ஹிந்து பத்திரிக்கையின் தொடரும் கிறிஸ்துவ ஊழியம்

ஹிந்து பத்திரிக்கையின் தொடரும் கிறிஸ்துவ ஊழியம்

ஆகஸ்ட் 28 அன்றைய ஹிந்துவில் ஒரு கட்டுரை, இந்தியாவின் மிகப் பழமையான சேரமான் ஜூமா மசூதிக்கு பாரதப் பிரதமர் மோடி வருவாரா? என.

துபாயின் பெறிய மசூதி சென்றவர் இம்மசூதி வருவதை கேரள பிஜேபி எதிர்க்கிறதாம் -  கேரளா சுற்றுலா வளர்க்க சங்க இலக்கியத்தின் முசுறித் துறைமுகம் என்பதாக கேசிஎச் ஆர் எனும் கேரளா வரலாற்று ஆய்வு கௌன்சில் பி.சி.செரியன் பரப்பும் கதைகளுக்கு வலு சேர்க்கும் என. கேரளா  முதல்வர் ஓமன் சண்டிக்கு திரு.மோடி வருவதாக வாக்கு தந்துள்ளாராம், மசூதி வருவதாக உறுதி செய்ததை மோடி செய்வாரா என கேள்வி.

http://www.mathrubhumi.com/travel/article/tourist_spots/historical/cheraman_juma_masjid/25/

Cheraman Juma Masjid the first mosque of India.This mosque resembles a Hindu temple in appearance and is located 2 km from Kodungalloor town.Built in 629 AD, this is the first mosque in India and the second in the world where Juma prayers were started. People from far and near irrespective of caste and creed visit this holy place and pay their homage. This mosque is unique. Mosques all over the world face the direction of Mecca, but this particular one faces east. It is situated in the Methala village of Kodungalloor Taluk, about 20 kilometres away from the Irinjalakuda railway station. This mosque was designed and constructed in accordance with the Hindu art and architecture. The building until recently was predominantly made of wood. The mosque eroded owing to adverse climatic conditions and had to be partly rebuilt, though the wooden interiors are still intact. 

Unlike any other mosques in India, the Cheraman mosque uses a traditional brass oil lamp, mostly found in Hindu temples. 

The architecture also resembles Hindu temple style.

'World's second oldest mosque is in India'

http://captainjohann.indiainteracts.com/2008/03/22/second-oldest-mosque-in-the-world/

The following article appeared in the Bahrain tribune in 2004. The original Kerala type of architecture was changed recently and this i think shows the ignorance of people who control the mosque.

'World's second oldest mosque is in India'

Browsing through the annals of the royal family of the Samudris (Zamorins to western historians) – the traditional rulers of north Kerala from 7th century A.D to British days, – I was intrigued by one paragraph, which stated "There is the practice of receiving pan (betel leaf) from a Muslim woman when the King Samudri ascends throne for the first time and telling her 'I shall guard the sword (kingship) until my uncle returns from Makkah.' This custom continued until 1890s." "Why a Muslim women be given that assurance?" I mused, and checking with historians found, that in India, in the 1375-year-old (built in Hijra 629 or 7 A.D.) Cheraman Juma Masjid in Kodungaloor-Kerala, we have India's oldest Islamic shrine. More important is the fact that it is the world's second oldest Juma mosque, where the Juma (Friday) prayers have been held for the last 1375 years, since the days of Prophet Mohammed (570-634 A.D.). The first Juma mosque in the world is the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah, which is also his memorial tomb. Kodungaloor was the capital of the kings of Kerala, and in 622-628 A.D. (Hijra 1 to 7) the ruler was a great savant, by name Cheraman Perumal Bhaskara Ravi Varma. In those days, the seniormost of the rulers of Kerala was called as Cheraman Perumal. It was here that he was visited by certain Mohammadan pilgrims, who according to tradition, succeeded in inducing the Perumal to turn Mohammadan and undertake the Haj. On the eve of his renunciation of religion, empire and embarkation for Makkah, he is reputed to have distributed Kerala among the many Hindu princes whose scions ruled it until 1947. The founder of the Samudri dynasty, a nephew of the departing monarch, was one of the beneficiaries. Hence it became obligatory for all his descendants to assert to the Muslim woman as representative of the religion to which the Perumal had converted himself, that the new ruler was only the agent of the Perumal. Why did the Perumal convert himself into a follower of Prophet Mohammed? M. Hamiddullah writes in Mohammad Rasoolullah, quoting some old manuscripts from India Office Library (ref no. Arabic, 2607, 152-173) Vol.16 (06): "There is a very old tradition in Malabar, southwest Coast of India that Chakrawati Farmas (perhaps another name for denoting Cheraman Perumal) one of their kings, had observed splitting of the moon, the celebrated miracle of the Holy Prophet at Makkah, and learning on inquiry that this was a symbol of the coming of a Messenger of God from Arabia, he appointed his nephew regent and set out to meet him. The love for Holy Prophet grew in his heart and he became the earliest Muslim convert of present day India." This 'Moon Splitting' is also mentioned in the hadith. As per narrations of Abdullah bin Masud: "During the lifetime of the Prophet, the moon was split into two parts and on that the Prophet said, 'Bear witness (to thus).'" (Translation of Sahih Bukhari, Virtues and Merits of the Prophet and his Companions, Volume 4, Book 56, Number 830) To continue with the words of Hamidullah, Cheraman Perumal embraced Islam at the hand of Prophet. A tradition of the Holy Prophet has also been reported from one of the companions, Abu Saeed Al Khudri, regarding the arrival of Cheraman Perumal "a king from India presented the Messenger of God with a bottle of pickle that had ginger in it. The Holy Prophet distributed it among his companions. I also received a piece to eat." It is said that, after conversion, the Perumal took the name of Tajuddin, while other chroniclers say that he called himself as Abdullah Samudri, in remembrance of his past. He married the sister of the then king of Jeddah and settled down there. He handed over to the king of Jeddah several letters addressed to the ruler of Kodungaloor (then known as Muzuris), seeking his help to propagate the tenets of Islam. Later, unfortunately, when returning to Kerala, on directives of the Prophet, Tajuddin died at the port of Zafar, Yemen, where the tomb of the 'Indian king' was piously visited for many centuries. But he had asked his companions, among whom there were a number of senior disciples of Prophet Mohammad, to continue their journey to Kerala. One Islamic scholar has written that Perumal's followers built the mosque after reaching Kerala. "The Cheraman Juma Masjid was built by Malik bin Dinar, (one of the 13 followers of Prophet Mohammad), who reached the ancient port of Musuris on the spice route in Malabar in 629 A.D. Cheraman Perumal had given a letter to the Rajah of Kodungaloor, who helped Malik bin Dinar to convert the Arathali temple into a Juma Masjid. As such this mosque was one, designed and constructed based on Hindu art and architecture. It has a unique speciality. Mosques all over the world face the direction of Makkah, but this particular one faces east, as it was built originally as a Hindu shrine, all of which face the east. This is the second Juma Mosque in the world, where Friday prayers have been offered since 1365 A.D./Hijra 7. It is situated in the Mrthala village of Kodungaloor, hardly 20km from the Irinjalakuda railway station in Kerala. Unlike any other mosques in India, the Cheraman mosque uses a traditional brass oil lamp, mostly found in Hindu temples. The pulpit from where the chief priest gives Friday sermons is made of rosewood with carvings similar to those in temples. There are two tombs, that of Bin Dinar and his sister inside the mosque, where preachers light incense sticks, yet another Hindu practice. Until 1984, for 1355 years, the Cherman Perumal Mosque retained its facade as a typical Kerala structure. In 1984, the local Muslim Jamaat, which repaired the building, decided, that the new structure should be more like a Islamic shrine with minarets. While retaining the inner configuration of the edifice, the exterior was changed completely. As one member of the Indian National Trust for Art " Cultural Heritage told me that in 1984 the trust was formed to protect the Indian heritage, from such radical alterations. But by 1984, the mosque had been given a new exterior. Otherwise the trust would have appealed and ensured that the 1355 old facade of the structure (although repaired many times) was kept in its old grandeur. photo: The original Cheraman Juma Masjid in Kodungaloor, Kerala, where Friday prayers have been held for the last 1375 years. Below: The mosque after local Muslims carried out renovations.

 Updated: April 21, 2014 10:10 IST

‘Pattanam and Dorchester shared similar links with Rome’

Surprise find at Pattanam digs - May-2, 2010

 

Centuries ago:A wooden peg found at the excavation site at Pattanam, Kerala.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muziris

Archaeological excavations[edit]

A series of excavations conducted at Kodungallur starting from 1945, yielded nothing that went back to before the 13th century. Another excavation was carried out in 1969 by the Archaeological Survey of India at Ceraman Parambu, 2 km north of Kodungallur. Only antiquities of the 13th and 16th century were recovered.^[27]

In 1983, a large hoard of Roman coins was found at a site around six miles from Pattanam. A series of pioneering excavations carried out by Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR, an autonomous institution) at Pattanam from 2007 uncovered a large number of artefacts.^{[28][29][30][31][32]} So far, seven seasons of excavations (2007–14) are completed by KCHR at Pattanam.^[33]

The identification of Pattanam as Muziris is a divisive subject among some of the historians of south India. When KCHR announced the possible finding of Muziris based on Pattanam finds, it invited criticism from some historians and archaeologists. Historians such as R Nagaswamy, KN Panikkar and MGS Narayanan disagreed with the identification and called for further analysis.^[13][26][32] "Whether Pattanam was Muziris is not of immediate concern to us," the chief of the Kerala Council for Historical Research recently stated to the media.^[34] Even the last field report on the excavations (2013) explicitly shows Pattanam as Muziris.^[35]

While historian and academic Rajan Gurukkal throws his weight behind the ‘salvage of historic relics at Pattanam’ by KCHR given the sites disturbance due to continual human habitation and activity, he thinks it [ancient Muziris] was no more than a colony of merchants from the Mediterranean. “The abundance of material from the Mediterranean suggests that traders arrived here using favourable monsoon winds and returned using the next after short sojourns,” he says. Feeder vessels transported them between their ships and the wharf, but it would be incorrect to say that it was a sophisticated port in an urban setting. The place did not have any evolved administration nor any sophistication. I believe it [Pattanam] was Muziris. Had it been elsewhere, Pattanam wharf and colony would’ve found a mention in available records, he says.^[36]

Discoveries from Pattanam[edit]

Archaeological research has shown that Pattanam was a port frequented by Romans and it has a long history of habitation dating back to 10th century BC. Its trade links with Rome peaked between 1st century BC and 4th century AD.^[37]

A large quantity of artifacts represents the maritime contacts of the site with Mediterranean, Red Sea and Indian Ocean rims. The major finds include ceramics, lapidary-related objects, metal objects, coins, architectural ruins, geological, zoological and botanical remains.^[35]

• Mediterranean: (100 BCE to CE 400) Amphora, terra sigillata sherds, Roman glass fragments and gaming counters.
• West Asian, South Arabian & Mesopotamian: (300 BCE - CE1000 ) Turquoise glazed pottery, torpedo jar fragments and frankincense crumbs.
• Chinese: (CE 1600 – CE 1900) Blue on white porcelain sherds.
• Regional/Local: (1000 BCE to CE 2000) Black and red ware sherds, Indian rouletted ware, gemstones, glass beads, semi precious stone beads/inlays/intaglio, cameo–blanks, coins, spices, pottery and terracotta objects.
• Urban life: (100 BCE to CE 400) burnt bricks, rooftiles, ring-wells, storage jars, toilet features, lamps, coins, stylus, personal adornment items and scripts on pottery.
• Industrial character: (100 BCE to CE 400) Metallurgy reflected in iron, copper, gold and lead objects, crucibles, slag, furnace installations, lapidary remains of semi-precious stones and spindle whorls indicating weaving.
• Maritime features: (100 BCE to CE 400) Wharf, warehouse, canoe, bollards.

The major discoveries from Pattanam include thousands of beads (made of semi-precious stone), sherds of Roman amphora, Chera-era coins made of copper alloys and lead, fragments of Roman glass pillar bowls, terra sigillata, remains of a long wooden boat and associated bollards made of teak and a wharf made of fired brick.^[6][38]

The most remarkable find at Pattanam excavations in 2007 was a brick structural wharf complex, with nine bollards to harbour boats and in the midst of this, a highly decayed canoe, all perfectly mummified in mud. The canoe (6 meters long) was made of Artocarpus hirsutus, a tree common in Malabar Coast, out of which boats are made off.^[39] The bollards some of which are still in satisfactory condition was made of teak.^[40]

Three Tamil-Brahmi scripts were also found in the Pattanam excavations. The last Tamil-Brahmi script (dated to c. 2nd century AD, probably reading "a-ma-na", meaning "a Jaina" in Tamil) was found on a pot-rim at Pattanam. If the rendering and the meaning is not mistaken, it establishes that Jainism was prevalent on the Malabar Coast at least from the 2nd century. This is for the first time the excavators are getting direct evidence relating to a religious system in ancient Kerala.^[41]

Muziris Heritage Project[edit]

Muziris Heritage Project is a tourism venture by Tourism Department of Kerala to "reinstate the historical and cultural significance Muziris". The idea of the project came after the extensive excavations and discoveries at Pattanam by Kerala Council for Historical Research.^[42] The project also covers various other historically significant sites and monuments in central Kerala.

The nearby site of Kottapuram, a 16th-century fort, was also excavated (from May 2010) as part of the Muziris Heritage Project.^[43]

 Radiocarbon dating puts Pattanam antiquity to 500 BC

Published: Tuesday, January 8, 2008, 13:37 [IST]

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 7 (UNI) The antiquity of Pattanam, the first habitation site of the Iron Age ever unearthed in Kerala, extends back to as far as the first millennium BC, as determined by the Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) radiocarbon analyses.

According to the Kerala Council for Historical Research(KCHR) sources, the analyses conducted at the Bhubaneswar-based Institute of Physics suggested that Pattanam, located seven km north of Kodungallur in Ernakulam district, had witnessed the Iron Age occupation during the first half of the first millennium BC.

Pattanam Excavations/Explorations Project Director Prof P J Cherian, in a statement here today, said the mean calendar dates determined from the AMS test of five charcoal samples from the trenches and part of wooden canoe had placed the antiquity of ancient maritime activity of Pattanam at about 500 BC, with an uncertainty of less than a century.

He said the artefacts recovered reveal that the site had links with the Mediterranean, Red Sea, Arabian Sea and South China sea rims since the early-historic period of South India.

Prob Cherian said the organic samples from the site were also being analysed at the Hyderabad-based National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) employing conventional or radiometric method of carbon dating. He said the AMS analyses suggested that the Pattanam canoe, dating back to 1300 BC to 100 BC, could be the earliest known canoe in India.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had granted licence to him for the second consecutive season for excavation activities in Pattanam and the work was scheduled to begin next month, he said.

Read more at: http://www.oneindia.com/2008/01/07/radiocarbon-dating-puts-pattanam-antiquity-to-500-bc-1199779624.html

   http://sahapedia.org/the-pattanam-story-interview-with-p.../

The Pattanam Story: Interview with P.J.Cherian, Director, KCHR | Sahapedia

P.J. Cherian Sahapedia: Could you share the story of the...

SAHAPEDIA.ORG

 

 http://indiatoday.intoday.in/.../First.../1/73920.html

First century Spanish pottery found in Pattanam : South, News - India Today

First century Spanish pottery found in Pattanam

INDIATODAY.INTODAY.IN

 

 http://www.frontline.in/.../stories/20100423270806200.htm

 http://www.deccanherald.com/.../tiny-objects-throw...

Tiny objects throw insights into history

Indirect evidence available on use of Indian stone tools in west In medieval times when the ship's engine whistled to...

DECCANHERALD.COM

 

 http://www.thehindu.com/.../tamilbrahm.../article1535656.ece

Tamil-Brahmi script found at Pattanam in Kerala

A Tamil-Brahmi script on a pot rim, reading “a ma na”,...

THEHINDU.COM|BY T.S. SUBRAMANIAN

 

 http://www.thehindu.com/.../pattanam.../article5933114.ece

‘Pattanam and Dorchester shared similar links with Rome’

Southern India’s trade links with Rome in the early Iron...

THEHINDU.COM|BY SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

 

http://www.thehindu.com/.../surprise.../article759929.ece

Surprise find at Pattanam digs

Special Correspondent 18 wooden pegs were found at a depth of four metres

THEHINDU.COM

 

http://www.irfi.org/.../world's%20second%20oldest...

https://www.keralatourism.org/.../cheraman-juma-masjid.../81

Cheraman Juma Masjid - the first mosque to be built in India at Kodungalloor | Kerala...

KERALATOURISM.ORG

 

 

Expert nails false propaganda on Muziris

The effort made by some interested quarters  to link the Muziris excavations with the visit of St Thomas Apostle has been criticised by eminent archaeologist and former director of the Tamil Nadu Archaeological Survey of India, R Nagaswamy."When looking at the literature on the life of St Thomas, it is not mentioned anywhere that he came to India. It is only a myth, which has now been connected with the excavations at Pattanam, near Kodungalloor, the former visiting professor of Jawaharlal Nehru University told Express.In fact, the ancient Muzirs port must have  been  located in Kodungalloor and not in Pattanam because all major ports in ancient times were situated at river mouths. And so it is safe  to assume that Muziris was at Kodungalloor, where the river joins the sea.He felt there was a hidden agenda by certain sections to propagate the idea that Muziris was connected to Pattanam, where St Thomas is believed to have landed, and not with Kodungalloor.Myth cannot be called history. Connecting myth with history could only create confusion and distort history, he said. There is no substantial  evidence to say that Pattanam is connected with Muziris. How was this conclusion reached? Those who claim to have found materials to connect Pattanam with Muziris have forgotten that these materials were also found in the eastern and the western costs of the country, said Nagaswamy.

https://www.keralatourism.org/muziris/cheraman-juma-masjid.php

The Marthoma Pontifical shrine is a major pilgrim centre that comes under the Muziris Heritage Project. The church on the banks of the River Periyar is located about 6 km from Kodungalloor, in the village of Azhikode in Kerala.

The 'Marthoma Smruthi Tharangam' derived from Sanskrit language which means 'the creation of waves of memories regarding St. Thomas' offers a memorial presentation of the mission of the Apostle. A 3500 square feet mansion built in the Indo-Persian style presents the major episodes in the life of St. Thomas. This programme of 30 minutes duration uses the aid of modern computer technologies and audio visual theatrical effects.

History says that St. Thomas, the apostle landed at Kodungalloor adjacent to Azhikode and the St. Thomas church being one of the seven churches formed by him. It came as a befitting gift to the believers when the bone of the right arm of the apostle was brought from Italy and enthroned at the Pontifical shrine, built in the model of St. Peter's Basilica Rome. Thousands of believers from around the world visit the sacred shrine to receive the blessings.

Taluk : North Paravur
District : Ernakulam
Location : About 100 meters from Paravur-Kodungalloor Road, NH-17

The building is located in the former Jewish Street of the Paravur region. It served as the place of worship for the Jewish community that settled very close to the Paravur Market. 

The complex comprises of two buildings - the double storied entrance building and the main synagogue separated by an open space. The entrance building or the Padipura features two rooms on either side which was used for storage on the ground floor and Hebrew classes were conducted on the first floor. Beyond this is a small courtyard which leads to the main entry to the synagogue.

The synagogue is attractive; there's a pillared entryway that leads from the two rooms at the main entrance to the prayer place .The prayer hall consists of two rooms; a rectangular room generally used for meetings and the other main prayer room with the Bimah and the Ark. There is a balcony above the eastern entry, on the first floor, which was used by the reader on certain special occasions. The ceiling and the brackets supporting the balcony is decorated with gilded carved wooden rosettes, typical to most synagogues. Behind this balcony is the women's gallery, which can be approached by a staircase that was situated near the entry to the synagogue. The wooden doors that existed (now missing) were gracefully curved at the upper side of the closure point. The original Bimah and Ark were taken to Israel in 1992 and reconstructions of the original have been installed in their place.

Situated about 100 m from Parur on the Kodungalloor road of Kerala, the synagogue is one of the two Jewish synagogues placed in the Muziris heritage project region.

At Muziris, trade and religion grew together. This synagogue must have been the place of worship for the Jews that settled very close to the Parur market. Though the users of the synagogue have all but faded away, both the market and the synagogue still exist. The Parur market opening to the river Periyar still functions twice a week, a boat jetty has been constructed there, and the Jew street still goes by that name, though one of its two pillars at the entrance has been knocked down.

The balcony of the synagogue is supported on decorated pillars and gilded beams. The decorations on the ceiling and the door carvings are similar to those of the Chendamangalam synagogue.

With the opening of the Parur visitor centre, the synagogue will be within walking distance from there.

Village : Chennamangalam
Taluk : North Paravur
District : Ernakulam
Location : At Chennamangalam

The remains of the Vypeekotta Seminary built by the Portuguese are preserved as a historic monument and site. A Seminary is the college to teach Christian priests. This Seminary was established to teach the priests of Malabar, the ceremonies and language to be used in Roman Catholic Churches founded here by the Portuguese.
 
There were many buildings in the premises, which were destroyed during the wars in later period. There is a church still functioning in the compound, probably built during the same period, but renovated later.

Many stone inscriptions were encountered from the church compound during the exploration done here in 1935. The inscriptions are fixed on a half wall in front of the church. The remains of the Seminary were declared as a protected monument in 1935.

Village : Chennamangalam
Taluk : North Paravur
District : Ernakulam
Location : At Chennamangalam

The Jewish Synagogue at Chennamangalam, constructed around the 17th century is of a traditional style, with a separate entrance for women. The land for it was provided by the family of Paliam, the traditional ministers of Kochi, who owned the village of Chennamangalam during that period.

The Department of Archeology had scientifically conserved the Synagogue using traditional materials, which was otherwise in a dilapidated state. A tomb inscription believed to belong to one of the early members of the Synagogue is found in front of it. Many other tomb inscriptions have also been collected from the same site. On the East side of the Synagogue, there is a cemetery of about 400 meters long belonging to this Synagogue. The Department, in collaboration with the Jews abroad, has arranged a display inside the Synagogue, which is titled - The Jewish Synagogues in Kerala.

Architectural features- Chendamangalam synagogue

Village : Chennamangalam
Taluk : North Paravur
District : Ernakulam
Location : At Chennamangalam

The Paliam Palace was once used as the residence of the Paliath Achans, who were the prime ministers to the former Maharajas of the State of Kochi. During the 16th century, when the security of the Raja was under threat by the Portuguese, the then Paliath Achan ensured the safety of the Raja by escorting him to Chendamangalam. ). The Raja is believed to have stayed incognito in the place near the Kalari, hence the name Paliam Kovilakom (Palace). The Dutch in appreciation of the Paliath Achan's services renovated this building in Chendamangalam and presented it to him.

The two storey (G+2) building can be termed as a highly efficient functional building of its times. In spite of minimum ornamentation it reflects the Dutch influence in the architecture. The building features, elaborately carved wooden staircases and balustrades and thick walls with splayed openings. A circulation space runs along the private area of the building, facilitating air movement, resulting in insulating the interior, making it cooler compared to the peripheral. In earlier times, women were not allowed inside. Only the elder members of the family could stay there. The Paliath Achans used to address the people of Chendamangalam from the Prasanga Peedum, which is on the top of the entrance passage of the Palace.

தோமோ வந்து இறங்கியதான கொடுங்கல்லூர் அகழ்வாய்வுகள் முடிவுகள்
கொடுங்கல்லூர் நகருக்குத் தெற்கில் பல இடங்களில், வடக்கில் பழமையானவை என்று கருத்ப்ப்ட்ட சில இடங்களிலும் அகழ்வாய்வுகள் மேற்கொள்ளப்பட்டது….
கேரளாவில் நடைபெற்ற இந்த அகழ்வாய்வுகளை நடுநிலை நின்று பார்த்தால் கீழ்கண்ட, தற்காலிகமான முடிவிற்கு வரலாம்.

கொடுங்கல்லூருக்கு உள்ளும் புறமுமாக, பல முக்கிய இடங்களிலும் நடத்தப்பட்ட அகழ்வாய்வுஅள் எல்லாவற்றிலும் கிடைத்த மிகப் பழைமையான படிவுகள் கி.பி.8 அல்லது 9-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டைச் செர்ந்த்ததாகத்தான் உள்ளன. ஆக, ஓரே சீரான பண்பாட்டுக் கூறுகள் எல்லா இடங்களிலும் வெளிப்பட்டுள்ளன என்பது தெளிவாகிறது.
கொடுங்கல்லூர் பகுதியில், மனித சமுதாயத்தில் முதல் குடியிருப்புகள் 8,9-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டுகளில் தான் ஏற்பட்டிருக்க வேண்டும். குலசேகர மரபினர், கண்ணனூர்ப் பகுதியில் குடியேறி, அதைத் தங்களுடைய தலைநகராக கொண்ட பொழுது இந்தப் பகுதி முழுவதும் முக்கியத்துவம் பெற்றிருக்க வேண்டும். குலசேகர மரபினர்களைப் பற்றிய நல்ல காலக் கணிப்புகள் நமக்குக் கிடைத்திருக்கின்றன. ஆனால் அதற்கு முற்பட்ட காலத்தைச் சேர்ந்த எந்த விதமான ஆதாரமும் கிடைக்கவில்லை.. ..

திருவஞ்சிக்களம் இங்கே ந்டந்த அகழ்வாய்வு கலவையான(M) பல ஆதாரங்களை வெளிப்படுத்தியது. அவை மிகவும் பழைமையானவை10 அல்லது 9ம் நுற்றாண்டுக்கு முற்பட்டதாக இல்லை.

திருவஞ்சிக்களம், கருப்பதானா அல்லது மதிலகம் போன்றவற்றின் பெயர்களை மட்டும் கொண்டு, அவைகள் பழைய வஞ்சியாகவோ கருராகவோ இருக்கலாம் என்று கருதப்பட்டது. ஆனால் இங்கு நடந்த அகழ்வாய்வுகள் கி.பி 8-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டைச் சேர்ந்த இரண்டாம் சேரப் பேரரசுக் காலத்து ஆதாரங்களைத் தான் வெளிப்படுத்தி உள்ளனவே அல்லாமல் பழங்காலச் சேரர்களை பற்றிய எந்தவிதமமன ஆதாரத்தையும் வில்லை. ஆகவே, இந்த இடங்களில் தான், பழைய வங்சியோ, கருரோ இருந்தது என்று சொல்ல முடிய வெளிப்படுத்தவில்லை.

பழைய முசிறித் துறைமுகம் இருந்த இடத்தைக் கண்டுபிடிக்க வேண்டிய அவசியம் ஏற்பட்டிருக்கின்றது. அது நிச்சயமாக கொடுங்கல்லூராக இருக்க முடியாது. பக்-68-70 கே.வி..ராமன், தொல்லியல் ஆய்வுகள் and this article was earlier published in Araichi, 170, under the Heading “Archaeological Investigations in Kerala”

From the Book-
திருமயிலைத் திருத்தலம்- இலக்கிய, வரலாற்றுப் பார்வை,
பேராசிரியர். Dr.சு.ராஜசேகரன்.,1989,
Doctral Thesis done in 1986, on the Same name at Madras University, the Author was then working as Tamil Professor at Nandanam Govt. Arts College, Chennai.

The Author Analyses various Stone Inscriptions and Archeological findings from Kapalishwarar Temple and Santhome and gives his views.

இப்போதுள்ள கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில், நாயன்மார்களால் பாடப் பெற்ற பழைய கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில் என்ற பொதுவான நம்பிக்கை மக்களிடையே நிலவி வருகிறது. ஆனால், தொல்பொருள் ஆராய்ச்சியாளர்கள் சாந்தோமில் கண்டெடுத்த புதைபொருள்களிலிருந்து பழைய கோயில் வேறு இடத்தில் இருந்திருக்க வேண்டும் என்றும், பெரும்பாலும் சாந்தோம் கடற்கரையாக இருக்கலாம் என்றும் எண்ண வேண்டியிருக்கிறது.. .. பழைய கபாலிசுவரர் கோயிலலின் இடிபாடுகள் இப்போதுள்ள கோயிலுக்குச் சிறிது தொலைவில் கிழக்கு திசையில் சாந்தோம் கடற்கரையருகே கண்டு எடுக்கப்பட்டதே இதற்குக் காரணமாகும்.

1923இல் தொல்பொருள் ஆய்வுத் துறையினர் சாந்தோம் கதிட்ரலில் நிகழ்த்திய அகழ்வாராய்ச்சிகளால் கல்வெட்டுகளும், தூண்களும், சிலைகளும் கண்டெடுக்கப்பட்டன. கல்வெட்டுகள் சிவன் கோயிலைக் குறிக்கின்றன. கற்றூண்களிலும் கல்வெட்டுகள் காணப்பெறுகின்றன. மயிலோடு கூடிய முருகர் சிலையும் கண்டெடுக்கப்பட்டது. 1921இல் மறைத்திரு ஹோஸ்டன், சாந்தோம் கதிட்ரலில் கண்டெடுத்த வடமொழிக் கல்வெட்டு “கருவறை உட்பட எல்லாக் கட்டிடங்களும் மயிலாப்பூரிலுள்ள புகழ்பெற்ற சிவனுக்கும் பார்வதிக்கும் உரியவையாகும்” என்று குறிப்பிடுபகிறது. மற்றொரு தானக் கல்வெட்டில், “திருமயிலாப்பில் பூம்பாவை” என்று குறிப்பிடுப்படுவதாலும், பழைய கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில் கடற்கரையருகே இருந்திருக்க வேண்டும் என்பது புலனாகிறது.

அருணகிரிநாதர் திருப்புகளில் கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில் கடற்கரை அருகே இருந்தது என்று குறிப்பிடுப்படுவதால், பழைய கோயில் கடற்கரையருகே இருந்திருக்க வேண்டும் என்று கே.வி..இராமன் கருதிகிறார். பக்கம்287,288

இந்திய மக்கள் தொகைக் கணக்கெடுப்புத்துறை வெளியிட்ட சென்னை மாநிலக் கோயில்கள் (Temples of Madas State) என்னும் நூலில் காணப்படும் கருத்துக்கள் :
கி.பி. 16ஆம் நூற்றாண்டின் தொடக்கத்தில் சாந்தோம் கடற்கரையிலிருந்த கோயில் போர்த்துக்கீசியர்களால் அழிக்கப் பட்டிருக்க வேண்டும் என்று கூறுகிறது. இந்நூல் கூறும் புதிய செய்தி, இப்போத்ள்ள கபாலிசுவரர் கோயிலும் குளமும் முந்நூறு ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன், மயிலை நாட்டு முத்தையப்ப முதலியாராலும் அவருடைய வாரிசுகளிலாலும் கட்டப்பட்டது என்பதேயாகும். (பக்-289 – Quotes Census of India-1961; Temples of Madras State, 1 Chingleput District and Madras City, P.204)

The Present Temple very clearly shows for Schoalrs that it was constructed only in 17th Cen. CE, few Tamil Schloars maintained that the Old Temple was in same place, and the Present Temple was constructed above it. Another Set of Scholars maintained that the Older Temple was in Sea Shore(Mostly the Present Santhome Cathedral) and the Author analyses various books on Mylapur Temple and comes to the Conclusion as below, and he before concluding quotes the Historic fact-
போர்த்துக்கீசியர்கள் இந்துக் கோயில்களை அழித்த செய்தியைக் கேள்விப்பட்டு இராமராயர் கி.பி. 1558இல், சாந்தோம் மீது படை எடுத்துப் போர்த்துக்கீசியரைப் பணிய வைத்துப் பின்னர்ப் பழுதுபட்ட கோயில்களைப் பழுதுபார்க்க ஆணையில்ட்ட செய்தியாலும் பழைய கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில் போர்த்துக்கீசியர்களால் .(Quotes from S.Kalyanasundaram-A Short History of Mylapore page-8) அழிக்கப் பட்டது என்ற முடிவுக்கு வரலாம்.
ஆகவே, முடிபாக, பழைய கபாலிசுவரர் கோயில், கடற்கரையருகே இருந்ததென்பதையும், கி.பி. பதினைந்தாம் நூற்றாண்டின் இறுதியில் போர்த்துக்கீசியரால் அழிக்கப் பட்டதென்பதையும், கி.பி. பதினாறாம் நுற்றாண்டில் இப்போதுள்ள இடத்தில் புதிய கோயில், மயிலை நாட்டு நயினியப்ப முத்தையப்ப முதலியார் மகன் முதலியாரால் கட்டப் பெற்றது என்பதையும் தெற்றென உணரலாம். -பக்கம் 291 திருமயிலைத் திருத்தலம்- இலக்கிய, வரலாற்றுப் பார்வை, பேராசிரியர்.
Dr.சு.ராஜசேகரன்.,1989,

தோமோ நடபடிகள் என்னும் 3ம் நூற்றாண்டு நூல் தோமோ கொண்டோபரஸ் என்னும் மன்னன் நாட்டுக்கும் பின் மச்டய் என்னும் மன்னன் நாட்டில் ராணியையும் இளவரசனையும் சூன்யம் செய்து மதமாற்றம் செய்ததால் மரணதண்டனையில் கொன்றான் என வருகிறது.
மச்டய் நாடு பற்றி தோமோ நடபடிகள் கூறுவது: மச்டய் நாடு ஒரு பாலைவன நாடு, பாலைவனப் பகுதி.
The Ninth Act: of the Wife of Charisius.
87 And when the apostle had said these things in the hearing of all the multitude, they trode and pressed upon one another: and the wife of Charisius the king’s kinsman Ieapt out of her chair and cast herself on the earth before the apostle, and caught his feet and besought and said: O disciple of the living God, Thou Art Come Into A Desert Country, For We Live In The Desert;

Dr. Deivanayagam’s work being analysed by Christian Tamil Scholars
திருக்குறளில் கிறித்தவம்-மெய்த்திரு (டாக்டர்) எஸ். இராச மாணிக்கம், S.J.
Rev. S.J.Rajamanikam was the H.O.D of Loyala College Tamil Dept, and he was asked to present a Paper on –Presence of Christianity in ThiruKural, at Venkateshwara University – Thirupathi in Tamil; here Learned Scholar explains the ideals of Valluvar and how it varies with the important ideals of Christianity- and finally comes to Deivanayagam and I quote-
“ நிற்க. தற்போது ‘தெய்வநாயகம்’ என்ற புலவர் ‘திருவள்ளுவர் கிறித்தவர்’ என்று கூறி, கிறித்தவத்துக்கு முரணாகத் தென்படும் பல குறளுக்குப் புதிய விளக்கம் கூறி வருகிறார். மேலும், 1. ‘திருவள்ளுவர் கிறித்தவரா? 2. ஐந்தவித்தான் யார்? 3. வான் 4. நீத்தார் யார்? 5. சான்றோர் யார்? 6. எழு பிறப்பு 7. மூவர் யார்? 8. அருட்செல்வம் யாது? என்ற பல நூல்களை வெளியிட்டிருக்கிறார். அவற்றுள் சிலவற்றை ஊன்றிப் படித்தும், அவர் வலியுறுத்தும் கருத்தை நம்மால் ஒப்புக் கொள்ள முடியவில்லை. ‘திருவள்ளுவர் மறுபிறப்பை ஏற்கவில்லை’ என்றும், ‘ஐந்தவித்தான் என்பான் கிறித்து’ என்றும், ‘வான் என்பது பரிசுத்த ஆவி’ என்றும், நித்தார் என்பவர் கிறித்து பெடுமானார்’ என்றும், ‘சான்றோர் என்பது கிறித்தவர்களைச் சுட்டுகின்றது’ என்றும் பல சான்றுகளால் அவர் எடுத்துரைக்கின்றார்.

இக்கருத்துக்களோ, அவற்றை மெய்ப்பிக்க அவர் கையாளும் பலச் சான்றுகளோ, நமக்கு மனநிறைவு அளிக்கவில்லை. கிறித்துவ மதத்துக்குரிய தனிச்சிறப்பான கொள்கை ஒன்றும் திருக்குறளில் காணப்படவில்லை. கிறித்துபெருமானின், பெயர் கூட வரவில்லை. ஆனால் இந்திரன்(25), திருமால்(அடியளந்தான்-610;அறவாழி-8; தாமரைக் கண்ணான்-103), திருமகள் (செய்யவள்-167; செய்யாள்-84; தாமரையினாள்-617), மூதேவி(தவ்வை-167, மாமுகடி-617), அணங்கு(1081). பேய்(565), அலகை(850), கூற்று(375,765,1050,1083; கூற்றம்-269,1085), காமன் (1197), புத்தேள் (58,234,213,290,966,1322), இமையார்(906), தேவர்(1073), வானோர்(18, 346) முதலிய இந்து மதத் தெய்வங்கள் சுட்டப்படுகின்றன. பக்கம்-92-93- from திருக்குறள் கருத்தரங்கு மலர்-1974,(Thirukural Karuththarangu Malar-1974) Edited by Dr.N.Subbu Reddiyar.

எபிரேயர்கள் அந்த சிறிய பாலைவன நாட்டை தங்கள் புராணக் கதையில் புனையப்பட்ட தேர்ந்தெடுக்கப்பட்ட நாடு, மக்கள் என்பதை அப்படியே ஏற்று அந்த சிறு பகுதியில் வாழ்ந்தனர்.

கடல் வாணிகம் செய்யவில்லை.

ஜெருசலேம் என்பது ஒரு கால்பந்து மைதான அளவு தான்.

சாலைகள் தெருக்கள் என்பதெல்லாம் ஜெருசசேமில் கிடையாது.
Bible As Literature, Oxford University Press,
written by 3 Professors John.A.Gabel, Charles B.Wheelr and Antony.D.York.
How was Hebrews living during OT times.
The small Corner of the Eastern Mediterranean, we have to keep reminding ourselves that it take up only Lower Third of that coast- particularly speaking was the Whole World to them.
Page-77
With Just a Few Exceptions, No Canaanite Or Israelite City before the Roman Period occupied more area than that of an American University Football Stadium, most Villages were hardly bigger than the Playing Field itself. King’ David’s Jerusalem is estimated to have measured about 300 x 1300 foot. Inside the City-walls houses would be crammed together according to no particular pattern, leaving room for Passages bu not for Streets. Before the Greek Period there were no Public Building of the Kind that we take for granted, provided by the Municipal Government.
Pages- 87,88
Foreign Countries appear in the OT only as Military Allies or Enemies of the Israelites or as the Habitat of Alien Gods; otherwise, not a Slightest interest is shown in them.
Page-77
The Best Opportunity for Economic Development, it might seem was One they never took; Commerce by Sea with Mediterranean always at their door, the Israelites stubbornly remained a Land Locked People. They were effectively Shut off from the Coast at first by the Philistines, but the warfare between the two, more had to do with the Philistines attempt to expand toward the east than with any desire of the Israelite to gain access to Sea. Although the Palestinian Coast has no natural Harbors south of Carmel, this need not have been a Permanent Obstacle.
The Israelites were Content to Let others – Phoenicians and Egyptians conduct their Merchant Shipping for them, almost as though they Believed the Covenant Language in its Narrowest Sense as a Promise of Land and Nothing Further.
It is clear from their writings in the OT THAT THE SEA WAS ALWAYS to them, had no significant part to Play in their Thought.
Pages 86-87.

BCE3ம் நூற்றாண்டில் கிரேக்க ஆளுமைக்குப் பின் தான் கட்டடங்கள் என எழுந்தன, என்பது பழைய ஏற்பாடு -கொண்டு வரலாற்று ஆசிரியர்கள் தரும் உணமை.

பழைய ஏற்பாடு பல கடவுல் வழிபாடு கொண்டது. யகொவா என்பவர் இஸ்ரேலுக்கு ஆன சிறு எல்லை தெய்வமே.

பழைய ஏற்பாடு முழு முதல் கடவுல் பெயர் எல்சடை- இது தமிழ் ஆகும்.

இந்தியர்கள் உலகிற்கு நாகரிகம் தந்தவர்கள்.
தோமோ தந்தார் என்பது பேரன் பாட்டியைப் பெற்றவன் என்று கூறுவது போல ஆகும்.

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     2011-ஆம் ஆண்டு நடத்தப்பட்ட அகழாய்வின் நோக்கங்களாகக் கீழ் கண்டவை குறிப்பிடப்படுகின்றன:

பட்டணத்தின் வடகிழக்குப்பகுதி நீங்கலாகவுள்ள மற்ற பகுதிகள் ஆய்வு செய்யப்படுதல். பட்டணத்தைச்சுற்றியுள்ள 50 கி.மீ. பரப்பில் மேற்பரப்பு ஆய்வு செய்தல். வரலாற்றுக்கு முற்பட்ட காலத்து வாழ்விடங்கள்,புதைவிடங்கள், மற்றும் தொல்லியல் தொடர்பான எச்சங்கள் ஆகியனவற்றை அடையாளம் காணல். இதற்கு முன்னர் நான்கு கட்டங்களில் சிறு பகுதியாக வெளிக்கொணர்ந்த படகுத்துறை செங்கற்கட்டுமானங்களை மீண்டும் கொணர்ந்து கடல் வாணிகத்தின் கூறுகளை அறிதல். துறைமுகம் மற்றும் அதனைச்சார்ந்திருந்த நகரத்தின் வாழ்க்கை நிலை, ஐரோப்பியர், மேற்காசியாவினர் ஆகியோர் வருகை, அவர்களோடு இங்கிருந்தவர் கொண்ட இருவழித்தொடர்புகள் ஆகியனவற்றை அறிதல். பண்டைய முசிறிக்கும் இப்போதைய பட்டணத்திற்கும் இடையே உள்ள தொடர்பினைக்காணல். இப்பகுதியைப்பாரம்பரியச்சின்னமாக ஆக்குதல். அகழாய்வுக்களத்தின் அருகிலேயே ஒரு அருங்காட்சியகம் அமைத்தல்.

      மேலே குறிப்பிட்ட நோக்கத்தில், 2011-இல் முசிறி பாரம்பரியத் திட்டம் (Muziris Heritage Project) என்னும் திட்டத்தின் கீழ் கேரள வரலாற்று ஆய்வுக்கழகம் வரலாற்று ஆய்வினைத்தொடங்கியது. ஆக்ஸ்போர்டு பல்கலைக்கழகம், ரோம் பல்கலைக்கழகம், பர்ஹாம் பல்கலைக்கழகம், பிரிட்டிஷ் அருங்காட்சியகம் போன்ற அயல் நாட்டு அமைப்புகளும் மற்றும் இந்தியத்தொல்லியல் ஆய்வுக்கழகமும் (Archaeological Society of India) இவ்வாய்வில் பங்குபெற்றன.

முசிறி பற்றிய சில குறிப்புகள்

பெரிபுளுஸ் (The Periplus of the Erythrean Sea)  குறிப்பில்:   முசிறி ஒரு செல்வச்செழிப்புள்ள நகரம். அரியாகே (ariake), எகிப்து (Egypt) ஆகிய இடங்களிலிருந்து கப்பல்கள் இங்கு (முசிறிக்கு) வந்துபோயின. எகிப்திலிருந்து வந்தவை கிரேக்கக்கப்பல்களாகும். உயர்வகை முத்துகள், மணிக்கற்கள், மிளகு ஆகியன ஏற்றுமதி ஆயின. பவழம்  (Coral), காரீயம் (Lead), வெள்ளீயம் (Tin) மற்றும் Stibium  ஆகியவை இறக்குமதி ஆயின.

பிளினி (Pliny) – (Pliny’s Natural History) நூலில் உள்ள குறிப்பில்: 

இந்தியத்துணைக்கண்டத்தை நோக்கி நிகழ்ந்த கடல் பயணங்கள் எகிப்திலிருந்தும், ஓசலிஸ் (Ocelis) என்னும் இடத்திலிருந்தும் மேற்கொள்ளப்பட்டன.  எகிப்திலிருந்து இந்தியாவின் இப்பகுதிக்கு (முசிறிக்கு)க் கடல் பயணம் மேற்கொள்ளத்தகுந்த பருவ காலம் ஜூலை மாதமாகும். ஓசலிஸிலிருந்து பயணப்படுவோர்க்கு ஒரு வசதி உண்டு. இங்கிருந்து புறப்படுகின்றவர்கள் ஹிப்பலாஸ் (Hippalos) என்னும் பருவக்காற்றின் துணை கொண்டு நாற்பது நாட்களில் இந்தியாவின் முதல் வணிக நகரமான முசிரிஸ் அடையமுடியும். ஆனால், இப்பயணத்தில் ஓர் ஆபத்தும் உள்ளது. வழியில்  நித்ரியாஸ் (Nitriyas) என்னும் இடத்தில் தங்கியிருக்கும் கடற்கொள்ளையர்கள் தாக்குவார்கள். முசிரிஸில் பெரிய அளவில் வாணிகம் நடைபெறவில்லை. வணிகப்பரிமாற்றங்கள் நடைபெறும் நகரங்கள் நிலப்பகுதியில் வெகு தொலைவில் உள்ளன. வணிகப்பொருள்களை ஏற்றி உள்நாடு செல்லவும், உள்நாட்டிலிருந்து பொருள்களைக்கொணர்ந்து இறக்கவும் படகுகளையே பயன்படுத்த வேண்டியுள்ளது.  ஒரே மரத்தைக்குடைந்து செய்யப்பட்ட இப்படகுகள் (dug out canoe)  “ கட்டனர “ (cottonara) எனப்பட்டன. இங்குள்ள அரசன் கலபத்ராஸ்  (Caelobothros) என அழைக்கபடுகிறான். பகாரே  (Bacare)  என்னும் இடத்துக்கு மிளகுப்பொதிகள் படகுகள் மூலம் கொண்டுவரப்படுகின்றன. இந்தத்துறைமுகத்தின் பெயரோ, இங்கு குறிப்பிட்ட நகரங்களின் பெயரோ, இதற்கு முன்னர் எழுதிய நூல்களில் காணப்படவில்லை. இதிலிருந்து, இப்பகுதியில் மாற்றங்கள் நிகழ்ந்துள்ளன என்பது தெளிவாகிறது.

     பியூட்டிஞ்சர் வரைபடக்குறிப்பில் (Peutinger Table - Tabula Peutingeriana):  பியூட்டிஞ்சர் வரைபடம் என்னும் பெயரமைந்த இந்த வரைபடம் தற்போது வியன்னாவின் தேசிய நூலகத்தில் வைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. 16-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டைச்சேர்ந்த கான்ராடு பியூட்டிஞ்சர் (Konrad Peutinger) என்பவர் இதை வைத்திருந்ததால் இப்பெயர் ஏற்பட்டது.

இதனுடைய மூலம் 4-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டில் இருந்தது. கடல்பயணத்தில் இவ்வரைபடம் பயன்பட்டதால், இந்தியாவை நோக்கிப்பயணம் செய்தவர்களின் காலம் கி.பி. 2 வரை முன்னால் கொண்டு செல்ல வாய்ப்புள்ளது. இந்த வரைபடத்தில், “ முசிரிஸ் “ என்னும் பெயர் காணப்படுகிறது. இப்பெயர் தவிர, “லேகஸ் முசிரிஸ்“ (Lakus Muziris) என்னும் பெயருடைய ஏரியும், “அகஸ்டை“ (templ Augusti) என்னும் கோவிலும் வரைபடத்தில் குறிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளன.

           முசிறிப்பேப்பர் (Muziris Papyrus)  என்றொரு ஆவணம் கிடைத்துள்ளது. இந்த ஆவணம் தற்போது ஆஸ்திரிய நாட்டு வியன்னாவில் தேசிய  நூலகத்தில் வைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. இதன் காலம் கி.பி. 2-ஆம் நூற்றாண்டு ஆகும். இது ஒரு வணிக ஒப்பந்தமாகும். முசிறியில் மேற்கொள்வதற்கான வணிகத்துக்குத்தேவைப்படும் நிதியைக்கடன் பெறுகிறார் ஒரு வணிகர். அவரும் கடன் வழங்கும் ஒருவரும் இடையே செய்துகொண்ட ஒப்பந்தமே இந்த ஆவணம்.

           தாலமியின் ”ஜியாகரபி”  (Geography)  நூலில் (கி.பி. 2-ஆம்  நூற்றாண்டு) சேர அரசரின் பெயர் ”கேரபத்ராஸ்”  (kerobotros)  எனக்குறிப்பிடப்பெறுகிறது. சேர நாட்டுத் தலை நகர் “கரூரா”  (karoura)  எனக்குறிப்பிடப்பெறுகிறது. (கட்டுரை ஆசிரியரின் குறிப்பு : தாலமியின் குறிப்பில் உள்ள கேரபத்ராஸ் என்பதும், பிளினியின் குறிப்பில் வரும் கலபத்ராஸ் என்பதும் ”சேர புத்ர”  என்பதன் திரிந்த வடிவமே எனக்கருதலாம்.)

     சங்க இலக்கியமான  அகநானூற்றில் (பாடல்-149) முசிறி பற்றிய குறிப்பு காணப்படுகிறது.

           “...................................................................... சேரலர்

            சுள்ளிஅம் பேரியாற்று வெண்நுரை கலங்க

            யவனர்  தந்த   வினைமாண்    நன்கலம்

            பொன்னொடு  வந்து  கறியொடு  பெயரும்

            வளங்கெழு முசிறி...............................................”

என வரும் பாடல் வரிகள், முசிறித்துறைமுகத்துக்கு யவனர் மரக்கலங்கள் வந்ததையும், அங்கு பொன்னை இறக்குமதி செய்து மிளகை வாங்கிச்சென்றதையும் எடுத்துக்கூறும். பேரியாற்று நீர் கலங்கும்படி கப்பல்கள் வந்த இடம் முசிறி என்னும் செய்தி, தற்போது பெரியாற்றின் டெல்டாப்பகுதியில் அமைந்துள்ள பட்டணம் பண்டைய முசிறியாக இருக்கலாம் என்பதைச்சொல்லும் இலக்கியச்சான்றாகும்.

அகழாய்வுகளின்போது கிடைத்த பொருள்கள் – விளக்கம்

(அகழாய்வு அலுவலகத்தில் இருக்கும் காட்சிப்படங்களில் காணப்படும் மலையாளம் மற்றும் ஆங்கிலக்குறிப்புகளின் அடிப்படையில்)

ஆண்டு 2007 

1.        பானை ஓடுகளில் குறியீடுகளும், தமிழி பிராமி எழுத்துகளும்.

2.        முற்காலச்சேர அரசர் செப்பு நாணயம். நாணயத்தின் ஒரு புறம் யானை உருவமும், மறுபுறம் அம்பு,வில், யானையைக்கட்டுப்படுத்தும் அங்குசம், (அங்குசம், தோட்டி என மலையாளத்தில் குறிப்பிடப்படுகிறது) அம்பும் வில்லும் சேர நாட்டின் சின்னங்களாகும்.

3.        மணிகள் (Beads).  (மலையாளத்தில் முத்துகள் என்று குறிப்பிடப்படுகிறது.) பழங்காலச்சமூகத்தில் மணிகளுக்கு மிக முக்கியத்துவம் கொடுக்கப்பட்டது. ஆபரணங்களாகப்பயன்படுத்தினார்கள். பண்டமாற்றத்துக்காகவும் (exchange) மணிகள் பயன்பட்டன. (பண்டமாற்றம் என்னும் சொல்லுக்கு மலையாளத்தில் “கைமாற்றம்”  என்னும் சொல் வழங்குகிறது.) இவைகளின் தரம், நிறம் ஆகியவை கொண்டு காலத்தைக்கணிக்க இயலும். கல் மணிகள் போலவே, கண்ணாடியில் செய்யப்பட்ட மணிகளும் கிடைத்துள்ளன.

4.        இரும்புப்பொருள்கள் (Iron objects).  இரும்பினால் செய்யப்பட்ட  ஆணிகள், கொளுத்துகள்(?), உளிகள்,ஆயுதங்கள், இரும்பு அயிருகள்(?) ஆகியன. (கொளுத்துகள்,அயிருகள் ஆகிய மலையாளச்சொற்கள் எவற்றைக்குறிக்கின்றன எனத்தெரியவில்லை). பட்டணம் பகுதியில், மக்கள் வாழ்க்கை (ஜனவாசம்) தொடங்கியது இரும்புக்காலத்தில்தான் என்க்கருதப்படுகிறது. Radio carbon dating போன்ற ஆய்வுகளுக்குப்பின்பே காலத்தைத்தெரிந்துகொள்ள இயலும்.

5.        Terra Sigillata (Arretine) Deluxe Tableware of Meditteranean origin, Arretine/Samian ware.  கிறித்துவ சகாப்தத்தின் தொடக்ககால நூற்றாண்டுகளில் அழகிய வேலைப்பாடமைந்த பாண்டங்கள் (மேசையில் பயன்படுத்தும் கலன்கள்) பயன்படுத்தப்பட்டன. இவ்வகைக்கலன்கள் தமிழகத்தின் அரிக்கமேடு, அழகன்குளம் ஆகிய பகுதிகளில் மட்டுமே கிடைத்துள்ளன. தற்போது, பட்டணத்திலும் இவ்வகை மட்கலம் ஒன்றின் விளிம்புத்துண்டு கிடைத்துள்ளது. கிண்ணத்தின் ஒரு பகுதியாக இருக்கலாம். ஆங்கில ஆராய்ச்சி அறிஞர் வீலர்(Wheeler) இந்த மட்கலனை, அரிக்கமேடு காலத்தை நிறுவப்பயன்படுத்தினார்.  காலம் கி.மு. 25 – கி.பி. 25.              

 6 West Asian (Yemenite and Mesopottanean) pottery.

 7 ஆம்போரா ஜாடிகள் (Amphora). மத்திய தரைப்பகுதியைச்சேர்ந்த     களிமண் கொண்டு செய்யப்பட்டவை. நூற்றுக்கணக்கில் இதன் துண்டுகள் கிடைத்துள்ளன.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/mintamil/agrv1Pf2TnA/y76Jn5XhV9cJ

8         Rouletted ware. 

I.N.Seminar on KeralaSchool of Mathematics          Calicut, 29 August 2010 

                Medieval Kerala: What made it Different from the Rest of India?                                                                                  Professor M.G.S.Narayanan

       The answer to this question posed in the title above should enable us to understand why creative contributions to science, art, architecture, philosophy and literature continued to come out of Kerala in the 14th 15th and 16th centuries while originality had already been replaced by the tendency to imitate, elaborate and repeat in these fields in the rest of India. It may also help us to explore and find out whether the original innovative contributions of the Kerala School of astronomers in this period, like the calculus, theory of infinite series of numbers etc. were transmitted to Europe directly or indirectly within two centuries so that Newton, Lebnietz and others were influenced by them in their scientific formulations. An attempt is made here to analyze the political, social and cultural history of Kerala in order to highlight some of the special traits which are found in the evolution of the personality of Kerala.

                     As I have recorded elsewhere, Kerala has a dual personality. On the one hand it is an integral part of the Indian landmass or subcontinent, receptive to all the waves of migrations, invasions, political and commercial ventures etc. On the other hand, it is an important member of the Arabian Sea club of countries which shared through the impact of the monsoon all commercial and cultural streams and under currents of the Christian and Islamic cultures in South East Europe, North Africa and West Asia1

No Stone Ages, Late Start in History

      What surprised me at the outset when I started exploring the past of this region is the fact that while the neighboring regions of Karnataka and Tamilnad in the east and Andhra further north revealed the evidences of Old Stone Age and New Stone Age habitations in archaeological excavations, there was no sign of them in the Kerala state except a few stray tools in the eastern frontier hill territory like Wayanad, Idukki and Munnar which were geographically part of the Deccan tableland and thereby different from the plains below and the seashore where Kerala society and culture developed.2 At first I had imagined that it was the absence of good surveys and experimental digging, but after many years the condition has not changed. Wherever excavation has taken place, as at Porkkalam, Kodungallur and other sites, megalithic burials with iron tools are exposed just above the virgin soil, and large habitation sites with earlier pre-history (Old Stone Age and New Stone Age) are missing.3 There are no indications that they will turn up in future.

     This picture reminds one about Professor D.D. Kosambi’s observation in connection with Coastal Maharashtra: the conspiracy between the Arabian Sea on the one hand, with its regular annual monsoon which brings the rain-bearing clouds, and on the other hand the long, high, unbroken Sahya mountain ranges, created a large number of west-flowing rivers that fertilized the soil and filled the mid-land with wild forests before emptying into the ocean. Human habitation on any large scale was impossible before these forests were cleared in parts with the iron tools, and wild animals were subjugated.4 The same conditions existed in Kerala as a whole. Therefore we infer that there was a late start in civilization for this region also, which resulted in important consequences for the formation of society in future. While civil society and state under the Ceras, Colas and Pandyas developed in present Tamilnad on the Eastern side of the Sahya ranges by the early Christian centuries, the heavy forests prevented this phenomenon in Kerala territory. However, approximately from the 5th century BCE onwards we find clusters of megalithic remains with iron tools in forest clearings, most probably these were occupied by nomadic or semi-nomadic tribes.5

              There were some developments in Kerala also during the early Christian centuries. This was mainly in the form of the extension of the Cera kingdom with its capital at Karur, near Trichy (Tirucchiraippally) in present Tamilnad, across the twenty-mile wide Palghat gap – the biggest in the Sahya ranges – along the river Perar to the mouth of the river and occupied land between the river Perar and river Periyar, creating two harbor towns – Tondi (Tyndis) and Muciri (Muziris) – where the Roman trade settlements flourished. Pliny, Ptolemy and the anonymous author of Periplus of the Eritrean Sea, belonging to the first three centuries of the Common Era have accounts of this Roman trade.6 Muciri or Muziris has been described as the first emporium of India, probably in the sense of the first to be cited by the sailor or in the sense of the greatest in India.7 Tondi or Tyndis is stated to be not so desirable since it is infested with pirates. Both are mentioned as harbors belonging to the Cera chieftain who has his capital in the interior at Karoura, meaning Karuvur.8

                  The Tamil Sangam  works contain descriptions of Roman ships coming with gold and going back laden with Kari (pepper- it is called black gold in Roman accounts).9 (Ponnodu vannu kariyodu poka). Patittuppattu (Ten Tens), a collection of poems on ten Cera kings of the Sangam Age, mentions that a few Cera kings ruled from Muciri.10 These references mean that a trade route from Karuvur to Muciri harbor was opened, and that Muciri was controlled by the Cera, but they need not be interpreted as indicating, as scholars like Professor Elamkulam assumed, that the interior of Kerala territory had been opened up for habitation. Apart from these a few hill-chieftains like those of the Muvar of Ezhil Malai and the Ayar of Potiyil Malai had also come into existence.11There was no big kingdom in Kerala until the 9th century.

Southward Movement in India, Migrations

              Meanwhile the southward migration of Jains, Buddhists and Brahmins from the Gangetic plain across the Vindhya mountain ranges in central India in search of new lands for trade and cultivation (it was not an invasion or military conquest as imagined by many scholars) had started from the Mauryan Age.12 The Jains and Buddhists are found in different parts of present Tamilnad from the 2nd century before Christ.13 Aryan Brahmins were established by land grants from Tamil kings and chieftains at least from the 5th century of the Common Era.14 We find no trace of any of these groups in Kerala during this period except a single reference to a Brahmin center at Perum Cellur (c.2nd century AD) in the northern border area of the region.15 It is to be inferred that the 32 original Aryan Brahmin gramas were established in Kerala by about the close of the 8th century of CE without any charter from rulers. There were no royal charters for the simple reason that there was no royalty in Kerala at this time. This also must be the reason why the Kerala Brahmins alone maintain that their settlements were the gift of their patron saint, Parasu Rama.

                We start getting inscriptions from their temples from the beginning of the 9th century.16 These people might have migrated in large groups consisting of ten or twenty or twenty five families, cleared the forests with the help of local chieftains and tribal people, and founded the 32 settlements in selected river valleys one after the other, gradually moving southwards. This hypothesis agrees with several other facts derived from archaeology and epigraphy as well as tradition.

     It would corroborate the statement in the Keralolpatti Brahmin chronicle about the rise of the new Cera kingdom. It says that the group of 32 gramas acted jointly as an oligarchy and made a few abortive attempts to manage their affairs by themselves through selected representatives called Raksha Purushas (Protectors). This experiment failed because of ego conflict and greed among the Brahmin leaders. Being convinced that Brahmins were unfit to rule, they started requesting the Cera, Cola and Pandya dynasties beyond the Ghats to send a prince to send a competent prince to govern Kerala for fixed periods of 12 years after which they were to retire. This ruler was called Perumal, or the Great One, a term that was applied to the deity and the ruler in Kerala. Perhaps the idea was that no dynasty should acquire a monopoly of power in this region. The chronicle mentions a number of such Perumals, and the events of their time.

      According to the chronicle, the system continued for some time. Then the Brahmin leaders decided to ring a prince of the Cera dynasty and confer on him the title of Perumal for life. His sister was also brought with him, married to a Brahmin. It was ordained that her issues will inherit the kingdom according to the marumakkattayam fashion. They fixed the Perumal’s capital at Kodungallur (Makotai or Mahodayapura). They chose the leaders of the four Brahmin settlements around the capital -  Paravur, Muzhikkalam, Iranikkalam and Irinjalakkuda – as the council of ministers and appointed them as the managers of four temples there. Thus Nediya Tali (the big Siva temple of Tiruvancikkalam, the seat of the family deity of Ceras) was allotted to Paravur, Meltali Vishnu temple to Muzhikkalam,  Kizhtali Siva temple to Iranikkalam and Cingapuram Tali Vishnu temple to Irinjalakkuda. Residing in these temples, the Brahmin ministers were expected to guide and control the Perumal.17 This tradition is borne out by references to the meetings of the Perumal and ministers in several inscriptions.18 It is important to note that while the Perumal did not promulgate laws, regulations about landlord tenant relations and taxes and tolls related to Brahmanical temples were created by the Muzhikkalam temple trustees and adopted in all Kerala temples. While all the details mentioned in the chronicle cannot be checked, many points are substantiated by the archaeological and epigraphic evidence.19 The Muzhikkala kaccam (agreement) is standing testimony to the power of the Brahmin oligarchy. Such a system is not found anywhere else in South India.

 Ceraman Perumal – OnlyRitual Sovereignty                     

   Actually the Cera or Kerala kingdom of the Perumals was a Brahmin oligarchy with ritual sovereignty, as revealed in their inscriptions and literature. This is the reason why Maniprvala poets have described it as ‘Brahma Kshatram Janapadam’ i.e. polity where the Brahmanas function like Kshatriyas’.31 Though we have about one hundred and fifty inscriptions of the Cera period, many of them stating the regnal year of the Perumal to indicate the date, only half a dozen of them contain royal orders or land grants.32 While the majority of inscriptions in the other South Indian states are royal proclamations, or at least carry a historical introduction giving the dynastic history of the king and an account of his personal achievements, known as prasasti or meykirti, there is no such thing in Kerala. The genealogy of the ruler is never mentioned, probably because the usual succession from father to son is not there. We have to reconstruct the chronological sequence of the Perumals by other methods. The Perumal had no territory directly under him, no administrative machinery, and no army, but only the capital city, and overlord status over all Naduvazhis conferred by the Brahmin leaders of the 32 settlements. This prompts us to take seriously the Keralolpatti claim that there was no king in the beginning, and the 32 gramas tried to organize their own administration, made some experiments which failed, and finally brought a Cera prince to rule the country under their guidance.33

     Starting with Rama Rajasekhara (c.800- 844AD), whom we can identify as Ceraman Perumal Nayanar of the group of 63 Saiva Nayanars (Saivite saints), we have thirteen Ceraman Perumals who ruled in Kerala. Among them are Sthanu Ravi Kulasekhara,(844-c.870 AD),who may be identified as the Kulasekhara Perumal of the group of 13 Vaishnava Alvars, Bhaskara Ravi Manukuladitya (862- 1020 AD),who ruled for 58 years and left 26 inscriptions in different parts of the country, and Rama Kulasehara,(1089-1102 AD), the last Perumal who was converted to Islam, could be traced in contemporary records.34  

    The inscriptions of the Perumal era are mostly the resolutions of the Brahmin assembly of Uralar – literally meaning proprietors of the village – recording some unanimous decision about the appointment of temple servants, or conditions of tenancy with prescription of punishment in the form of fine or banishment with confiscation of property, or donation of gold or land for offerings or conduct of festivals.35 They met in the temple premises in the presence of the Perumal or Naduvazhi or Koyil Adhikari (Kshatriya Prince) and made all decisions unanimously. The political authority was present, but he did not preside over the assembly or veto any decision or even formally approve it to give it finality. It may be inferred that the local deity, often called Appan (father) as in the case of Guruvayur Appan today, was taken to be the President of the assembly, and that the Brahmin proprietors and political persons were jointly representing his authority. This gave a religious character to their secular decisions, and they were able to invoke the laws in Dharmasastra texts, not the orders of the ruler, as the sanction behind their action. Thus they were able to equate the crime of violating their decision with a sin mentioned in the Sastra texts.36 This again demonstrates that what we had was a theocratic oligarchy different from the monarchies of the times.

     The Perumal seems to have had revenue payable by the grama in gold annually as a lump sum fixed in advance as mentioned in some inscriptions.37 He also enjoyed the power to confer titles and trade concessions on the leaders of foreign trade guilds and to give them lands and hereditary servants for setting up their places of worship, as demonstrated by the Syrian Copper Plates and the Jewish Copper Plates.38 The latter may be called a war council as a number of samantar and the commander in chief - kizhpadai nayakam ceyyinra Moorkan Cattan – were present there.  The special laws regarding land tenure were made by the Brahmin Assembly as mentioned above. They prepared a model agreement called Kaccam, also known as Cavattai (Sapatham), or Canketam (Sanketam) in an important gramasabha, as at Muzhikkalam, one of the four gramas represented in the royal council at the capital, and others registered their allegiance to it in their documents. This is the case of Muzhikkala kaccam, obviously created at the assembly of Muzhikkalam grama.39  

     These Brahmins were the Uralar (proprietors) of their gramakshetra and many other temples in the upagramas or subsidiary villages. They controlled almost all arable land fit for paddy cultivation, and the rest were under Naduvazhis who were also sons of Brahmins living under Brahmin hegemony. The Naduvazhis  had their own Prakriti (councilors) and Adhikarar (executive officials) and KudiPatis (leaders of families), and had a hereditary office. In short Kerala was a Brahmin land par excellence, a Tamil country where the Aryan Brahmin culture prospered in such a way that in course of time, by about the 15th century, the people’s language of Tamil was transformed into a new mixed language of Tamil-Sanskrit (Manipravalam), and later on into the Malayalam language.

The native Dravidian script of Vattezhuttu was replaced by the Arya or Grantha script which was used in South India to write the Sanskrit language. About 70% of the vocabulary of Malayalam is also borrowed from Sanskrit. This made it easier for Keralites, especially Brahmins and temple-serving classes close to them like Varier, Poduval and Pisharodi, to acquire proficiency in Sanskrit language and literature. Kerala society was permeated with Aryan Brahmin spirit; it became a Dravidian society with Aryan blood in the upper classes and stamped with Aryan culture. There was a conscious effort on the part of leaders to dub all elements of native Dravidian expression as second grade.40 They were either suppressed or neglected. The high water mark of learning was to study Sanskrit language, literature and science. Places, ruling dynasties and institutions were sought to be connected with North Indian mythical heroes and episodes. This became a universal trend reflected in place names and personal names.

     As Naduvazhis who ruled the minor principalities in Kerala which were the successor states of the Perumal kingdom were also the sons of Brahmins, the Kerala Brahmins enjoyed all these privileges even after the age of the Perumals, (9th, 10th and 11th centuries), until modern times. This ensured complete Brahmin supremacy without the possibility of challenge from rival religious groups like Jainism or Buddhism and the ruling class which consisted of their own children. The Jews, Syrian Christians and Muslims came and settled in Kerala in the period of the Ceraman Perumals, evidently with patronage from the Ceraman Perumals and their Brahmin councilors.41 Not only did they lack any threat perception from these traders with different creed and culture, but they stood to gain much revenue from the sea trade.

Non-Brahmin, Non-Hindu Groups

      The Perumals and their feudatories (Samantas or Naduvazhis) granted charters for the construction and maintenance of places of worship and gave tax concessions and aristocratic privileges to Syrian Christians (Syrian Copper Plates of Kollam issued to Mar Sapir Iso in 849 AD) and Jews (Jewish Copper Plates of Muyirikkode, near Kodungallur issued to Joseph Rabban in 1000 AD), as mentioned above. Syrian, Jewish and Arab Muslim traders were witnesses in the Syrian Copper Plates, and Naduvazhis and the Commander in Chief were witnesses in the Jewish copper Plates.42 Both were composed in early Old Malayalam language. Thus it was mutually beneficial, a case of ‘cultural symbiosis’ as I characterized it after a detailed study of their early sources.43 The same spirit of promoting foreign trade groups like Ancuvannam, Manigramam and Nanadesikal continued in the post-Cera period also, as evidenced by the Syrian Copper Plates issued to Iravi Korttan at Kodungallur in 1225 AD.44 This kind of absolute Brahmin authority did not flourish anywhere in India outside Kerala.

                    Similarly the Jain and Buddhist groups of traders with their own religious centers also flourished under the patronage of the Brahmins and Brahmin-led Perumals.45 They are not found in Kerala before the Perumal era in Kerala though their records are found in Karnataka and Tamilnad from the early centuries of the Christian era.46 While the Jews, Christians and Muslims brought sea trade, the Jains and Buddhists came in the wake of land trade along with caravan groups. Jain temples of 9th, 10th and11th centuries were located on the trade route from Karnataka and Tamilnad (Kinalur, Tirumannur, Alathiyur, Kallil etc.) to Kodungallur through Wayanad and Palakkad passes.47 All these were constructed obviously with the support and patronage of Perumals under Brahmin tutelage. We also have epigraphic and literary reference about a single Buddhist vihara named Srimulavasa to which the Ay king Varaguna had donated several plots of land and placed them under the protection of the Perumal Vira Kota, most probably Kota Ravi Vijayaraga of the 9th century.48                 

                    There is an interesting passage in Atula’s Mushaka Vamsa Kavya, a historical poem in Sanskrit language (11th century) which says that Valabha, the king of Kolam established harbor towns at Marahi (Madayi) and Valabha Pattana. This must have happened in the 10th century.49 According to him, ships from different far off islands came there.50 Different creeds co-existed harmoniously like wild animals that forgot their natural enmity towards each other and remained in friendship in the asram premises of a holy sage.51

Sculpture, Painting, Theatre, Literature

                  Not only architecture, but sculpture and painting also received a new lease of life inKerala by the 14th-15th centuries. A new school of Kerala sculpture using the medium of granite and timber, took birth in the newly constructed or modified temples and palaces. Earlier sculpture following the concepts and techniques of classical forms gave way to something different from that of other parts of India. Post- Cera work displays typical Kerala physical features - broad and stocky bodies, fat rounded limbs, highly ornamented torso and prominent eyes and wide open nostrils, different from anything in the past and showing kinship with figures in Kathakali, KalamEzhuttu etc. and also mural paintings of the same age in this region. These developments display a new sensitivity and sense of Kerala identity and fresh dynamism not noticed earlier in Kerala. Rows of Ramayana and Mahabharata panels of woodwork, illustrating court scenes, battle scenes, processions and puranic deities, are squeezed into a small space on walls and roofs in temples and palaces.70 Exquisite mural paintings made of vegetable colors, reproducing the colors of Kerala landscape – dark green, red, yellow and black - decorate the temples like Trichur and Triprayar, and many other places.69 In fact the period from 14th to 18th centuries was the heyday of the Kerala School of Murals.71                                                                                                                                                                         

                  A path-breaking work in Sanskrit grammar came from Narayana Bhatta of  Melputhur, the famous author of Narayaneeyam, the popular devotional poem dedicated to Lord Krishna of Guruvayur temple. This new grammar named PrakriyaSarvaswam was composed in the 15th century, and it earned for him the respect of scholars all over the Sanskrit world.72 As far as performing arts are concerned, Kathakali which adopted its plots from Mahabharata, sign language from Natyasastra, and its colorful costumes from folk dances, took shape in the 16-17th centuries in temple premises. It has been hailed as a wonderful art form in the modern world.73 From the mixed Tamil-Sanskrit language known as Manipravalam, in which only mundane poems of sex message are found earlier, Tunchatt Ezhuttachan, of 16th century, created the modern Malayalam language, to become the vehicle of his free translations of Ramayana and other classical works in the Sanskrit language. He is also credited with popularizing the idea of using the Grantha or Arya script, employed so far only for writing Sanskrit language in Tamilnad and Kerala.74 In all these ways we see the continuing growth and innovative spirit of Kerala society in the post-Cera period, extending into the 16th century. It is the same spirit that was active in the scientific fields of mathematics and astronomy.   

      Thus the spring of creative activity in all these fields extended into the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries and beyond, until the Mysore invasions of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan ravaged Kerala during the second half of the 18th century.75 Professor Pearson and others who studied the history of sea trade have recently observed that there was the rise of a new commercial class of agents and middlemen, as a result of the advent of European powers in the Arabian Sea in spite of the naval wars between the Mappilas and the Portuguese.76 The warrior class also benefited from the increased profits of trade, since a large number of them was engaged as Cangatam to protect the godowns and moving caravans of trade. That the Nambudiri and Nayar proprietors of land gained from the price-hike of commercial crops becomes clear from the records and literature.

Royal Patronage and Institutions

      Apart from Professor Pearson, we have the testimony of Poontanam, the distinguished philosopher poet of the 16th century, who observed the greed and arrogance of Nambudiri Brahmins and the opulence of riches.77 Professor Elamkulam has recently discussed the growth of feudal power and condemned the sexual anarchy of the rulers and priests, and christened the period as the orgiastic season of Nambudiris in Kerala.78 All this is true, but often we find that such immorality and development go hand in hand. By 16th century the Nayar nobility also started showing signs of love for literacy. The popularity of the Sudra poet Tunjath Ezhuttachan is an indication of this trend. The Zamorin employed a group of refugees from the east coast as instructors to impart primary education to children.79 The pallikkoodams of these Ezhuttachans – the term literally means ‘Master of Learning’ - came to be established in aristocratic houses.80

  Intellectual and cultural activity was promoted by the rulers of Calicut kingdom. In the capital city of Calicut there was the famous Revati Pattattanam at Tali Siva temple at which the best scholars in different fields from different parts of South India congregated. They were honored every year by the Zamorin before an assembly of scholars with the gift of a purse containing  one hundred panams and the bhatta title. Uddanda Sastri from Tamilnad was a regular candidate for the title.81 Again, the Zamorin had conquered Valluvanad and forcibly appropriated the right to preside over the traditional twelve-yearly MahaMagha (Mamaka) festival at Tirunavay Vishnu temple. This was basically a trade fair at which thousands congregated on the sand banks of river Perar, otherwise called Bharatappuzha. There were the shrines of all the deities in the neighborhood, and all kinds of scholarly contests and entertainments were organized. With the Zamorin’s assumption of responsibility as the Raksha Purusha sometime in the 15th century, the prestige of the festival increased. The ritual of Valluvanad Raja’s hereditary bodyguards offering to die fighting as Caver (suicide squads) in the name of vendetta for killing two princes in war became a regular spectacle. Like the Jupiter festivals in Prayag, Haridwar, Ujjain, Gokarnam and Kumbhakonam the MahaMagha too was part of ancient tradition in India which continued in medieval times, and flourished until 1766 AD. in Kerala.82

 Paper presented by Prof. George Menachery 

• “The Maritime Importance of Muziris
• as Described by
• Roman Historians and Poets,
• & other writers. in the First Centuries BCE/CE “
• As Inspiration for Undertaking a Modern Day Muziris - Red Sea Sail Ship Voyage.

Prologue: 
Allow me to put my last para first by bringing to the attention of the learned scholars present an item from the Hindu dated January 21, 2012 which more or less summarises what I want to say here at the end of this paper. 

• Defence Ministry told to take the lead in rebuilding such a vessel at Beypore

• The Kerala History Association (KHA) headed by jurist V.R. Krishna Iyer has urged the Indian Navy to join hands with the Departments of Cultural Affairs and Tourism to re-enact the voyages of ancient trade vessels from the ancient port of Muziris to the Red Sea around 2000 years ago.

• The association felt that recreating a cargo vessel that plied the seas from Muziris to link ports in the Red Sea on the Egyptian and the Yemeni coasts would highlight the strong historical links between the two important regions of the world besides bringing to the world's attention their cultural exchanges.

• Historian K.N. Panikkar endorsed the idea when he told The Hindu on Friday that it would be good if the Navy undertook such a mission.

• He recalled that such efforts had been made in other parts of the world, including in the recreation of journeys along the old Silk Route.

• It must have taken 40 days to reach Muziris from Egypt by sea in the olden times, said George Menacherry, a historian, who piloted the resolution at the association's meeting.

• He, however, added that the ‘Jewel of Muscat,' (later, “The Jewel of Oman”) a replica of the late first-millennium trading vessel that sailed around the world, jointly created by the Sultanate of Oman and the Government of Singapore, had shown that the journey would take just 27 days now [according to Omani Navy Captain Jabri of the “Jewel” with whom this writer compared notes for hours].

• Approached for its comments, the Navy said although it had not received the proposal yet, it would study the merits of the project before taking a call on that.

• “While the Navy has always taken a keen interest in understanding, conserving, and contributing to build upon the rich maritime history that India boasts, collaboration in such ventures require decision at the highest-level,” said Navy sources.

• In the State, the Navy has earlier assisted the archaeological excavation team at Pattanam (where vestiges of Kerala's trade with the Mediterranean countries were exhumed) by sending its deep-sea divers to conduct underwater surveys.

• It sustains a chair on maritime history at Calicut University and the local chapter of the Maritime History Society is headed by the Southern Naval Command's Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST).

• Built without nails or screws and with planks sewn together using coconut fibres, the sail yacht was made by over a dozen carpenters and rope-makers from Beypore.

• “There was a time when the boatbuilding industry here (Beypore, Kerala) had its hands full, building about 60 urus simultaneously. Even now, they build about six to seven urus for foreign customers who use them for tourism promotion. They recently constructed one for a French customer. Exponents of the esoteric technology of uru-making are not many now. But still there are a few and scores of workers are employed by them to carry out the job. They can create mock-ups of ancient ships as well,” said M.P. Padmanabhan, INTUC national leader and an authority on the subject.

• Recreating the vessel will highlight the links

• ‘Such efforts made in other parts of the world'

Here’s a Replica of the 9th Century Craft “Jewel of Oman”that sailed the Indian Ocean arriving in Kochi and then sailing away to Singapore. The glorious example of Indian Navy’s Abilash can also be studied. 
 

Kerala Workmen from Beypore, using Coir Ropes and Teakwood on the Jewel of Oman,
 

The Jewel of Oman (Inside View) 
 

• 1.00

• In the title of this paper the term “Muziris–Red Sea Sail Ship Voyage” is used as if this writer is quite certain about the exact location of Muziris. When this writer wrote the chapter on Muziris in the work “Kodungallur…” (first published in 1987) there was to be found near- unanimity of opinion about the location of Muziris among the vast majority of 20th Century historians. This unanimity of opinion continued more or less until the book was reprinted in 2000 and its contents published on the net. Until quite recent times, most historians believed, with many generations of people down the centuries, that Muziris was Cranganore or Kodungallur.

Location of Muziris
 
 

• Ptolemy has E. Long. 117.00 and N. Lat. 14.00 for Muciris Emporium and 117.20 and 14.00 for the Azhimukham (Pseudostomas). See K.V. K Ayyar, A Short History of Kerala, Ernakulam, 1966, Appendix II, pp. 193, 194, 195 for some two score and ten places in the area mentioned by Greek and Roman authors of the century between c. 50 and 150 A.D. Later calculations are also available today.

• P.Padbanabha Menon: “Pliny described Cranganore as primum emporium Indiae “ (actually Pliny says this about Muziris). And again, “ Situated on the western sea-board at a point where the river system that afforded untold facilities for communication with the interior opened its mouth into the sea, Cranganore formed a great emporium of trade from very early times” from where “The Phoenicians, the Egyptians, the Greeks, and the Romans, each in turn, carried on commerce with the East." [History of Kerala, I, Ernakulam, 1924, p 297]

K.M. Panikkar : "The great hoards of Roman coins discovered in Kerala bear ample witness to the extensive character of this trade.” 
[Here this writer would emphasise the coins from Eyyal, near Kunnamkulam, and Valuvally, near Parur of 80 years from Agustus to Nero]. 
 

 

1.Caesar Augustus’ Gold Coin 2. Eyyal Hoard punch-marked coins(cf. Gupta, pic Menachery ) 3. Nero Gold Coin 4.Parur Hoard Roman Gold Coins (cf. Satyamoorthy)
    

• Panikkar continues:"The main port in Kerala which was the centre of this trade, as Pliny says, was Muziris or Cranganore. It was known in Kerala as Muyirikkodu - it is so mentioned in the so called Christian plates. The earlier Tamil poets allude to it as Mucciri. Periplus mentions that Muziris is a city at the height of prosperity frequented as it is by ships from Arriake and by Greek ships from Egypt. The exports of Kerala consisted mainly of ‘pearl in considerable quantity and of superior quality; pepper in larger quantities and gems of every variety’. " K.M. Panikkar, A History of Kerala, Annamalai Nagar, 1959, p.3.

• Galletti, The Dutch in Malabar, Madras 1911, p.9 (Introduction v)
• V. Nagam Aiya, Tr.St.Manual (in 3 vols.), Vol. I, Trivandrum, 1906, pp. 231-232
• T. K. Velu Pillai, TSM (in 4 vols.), Vol.II, 1940, p.10
• Yule-Cordier, Cathay and the Way Thither, London.
• Vincent Smith quoted in T.K. Velu Pillai, op-cit., vol.II. p.10
• Bjorn Landstrom , The Quest for India , Stockholm, 1964, (Double day English Edition). p.48
• K.V. Krishna Iyer, Kerala’s Relations with the Outside World, pp. 70, 71 in "The Cochin Synagogue Quatercentenary Celebrations Commemoration Volume", Kerala History Association, Cochin, 1971.

• But in recent years, especially after the excavations at Pazhnam or Pattanam by Shajan followed by others, there is a tendency among a group of scholars to doubt the location of Muziris, hence what is accepted more or less universally is that Muziris is on the west Coast of Malabar, possibly in the vicinity of Kodungallur in the Parur-Chetwa belt.
• This divergence in the views of scholars does not however affect the position that large quantities of Kerala goods and goods that arrived in Kerala from various points were exported from Muziris.

• 2.00 The writings of early writers both of the east and the west bring out mainly three aspects of the Muziris trade, one: the products exported from Muziris and the demand for Muziris exports at Rome and elsewhere in the Empire, two: the extend of the Muziris trade and its economic impact, and three: Muziris location, route and modus for the transportation and the duration of the trips by land and sea to and from Muziris.

• Arrian: 2nd Century A. D. Greek author; Anabasis-Famed Greek prose history by Xenophon of "Retreat of the Ten Thousand from Persia" (c. 399 B. C.).
• Juvenal the poet. Author of the Periplus. Pliny the historian.Strabo : (Born around 63 B.C. and died after A. D. 21). The only extant work of this Greek geographer and historian, a geography in 17 books, is a rich source of ancient knowledge of the world.
• Plutarch : Greek biographer and essayist (c. A. D. 46-120): "The Lives" have charm and historical value. There are 46 paired Greek and Roman biographies and 4 single biographies in it.
• Herodotus : (484? - 425? B. C.) Greek historian, called ‘Father of history’. The rich diversity of his contemporary secular narrative history makes it an important source book on ancient Greece.
• Diodorus Siculus : Died after 21 B. C., Sicilian historian. Author of world history in Greek, ending with Gallic Wars; of its 40 books I - IV and XI-XX are fully preserved.

• Ptolemy : Greco-Egyptian astronomer, mathematician and geographer born around 100 A. D., fl. 127 to 147or 151- Geographike Hyfegesis.
• Megasthenes : He was sent in 302 B. C. by Selukos, king of Syria as ambassador to Chandragupta and remained for some time with the Indian kings, and wrote a history of Indian affairs, that he might hand down to posterity a faithful account of all that he had witnessed.
• Deimachos : Sent to Bindusara by Antiochus Soter, the successor of Selukos. He also wrote a book about India.
• Dionysios : Ptolemy Philadelphus of Egypt sent him to Pataliputra as ambassador "to put the truth to the test by personal inspection". He also wrote a book on India.

• 3.00 As the information available from the western sources is so large we shall mention only a few details of the Muziris export trade are mentioned. Pearl, diamonds, sapphire, ivory, silk, pepper, other spices and precious stones, possibly sandal and yarn were exported. As pepper and pearls have pride of place among Muziris exports we shall restrict ourselves to these two commodities here, for lack of time and space.

3.01 Let me here introduce Lollia Paulina. It is Pliny the Elder, author of the 37 volumes of Natural History who speaks in detail about her.
1.Pliny 2.Lollia 3.“Natural History”
  

• 3.02 "I once saw Lollia Paulina, the wife of the Emperor Gaius - it was not any solemn ceremonial, but only at an ordinary betrothal entertainment - covered with emeralds and pearls, which shone in alternate layers upon her head, in her hair, in her wreaths, in her ears, upon her neck, in her bracelets and on her fingers, and the value of which amounted in all to 40,000,000 sesterces; indeed she was prepared at once to prove the fact by showing the receipts and acquittances".

• 3.03 "Our ladies glory in having pearls suspended from their fingers, one, two or three of them dangling from their ears, delighted even with the rattling of pearls as they knock against each other; and now, at the present day, the poorer classes are even affecting them as people are in the habit of saying that ‘ a pearl worn by a woman in public is as good as a lictor walking before her’: Nay even more than this, they put them on their feet, and that not only on the laces of their sandals, but all over the shoes; it is not enough to wear pearls, but they must tread upon them, and walk with them under foot as well".

PEPPER : YAVANA PRIYA

• 4.00 The chief commodity exported from Muziris was pepper and the fair reputation of Malabar pepper had already reached the four corners of the known world from the early centuries B.C. So much so it is called Yavana Priya (beloved of the Romans). In addition to what the Periplus has to say on the area where pepper is produced in Malabar (56), we also have there a list of ports (viz. Thundis, Muziris, Nelcynda and Barace) from which pepper was exported. Cosmas Indicopleustes in the 6th century speaks of ‘Male where pepper
• grows’ and of ‘Male which has fine marts
• that export pepper’

• 4.01Puram 343: "Fish is bartered for paddy, which is brought in baskets to the houses; sacks of Pepper are brought from the houses to the market; the gold received from ships, in exchange for articles sold, is brought on shore in barges at Muchiri, where the music of the surging sea never ceases, and where Kudduvan (the Chera king) presents to visitors, the rare products of the seas and mountain". [It was truly an emporium or entrepot (like Dubai or Bahrein today) where products from all over South India were traded]

• Note by GM on 343 in a paper at the First World Malayalam Conference, Trivandrum, 1977: " The passage in 343 (Paranar) which says that the gold (gold ornaments) brought by ships arrive on the shore in boats (thonis) corroborates what Pliny mentions in 6.23 (26): ‘besides, the road-stead for shipping is a considerable distance from the shore, and the cargoes have to be conveyed in boats, either for loading or discharging’. It also explains the term psudosthomos used by the Roman.

• 4.02 Erakkaddur Thyankannanar : 
• The early Tamil poet Erakkaddur Thyankannanar describes Muchiri (Muziris) situated near the mouth of the Periyar as follows:

"The thriving town of Muchir - where the beautiful large ships of the Yavanas, bringing gold, come splashing the white foam on the waters of the Periyar, which belongs to the Cherala (Chera or Kerala) and return laden with pepper.“ (Aham 148)
[It is surprising why some pundits are searching everywhere else except near the Periyar for a port specifically described as existing at the mouth of the Periyar. The absence of any passage from the Sangam period in Kerala Text Books also is a mystery.] 

• 4.03 Pepper was in great demand in Rome at the time of Pliny.
• "It is quite surprising that the use of pepper has come so much into fashion, seeing that in other substances which we use, it is sometimes their sweetness, and sometimes their appearance that has attracted our notice; whereas, pepper has nothing in it that can plead as a recommendation to either fruit or berry, its only desirable quality being in certain pungency; and yet it is for this that we import it all the way from India. Who was the first to make trial of it as an article of food? And who, I wonder, was the man that was not content to prepare himself by hunger only for the satisfying of a greedy appetite?“ Pliny, 12.7 (14).

5.01 When did Egyptians start trading with Muziris is not known, but a document discovered in Egypt in 1980 and first published in 1985 confirms that by 2nd century AD it was well established. Known as the Muziris papyrus or the Vienna papyrus it is now preserved in a  Vienna Museum. This papyrus document mentions a loan agreement made by an Egyptian merchant and a merchant in Muziris, for exporting Gangetic Nard, Ivorys and textiles. It also estimates the value of goods and a 25% tax for the items. 
That Egyptian merchant gave this agreement to the Roman government as a guarantee for a loan and that is how this agreement survived through the ages. This discovery has opened a strong base to ancient international and trade laws in particular and has been studied at length by economists, lawyers as well as historians. Cf.f.i.Frederico de Romanis, various papers. 

5.02 Vienna Muziris Papyrus (Latest 2nd-3rd century AD)Casson remarks: - One of the great contributions of the papyrus is the concrete evidence it furnishes of the huge amounts of money that the trade with India required. The six parcels of the shipment recorded on the verso had a value of just short of 1155 talents almost as much as it cost to build the aqueduct at Alexandria. The parcel of ivory and the parcel of fabric together weighed 92 talents and wereworth 528,775 drachmas. A Roman Merchantman of just ordinary size had a capacity of 340 tons; it was capable of carrying over 11,000 talents of such merchandise. And the weather conditions on the route to India were such as to require the use of vessels of at least this sizeLoaded with cargoes of the likes of that recorded in this papyrus, they were veritable treasure ships.

in spite of Pliny’s complaints this demand for pepper continued in Roman circles. The continued use of it inCooking raised its price to 15 denarii a pound for long pepper, 7 for the white, and 4 for the black pepper. This vigorous trade in pepper and other spices of India began to drain the Roman Empire of its wealth. Pliny is stupefied at the thought of this drainage. He says; "The subject (of setting forth the whole route from Egypt to India) is one well worthy of our notice, seeing that in no year does India drain our empire of less than five hundred and fifty millions of sesterces, giving back her own wares in exchange, which are sold among us at fully one hundred times their prime cost". 

Some 300 years later pepper was still valued highly in Rome. Alaric the Goth King of the Visigoths we find, asking for 3000 pounds of pepper as an important part of the ransom to raise the siege against Rome. (Gibbon, Decline and Fall, XXXI) 
 

 

Jeronimos Monastery built from a small %age of  Portugal’s Oriental Revenue 
 

Large numbers of Roman coins have been discovered on the Malabar coast (e.g. from Eyyal between Cranganore and Palayur, and from Kottayam in North Kerala). In 1984 more than a thousand Roman gold coins were found buried in Parur, also not very distant from Parur - Cranganore. What is interesting is that the majority of these coins belong to a period of some 80 years from Augustus to Nero (B.C. 27 to A.D. 68).
The Periplus has this remark, "There are imported here (to Malabar Ports), in the first place a great quantity of coin,...." The Roman could, it is believed make a profit on the sale of gold coins in India, [as even today] perhaps because these were not only used as currency but also for ornament as is evidenced by the fact that many gold coins found in Kerala have been pierced through. 

About Europe in general and England in particular which was the last western power involved with India it has been said, "the history of Modern Europe and emphatically of England, is the history of the quest of the aromatic gum, resins and balsams, and condiments and spices, of India etc. "
"it should not escape notice that gold and silver, after circulating in every other quarter of the globe, come at length to be absorbed in Hindustan. " Edward Farley Oaten, European Travellers in India, 1909, introduction, p.14.
  When Persia and Egypt fell beneath the power of the Arabs one of the spoils of their victory was the Indian Trade. Herodotus tells us that India is the wealthiest and most populous country on earth. As Sir George Birdwood has remarked. "The entire record of the intercourse between countries of the west and India from the very earliest times to the present day may be said to be the story of the struggle for the Indian trade“Sir George Birdwood,  p. 101; E. F. Oaten, p.8. 

• Pliny : Pliny the Elder (Caius Plinius Secundus, A.D. 23-79), Roman naturalist has left us in his Encyclopedic Natural History, in 37 books, a prodigious collection of second hand information. In his description, given below, we have accurate accounts of the journey to India and to the Malabar coasts in the first century.
• "To those who are bound for India, Ocelis is the best place for embarkation. If the wind, called Hippalus happens to be blowing it is possible to arrive, in forty days at the nearest mart in India, Muziris by name. This however, is not a very desirable place for disembarkation, on account of the pirates which frequent its vicinity, where they occupy a place called Nitrias, nor in fact, is it very rich in articles of merchandise.

• Besides, the road stead for shipping is a considerable distance from the shore, and the cargoes have to be conveyed in boats, either for loading or discharging. At the moment that I am writing these pages, the name of the king of this place is Caelobothras. Another port, and a much more convenient one, is that which lies in the territory of the people called Neacyndi, Barace (Porakkadu) by name. Here king Pandion used to reign, dwelling at a considerable distance from the mart in the interior, at a city known as Modiera (Madura). The district from which pepper is carried down to Barace in boats hollowed out of a single tree, is known as Cottonara."

• Concerning the return journey, Pliny thus continues; "Travellers set sail from India on their return to Europe, at the beginning of the Egyptian month of Tybia, which is our December, or at all events before the sixth day of the Egyptian month Mechir, the same as our Ides of January; if they do this they can go and return in the same year. They set sail from India with a south-east wind, and upon entering the Red Sea, catch the south-west or south."

 

Only Geology and Archaeology can explain how Muziris vanished in ca.5thC.

• This writer’s close personal study and investigation of Mukkalla, Socotra, the Red Sea coast, and Ostia Antica has given some ideas concerning the Muziris port’s final disappearance. Only Geology and Archaeology combined with Ocean Studies and the political history of Rome can explain how Muziris vanished in ca.5thC.

• For lack of time and space let me conclude. Let us work for re-enacting a Muziris Red Sea Sail Ship voyage as described at the outset of this paper, with assistance from the Navy, the Tourism Dept., and the Cultural Ministry at Delhi and at Trivandrum. Cf. the Hindu story supra.

Ongoing Pattanam excavations and missionary fabrications -  S. Kalyanaraman

What happens at Pattanam?

 The historical Chera capital Muziris at Kodungallur in Thrissur district of Kerala has aroused much curiosity among archaeologists and historians. It is not just the status of Chera monarchy which escalates the position of Muziris in history. As a premier port in west coast involved in maritime trade with Mediterranean region, Muziris gained importance along with Arikamedu in east coast of Tamilnadu. Sites in and around Kodungallur where early Muziris is supposed to have been located was excavated by veteran archaeologists such as P.Anujan Achan (1947), K.V.Raman and K.V.Saundararajan (1969-70). Archaeological sites such as Cheraman Parambu, Thiruvanchikulam, Karuppadanna, Mathilakam, Kilatali and Thrikkulasekharapuram provided cultural remains of iron and copper tools, glass beads, semi precious stones, ceramics of dull red ware, celadon ware roof tiles, earthen lamps and coins. They are all dated between 900-1100 A.D.

 Currently the Kerala Council of Historical Research backed by the dept of culture, Govt. of Kerala launched a mammoth cultural project – Muziris Heritage project. It excavated Pattanam a site in Eranakulam district of Kerala. As admitted by Dr,P.J.Cheriyan, director of the excavations, the site of Pattanam was identified from documents of a Portuguese Priest –Bishop Francisco Ros S. J.  Dr. P.J.Cheriyan is neither an archaeologist nor a faculty in Ancient Indian history. The theme of his Ph.D research was “Communist movement in Vayalar-Punnpra region of south Kerala”. The consultants involved in Pattanam excavation are modern historians such as Prof: K.N.Panikar, K.N.Ganesh, Michal Tharakan and K.K.N.Kurup who have been pivotal in fabricating and interpreting the 1921 Muslim rioting and spine chilling Hindu Carnage in Malabar as peasant uprising and freedom struggle.

With these cultural remains the chronology of Pattanam has been taken back to 1000 B.C and declared ‘Alexandria of the East’. Further P.J.Cheriyan director of the excavations has proclaimed that the Pattanam excavations hints to a ‘Pre-Brahmanic (Read pre-Hindu) south India’, with Mediterranean cultural links. The Minister for cultural M.A.Baby has made an official declaration holding ‘Benale’ festival- an Italian festival from Kodungallur to Kochi. Extravagant publicity has been given in print and visual media, especially controlled by left groups and Christian denominations. Rupees 200 crores has been announced for setting up 25 museums in the region and applying for World Heritage site status from UNESCO. The left and the Christian religious groups also intend to construct a Roman Christian heritage colony commemorating apostle Thomas. Unaccounted money has been pouring in for this project, from out side India.

“South India has a Pre-Brahminic  past which links it with west Asia and the Mediterranean” This whimsical yet premeditated statement was made by Dr.P.J.Cherian , Director of  Pattanam excavations, while addressing students at Newman’s collage , Muvattupuzha in Eranakulam distict. Dr.Cherian did not give just a conventional statement at a gathering . It was well orchestrated with divisive and communal objectives reminiscent of Bishop Robert Caldwell and such Christian missionaries who launched racial and ethnic theories of Aryan and Dravidian, north and south to undermine India’s cultural integrity.

Metropolitan Mar Aprem Mookan of church of east and also head of St: Eprem Ecumenical Research Institute in Kerala issued a statement in 2011 that attempts to trace the Syrian Christian link with St:Thomas has received a stimulus when 180 rare documents were digitized. .Dr.P.J.Cheriyan applauded the Metropolitan and stated that such an edition of religious texts of St:Thomas Christians is a turning point in history. Dr.Cheriyan further stated that recent excavations in Kerala have found evidence of a 2000 year old port city at a site-pattanam-where St:Thomas is believed to have landed in 52 A.D.

At this juncture in April 2011 Bishop of Kottappuram Dr. Joseph Karikkasserry addressed a congregation of the faithful at St:Thomas church of Kodungallur constructed as a monument to Apostle Thomas. The Bishop urged that the St:Thomas church should be included in the Muziris Heritage Project which is part of Pattanam  archeological excavations.

 Except a small brick wall described as a wharf, the Pattanam excavations have neither unearthed structures nor settlement remains, or such rich antiquities. Few Mediterranean ceramics such as Terra siggilatta (8 sherds)  Turquoise glazed patlery (161 sherds)  twelve fragments of Roman glass bowls, megalithic beads  as well as Rouletted ware, human bone fragments and 8 sherds with Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions have been unearthed from Pattanam and  has been interpreted as one of the biggest urban sites in south India. The vacant trenches at the site provides no evidence rather no construction of any settlement in the past to resemble urban morphology. What they described as a wharf was nothing but a recent construction using burnt red bricks and cement. It has been demolished and dumped at a corner. The trenches are being filled with soil and closed by them to prevent further enquiries.

 There are strong doubts whether certain antiquities have been really excavated or implanted at the site.

 This is a part of well orchestrated religio-political strategy to identify Pattanam as ancient Muziris and corroborate it as the mythical arrival place of St:Thomas to India, his conversion of native Hindus and his martyrdom at the hands of Shaivaite Brahmins .The left intends to prove theoretically with fabricated archeological data that urbanization in south India was the out come of bustling trade with Mediterranean. With the decline of Roman Empire the trade received a set back which led to urban decay in south India. The out come was a dark period followed by growth of temples, caste system, slavery and dominance of Brahmanical feudalism.

 The excavations at Pattanam intend to provide an ideological mileage to left. Simultaneously it juxtaposes the cultural chronology with the arrival of St: Thomas. The political left in Kerala intends to hijack the traditional Christian vote bank of the Congress party. As a gesture the left has promised providing historical validity to the St:Thomas tradition of converting Hindus. The left historians and cultural intelligentsia terms this process as multi cultural synthesis. The Christian denominations in Kerala has already demanded making of St: Thomas tradition part of Muziris Heritage project, and declare his assassination by Shaivate Brahmins as history.

The hand bone of apostle Thomas is currently exhibited as ‘sacred remains’ at the St: Thomas Church of Kodungallur which is heading to get the status of heritage museum and pilgrimage centre.

 Such is the eagerness to fabricate facts and prove that Christianity was established in Kerala nearly 900 years before the growth of Hindu society. It intends to substantiate that the socio-cultural development of Hindus is based on a strong ideological and cultural foundation provided by the Christian church.

 Conclusions have already been drawn before the pattanam excavations were launched. It is intends to prove that Kerala as a geo-cultural zone had little interaction beyond Vindhyas. The cultural growth of kerala was stimulated by its interaction with Mediterranean culture. If any evidence of Kerala interactions with greater India exits it has been develop in the last one millennium through Brahmanical migrations and cast ideology.

To disprove such fabrications which will transform into political movements and bifurcation issues as in Nagaland and Kashmir,we have launched the Muzuris Heritage protection council as the first step of ideological encounter. Historians and archaeologists have contributed articles on various aspects of Muzuris. We request a valuable article from you on a topic untouched by others. The excavations are intended to demolish the cultural status of Kodungallur, the richest cultural site in Kerala and invent a new site to suit the joint interests of left and the church. The Christian church intends to take its antiquity 800 years before Sri.Shankaracharya using archeology and make a claim that Advaita is a gift of the Christian church to the Indian cultural foundations. Further the church aims to legitimize its claim to proselytization.   

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Paravur

The name Paravur is derived from Parayur. This is one of the 64 villages created by Parashurama. This town had been an old trading post, has a Jewish synagogue and had a thriving Jewish community before their conversion to Syrian Christians in the first century and their resettlement in Israel after its establishment. Cochin Jews lived in the towns of Kochi and North Paravur.

The various denominations of modern Saint Thomas Christians ascribe their unwritten tradition to the end of the 2nd century and believe that Thomas landed at Maliankara village in Paravur Taluk in AD 52. In AD 52 (St. Thomas) founded the churches popularly known as 'Ezharappallikal'(seven and half churches). Two of such churches are at Parur (Kottakkaavu) and Kodungallur.

To prove Saint Thomas fables Pattanam is planted without involving ASI

https://www.keralatourism.org/muziris/paravur-tour.php

The Cat is out here 

Kottakavu Church: Kottakavu Church is said to be one of the seven churches founded by St. Thomas during 52 AD. It is also known as Valiyapally or Big Church, indicating that it was a mother church. In the 19th century, due to the lack of space in the old church for conducting Holy Mass and community functions, the new church was built. The parishioners have preserved the old church, which is behind the new one, the elephantine wall, called Anamathil, on the adjacent western side and the Pilgrim Pond where the Apostle baptized the devotees and they continue to maintain them.

St. Thomas Jacobite Syrian Church: St.Thomas Jacobite Syrian Church was founded in AD 1566. It is said to have been constructed by the Big Bazaar Tharakan families in North Paravur on the land given free of tax by the Ruler of Paravur. It is named after St.Thomas, the apostle and is also known as Kizhakke Pally or Cheriapally. Records show that famous historians, the Whitehouse Priest, Dr. Buchanan and others visited it. The tomb of St. Gregorios being here has made it a major pilgrim centre of the Malankara Syrian Christians.

https://www.keralatourism.org/muziris/churches-synagogues-and-mosques.php