favorite son of the king, Bodhidharma realized that he was not interested in a life of politics. He chose instead to study with the famous Buddhist master Prajnatara and become a Buddhist monk.

Bodhidharma trained with his master for many years. One day he asked his master, "Master, when you pass away, where should I go? What should I do?" His master replied that he should go to Zhen Dan, which was the name for China at that time. Years later, Bodhidharma's master passed away and Bodhidharma prepared to leave for China.

It is said that after Failing to make a favourable impression in South China, Bodhidharma  travelled to the Shaolin Monastery. After either being refused entry or being ejected after a short time, he lived in a nearby cave, where he "faced a wall for nine years, not speaking for the entire time.

The Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall(952) identifies Bodhidharma as the 28th Patriarch of Buddhism in an uninterrupted line that extends all the way back to the Gautama Buddha himself.According to Southeast Asian folklore, Bodhidharma travelled from Jambudvipa by sea to Palembang, Indonesia. Passing through Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Malaysia, he eventually entered China through Nanyue. In his travels through the region, Bodhidharma is said to have transmitted his knowledge of the Mahayana doctrine and the martial arts. Malay legend holds that he introduced forms to silat. He is widely believed as the creater of Shaolin Kung Fu

Uthiramerur

    Noted for its temple inscriptions that describe a self-governance system existing around 7th to 9th century CE. Uthiramerur is a panchayat town in Kancheepuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.A tenth century inscription states the name of the village as Uttaramerur Chaturvedi Mangalam".Around 25 inscriptions, spanning reigns of around four Pallava kings, have been found at Uthiramerur.the village has several important Hindu temples: Sundaravarada Perumal Temple, Vaikunda Perumal Temple, Subramanya temple, and the Kailasanatha temple.

CHOLA ADMINISTRATION

The Chola government during the imperial period (850 – 1200 CE) was marked for its uniqueness and innovativeness. Cholas were the first dynasty who tried to bring the entire South India under a common rule and to a great extent succeeded in their efforts.the king was at the helm of the administration and all executive legislative and military powers rested with him.

A council of ministers and other high officials were there to advice the king for administration of Chola Empire. Even the princes of Chola dynasty were to associate with the ruling king and were actively employed in war and peace. Since the Chola empire was a big one there were many administrative divisions for the efficient working of the government.The Chola Administration system did not had any central assembly either to assist the kings of Chola Dynasty in making policy or to help in day to day administration of the state like the Maurya administration. Since there was no central Assembly of the Vedic character, the king was alone responsible for efficient administration of the Chola Empire. The was a body of executive officers in the immediate and constant attendance of the king. Each department was represented by a group of officers. They were possibly personal staff rather than regular council of ministers. Rather they worked as liaison officers between the king and the bureaucracy.Chola empire known as Rajyam or Rastrayam was divided into a number of provinces or Mandalam. The most important Mandalams were placed under the charges of the Viceroys who were generally the Princes of the royal blood or of noble families.The provinces or Mandalams were subdivided into number of divisions known as Kottams or Valanadus. The next administrative subdivisions of Cholas were the districts (Nadus), each of which again consisted of a number of autonomous villages, unions or groups of villages, playing a vital part in the Chola administration system.The Chola village administration was very systematic and well developed. As regards the assemblies of the villages, the Chola inscriptions mention the assemblies called the ‘Ur’ and the ‘Sabha’ or ‘Mahasabha’ which were the gatherings of the adult male members of the Community.

Tamil copper-plate inscriptions

    Tamil copper-plate inscriptions are copper-plate records of grants of villages, plots of cultivable lands or other privileges to private individuals or public institutions by the members of the various South Indian royal dynasties.Most famous of them all, Tiruvalangadu copper plates  were issued by emperor Rajendra Chola They were a set of 31 copper plates, the ends of which were secured by a big, circular copper seal with the royal emblem of the Chola dynasty. The legend around the emblem proclaimed in Sanskrit, “Hail, Prosperity! .The seal itself is a work of art. It has a tiger, the emblem of the Cholas; an umbrella and two fly-whisks, representing royalty; a swastika and two lamps, auspicious symbols. Besides, it has two vertical fishes (the royal emblem of the Pandyas), a bow (the Cheras' emblem), and the boar (eastern Chalukyas' emblem), signifying that Rajendra Chola had conquered the Pandyas, the Cheras and the eastern Chalukyas These copper plates record Rajendra Chola gifting the Palaiyanur village to the Siva temple at Tiruvalangadu in the present-day Trivellore district.OF the 31 plates, the first ten provide information in Sanskrit about the Chola genealogy. The remaining 21 plates inform in Tamil about Rajendra Chola's order of donating Palaiyanur to the Tiruvalangadu Siva temple, and the extent of the Palaiyanur's boundaries, when it was donated around 1017 A.D. they were written in both Sanskrit and Tamil. While the Sanskrit portion was written in the Pallava grantha script, the Tamil language was written in Tamil scripT.The earliest such bilingual plate called Pallankovil (near Karaikkal) belonged to the Pallava king Simhavishnuvarman (circa 550-circa 580 A.D)

This copper plate recorded his grant of land to the Jaina temple at Tiruparitikunram, about three km from Kanchipuram “The Tamil portion of the plate provides elaborate details of administration, taxation, educational systems and the economy