Ascetics, Devotees, Disciples, and Lords of the Maṭam: Monasteries in Medieval Tamilnadu Michelle L. Folk A Thesis in the Department of Religion Presented in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Religion) at Concordia University Montreal, Quebec, Canada August 2013 © Michelle L. Folk, 2013 ii CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES This is to certify that the thesis prepared By: Michelle L. Folk Entitled: Ascetics, Devotees, Disciples, and Lords of the Maṭam: Monasteries in Medieval Tamilnadu and submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (Religion) complies with the regulations of the University and meets the accepted standards with respect to originality and quality. Signed by the final examining committee: ___________________________________________ Chair Prof. Arpi Hamalian ___________________________________________ External Examiner Dr. Richard Mann ___________________________________________ External to Program Dr. Alan E. Nash ___________________________________________ Examiner Dr. Mathieu Boisvert ___________________________________________ Examiner Dr. Shaman Hatley ___________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor Dr. Leslie C. Orr Approved by ___________________________________________ Chair of Department or Graduate Program Director July 25, 2013 ________________________________________________ Dean of Faculty iii Abstract Ascetics, Devotees, Disciples, and Lords of the Maṭam: Monasteries in Medieval Tamilnadu Michelle L. Folk, Ph.D. Concordia University, 2013 The maṭam is understood in scholarly studies as an institution of asceticism and monasticism in Hinduism. The term maṭam can refer to caravansaries, choultries, rest houses, or monasteries for ascetics. While diverse in their functions and teachings, maṭams have historically shared the common characteristic of the teacher-disciple relationship and lineage. The maṭam emerged in the stone inscriptions from the South Indian region of Tamilnadu in the ninth century of the Common Era as one of the many institutions that received patronage from citizens to support its people and activities. While the inscriptions reveal the activities of maṭams, scholars have instead focused on tracing the lineages of maṭams in the Tamil region without examining the inscriptions for what they say about the people who lived in maṭams or frequented them occasionally. This thesis examines the stone inscriptions from the ninth through thirteenth centuries for what they can tell us about the people who participated in maṭams and the activities that these institutions undertook. Ascetics, devotees, disciples, and “lords of the maṭam” (maṭamuṭaiya) were among the maṭam community and benefitted from maṭams’ services. These same maṭam people were also one of the many kinds of people who served the temple complex in medieval Tamilnadu. The term maṭam is representative of diverse people and activities, and the inscriptions reveal that the maṭam in the Chola period was as varied in South India as the name suggests. iv Acknowledgements Working towards the completion of a doctoral degree is something that cannot be done without the support and guidance of a number of people. There have been many people – professors, colleagues, friends, and family – that have supported me throughout my many years of doctoral studies and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their continued encouragement. I would like to begin by extending my thanks to the staff of the Epigraphy Branch of the Archaeological Survey of India for graciously granting me access to the transcripts of the inscriptions that are in their keeping in Mysore. Thank you to the people of the École Française d’Extrême Orient in Pondicherry for their assistance during my time in India. I would like to acknowledge the financial support that I received during my doctoral studies. I have received scholarships and awards from Concordia University and the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute in the form of a Student Excellence Award and Graduate Student Research Fellowship. I have also received support through research assistantships, teaching assistantships, and teaching opportunities from the Religion Department at Concordia University and Luther College and the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Regina. There are many professors who have graciously guided me as an undergraduate and graduate student. Thank you to Leona Anderson who has guided me throughout my undergraduate and graduate studies. I want to mention Appasamy Murugaiyan whose suggestion that maṭams would make for an original dissertation topic started me on this project. v My thanks and appreciation are for my dissertation committee Mathieu Boisvert, Shaman Hatley, and Leslie C. Orr. I owe them a great debt for patiently working with me to bring this dissertation to completion. My greatest thanks and gratitude is for my supervisor Leslie C. Orr who has been extremely generous with her time and knowledge and whose patience is beyond measure. I am grateful to my family and friends for their encouragement and support. I would like to extend a special thank you to my grandmother Cecile Rayner. Though she was unable to see this chapter of my life come to a close, her strength and determination saw me through to the end. I would especially like to thank my husband Tim St. Amand for his enduring support. You have been firmly by my side on this journey, which you call an adventure, especially in those moments when I have faltered. Thank you cannot suffice. vi Table of Contents List of Maps ....................................................................................................................... ix List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... x List of Figures .................................................................................................................... xi Transliteration, Translation, and Citation ......................................................................... xii Abbreviations ................................................................................................................... xiii Chapter One: Reading the Writing on the Wall: Epigraphy’s Roles in Indian Historiography and the Maṭam ........................................................................................... 1 A. Some Introductory Remarks ...................................................................................... 1 B. Approaching the Inscriptions: The History of Epigraphical Studies in India and How to Read the Inscriptions .................................................................................. 6 1. A Brief History of Epigraphical Studies in India .................................................... 6 2. Inscriptions as Literature; Inscriptions as Objects ................................................ 18 C. Scholarship on the Maṭam in the Tamil Inscriptions .............................................. 25 Chapter Two: The Maṭam Inscriptions of the Chola Period and the Patrons of Maṭams .............................................................................................................................. 35 A. Research Methodology ............................................................................................ 35 B. The Geographical and Chronological Distribution of the Maṭam Inscriptions ........ 42 C. The Patrons of Maṭams ............................................................................................ 51 1. Rulers as Maṭam Patrons ...................................................................................... 51 2. Corporate Groups as Maṭam Patrons .................................................................... 56 3. Individuals as Maṭam Patrons ............................................................................... 59 4. Maṭam People as Patrons ...................................................................................... 65 vii D. Conclusion: Maṭam Property Management ............................................................. 72 Chapter Three: The People and Activities of Maṭams in the Chola Period ...................... 74 A. The Maṭam and the Tamil Landscape ...................................................................... 74 B. Ascetics, Devotees, Disciples, and Lords of the Maṭam: The People of Maṭams .......................................................................................................................... 76 1. Maṭam People in the Ninth Century ..................................................................... 76 2. Maṭam People in the Tenth Century ..................................................................... 78 3. Maṭam People in the Eleventh Century ................................................................ 81 4. Maṭam People in the Twelfth Century .................................................................. 85 5. Maṭam People in the Thirteenth Century .............................................................. 90 C. The Sectarian Affiliation of Maṭams ...................................................................... 101 D. Learning, Reciting Hymns, Worshipping Deities, Lighting Lamps, and Feeding: The Activities of Maṭam People ................................................................................. 106 1. Learning .............................................................................................................