IHB s x a a n

The Chitradurga land system represents the g^eral characteristics of Indian agrarian pattern as a whole, though modified, ^o as to suit their particular way of life and events. Xhe careful scrutiny of the various land rv transactions undertaken by the Nayakas of Chitradurga, reveals that the institution of private property in land was recognised by the king and society. Ihe king had his own landed property, and also got any uncultivated land or unclaimed land for the Government. Xhe king made grants of lands to individuals as ««11 as to the institutions like teiiqples, mathas. and aeraharas. The lands granted could be tax-free or rated at quit-rent. The Nayakas had some basic criteria for granting or gifting lands to the individuals or to the institutions. The criterion could be the recognition of services or acknowledge­ ment of obligation or provision of incentives or contribtttions made by the individuals or institutions. This service might be to the land, people, or to the king himself. The ovinershlp rights of numerous lands were granted to persons and institutions by the kings in recognition of services rendered by these units. The services which entitled one to receive lands as gifts were of various types such as religious, social or military.

96 97

A fen Instances may be noted. In the year 1691 A.D. Obanna Nayaka made a grant of land in Bhavinda to a manson and a carpenter for their services. In the year 1556 A.D. limmanna Nayaka granted a iasana to Xammadls of Hlriyvir* Such grants were'also made to the village officials as remuneration for their services. According to an inscription, Kamageti Kasturi Madakeri Nayaka granted the toi»n lands of Qoudasamudra to 2 a certain Baguru Raiodeva. Timmanna Nayaka, usho had got Holalkere slm5_as an ’’amarmagani", granted it to his brother- 3 in-law Crulliyappa Nayaka us an Umball. The Uinbali grants were made to individuals only and not to the institutions. Besides, they were granted as gifts only* The granting of Sasanas was meant for legalising the grant of lands as well as for confirming the grants already bestowed in the past. In A.D. 1556 Tlmmanna Nayaka granted a iasana to the holders of a temple and also to a Brahmin for 4 their tax-free endowments. The tax-free lands were granted, not only by the monarchs, but also by their subordinates, and other officials of the State. For instance, the Goudas of Nandan Hosarur granted the Goudanakote field to Mallayya's

1. XI, p. 109. 2. Ibid.« p. 166.

3. P* 4. P« 109. 98

1 8on Chennayya who had built the temple of God Hanumanta.

Treasure liadaima’ s daughter Gangamma granted a piece of 2 land to Hudrappa Deva.

Agraharag t

Often assignments of entire villages were made to a given assembly of the Brahmins. Such village assignments were styled " agraharas” . These are granted out of respect for the Brahmins and for promoting the study of religious lores.

In A.O. 1653 Obanna Nayaka made to the son of a certain Puttaiina, a grant of Kadolegadu belonging to Hir« 8 Guntur Itegani in the Chitrfihalli sime, as an agrahara. The

Chitradurga Nayakas not only granted endowments, but were even keen on seeing that such endowments were enjoyed by the right persons, and they were not misappropriated. The Agrahara mentioned above was given In the beginning by Obanna Nayaka to a certain Chennayya. And in the same year (A.D. 1653)

Obanna liayaka granted it to Bagurbhatta together with all the dry cultivation, wet cultivation, forced labour, labour for wages and coitoms dUM and all the money rents, in sole (OtSMSloa and •njoyn.eats.'^ earlier donee might have misappropriated his rig):its, or lost interest in the cultiva-

1« P* 2 , p* 126.

3 . ifeidU* p. 14.

P* 90* 90

tlon of these lands. Sometimes the/ rebuilt the village

and founded agraharaa. In A.D. 1728 Madakeri Nay aka made a

grant of the village of Mallanahalli in the Kodaganuru simt ^

to a certain ^amacharya with a deed of gift of an agrahara .

The inscription says, **being in rains we have had it rebuilt

in our name as Madakeri pura and have granted it to you” *

We have seen that the Sasanas were given for granting

as well as for confirming the grants made in the past.

There were occasions tihen the Chitradurga rulers granted lands

to agrahar^ and bestowed the dasana on the donees. In A.D.

1721 prince Chikkanna Nayaka in the presence of the farmers

and village servants of the four boundaries of villages

marked out the boundaries of the Anesindri fields and granted

them the port^ Konappa's agrahara and set up a 8«sana«^

The Vrittis were often granted to the ?ilathas for the

maintenance of the Chhatras or feeding houses. Thus in

1756 A.D. Raja Madakeri Nayaka granted the village of

Qoudanahalli in the Hiriyuru sime for the Annachhatramatha 3 he established in Hiriyuru. In A.D. 1716 Baramanna Nayaka

made a grant of the village of Demalvanhalli in the Kodaganuru

sime to Raghunath Tirth Sripad of Vyasaraya Matha, establisher 4 of Valshnava Siddhanta.

1. XI, p. 80.

2. 1121^, p. m . 3 . p . 110.

4. 1 ^ , p. 78. 100

leaaULffiffiaa

la tha Deccan there were broadly two kinds of land tenures, v i z .. beneficiary tenure and service tenure. The beneficiary tenures were of three kinds z brahmadaya. devadaya^ and mathaoura. The brahmadaya tenure included assignments of land made either to the individual Brahmins^ or to an assembly of Brahmins, as we have seen above. In the devadaya tenure there were included endowments made to tha temples for the daily occasional services, to the deity for Nandadeepa or perpiitual lamp and for various kinds of ’ -- 1 other services. Thus limmanna Nayaka, when he was granted the Holalkere sime from TiruMalaraya of l^ijayanagara, made a grant to the temple of Venugopal in Holalkere. Having set up the god Bhaktapala Venugopal Krishna and repaired the ct temple, he granted to the archika Venkatacharya Dixit the village property. The Chltradurga rulers erected temples and made grants to them. In A.D. 1698 Baramanna Nayaka's son restored the teazle of Ahobala Narasinha of Niruthadi, as 2 it was destroyed by the Patashaha's ariqy*

Not only the lands, but also other kinds of property attached thereto, were bestowed on some donees. It may be noted that the Nayakas grented lands for the prosperity of their sons and grandsons. Two inscriptions relating to the

1. MAR. 1916, p. 6&*

2 . P* 81* 101

1 Oarjeegatha village granted to a certain Gadarlpalll Svaml, 2 and the Kadalegadu village belonging to Hire Guntura clearly mentions that the assignments «ere to be enjoyed hereditarily*

In A.D. 1755 the Nay aka *s guard Ifadakeri Nayaka granted to

Dadiga Dasteri, a land in Horarkere to be enjoyed by his 3 son, grandson and their posterity. It shons that the

Chitradurga rulers respected the rights of the people, and that the institution of private property in land nas recog­ nised. Sometimes Inscriptions sayj that the land granted to a donee could be enjoyed by his son, grandson and their posterity.

Finally, there were the mathaoura grants, assignments made to thU Mathas for preserving the religious traditions

therein. Such assignments were not necessarily made by the

government only, but even by the king's officials. In 1576

A.D. Kamageti Kasturi Hangappa Nayaka's Dalwai Biaramappa 4 made a grant to the Virakta Matha of Jigluru for the promo­ tion of the Lingayat sect. Again Kasturi Chikkanna Nayaka-raya made a grant of Nagenhalli village as rent-free grant for 5 the Ramanuja sect* Baramanna Nayaka granted the village of

Demalavanahalli in the Kodaganuru sime to the Raghunath tirtha

1* X I, p. 123,

2* Ibid * * p* 121»

3 .

4. IkMxf p. 167.

5 . p. 111. loe

1 Shrlpada of Vyasaraya Sfetha, astabliaher of Valahnava-

Slddhanta. The inscription says that all these deeds of gifts were Sarvamanva i . e . , completely tax-free.

The service tenure implied assignments to the employees of the government. Their services were usually remunerated by grants of lends. Such assignments were made for raising and maintaining armies for the State. The recipients of such grants were known as Nayakas in Karnataka.

The Chitradurga Nayakas received their grant (Holalkere) from the Vijayanagara Empire. These Nayakas were placed In change of different areas charged with the duties of main­ tenance of peace and order In their respective Jurisdictions.

These areas of land were generally known as »amarmaganis». if lands granted in perpetuity. Thus Timmanna Nayaka received the Holalkere slj® as an 'amarmagani* from Tiruaalraya of 2 Vijayanagara in A.D. 1568 and a similar grant in Hiriyuru| 3 and eventually in Chitradurga. In return for this, the

Kayakas were required to make stipulated financial contri­ butions to the governments every year and some civil and military contributions whenever needed. There are instances where the Chitradurga Nayakas helped in expeditions of

Vijayanagara. For instance, Kalburga showed enmity against

Chitradurga in A.D. 1681. Saluva Narasingaraya, the then

1. jCI, p . 78.

2. 1 ^ , p. 116.

3. Eice, QD.cit.. p. SOI. 103

1 king of Vijayanagara, took the help of Tlmmanna JIayaka,

But these Nayakas later on became the founders of small principalities. The Chitradurga Nayakas became independent in A.D. 1698 (according to the inscriptions) during the declining days of the Vijayanagara empire.

Xhis Nayakaship can be compared viiith the Saranjamdars

of Maharashtra. Such civil and military employees in

Maharashtra were styled *watandars*. They were required to

raise and maintain a contingent of troops for the government

and also to run the civil govarnment in their areas. Such

werei for instance, fitalharrao Holkar^ aSahadaji dhindey

TrimbaKrao Dabhade etc. These Sarenjamdars also became ■ 2 independant when the centre became weak*

jgypga 9.^ .fcaaAa < There were generally two types of lands in the

Chitradurga principality, dry and wet lands. For examplei

arid inscription dated A.D. 1653 where Obanna Nayaka made a / gr£Jit to Timmappa, son of a certain Puttanna, the village of

Kadalegadu belonging to the Hire Guntur magani Chitrahalll

sime together with all dry cultivation and wet cultivation in 3 sole possession of enjoyment. But we get more details in

the report on the Chitradurga Division of Si^rsore by Captain

Frederick Chalmers in 1 8 ^ . As the type of the soil would

Cp 1. flMSMElf PP* 13-14.

XX, i , pp. 150-52, 167.

3. XI, pi 19. 104

not chacge overnight we can presume the sajne conditions were

p^vailing during the Najraka period also.

The soil was considerably diversified. The same area frequently contained every variety of soil, but generally the southern and western areas could be described as most abundant in the red soil, the eastern in sanely soil, the centre-northern and north-eastern in black Poil, and north­ western In grey whitish intermixed with black.^

Another report written by Dr. Ben^e^min Heyne, namely,

*The Statistical Prsgraeiits of ji^sore* gives the types of soil as follows s

(1) Yare t black cotton ground, quite free from stones.

(2) Kare t the same, but stony.

(3) Kengalu : Kempu - red soil mixed with loam and

vegetable mould.

(4) i^rallu a ^lalu - sandy soil.

(6) Kallu I B&ilalu - stony and gravelly soil.

(6) Bila t Varalu - white stiff loam.

(7) /4aska t Masbu - Cobbu - garderx soil. 2 (8) Soldu : Salt ground.

i^uchanan also say3 something about the types of t^e

soil. According to him, most of it consisted of black soil.

The two great articles of cultivation in tiie black soil were

1. Capt. Frederick Chalmers, Report on the Chitradurga, ,0? a^sora, P* 5.

2 . Benjamin He^ne, The statistical FraEwents of Mysore.p p-s,&. 106

*Jola* and *Navaney* of vihlch about equal quantities were raised* She next two most considerable crops in the black soil were ’Saj^ay* and *Cotton*. This black soil forms a large portion of the fina plains of the east, where a singular manner of cultiv&ticm prevailed. The plough used was drawn by 8 to 16 oxen and was heavy.

The iron plough usually weighed 12 sears or about

16 Pounds, Soaiatimes a rcronger and bigger iron plough weighing 24 sears was used, for the black soil to be ploughed was very hard.

Buchanan says, "After the commencement of rains it becomes so sticky that cattle cannot walk on it**. Because of the hardness, the field needs two or three ploughings every third year. It requires no maniiure and is never rested 1 but constantly gives a crop of 'Jola* and *Mavaney*«

The quality of rice land was also very small. Sight or ten villages are partly employed in this kind of Agrical- 2 ture*

This again corroborates frederick Chalmer*s report*

According to him, (1) The production of the soil is also not without a m£rked distinction in different parts of the division. In the southern end of the division, yields are dry crops of the usual dry grains, (2) Sast ward — Jorwary both in wet and dry lands with occasional patches of wheat

1, Buchanan, A Journey, pp. 439-40.

2 . Ibid. 106

and sugar~cane. (3) Cotton grows In smaller quantities,

(4) Bice is less abundant.^

This shows that they had more dry lands than wet lands. Proffl what has been said above it will be apparent that the •oil is considerably diversified. So by all account we can classify the lands as follovss i

(1) Yerre t black - totton ground quite free from

stones.

(2) Kare : black - but stony wheat land.

(3) asaralu ; (Malalu) - sandy soil where Sajjay,

Jola, Callay are sowed.

K^llu s (Marabu) - stony and gravely soil.

(6) Gadde : wet l&nds - Rice lands.

Land Measures :

Unfortunately no detailed information is available in any of the inscriptions found so far, about the measure­ ment of lands. But according to some later sources, these

lands were measured with tna rod of 18 ’Lengths*. The Length was determined by means of '4ettu (a man's foct measured so as to take in half the right foot at the beginning and half the laft foot at the end). This rod was called ’l^adanda*.

The square space measured out of such a rod give enough land

space for planting three arecanut trees with cocoanuts 2 intermixed. But it cannot be proved that this same system

1. Frederick chalmer, o o .c it.. p, 6,

2 . ;Satyam, o p .c lt.. p. 259. 107

prevailed at the time of the Nayakas, According to Frederick

Chalmers, there «as a considerable variety of the land

measures and assessment* ” In the Taloka Seera alone"> say*

Chalaers, “ there was a Stull or local Coodu^ of 17.280 square

yard* which was the largest measure prevailing in the division.

The assessmeit upon this Coodu varies from 1 Canteroy pagoda

to 3 Cantercv Pagodas, In other 31 Talukas of the division

the Krialinar&j Coodu obtains at the rate of 3200 square

yards'* • The Ha/p.kas adopted the Bat ay i System and Athavane

Chav&di from the Vijayanagara empire. The iiatayj ^stem

' prevailing under^-.^Ughals also. This method involved no

complications and was vary economical. Thera were three

variations in this System, v i z .. (1) The Rfsi Batayi, (2) The

Khet Batayi, and (3) The Lang Batayi. The fiasi Bat ay i

involved the division of the food grains of the threshing

floor after the crops were harvested aiid tho corn separated

from the husk. In the iChet Batayi method the government

sh&re was demarcated even Miiile the crops were standing but

baiore the harvest, in the Lfing 3 a ^ / i Jiethod also the

government share was fixed at the threshing floor, but it 2 lias done before the corn was separated from the husk.

1. Candy — 200 sears. Coodu «— 20th part of such a candy, is a portion requiring ten se3rs of seed grain. One Coodu — Seven canteroy fanams. (Chalmers, c o .c it .. p. 5

2* Ain-i»Akbari. Ill, Ain. 6s Chitnis, Glimpses of Medieval Indiaa Ideas and Ins tit’it Iona, p. 95. 108

Most probably the Ghitradurga rulers adopted the Khet Batayl method. Buchanan mentions that the revenue was paid by the division of the crops,^ The Nayakas used the plough method also, but only for dry lands. Buchanan furth«r says the exttfat of dry field was estimated by the plough and 2 ploughs were said to be of nearly the same dimensions* Ihis method, as its very name indicated, was a method in which the land revenue was fixed on the basis of the number of ploughs required for tilling a particular holding. In Maharashtra also this method was in vogue in some parts and was called the Nager method. This method apparently does not take into account the fertility of the land the availabi­ lity of water supply and the kind of crop raised. Hence it was highly unsatisfactory, tethod of Revenue collectloa t Revenue was collected both in kind and cash. In Chitradurga the share of the land produce to government was no more than ^ of the yield. There was an additional cash tax of 1^ Durgi varaha on each plough. The Chitradurga rulers also collected revenue for, the army which was called *rustu', and this was levied both^kind and cash. The government officials collected the land revenue

1. Buchanan, o n .c it.. p. 447.

2 . m i i . 3 . ,inasriB,^j.oQ, i i , p. 2 2 . 4. XI, p. 93* 109

direct from the peasants in a number of places. The lands for which these officials collected the revenue were evidently

ovned by indlvldualS| nith whom the land settlement was made

direct by the government* This was nothing but the Ryotwari

System. Thus we find this revenue department, the palace possessions and the management of the Batayi S/stem were all under one administration called th«a ^»Atii.avane ChavadiO ‘^In

Vljayanagara it* head was called Athvana Parapatyagar.. The

same method was probably adopted by the Chioradurga rulers

also. In an inscription we find tha name of Parupatyagar 1 Timmanna who was present et the time of granting the village*

The Athavane Parupatyagar, the Chief Director of the revenue,

arranged the forms of account and issued all orders relating

to that Department.

The Chitradurga rulers employed the goudas to direct

the cultivation of the lands and to collect revenue from the

vi;.lage. The ^ Nadlea*^ another officer, who was appointed by

the palace, collected revenue from the hobalis. This Nadiga

at the end of the year accompanied by some of the principl^

Desastas or inhabitants went to the office of the Athavane to

clear the accounts of the preceding year, according to the

settlement or arrangement made in the beginning of the year*

The goudas collected the assessment from the ryots according

to the settlement of the Athavane Chavadl and paid it to th«

Parupatyagar appointed by the government. If the managers of

1. XI, p. 93. n o

the office (Athavane) found it necassary to introduce any new regulations, after stating the same to the palace and obtaining the consent of the king they transmitted orders under the royal signature and seal to the Parupatyagar of 1 the district for execution.

From the above, it seems that

(1) There w-are governmant officials to collect revenue.

(2) The grants made by the kings wsra intimated to these revenue o ffic e s through Sasanas.

(3) The boundaries of the lands were marked in the presence of officials.

(4) There were different officials to collect revenue graded under the different cadres placed at different levels like gouda, Shanubhoga, N&diga, etc.

(5) It is obvious that the officials over the village, were responsible for seeing that the boundary lines were properly marked and that the iasana or dead was duly recorded in the account register of the village account.

(6) All such transactions c&j&e under the Jurisdiction of the revenue department and its chief director was known as parupatyagar.

Besides land revenue, the Chitradurga rulers got some income from customs on the movement of goods, local taxes, hullu banni. lease amount of brick kilns, tobacco duty

1. Rice, I, p. 471, I l l

and Abkarl. During the reign of Bharamappa Nayaka a new procedure of collecting revenue was evolved. Bach year every meinber of the royal family went on a pilgrimage to worship the deities Uchhangamma) Lakkamma and othor goddesses*

In the places they visited, the Xalavar of each village had to pay him (to tha ruler) one ghea pot, and a goat. The monarch used to v»ear the robes of a mendicant and collected from each gouda of a vlllege one varaha as offerings on the auspicious day of Vinavak Chaturthi. each head of religious

Matha had to tender to the palace special cakes made of copra. The wearers had to tender to the palace one noQlU

(thread) for each loom per year. The rural folk had to go to

Chitradurga and clean palace stables. The village gouda had to give to the palace stables tan head loads of fodder. From each village two able bodied men had to do in the confines 1 of Ghltradurga some specific duties.

They levied ?everal new taxes both in money and kind on various occasions, such as the celebration of festivals and religious ceremonies. All these were consolidated by 2 Hyder A li.

In Chitradurga the toddy of the ichalu or country- date was used for distillation. The Palanquin bearers also made arrack from sugar, the hipp flowers and some from tha bark of tree. These people paid a certain revenue to goT«rn-

1. Satyam, o p .c lt.. p. 269.

2 . Benjamin, o p .c it.. pp. 6-6. 112

1 ment called ••Kallali**.

Ihe foreign accounts say that upto the year called

Wlsjoby (1779 A .D .) Madakeri Nayaka had the revalue accounted to forty lakhs of rupaaa, which were disposed of in support­ ing an arnQT of 4000 horses, 2000 regular infantry and 30000 carnatics and in discharging a tribute of 6000000 rupees to 2 the jtaratha States.

Buchanan says that the Palegar of Chitradurga governed a country valued at 10000 Pagodas a year in the declining days of the royal family of Vijayanagara* Xhese entuprising hUTiters increased their territories until they became worth 2 annually 350000 Pagodas,

• • *O0O«• aOOO*• aOOO*••

1. Benjamin, oo.cit«. pp. 6-8.

2 . P.C. 26 Jan. 1800 (138) Spacer to J. Webb«.

3 . Buchanan, Q p .cit.. p. 437* CHAPISR VII

VILLAGE c o m m iT Y

The village conunaiilty has been vlew ^ i>y emln^t

Indian writers as one of the three cornor-stones of Indian social organisation, the other two being the joint family s/stem and the caste structure. The village cofflfflunities have been described by several scholars as "little republics'* and "closed ^sorld of India",

In medieval Karnataka there were principally two kinds of village cofluounities, namely, the nk-ic^ia (or >yu.)

6jad Agrahara, I’he Okicalus developed automatically under certain favourable circumstances, whereas the agi^ a r a s were usually granted to the Brahmins for their sustenance, each member receiving his share of lends called "Vrittis” into which the village was divided, Ihe agrahara was assigned to the

Bpehmins by the king or his officers or the public for the preservation and transmission of knowledge,

Ihe Chitradurga rulers were bountiful in gifting to the Brahmins lands and villages. In A.D. 1653 Obanna Nayaka granted to Bagur Bhatta a Kadalegadu village as an agrahara, together with all the dry cultivation, ’aet cultivation, forced labour, labour for wages and custom dues and all money rents,^ In A.D, 1728 Madakeri Nayaka (Baramanna Nayaka) made

1, XI, p. 14.

113 114

a grant of village liallanahalll in the Kodaganur slme, to • 1 a certain Samacharya a deed of gift as an agrahara^

The ^ was formed by the house-holds. The membera of the agrahara were engaged in religious, educational or

Intellectual pursuits whereas the members of the uru were primarily engaged in agricultural pursuits. Thus although^ the members of both the communities «ere land-holders, the ea?)ha3is on their duties was different, Iher the agrahara was granted to an individual, evidently the head of a nombsr of Brahmins, he distributed the shares of Vrittis of the agrahara among the various Brahmin members, he himself becoming its head-man. If the agrahara was newly built and bestowed on the Brahmins, the property rights in the land together with their produce belonged to its Brahmin members.

If on the other hand, the already axisting village was converted into the agrahara and then bestowed on the Brahmins, then they got only therent from the lands. In A.D. 1690

Hangappa Nayaka granted to a certain Bhimabhatta, a resident 2 of Kasi as a rent-frea grant the Uppaligere village. In

A.D. 1728 Baramanna Nayaka made a grant of Mallanahalli village. It says, "(the village) being in ruins we have had it rebuilt in our name as ^ladakeripuru and have granted it 3 to you**. The a^^ahara village or lands were either completely

1. fiS., XI, p. 14. •*

JLkiiLts P« 30. 3, BCy XI, p. 111. exsfl^ted from tasa'tlon or vere made to pay only a qalt*rent#

But the Chitradurga, rulers granted mostly rent-free agraharas which were celled Sarvamcjiya agraharas.

The village co;maiunity was served generally by different village servants or officials called "Ayagaraa**, like Barabalutes in Maharashtra. ’*Aya" signifies an allowance of grain, ’jihich the village servant got frofn the villagers for h i3 services to the village conaunity. Hence the recipient of the Aya was imown as the "Ayagara". An inscrip­ tion dated in A.D. 1747 mentions the following names of

Ayagaras 3 the Gouda, Shanubhoga, Carpenter, Blacksiaith| (iOldSfflith, and k?aterffian.^ Generally every village had the 2 following avagars.

Gouda . • • Village headman

3hanubhoga . . . Village accountant

Badiga . . . Carpenter

Kammar . . . Blacksmith

Xalavar Watchman

J ois ••• Astrologer

Kiulal potter

Napiba . . . Barber

Rajaka . . . Washermpn

Barika(Neerganti) ... Waterman Begara • • • Forced labour^^j Aksala • • • Goldsmith

1. 1947-66. M^P CLp 2 . p* 7. 116

The j ^ o t s gave them a share, called '•Nljayam** or ardhayaa

of the crop produced in their village. Ni.lavam was Pour

Sasut or measures of grain and the ardhayam was two.

or rent-free lands mere also allowed to the Ayagar3 for which they regularly paid the Jodi, a small tax, or quit-rent. For instance, an inscription says that Kamageti

Madalceri Nay aka granted dry land in the village Janukonda to the treasury accountant Puttanna in A.D. 1674,^ This inscription also reveals that these offices were hereditary, because the above mentioned Puttanna was the son of an accountant named Chennappa, of the same place.

The Goudas received grants of lands by way of remuneration, and also various perquisites such as dues from the fairs, presents during the festivals etc. He was the executive head of the village. Generally he performed a number of important functions such as maintaining peace and I order in the village, trying petty criminal^ cases, organising the village militia, looking after the construction, and maintenance of tanks, temples etc. and above all collecting the revenue from the villages* The Chitradurga rulers 2 employed the goudas to dii^ect the cultivation of lands also.

These Goudas collected the rent from the ryots according to the settlement of the Athavane C h av ^i and paid it to the

Parapatti appointed by the government.

1. M ^ f 1947*56.

2. Rice, op.clt.. pp. 471-73. U 7

Surprisingly enou^, Buchanan says that the Gouda,

besides being the headman of the Tillage, acted also as a

or priest in the temple dedicated to the village god.

Probably, as the headman of the village he had the prlvlleg*

of worshipping first the village god on certain occasions,

and Buchanan might have meant this when he spoke of him as the pujari of the village god. \He do not find any other references of this type, and so are not in a position to make any categorical statement about this point. Sometimes

as village headmen gou^s granted the lands to individuals*

An inscription says that a certain Chennayya built the taaple

of God Hanumanta of Nandan Hosaur, to which the gouda^ of

the place made a grant of the Goudanakota field . ^

This post, a study of inscriptions shows, was

saleable. We are told in an inscription that a certain

Siddanna gouda of Siddapura of Kerre sold the goudike to 2 Madakeri Nayaka for 200 varahas.

She Shanubhoga, as an accountant of the village,

received the full ”ayam" from the ryots. If he had a share

in any charity lands from the inhabitants or from the govern­

ment, he paid the Jodi to the government. To him the Inferior

classes rendered their rents or shares of the revenue. lh«

Shanubhoga's main duty was to keep all accounts relating to

the revenue matters and prepare a balance sheet at the end of

1. ££., XI, p. 121.

2, ISU*. !>• 118

the year, and to sattle the rent of the msalng year accord^'

Ing to the estimate made by the government*

The Kannada soorcas point out that the Shanubhoga received his salary as well as his perquisites from different land-holders. Some times this office was held jointly. A description of granting Shanubhogaship to a certain Yellappa 1 and Bhoonappa by Ximmanna Nayaka runs as follows. Both of them received the following for one village,

(1) a dry land,

(2) a wet land.

(3) a garden leiid.

(4) a plough of two bullocks for the husk of every

five measures on each sandy land,

(5) and the plough of eight bullocks with ten

measure - husk and one measure-fodder etc, on

the black soil.

(6) revenue - for one Durgi varaha one haga. — (7) ten beetlenuts.

(8) one haga for each loom of the weavers.

The duties of the Panchanei were to merk the propof times for sowing seeds and also to declare from the ealendsr the auspicious time for commencing any new undertakings,

Ihis iirahmin also officiated as priest to perform the various ceremonies according to the scriptures,

(t) The Kaaaara or blacksmith and Badlea or carpenter //

1, Puttanna, o n.cltpp. 6-7* 119

had to supply the with ploughs and other implements of husbandry without taking any price for the same. If a ryot wanted to build a house he had to pay some consideration including grain and fodder to these artificiers, but they paid nothing in cash for this public duty,

I'he Agasa (waahtrman) washed the clothes, and the

NapiJtLa shaved. The Madlga or cobbler furnished shoes, ropes, leathar bucliles and other little necessaries for cultivation.

The Talavar was the police officer for the villages.

His duty was (1) to maintain the safety of the village and

(2) to provide forage and conveniences for those employsd by

the government.

Klrganti was to attend to the tanks. He shut up,

when necessary, their sluices or tubes with stoppers usually

fitted for this purpose. In the rainy season he must keep a

watch on the banks of the tanks to preserve water. It was his duty to properly arrange the distribution of water among

the ryots.

The !<^mtahara (potter) furnished utensils and other

pots for all the ryots of his village.

The )tlngs of Vijayanagara appointed some of the

nobles to manage tracts of uncultivated waste country with

instructions to clear away the jungles and to bring the lands

under cultivation. These governors formed many Palvams or

Pelepets (new establishments), cleared away the jangles, and

recovered the country from the robbers, lawless banditti,

and the wild people of the h ills. Those who established the 120

Palyams under these sovereigns were distinguished by the title of palegars.

When these Palegars settled doimni they appointed various officers for the manageaent of these countries.

They then formed regulations to improve the revenue of the villages included in them, and Issued Rayarakas which fixed the settlement of the revenues, the boundaries, duties, customs. made rules regarding the pres«rvation of records of this settlement. Xhey were also used for reference on future emergencies or disputes about the revenues, boundaries etc.

At the same time stones, inscribed with writings or with symbols, were erected on the boundaries of villages.

The following terms were used in the management of village revenues,

(1) Halli jUnclent village.

(2) Kulahalli New additional village.

(3) Aramana Palace.

(4) Samsthan The government.

(6) Umbalike Jagir.

(6) Bhattavritti Lands given to Brahmins.

(7) Shrotriyam Land granted in prosperity for A which the proprietors receive a

yearly money rent from the

occupiers.

Rice, ijiC. X, pp. 471«73. 121

(8) Agraharaa . . . Landis or village granted in

charity, generally to Brahmins

or free gifts,

(9) BraluBiacihayajn and . . . Shares of the crop givai to

Devadhayaffl Brahmins. guactlQAa of Vlllcge Officers :

Ihe maintenance of peace and order in the village, \ the settlement of minor disputes, the demarcation of the boundaries of the fialds, the collection of revenue, the construction of tanks and wells, and the provision of amenities for the ryots were the chief functions performed by the village officers. For instance, Kumar Chikkanna

Nayaka, marked the boundaries of Anesindvi fields in the presence of farmers and village servants.^ In another instance, a number of witnesses were called such as the

Gouda, Shanubhoga, carpenter, blacksmith, goldsmith and washerman, for registering certain grants made

It seems that the villagers had their cases decided by thair own village assembly or Panchayat as is evident from the paper found in the Chitradurga liMseum. One of the disputes mentioned says, "There was a dispute between

•Javanayya* Nibaguru Gurusiddayya for 'Goudika* (Patilship) of ‘Gopanagondanahalli*, So they approached the village officials at the Chavadi. Javsnayya end Gurusiddayya pleaded their cases before the village assembly. And the officials

1. fi£., XI, p. 111. 222

decided this case according to their traditional records*

Javanayya was found guilty and was asked to pay 12 varahas 1 to the palace* Sometimes the Panchavat or the village asseaibly invited all the Bara-Balutedars of the village

(^lyagars) to decide the case. One of the disputes In th« above mentioned paper says that a certain Xerayya had a complaint against one Llngayya who was managing carpentership of the two villages at a time. On this Issue the elders of the village assembly decided to Invite A/ag&rs of the vlllagey to finalise the case. But when they also failed to decldt the case, the dlS|»ute was decided on the basis of traditional 2 Methods•

Another dispute shows how the case was decided by the 12 Ayagars of the village. Prasannayya and Sarathl

Karlyappa had dispute about the Shanubhogashlo of 'BetaJcuru* t village. They approached the CQiavadl. Parupatyagar Kenchayya and other members of th3 village assemblyy like Appayya,

Rayarkenchappai Chlnnadamane Dyamanna, decided to Invite 12

Ayagars of the village to finalise the case* Xhe Ayagars came and decided that the post belonged to both 6f them. So 3 both of them paid 6 varahas to the palace*

Xhe conflicts among the Brahmins were solved by the

Brahma Sabha in the presence of Brahmin Gurus or pontiffs*

1. Paper found in Chltradurga. (Chlnnadamane)

2 .

3. im x 123

One of the disputes shows that a conflict arose between the son of a Jol3 of 3ilichodu and Chengarajaanna for the estate.

So botti of them approached *Sriffian Naraslidia Bharatl Swasii* when he visited Chltradurga. A certain Yogappa demand^ the right In the Charity Trust of Jigluru and Llngadahalli villages. So the people of Brahma Sabha •— Jols, Shastry,

Avadhani, Dixit, Upadhyaya and Shanubhoga of Billchodu,

Sarjeraya Tirimanna, and Hullur Shanabhag Appanna decided the case«

This Indicates the Brahma Sabha had the same impor- taiice as the palace,^ It decided cases and took decisions, which were respected#

The collection of revenue was another Importent duty of the officers. In Chltradurga the Goudas collected the revenue and directed the cultivation of the lands. Another officer N ^lg a , who was head of the hobali, went to the office of the Athavans to clear the accounts. If the managers of the Athvane office found it necessary to Introduce any new regulations, after stating the same to the palace and obtain* ing the consent they could issue orders under the royal signature and seal to the Parupatyagars of the districts for 2 execution*

The term Ay a ear a used here means exactly the same thing as Balutedars of ifeJharashtra. “Aya^ like Baluta is an

1* Paper found in Chltradurga. (Chlnnadamane)

2# Rice, PP* 471*73 • 124

allowance of grain and henca an ayagara la a recipient| like

Balatedara. of his allowance of grain from the peasants for his services rendered to the village community* Some differences, however, are there between the Ayagars and

Balutedars, Among the ayagars, the village headman (Qouda) and the accountant (Shanubhoga) were also included, whereas they were excluded from the Balutedars* list, because the

B&lutedars were considered to be village servants, while the

Patil (Groada) and Kulkarni (Shanubhoga) were the village officers*^

VillaKe Industries :

According to aice, Chitradurga was once remarkable 2 for the manufacture of silk and clothes of good description.

There might havo been the cotton and silk industries, becaus# the weavers had to tenaer to the palace one noolu f or each 3 10M» par year.

fiuchonan says that the staple commodity of the

Chitradurga principality consisted of Cumblis, a kind of blankets, which in their faoric greatly resembled English

Cumblets. They were four Cubits broad by taelve long and formed a piece of dress, vuiiich the natives almost universally wore. They «ere not dyed, out were of the natural colour of the wool, sthich in tne superior ones was almost always a good

1. nhitnis, op.cit., p. 27.

2. Ricc, oi;.cit.. p. 3 . Satyam, o p ,c it.. p. 258. 126

black* £ach of these bIaiik«tS| saperlor cost two to tuolve pagodas. Ihese were the finest made for coiiunon sale. And these along with all the Inferior blankets, vere brought to weekly Markets, and purchased by the merchants for ready m on^. The great excellence of these blankets was their power of turning away rain water, and the finer they were the better they did this.

Buchanan says that before the sheep were shorn of their wool they were «ell Aash^d. The wool was then removed*

Xhereafter it was teased with the fingers and then beaten with a bow, like cotton, and formed into bundles for tpinning*

This operation was performed both by men and women partly on the small cotton wheel or partly with the distaff* Some

Tamarind seeds are brushed, and after having been infused for a night in cold water, they are boiled. The thread idiea about to be put into the loom, was sprinkled with the cold decoction. The newly made cloth was washed by beating it on a stone} when dried it was fit for sale. From this account of the process, it will be evident that the great price of the finer kinds was owing to the great trouble taken in making wool sufficiently fine and to the fact that the quantity of such wool in any one fleece was very small*

The fleece was ihorn twice a year, in the second moa^h after the shortest day (February) and in that which followed the summer soltice. This first fleece was taken wh«i the sheep was about six months old, and was by far the finest in quantity, ifrom this alone could Cumblis of any eonsidera- 126

ble fineness be made* Svery successive fleece becai&e worse

£uid did not Increase the quantity. Eech fleece weighed from

1 ^ to 3 seers or from .91 of a pound to 1.82 lb. The fleecM

were of three quantities, which sold for 13, 8 and 7 fanams ex. per mound.

The Curubaru were of two kinds, those properly so

called and those named Handy or Cumbli Curubaru. The Curubaru

proper and the Golaru were sometimas cultivators and possessed

largest flocks. The flocks kept ty the two formed castes

containing from 30 to 300 breeding eves. Those of the Handy

Curubs contained only from five to one hundred ^Ifty . All

the shephards had, besides, v<3ome cowe, buffalloes etc.

Another Industry was the preparation of Arrack from

sugar or hlpp flowers. In Chitradurga the today of the

Inchalu or country date was used for distillation, there being

^ a few palngrrs. The Palanquin bearers, besides performing

their rogulsr duty of carrying the palanciulns, were also

engaged in making Arrack from sugar, the hlpp flowers and 2 ^ some from the bark tree.

•..oOo.•.oOo.•.oOo...

1. Buchanan, o p .c it.. pp. 437-47.

2 . Benjamin, o p .c lt.. pp. 5-6. Q m m y i i i

o m m

On the fall of Vijayanagara its coinage vas extensively copied by many petty chiefs in southern India including the Chitradurga Nayakas. The Vijayanagara rulers indeed set the fashion for other principalities which lasted for many years.^

There were a number of emblems on the .Vijayanagara .i * coins. They bore, for instance, the jfigures pt^Vaishnava gods and goddesses , sacred animals, birds an^'symbols such as Laxmi Narayan, Laxmi Narasimha, Venkatesh, Balkrishna,

Sri Rama, Hanuman, Boar, Qaruda, the Conch and discuss; of

Shalva gods, goddesses and sacred annals such as Uma- maheshwara, Durga^Bull and Bull-Couchant; and of other gods and goddesses (sacred) animals, birds such as Sarasvati

Brahma, the elephant, the lion, and Gandabherunda. The emblems mentioned above are usually found on the obverse whereas the reverse bore generally the name of the king inscribed either in Kannada or Nagari chavalters* The important denominations of the coinage under Vijayanagara were Gadyana (variously called Pagoda and Varaha) or Pon«

EmiB. (also called or EMSLi ftigay Chinnay

1* Rice, XI, p« 82*

127 128

Tara. Jatil (jital), and Iha coin* ware of gold, silver or copper.^ Under Vl^ayanagara the coinage m&s

•ystematised. The Punch-syatem was completely abandoned

In favour of the die system* It seems that the coins under

Chitradurga were evidently struck with a die, as in the case of Vijayanagara.

Another inscription dated A.D. 1581 states t ^ t a certain Siddanna jgouda of Siddapura, son of Devappa^ouda of Kerre, sold the g o u ^ e for 200 varahaA. ^

In 1691 A.D. the Palegar of Chitradurga^ (Kasturi

Chikkanna Nayaka ?) is said to have Issued a wagoi^ known 3 as Durgi varaha, minted at Chitradurga. The P^ g i varah« constituted the bulk of those current in the ceded districts when they were brought under the British administration.

They are known by the name of Durga, Gurumkonda, Harpanhalli, old and new, Chitradurga^etc. They were all much alike presenting only slight differences partly explained by localities where they were said to have been struck.^

In the year 1902 a treasure trove composed of 67 gold Pagodas of the type known as Durgi varahas was found.

These coins have the figure of Durgi on the obverse and on the reverse an inscription in Nagari Characters'Shri Pratap

1. Panchamukhi. '^^frV^9fiinage;. . 0fL ---- Viiagan^jfflra^^nastyS - . 8ex-Cantenary CbateefaoralTiola^Volume. ^ .^ 1 0 7 "1 6 «

2. S£.» XI, p. 17.

3 . P.B. Ramachandrarao, .. ilsai II* p. 22. 4 . Ikldx 129

Krishnara/a*« These were evidently struck in the name of thair overlord Krlshnadevaraya, by the Nayakas who were feudatory chiefs of Vijayanagara/ If the Vijayanagara varanas bore a number of emblems, including Vaishnava,

Shaiva and other deititts, as noted above, the coinage of

Chitradurga had only one emblem, namely the figure of a bull representing Goddess Durga on the obverse and the name of the Nayaka on the reverse. Thus the Chitradurga coinage was certainly lacking in that variety of symbols which was characteristic of Vijayanagara,

The gold coins of southern India, including those of

Chitradurga, were known to Europeans as pagodas. (The word tagoda is of Portuguese origin,') commonly applied by Europeans

to the Hindu temple and given to this coin (i .e . v a r ^ a )

perhaps from the representation of the temple that appeared

on it in some part of the country.

Literary sources mention some other coins of the

Chitradurga kingdom, A Bakhar written by Yogyadharak Bhimaji

pant gives a list of various coins in the Toshakhana of 2 Chitradurga when Hyder All captured it in A.D. 1779.

(A) t

i) Qab^u, ii) ifoh^, til) Bfetay., iv) Dh^wadi,

V) Achyuti^i H ^ u , Vi) S ^ a ^ l H ( ^ u , vii) Dod^a Honnu,

v iii) Pralaya Kaveri Honnu, ix) Devrai Honnu, x) Papanayak

Honnu.

1. P.B. Ramachandrarao, gJQ., I I , p. 22.

2. QJiggt 1927-28, p. 154. 130

(B) Slj-v^ir Coj,aa t 1) RiaXa — 10 laldia, 11) Aaara — 17 lakhs, 111) Choull —

lO lakhs. Putt anna also says that there were a large number of

coins In the treasuryj as follows^i

(1) 64,00,000 — Silver coins

(2) 1,00,000 — Riala^

(3) 17,00,000 . — Asharasl (Ashrafl ?)

(4) 26,00,000 — Dabholl

(6) 10,00,000 — Choull

^ SaW^sad has given a long list of gold coins found

in the royal treasury such as Gambaru, B^ar, De^al,

Achhutrai, Sivrai,etc. Gabaru was identified with Gambar, 2 I a coin worth Rs. 3-12-6, Ifohar was a gold coin used mainly

for making presents to the kind or any other honoured person.

It was popularly known as the gold rupee. The Mohar was

considered as a piece of bullion rather than a coin. Its Q value in 1663 was Rs. 13. Slvral (?), Achyutrai, Devrai,

were the hons issued probably by the Vijayanagara rulers,

and they were known, according to the custom of the period, 4 by the names of the kings who issued them.

Some hons like Kaveripak, Dharwadl (may be Pralay

Msf> 1. ££,, p. 100.

2. Sen, ADM, p. 123.

3. SISlj, 'Quarterly I I , Part I I I , Shaka 1852, pp. 49-54.

4. A.R. Kalkarnl, Maharashtra in the Age of 8hiva.11. p, 236* 131

Kavari ?) bora the names of the places inhere they were 1 struck, I . e . ‘'Mint towi^ The gold coin Sivrai is associated with the name of Shivaji, Sabhasad mentions this coin in his chronicle and states that there were four lakhs of Sivrai 2 l:uH« in the treasury of dhivaji, G.H. Khare on the basis of an undated document belonging to the archives of Chinchvad monastery states that the Sivrai hons were in plenty in the 3 seventeenth century* D.V. Kale has examined a gold coin bearing the legend *Sri Raja Siva* on the one side and

Chhatrapati on the other. This coin is some what spherical

in shape with a diametr* of 1.32 centimetre. It|s weight is 4 two masses and seven Gi^jas or 41.12 grains. “ ^ 6 Sabhasad mentions some silver coins in his chronicle.

The silver coins mentioned above are all types of Lari

was a silver coin of persian origin. It was made of silver

wire, doubled some what like a hairpin with inscriptions 6 stamped on the prongs* It seems that it was originally

brought by the Persian merchants and proved acceptable to the

ptople of Konkan, and it was adopted by the kings of

1. Kulkarnii MAS, p. 236.

2. Sabhasad, flakhar. p. 96.

3 . X III, June 1961 (Part I ) .

4. BISM. Quarterly 12, Vol.I, Shaka 1863, p. 93.

5* Sabhasad, op.cit.. p. 97.

6* English Factories 1655-60^(1.' p. 243*

7. Shiva Charltra Sahltya. 4, 677-737* 332

Bljapur. The thick silver ulreyof which a lari nas made, was sometimes more than three Inches In length, doubled on 1 its middle and slightly flattened to receive an Impression.

A reference to laris Is found mainly In those records which deal with Konkan affairs. We find references to different types of laris, such as Basra l a ^ (the same is used In the Kannada Chronicle as Asr^, Dabholl lari and

Choull lari. The adjectives mostly signify the places irtaere they had been minted. Sabhasad also mentions these three 2 types of laris namely Dabholl, Choull and Basra. In his account of Shlvajl*s treasure Dr. Balakrlshna mwitlons that the Chaul and Dabhol laris must have been struck by Shlvaji ■ 3 when these areas came under him In 1660* The Dabhol iUri. was perhaps minted at Dabhol, the Basra lari was struck in the famous port town of Basra, and Choull must have been

struck at Chaul.

Ashrafi t This is mentioned In the Chronicle as Ashrasl.

But It must be *Ashrafl* which Is an Indian word signifying 4 the Portuguese *Xerafeen* or'xerafin. *Ashrafi', used both

in Arabic and Persian, originally signified a gold coin.

The Portuguese adopted this word and used it for a silver

coin issued from dof. A rupee was equal to about 1 .4 xerafin^s

1. Dr. Fryer, I I , p. 129$ Kulkarni, MAS, p. 247.

2. Sabhasad, p. 97.

3. Dr. Balkrlshna, IV, p. 151*

4. Sabhasad, op.cit. p.c,7 133

and 10 rupees were 13 xerafln^s. Riala 2 Royals (Ryalla or Reals) were silver coins imported from Spain and were viorth about Rs. 2 each. According to

Tevernier, 100 Mexican and Spanish Rea^s were equal to

208,215 rupees,^

The half Pagoda was called Pon or Hon and also

Pratap. The f^ a m is probably hana or pana, a nord used

also for money in general, and is doubtless a corruption 2 of t ^ panam. This shows hom the Chitradurga coinage was influenced

by Vijayanagara, iy6ighals, Bijapur and iSarathas.

Nineteen half-varahas (or honnus) of Harihara II

(1337-1404) were picked up at Bilichodu Jigluru Taluka of

Chitradurga district in 1912. These bear the figures of

Siva and Parvati on the obverse, while the reverse has the

legend ”Shri Pratap Harihara” in three horizontal lines in

Kagari Characters. These were parhaps struck in the

Chitradurga area.

Different Denominations s

The sources of Chitradurga do not give much informa­

tion regarding the denominations of^coins that were current

in the kingdom. We frequently come across two coins in the

inscriptions, varaha and hana. For instance, an inscription

dated A.D. 1609 found in the Chitradurga district states

1, Dr. Balkrishna, IV, pp. 150-63.

2. H. Rao.^Gaz.> IXy P« 82. 134

that *Tha Nayaka having received from the priest of Qod

Vlrabhadra of Hullur 24 h a n ^ as fine, granted it for the festival of God'.^

According to literary sources, we can infer t«o more denominations. The ^asana set up by fimmanna Kayaka in favour of a certain Bhoonappa for his Shanubhogaship mentions

Haea and Kasu. We can infer on the basis of the denomina- .1 tions carrent in other parts of tha 'Viiayanagara empire that tha kasu was one-sixteenth of a haga. that the haea was one- fourth of fc haaa. that the hana was ona-fifth of a honnu and the honnu was a half-varaha.

•••oOo•••000•••oOo•••

1. ^I» p. 17, SOCIAL CONDITIONS

Marrlaga_»

Among the social institutions, marriage w&s of great importance,t'olygamy was prevalent, both among the people and the rulers. Most of the kings married more than one w if« .

Kasturi Rangappa Nayaka had seven i«ives, and Immadl Madakari 1 Nayaka had twenty seven wives.

A custom amongst the Chitradurga Palegars, which continued till the reign$ of Chikkanna Nayaka was that of 2- marrying a girl to a weapon called Chandrayudha first then to the bride-groom. This weapon took the place of the bride­ groom who wedded the girl. This practice was followed, according to sociologists, in some communities owing to the belief that some evil spirit, growing jealous of the bride­ groom, might try to possess him or harm him. Hence the bride was first married to a stone or a tree or a weapon, and then to jthe bride-groom«

In 1679 the Tarikere Palegar offered his daughter

Hemavva in marriage to Chikkanna Nayaka of Chitradurga, The

Chandravudha was dispatched by Chikkanna for marrying Hemawa,

Her father took that as an insult and married another girl named Sakamma to Chandravudha. Thereupon Chikkanna Nayaka

1. pp, 25-30. a- p

135 136

attacked the Tarikere Palsyapat* At the end the Tarikere palegar gave his daughter Hemavva to Chikkanna Nayaka. The

qaeens of the Nsyakas of Chitradurga ware called the Nagatl or 2 Nayati.

t Another equally important social Institution in the

Chitradurga State was that of Sati. ifce find a few descrip­

tions of Sah£gamana in the Chitradurga ^tate. The foreign

travellers like Pietro Delia Valle and others have described

this system as prevailing in contefliporary neighbouring 3 States.

The queens of Kiasturi Rangappa Nayaka, and Immadi

l&idakeri Nayaka performed 3ati after the death of Rangappa 4 Nayaka and Iramedi 5feid£ikerl Kayaka, It seems that generally

the classes of the people who performed Saha£amana« came froa

the nobility and the fighting classes. According to the families of the ,v epigraphs, some ladies in the^^oudas and the {t^aicas also 5 performed Sahagamana*

The Temples and Mat has s

The tejiples and Mathas uara two important institutions

which moulded tha religious life of the people. The temple

1. wJMS. 1940-41, XXXI, p. 360.

2. gC, XI, p. 18.

3. Pietro Della Valle, p. 231. MSP, 4. C£., pp. 25-30.

6» S£, gp„f,cltL,*i> P» 116. 137

was the symbol of the religious impulse of the paople. The

Ifethas existed to propagate certain schools of thought and literature. The Nayakas wera deeply religious. The kings built temples and endowed th^ffi with lands and aiCDoy or B»ade remissions of taxes in their favour. Uchhtingamma nas their family goddess, and SampigQ Siddeshnaja tsras their family god. Tha INayakas used to worship or invoke blessings from goddess Uchhangamraa before they wsnt for battle. The song which flaramanna Nayaka sang before he went for the battle -Y 1 against Hyder Ali is very famous in the dist^-ct aven today.

To protect tha religion of the land somotimes the

Nayakas renovated some ruined teaples and nade provision for the worship of the God therein. jJaaturi Madakeri Nayaka, having set up thd ruined god Biiaktapala Venugopal^ Krishna, 2- granted it to the Archika Vankatacharya Dikahit of the

Pancharatra sect, along with a servant for cooking, a providence of flower for ’worship, tha bearers of palki,

Umbrella and a big fan, the garland makers and other 2 assistants.

The Sfethas in medieval South India were important

religious institutions. They maintained themselves with the

1. **Jaya Utaavamba Sande Klinmaya Padava 1/ Dhar D M j Madakeri Ha.1andrana Ratcghtaan^ma Haraltt Satragala Samharisi Parioalial^eku...... ” (Victory to thee Utsavambe, I how down w your feat, protect this king, deitrpying the eneoqr) 138

wealth they possessed and with the endowments they received froffl the people or the rulers. They were also educational seminaries and encouraged learning and spread a secular knowledge as well. We come across many Mathas in the

Chitradurga kingdom.

Bharamanna Nayaka made grants to Raghunath-tirth

Shripad of VyassLreyam Hatha, the establisher of Vaishnava

Siddhanta - DemalavEinahalli in the Kodaganuru sime. Raja

Madak»ti Nayaka (Raghavappa ?) granted the village of 2 Goudanahalli in the Hiriyuru slme to the Annachhatra Matha#

Kasturi Rangappa Nayaka*s Dalvayi made a grant to the 3 Virakta .%tha of Jigluru,

Islam also fl^ourished in the Chitradurga kingdom.

The^|p army contained all types of people like Turks,

RohillaSy and liiahammadeans. Even at the time of Hyder's attack on the fort Baramanna Nayaka allowed his Mahammadian soldiers to go out of the fort to celebrate the Moharram festival. This shows the secular nature of the Nayakaa.

As regards the dress, ornaments, etc. worn by the people and rulers, vie may note some examples. There is a big pillar on the northern side of the Bkanatheshwari temple in the Chitradurga fort. It contains the figure of the

Nayaka, probably the person who set up the pillar, and a

1. ££, XI, p. 49.

2. Ibid.y p. 110.

3 . I M I l, ?. 111. 139

female figure on the ’eaaterix side identified to be his queen.

These are said to be Palegar and his wife. The Nayaka

long hair tied up on the top of the head, beard, earrings, a necklace, armlets, bracelets, a girdle, and anklets. He stands with folded hands and Is evidently the

Nayaka who got the pillar set up. The queen is with her ' h a ir done up i n a bun and wearlijp^ e a r r in g s , a n e c k l a c e , sirmlets, a girdle.

To the South of the above mentioned pillar there is a stone-frame of Torana made of two lofty granite towers supporting a lintel beam. To the latter are attached chains holding a swinging board, on which the rulers of

Chitradurga used to swing themselves and witness the Puja of the goddess. Near the swing frame is the Siddipillar used in connection with a well-kno7»n Siddi festival, which takes place every year in connection with the worship of

Ekanatheshwari•

In the kingdom of the Nayakas lived a large number

of coi&munitids and social groups, the traditional four castes and other various sub-castes. The caste of an individual was generally found out by his calling. Brahmins were a much respectea community. They were found in different walks

of life. The Nayakas' Prirue-miniaters were Brahmins,

Parashuramappa, the son of a certain Virupaksha Jois, was a

Frimtj-minister of Tlmmanna iJayaka, the founder of the dynasty.

The Sl^anubhoga of every village was usually a Brahoiin. We

come across some dasanas and names of Shanubhogas in the 140

sources. For instance, Timmanna Nayaka granted a dasan^ to Xellappa and Bhoonappa, the Shanubhogas of the village

Llnganhalli*^ Often assignments of whole villages nere fflade to a given asssmbly of tha Brahmins in which case, • the village assignments were styled *agraharas *. These are granted out of raspect for the Brahmins and for promot- ing the study of religious tores. In A.D. 1663 Obanna

Nayaka made a grant of Kjadalegadu village to a certain

Puttanna, belonging to Hire Guntur iSagani in the Chitrahalli o sime, as an agrahara. Some Brahmins were priests and ware attached to the temples. Some were owners of estates and

landa. Vankatacharya Dikshit was a priest of Bhaktapala 3 V enugopal|^Kr i shna »

Among other important communities were the professional

servants, such as village potters, carpenters, blacksmiths,

cobblers, barbers and goldsmiths. The workers in each craft

constituted a caste and each particular skill was handed

down from father to son.

The most important posts in the military were held by the relatives of the Nayakas or from their own caste.

For example, Kombhipal Nayaka, Bal Nayaka, Jampanna Nayaka

and Parashuramanna Nayaka were the important officers at

M-Sp 1 . St, p. 10. 2 . ac, XI, p. 14, 3. p. 7. 141

the time of Bharamanna Nayaka*^

Charactar of the village people i

The charactar of any person Is evolved gradually in the process of community living, sharing stresses and strains of life and environment* A, number of factors are collectively responsible for reflecting the general character of Indian village people at large. It is also an established fact that the character of Indian village people has been th« product of the forces such as tradition, customs, politi*- cal upheavels, geographical influences, and cultural conditions•

The continuous contact of the peasants Kith the uncontrollable and enigmatic natural forces, moulded the character of rural dwellers and made them extremely fatali­ stic. Isolated dwellings, customs-regulated social order, and ever-imminent calamities and contingencies In the sphere of life, made the villagers accept a piculiar way of life that includes poverty, Ignorance, suffering, insecurity and besides faith in God and loyalty to the ruler.

The right to own, possess, and enjoy the private property was upheld and recognised. Most of the rural people'^laad their lands to cultivate had bullocks and other agricultural Implements as their property#

They had a very simple life with limited needs and necessities. The assessment appears to be lighter than what

1. The paper found in Chitradurga, 142

it is comparatively in other neighbouring districts. The property was more secure from any external threats. He had guarantee of securing justice whenever he was hurt or injured unjustly. He had direct access to the Court of

Justice. CHAPTSR X

The Earliest Jionamgnta i

The Chitradurga territory is rich in historical traditions, archaeological and antiquarian remains, leg^ds and folklore. There are in this area relics of the kingdom of the pandav®f, the Chalukyas, the Hoysalas, of the rulers of Vijayanagara, of the Kamageti Nayakas, of Hyder All, and of Tipu Sultan. The historical value and the public Interest of these relics have been greatly enhanced in recent years by archaeological excavations.

The earliest monuments now existing on the hill appear to be the Hidimbeshnara, Siddeshwara, and Phalguneshvara temples and also of the Ekanatheshwara. The most famous of these early temples is that of Hidimbeshwara which is often mentioned in the inscriptions. Later still, under the

Vijayanagara kings, the pious local governors naturally added to the existing shrines. The stone Gopura and swing

Tqrana of the Siddeshwara temple (1366 A.D.), and the tower of tha Hidimbeshwara are undoubtedly their works*

Chitradurga Architecture in the Nayaka Period t

The architectural works on the hill reached the period of their highest prosperity under the Nayakas of

Chitradurga, To their days should be attributed the majority of the old monuments existing on the h ill, and in

143 144

the town below. The Nayakas not only repaired the old temples^ emballeshing the stone structures with bricks and plaster workSy but also constructed new stone buildings in the late Vijayanagara style. To this period may be assigned

the cloisters a^d the compound «alls of the Siddeshwara

temple, (in the courtyard of which the Nayakas used to be

crowned) parts of the Gopalkrishna teiiiple, the Matitapa^the

monolithic pillar and stone torana of the Skanatheahwari

temple, the greater part of the fortifications, the military

works, like watch towers, granaries, and powder magazines

and the temples like Uchhangamma and other deities in the

town* There were also numerous large buildings of sun-dried

bricks and earth like the Nayaka's palace, now in ruins.

A remarkable series of reservoirs and water works by which

all the rain water falling on the hills was collected and

the ovveflow was led from the pond appears to‘have been to

a great extent the work^ of the Nayakas,^

The Temples of the Nayaka Pe_r_i_M t

There are in all fourteen temples on the Meludurga

or upper hill of the Chitradurga fort. Tradition ascribes

greatness to the founder of Chitradurga palayapat Timmanna

"^Jayaka, who had been foretold of his greatness by Virupaksha

Jois. The ruler was married to Oduva Timmavva. The first

four walls were constructed in 1563 A.D. ?And when he became

Nayaka of Chitradurga he constructed the Nellikayi Siddannana

1. l»awt JM-S , lOrxr , P- 2>51 ^ •190 *d ‘rv-0t^6t ‘IXXX *I

ptra Bceu^BSjf sm jo wiBiCBH buubuhdti p^b^-ejoj jo n v

• ( t i n a s TJTJxni-ra) '^^oa. uf ,sbpptsbsbj, usasb 8je« ©jeq;^

pus buubuhoti ejojeq uosjsd uj pej^eddB ajBttijseppTg

aiTdw B g •s©xdiD®^ jo s © fje s jetiq.ouB j o j e x q is w o d s e j s f ©tdme^

Tjre»t3[S8ita9ire3is 8 x^!^ JO ufSTJto ©li:^ j o !^T3t{!i oi^ j b x t ® T S u o t !^

V •sexdni©:^ jsqi^c 8uTPTTt»q «ioj ©iqTsuodssa osxb ©j©*

on* *BJs8©-[Bd peptiT® /TTOTOTtJOAep ©il^^ M P^^^ot\J;^slIO^ ©jre t^sod

-diDBX ©H^ ptra TJB«ii«©tf^BUB3fa JO jrexxT^ 3u t 3u t *is ©m

•ueettb sxt^ PxiB aq!^ jo ©3buit ©H^

SuTUT^t^tioo sauTOtlB nox SBti ©xdnie!^ ©i{;^ jo t^uoaj ©o b j j ©^

©m •Xan!^Ti©o T^q.gx ©q^ jo SuxPiTtiq ^ueoea b sf Bd-Bt^irenraipfTW

©HI *pjoft8 sire *x»oq *TuiniBa ©m auxpxcq *T T ^ / JO (piraoa 81^^ ux) ©3bwx P©t^B©« XT'8®s b sx ©PTs a©t[ Xq puB UHOJO B SJB6M ©qs (^ooa 3TIXAXX ©tf^ Jo !^ti0 ‘ j8xx©J PToq

ux p©AJBO BX ‘ q3m t^8©y 0 M!1 *ss©ppo8 ©q;^ jo pBsq ©qf^ pttb '

8JB0 B sx um!^DUBg 8t[^ 20 tt>T^^*BqqJBQ ©qx ’ SUOXSBOOO ©3TXIJB* ^

XBXUoinejso uo ©j;©^ pet^sxoq ©q pesti 8b x j ,sjB8©XBd[ ©il^

©sTiBoeq pexTBO os sb* *JJB!^s Sb x j ©qi^ jo ‘ x-is^afl-Bpuez

PXO 811?^ JB©u if^jou ©qtj ux pej^BTii^xs sx ©TdTS®^ sxm •XJtBHitfsi ^

•X^T»q3BN-®3rg wojj psAXJep sx sxqi ^ ‘ ©xdcBSi^ XJ««qs©q;^Bir33ia ptre t^joj s m p©q.ot\aq.Buoo ©qq. ueqq. puB *p83iOAiix sjojejaq*^ sjeia

B8uxsB©xq JC©H •pasfOAUX ‘ psrajojux sbm ©ii ‘©j©m 3^00j trX XJB»qs0t{^^tr^a ©qti Jo s3trxss©xq ©qi|. astiBOeg *^t(3xnj©A0

p»jB8ddBSXP s^joj 06©q:^ ^tmoo3B XjBpueSex b o^ 3uxpjooob ^tis

•tiXx3Bff XPtreS ©3TXtre/V *©c^0S BUXJ^t^ng bpbxbpubbibubh ^PPiiJ ^

ST^T

146

addrasaing him as son told him " Aritu Nadadara Arupattu.

Mar at u Nadedare Miiru Pattu" — the family of the Nayaka would rule for six generations, if they were wise, other­ wise their dynasty would end in three. He was presented with a sword. So Timmanna became the devotee of Sampige Siddeshwara,^ He constructed a temple dedicating it to this

Sampige Siddeshwara. This temple looks like an old cave temple. This is without(^its bricks and plaster. The pillars are significant.

Two inscriptions kept Inside the taaiple state that the tower 2 and the swing frame ware erected in the years 1355-56 A.D.

In the i^uadrangle of the temple there are water trough and a five pit near which the Mayakas were (used to be) installed.

The place has a charm of its own owing to the coolness and

the breeze which brings the fragrzmce of the famous Champaka

trees growing nearby. A legend says that Bharanappa Nayaka originally of

Bilichodu was tending the goats in the forest and resting

there} when a cobra spread its hood on his head like an^

umbrella. Morugandraiya, head of the ii^irgi fAith, watched

this incident in amazement and gradually approached

Bharamappa. Meanwhile the Ayya to whom this incident was

narrated predicted thet Bharamappa would become a ruler in

three months, and it so happened. Bharamappa Nayaka, a ruler

vjJMS. XXXI, 1940-41; gP, pp. 4-8.

oatyam, p. 76.

147

fortthirty-threa years, constructed many temples. In 1 gratitude he built the Margi Math on the hills. This

Slirgi Math was the residence of an eminent guru of the

Lingayat community. It is a large and well built edifice, h two storyed high and with lofty Sfahadwara or outer-gate I called Anebagilu or Blephant-door^. The chief object of b worship of this mtha. is gaddueo or tom|f of Immadi l&irugi 'I

Swami, who is described as the founder of the institution.

The name of the Matha is said to be derived from Marugi or three ^is viz. Yogi, Jogi, and Bhogi. The original building of this Matha was on the Chitradurga hill in front of the

Hidimbeshwara temple, built by Baramanna Nayaka (1639-1721)*

The Ranganath temple at Abbinahole in Hiriyuru

Taluka has a round stone (Udbhava-lfiirti) for the object of worship. In front of it Is to be seen an inscription, dat«d

1664 A.D. which is of some interest as it refers to the establishment of a claim to the office of Shanubhoga through successful ordeal of dipping the hand in the boiling ghee in the presence of a large number of people. There is also a Virgal or hero stone of the time of Nalamba king Ayyappa 2 dated 923 A.D.

The most important building in the lower fort, which forms the main residential area of the t0'.in, is the temple of Uchhangamma. a corruption of the Sanskrit name Utsavamba.

1. gJMS. XXXI, 1940-41, p. 3S2.

2 , Rice, pp. 489-539. 1 4 S

It l3 a huge two-atoryed Duilding built by the Palegars, for Uchhangaaima. their family goddess. It is said to ba the largest temple in the tovsn. In front of it there are (A a tall pillar and an ^y/ale-^lan^pa or swing arch.

The Civil Architecture of the Nayakaa $ The five gata-ways of tha fortress of Chitradurga each leading to the next one through a stone Tsall| proceed­ ing up to the hill from the East to the ruined palace on the Chitradurga hill 3,229 feet above sea level deserve to be mentioned* The first gate appears to have been built in the last days of Vijayanagara, and is ornamented with

sculptures of Ganda-Bheruada. Ganesh and other dieties*

The fort wall is 26 feet high and finely dressed. The elevated ground to the Asst of this wall is full of debris of old walls, basement and pottery. At the South end of the ground is a cave temple with a headless seated Shakti figure near which is the powder magazine.

The second and third gata-ways have nothing remarka­ ble. The fourth fort wall is a very strong structure of about 25 feet in height, with a series of ornamental pillars, and a large number of relics of sculptures of the fort walls*

In addition to the common figures of Hanuman. Ganesh. a Ga.lalakshmi and Kalin" Mardana, Yalis and fish. We notice so many other things like — a man drumming, a soldier dancing with a dagger in each hand, a hero fighting with a tiger, two elephants fighting each other, Krishna dancing with butter in his hand and a dance in an interesting pose. 149

The vtall3 of the fifth gate-i»ay* are built of hugt

stone bricka often 3 feet in length, breadth and height nifitly cut and pieced without the use of any cementing material. The height of the walls varies from 15 to 60 feet according to the local requirenents, At some places

the height of the inner-wella has been raised by the bricks

of four to six feet in height. The walls are provided with

innumerable bastons of various sizes and shapes, round,

sqiuare, hexogonal and octagonal. The three outer-llnes of

the %'alls are surrounded by despjH moats which, when in use, were always filled with weter.

A monolithic stone pillar 40 feat high and a square yard at the bottom, with a fine lotus capital is found

right in front of the Ekanatheshwari temple. The northern

side of the pillar contains the figure of the Kayaka,

probably the person who set up the pillar, and a female

figure on the eastern side identified to be his queen.

These are said to be Palegar and his wife. The Palegar

with a long hair tied up on top of the head, beard, earrings, necklace, armlets, bracelets, girdle with dagger and anklats,

stands with folded hands and is evidently the Nayaka who

got the pillar set up. The queen stands with her hair done

up in a bun and is wearing earrings, necklace, armlets,

girdle and sari.

To its South is a stone frame of ^ or ana made up of

two lofty granite pillars supporting a lintel beam. To the

latter are attached chains holding a swinging board, on whldi 160

th3 rulers of Chitradurga used to awing themselves high up in the air and witness the Pu.ia of the goddess, Near the swing frame is a Siddi-pillar used in connection with a well-known Siddi festivals, which takes place every year in connection with the worship of Bkanatheshwari. Leaving the

Siddeshwara temple we crawl up to a small gate-way and a short wall. From there we can see the ruins of the palace and its granaries. Itoat of the buildings in this area except a stone room near the ladies bath are built generally of sun-dried bricks, semi-circular in section. In the midst of the powder magazines and granareis stand roofless walls (height 20 feet) of several buildings which formed the abode of the Nayakas. The magnitude of the structure can be imagined from the fact that one hall of more than

70*x 160* has plastered walls 20 feet high and 3* or 4* thick at the bottom, standing on the stone basement.

A winding path about three furlongs in length leads us for the highest peak of the hill on which is the citadel known as Lal-flatori defended by a series of battlemented stone walls. A large pavillion known as the Bcbbayyana

Chavadi, and three ponds for storing rain water exist today and there is right at the top another stone pa-'Tillion with ornamental 16 sided pillars. The last of the Kayakas

(Baramanna Nayaka ?) is said to have been captured here by the i^sore troops. The bricks used here are I0.6”x 7.5”x 2 ",

A fine flight of steps on the West leads down to the acho-rock where two huge boulders on two opposite peaks give fine echoes, which are clear enough for half a dozen syllables.

Another remarkable arrangeaient made by the rulers of Chitradurga Nayaka for collecting rain water, to the fullest possible extent is said to have been mentioned.

The rain water that poured in the Jogimatti hills (the highest hill) was collected in a tank called Doddannana

Kera which wheri filled, let the water to other tanks belom, mich viias called Tiiaiitanna Nayakana Kere and then ^annaker« which in turn after themselves being filled allowed the wiater to two other reservoirs called Dabdabha and Teetivadda by a similar process. After filling all these tanks the water used to flow to the fuoats round the fort mall*.

Similarly the rain water falling on tne Meludurga or upper-fort filled a series of reservoirs one below the other called - (1) Aramaxxe honda. (2) Gopalkrishna honda.

(J) Akkatai-iRiar^honda, (4) Vanlid. Kindi honda. (5) honda. (6) finally by a secret under ground channel to the

;?ante honda. It is due to this wonderful arrangement that the fort never in its long history suffered from water scarcity.^

The Military Architecture of the Nayakaa t

The old town was within the strong fortification* having a wide space its centre ifith about six lookouts or watch-towers. i?rom the early time the hill attracted the attention of the kings and warriors on account of its 152

comiaandlng situation from a military point of^ as well as

Its inaccessibility and points Of vantage for defence. The iL valley and the peaks of, hill are covered by a large number r- of ancient monuments, at least a thousand years old. The battlements and bastions, moats, hill batteries to the old walls of Vijayanagara period by the Nayakas with the aid of 1 French Engineers,

One of the interesting structures on the hill is

a circular mill well built of masonery about 8 feet deep

and 21 feet in diametre, on the edge of which in the four cordinal points are fixed on two stonebearas, huge mill-

stones 5 feet 10 inches in diametre, the lower stone being

one foot aiid 10 inches thick and the upper 10 inches. The

upper stones have round the rim 38 square holes each 2 ^ inches

long and ^ inches deep. There are two fights of steps

leading down into the well. These miljt-stonss are supposed

to have been used for grinding gun powder^ The supposition

is confirmed by the discovery of,quantity charcoal powder -) t A at the sides of the milestones, even today.

The fort is fully surrounded by a wide moat, which,

when in use, were always filled with water and madg^dangerou*

/approach by growing various ac^^uatic plants and gasses and

by being invested with deadly creatures, like saakes and

crocodiles. On the top of the moat there were moving

bridges built in between two watch-towers, >oJi^small entrance

±. MsP, 153

betviean two watch-towers, attracted the enemies to enter the fort. The fort bridges were on when enemies entered the fort. Once enemies entered the fort bridges were removed, as they were moving with big wheels under. So the retreating enemy was trapped inside the moat. Wa can see the wheels under tha bridges even/today. This shows the military skill of the Nayakas. ,

The Armoury was built specially infront of the -Iv Nayakas' palace of safety. It is built in sun-dried bricks, semi-circular in section. The magnitude of the structures can be imagined from the fact that one hall of more than 70*x 150* has plastered walls 20* high and 3 ' OP

4* thick at the bottom, standing on a stone basement* They are all roofless now*^

The entrance to the old town of Chitradurga has five gates which are described abov«. It is said that the fort had in all 19 gate-ways, 35 Postern gates, 35 secret 2 entrances, and 4 invisible entrances. The doors were mad« of strong and thick wooden beams fastened with iron plates*

The doors of the main gate-ways were made bristled with iron spikes and pegs to w£ird-off elephants. The remains of the fort and the palace of the Nayakas which were of mud are still to be seen«

The history of Chitradurga will not end without the

81. QJMS. XXX.I, 1940-41, p. 351,

2. Ib.-cl ■ 154

story of Vanlke Kindly connected with the second attack of

Hyder on Chltradurga. It is an Interesting and remarkable

testimony to the proness of a ladyi Obavva. Hyder»s forces

were unable to attack an entry Into the forty and to storm

It was next to Impossible. Crevices In the walls where a woman was carrying curds to the fortress were discovered,

and the Invading army attempted to march through in '

single file there. Near this passage there was a fresh water

pond half way up the hill. One day when,i^ugler went to A dlney Obawj^, his wife, who went to get water from the pond

noticed the enemy moving on-^bks single file near this

entrance. It was dark. Obcwa hiding herself behind the

entrance, killed soldiers after soldiers with her

(^nlke (pestle) as they marched through the entrance, till

her husband returned. So this pass Is called Vanlke Kindi.*

Apart from the Chltradurga fort the Nayakas built

so many other forts In their kingdom. One of them was In

Almangala (Hlrlyuru Taluka), a road side village about 13

mll&|from Chltradurga on the Hlrlyuru road. The popular

explanation of the name of the village Is that the fort was

built for Veerashalva Ayya (Priest) by Hire Madakerl Nayaka

of Chltradurga. The antiquities of the place Including the

fort mostly belong to the 17th century and 18th century A.D. 0 The fort Is a large ablong structure with straight sides,

with a high platform. In each corner It has numerous square

bastions. It has three ruined gates, one to the north, one

to the east, another to the west. The walls are massive and 155

high and thare are ruins of moat visible^ in many places.

Tha ffloat important monufflent in the village is the tample of

Veerabhadra nhich stands to the north of tha main road beyond tha Vaishnava templa.

•..oOo...oOo.. .oOo.•.