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Anantavarman Chodaganga

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(Redirected from Anantavarman Codaganga) First emperor of eastern Ganga dynasty

Anantavarman Chodaganga
Trikalingadhipati, Gangesvara
Sculpture of Chodaganga Deva at Chudanga Sahi, Puri
Reign1077–1150 CE
SuccessorKamarnnava Deva
HouseEastern Ganga Dynasty
FatherRajaraja Deva I
MotherRajasundari
ReligionHindu

Gangesvara Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva (r. 1077–1150) was an Eastern Ganga monarch who reigned between 1077 CE to 1150 CE. He was a great patron of arts and architecture who built many temples, one of them being the magnificent Jagannath Temple in Puri. He was the ruler of the Kalinga region from river Ganga to Godavari, and later the early medieval Odisha region with the incorporation of the constituent regions with the decline of the Somavamshis.

Life and reign

Present Jagannath temple in Puri built by Anantavarman Chodaganga.

He was the son of Rajaraja Deva I alias Devendravarman and Kalinga Mahadevi Rajasundari and grandson of Trikalingadhipati Anantavarman Vajrahasta Deva V. Anantavarman's mother Rajasundari was the daughter of emperor Virarajendra Chola and granddaughter of Chola king Rajendra Chola I. However, historian S.N. Sen states that Anantavarman was the maternal grandson of Kulottunga I.

The Jagannath Temple at Puri was rebuilt in the 11th century atop its ruins by Anantavarman Chodaganga. He was known as the first Gajapati/Kunjaradhiparti as per Ronaki Stone inscription. Emperor Chodaganga was originally a Shaivite from Srimukhalingam. But he embraced Sri Vaishnavism under the influence of Ramanuja when the latter visited the Sri Jagannath Puri temple.

In his Sindurapura grant (1118 A.D) Anantavarma styles himself Paramavaishnava. He re-established Kurmanathaswamy temple, Srikurmam after Ramanuja's visit to Kalinga. Despite being related to Anantavarman, Kulothunga Chola I did not stop from burning Anantavarman's empire. Tamil historians propose that it was probably because the king failed to pay his rent for two consecutive years. He was ousted by Kulothunga's general Karunakara Thondaiman and this victory is detailed in the Tamil classic Kalingattupparani. However, this could be a far fetch from the actual truth considering that such poems often exaggerate the Kings they are praising and often overlook the defeats the Kings have faced. Monarchs from this region of the subcontinent regularly assumed the title Chodaganga Deva throughout the ancient and medieval periods to allude to their Chola and Eastern Ganga heritage.

From various inscriptions it is known that King Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva established the present temple some time near the end of the eleventh century. A copper plate inscription made by King Rajaraja III found on the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple near the north entrance states that Jagannath temple was built by Gangesvara, i.e., Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva.

Later, King Ananga Bhima Deva II (1170–1198) did much to continue the work of Chodaganga Deva, building the walls around the temple and many of the other shrines on the temple grounds. He is thus often considered one of the builders of the temple. He also did much to establish the regulations around the service to the Deity.

A scion of this dynasty made extensive donations to the Koneswaram temple, Trincomalee on Puthandu, 1223 CE in the name of King Chodaganga Deva. Shortly afterwards, the Konark temple was constructed in Odisha. A brother of the king titled Ulagaikonda Permadi is known to us from several inscriptions.

Gallery

  • Royal Procession of Chodaganga at Garedi Panchana Temple Royal Procession of Chodaganga at Garedi Panchana Temple
  • Royal court scene of Chodaganga at Buddhanath Temple, Garedi Panchana Royal court scene of Chodaganga at Buddhanath Temple, Garedi Panchana

Sources

References

  1. Tripathy, Dr. Kunjabihari (1972). "No 1 - Introduction". A Brief History of Oriya Literature. Vol. 1 -Part I. Berhampur-1, Ganjam ,Odisha: Bijoy Book Store. pp. e–f.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  2. Haldar, Narotam (1988). Gangaridi - Alochana O Parjalochana.
  3. Rajaguru, Satyanarayan (1960). Inscriptions of Orissa, Volume III, Part I. Bhubaneswar: Orissa Sahitya Akademi. pp. 174, 175.
  4. * Walter Smith (1994). The Mukteśvara Temple in Bhubaneswar. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 26. ISBN 978-81-208-0793-8.
  5. Sen, Sailendra (2013). A Textbook of Medieval Indian History. Primus Books. pp. 36–37. ISBN 978-9-38060-734-4.
  6. Cesarone, Bernard (2012). "Bernard Cesarone: Pata-chitras of Orissa". asianart.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2012. Retrieved 2 July 2012. This temple was built between approximately 1135-1150 by Codaganga
  7. Orissa (India). Public Relations Dept, Orissa (India). Home Dept. Orissa Review, Volume 44. Home Department, Government of Orissa, 1987. p. 56.
  8. Dinanath Pathy. Traditional Paintings of Orissa. Working Artists Association of Orissa, 1990 - Painting, Indic - 93 pages. p. 16.
  9. Oḍiśa Saṃskr̥ti Parishada. Studies in the cult of Jagannātha. Institute of Orissan Culture, 1991 - Religion - 256 pages. p. 150.
  10. Joanna Gottfried Williams. Kalādarśana: American Studies in the Art of India. BRILL, 1981 - Art, Indic - 183 pages. p. 39.
  11. Archaeological Survey of India, India. Dept. of Archaeology. Epigraphia Indica, Volume 30. Manager of Publications, 1987. p. 92.
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