|
The Vaikunta Perumal Temple in Uthiramerur, a village in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu, is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu. The temple is constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture. Vishnu is worshipped as Vaikunta Perumal and his consort Lakshmi as Anandavalli. The temple was originally built by Pallavas, with later additions from the Cholas. The temple is known for the inscriptions indicating the democratic practises of electing representatives for the village bodies during the regime of Parantaka Chola (907-55 CE). The building is declared as a heritage monument and administered by the Archeological Survey of India. It is believed that Rajiv Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India was inspired by the system after paying a visit to the temple and insisted on improving Panchayat Raj, India's system of local bodies in villages. ==History== Uthiramerur was ruled by the Pallavas, Cholas, Pandyas, Sambuvaraya, Vijayanagara Rayas and Nayaks. As per the inscriptions in the temple, the Pallava king Nandivarman II (Pallavamalla) 730–795 CE established the village around 750 A.D. It is believed that he donated the village to Vedic Brahmins from Srivaishanva community.〔 The Cholas captured the region and it came under their dominion during the later part of 9th century. There are inscriptions from the period of Parantaka Chola I (907–950), Rajaraja Chola I (985–1014), Rajendra Chola I (1012–1044) and Kulothunga Chola I (1070–1120) indicating various gifts to the temples. The process of democratically electing the local representatives through a system called Kudavolai during the Chola regime is documented in the inscriptions. The temple is known for the inscriptions indicating the democratic practises of electing representatives for the village bodies during the regime of Parantaka Chola.〔 The region and the village went under the sway of Pandyas during the 13th century and subsequently to the Telugu Chola ruler Vijaya Gandagopala. During the later period, the village switched hands to Pallava chieftains, Telugu Cholas, Samburavarayars and finally Kumara Kampana. The Vijayanagara emperor Krishnadevaraya (1502–29) made contributions to the Vaikunta temple, Subhramanya temple and Kailasanatha temple in the village.〔 The temple is declared as a heritage monument and administered by the Archeological Survey of India.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Vaikunda Perumal Temple, Uthiramerur」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|