chap15
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Art and Culture of Tamilnadu
R. Nagaswamy
15. THE TEMPLE OF ARAPPAḶḶIŚVARA
Situated in a picturesque surrounding on the top of the Kolli Hills, the Arappaḷḷīśvara temple, dedicated to Lord Śiva and Goddess Tāyāmbāḷ is an ancient temple, sung by the Devāram Saints. The Kolli hill itself is famous from the beginning of the Christian era for a beautiful sculpture of Pāvai, often referred to in early Saṅgam literature as Kollippāvai. Many verses in the Saṅgam collections speak of the beauty and auspicious nature of these sculptures which is said to be found on the rock, west of a stream on the top of the hills. A sculpture is now identified as Kollipāvai but it seems to be an image of Kāli of the Chöḻa period. The Kolli hills was under the control of a chieftain in the beginning from Christian era whose name is given as Malayan>. It was also ruled by one of the Seven great donors, Valvil Öri who is praised for his munificent gifts to bards and ministrels. Recently a statue of the chieftain has been placed on the top of the hills to commemorate this great hero.
The Arappaḷḷīśvara temple is situated on the banks of a river which has a perenniel flow with two water falls, one a few kilometres away falling to a depth of over 30.5 m and another very near the temple where there is a fall of about 3m in height. From time immemorial, this Śiva temple has been held in high veneration by a Śaivite saint and his followers and is one of the foremost sacred sthalas in the Koṅgu country. The present structure goes back to the period of the early Chöḻas. Number of inscriptions found on the walls of the temple records dedications to Lord Śiva and his consort during the reigns of Uttama Chöḻa (late 10th century A.D.), Rājarāja I, Rājādhiraja, Rājamahendra and Kulpttuṅga Chöḻa. One of the donors is the famous Chöḻa queen Cembiyanmahādevi, the queen of Gaṇḍarāditya the mother of Uttama Chöḻa. She is the daughter of a Malavaraiya Chieftain. She has paid a visit to this temple climbing the steep hills and has gifted 100 kaḻañjus of gold for various services in the temple. An interesting record in the temple of Kulottuṅga Chöḻa assigns lands on the top of the hills for various services to the temple which were originally gifted in the time of one of his predecessors, Rājamahendra around A.D. 1060. The present Amman shrine was built and the image of Devi erected later. Architecturally this is a very fine structure and the sculpture of the Devi enshrined in the sanctum is real gem of sculptural art of the period. During the year 1823 a Kumhabiṣeka (consecration) was performed to this temple and both the kalaśas of the temple of Lord Arappaḷḷīśvara and the goddess were guiled with gold. So it is seen from the temple records that the temple continued to occupy a very important role on the top of the hill right through the centuries till very recent times.
The Kolli hills is also the residing place of a tribe called Malaiyala Goundar. They speak Tamil, but are hill tribes, who have their own customs and manners and have been a subject of study by social anthropologists. They are hard working, loveable people who are greatly devoted to Lord Arappaḷḷīśvara on the hills. Particularly in the month of Āḍi and Tai they visit the temple and offer special worship to Arappaḷḷīśvara. The Kolli hills is also known for medicinal herbs grown in plenty which are used both by āyurvedic and siddha medical practitioners. According to the sthalapurāṇa the Kolli hills was inhabited by saints and sages in ancient times, particularly by siddhas.
Archaeological evidences point to the existence of Jaina followers in various parts of the hills. The Kolli hills consists of a row of tall hills with a central valley and is often called as Chaturagiri. There is a ghat road laid in 1963 to reach the village Semmeḍu on the top of the hill. It takes nearly an hour to reach the village from the foot of the hills. As one assends the hill, the picturesque surrounding, valleys and the green vegetation offer as much attraction to the tourists as Köḍai Hills or Udagai hills. It can be reached now from Salem in about two hours time, via Rācīpuram.
The Arappaḷḷīśvara temple can also be reached from the Tirucci side. One can go up by bus up to a place called Puḷiyaṉchölai and then climb up the hill for about 5 kilometres. From the village Semmeḍu, the Arappaḷḷīśvara temple is about 8 kilometres and a modern road is available for jeeps and cars to go.
The Kolli hill is veritable haunt for religious followers, archaeologists, historians social anthorpologists and tourists. An interesting inscription in the Arappaḷḷīśvara temple assignable to eleventh century A.D. refers to the existence of a highway leading down the hill named Amsittur Iraṅgina Peruvaḻi. Obviously these places were well-connected with the roads during the Chöḻa period.