The Beginning Of History In The Deep South
A few elements signal the start of the historic event and after the ancient past. These include the establishment of political systems, the emergence of social classes, the use of writing and metal money, and the beginnings of written literature. These settlements of huge rural populations that continue farming with the aid of iron shares are also included.
Before the 2nd century Bc, none of these events were discovered at the tip of the peninsula, where the Kaveri delta served as the nuclear zone. Before this time, individuals who are known as megalith builders lived in the peninsula’s upland areas. They are recognized from their cemeteries rather than their actual homes, which are uncommon.
The Megalithic Era’s History
These burials are referred to as megaliths because large slabs of stone surrounded them. They also include pottery and iron artifacts in addition to the skeletons of those who were interred. Red pottery was also utilized by the inhabitants, but black-and-red pottery appears to have been more common.
Obviously, the custom of burying commodities with dead bodies was based on the notion that the deceased would require all of these items in the afterlife. We can determine their means of subsistence from these things.
We discovered iron hoes, sickles, and helped organize, arrowheads, and spears. There have also been tridents discovered in the megaliths, which eventually came to be related to Shiva. The amount of implements used for fighting and hunting is higher than the number of agricultural instruments that were interred. This would demonstrate that the megalithic people did not engage in a sophisticated form of agriculture.
The Ashokan stones describe people who lived during the late megalithic episode of material civilization, including the Cholas, Pandyas, and Keralaputras (Cheras). There were certain unusual traits among the megalithic inhabitants of Tamil Nadu’s southern areas. The dead were interred in pits with their corpses housed in red clay urns. These urns were frequently not surrounded by stone rings, and there weren’t a lot of grave items. Urn burial was not a practice that predominated in the Krishna-Godavari valley like cist-burial or pit-burial surrounded by stone rings.
State Development and Civilizational Advancement
The Megalithic people had relocated from the uplands into productive river basins and acquired marshy shallow marine areas by the third century B.C. They began to practice wet paddy agriculture, establish numerous villages and cities, and develop social strata as a consequence of their interaction with the principles of material civilization that traders, conquerors, Jaina, Buddhists, and some missionaries brought from the north to the extreme end of the peninsula.
The artistic and commercial connections linking the extreme south of the northwest, known as Tamizhakam, have grown significantly from the 4th century BC. The Philippines’ abundance of gold, pearls, and other valuable stones is another reason why those from the north cherished the Dakshinapatha path.
Megasthenes, who resided in Pataliputra, was aware of the Pandya nation. The Ganga and Son rivers, as well as Pataliputra, the seat of the Magadhan empire, are all mentioned in the older Sangam writings. The Cholas, Pandyas, Keralaputras, and Satyaputras who lived on the empire’s periphery are all mentioned in the Ashokan inscriptions; only the Satyaputras are not specifically mentioned.
Also mentioned are the Tamraparnis, or Sri Lankans. A Tamil chief took Ashoka’s moniker, “beloved to gods,” and embraced it. All of this was the outcome of the missionary and acculturation efforts of the Jainas, Buddhists, Ajivikas, and Brahmanas as well as the traders who followed in their path. The placement of Ashokan inscriptions along vital thoroughfares is crucial.
The first Three Kingdoms
The westernmost tip of the Indian region, southeast of the Krishna River, was ruled by the Chola, Pandya, and Chera, or the Indian Ocean islands of kingdoms. The Pandyas are first mentioned by Megasthenes, who asserts that their country was famous for its pearls. Additionally, he states that a woman is in charge of it, which would suggest that sexism had some influence on Pandya culture.
The Pandya territory generally encompassed the present-day Tamil Nadu districts of Tirunelveli, Ramnad, as well as Madurai and was located in the southernmost and southeasterly region of the Indian peninsula. Madurai served as its capital. The Sangam literature, which was assembled at Tamil academies in the first years of the Christian period, makes reference to the Pandya emperors but offers no supporting details. It mentions one or two Pandya conquerors. Nevertheless, it is clear from this literature that the nation was flourishing.
Weapon and Purse
International and local trade became a significant source of royal income. We are aware of the custodial officers’ procedures in Puhar. Additionally, merchants who transferred their wares from one location to another had to pay transit fees. Soldiers remained constantly on the lookout for smugglers and guarded their safety.
Royal income was also increased by war spoils. The fundamental basis for war and politics, however, was stable agricultural income. It is unclear what portion of the farming output the monarch claimed and collected.
Increasing Social Classes
The monarch was able to retain bands of professional fighters thanks to income from trade, war loot, and agricultural output. He was also able to pay the bards and priests, who were primarily Brahmanas. In the Sangam era, the Brahmanas arrived first in Tamilia. A ruler who never inflicted harm on the Brahmanas was ideal.
Many Brahmanas were skilled poets, and the king handsomely compensated them for their work. There are claims that Karikala gave one poet 1,600,000 gold pieces, although these claims appear to be exaggerated. The poets or bards were also given money, land, chariots, horses, and even elephants in addition to the gold. The Brahmanas of Tamilia consumed meat and alcohol. In the Sangam writings, the Kshatriyas and vaishyas are depicted as standard varnas. However, the warrior class played a significant role in both politics and society. At a formal ceremony, army majors were given the title of enactment.
Brahmanism’s Origins
Brahmanism had an impact on the state and society that emerged in the Tamil region in the early centuries of the Christian era. However, the Brahmanical influence was restricted to the top classes of Tamil society in a small section of the Tamil territory.
Vedic sacrifices were carried out by the monarchs. The Vedic adherents known as Brahmanas engaged in heated debates. But Murugan, who in early medieval times took the name Subramaniya, was the foremost local deity revered by the inhabitants of the hilly region. Vishnu worship is also mentioned, however it might have been a more recent custom.
The megalithic custom of taking care of the dead persisted. Paddy was offered to the killed. A crematorium was first used, but inhumation, which was used after the old stone phase, was continued.
