Theories
The Pallavas find no mention as rulers of Tamil regions during the period when the Three Crowned Kings (Tamil: மூவேந்தர், Mūvēntar), namely, the Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas, warred against each other and sought control of Chola Nadu, Chera Nadu and Pandya Nadu which made up the ancient Tamil country, Tamilakam. Some details of Pallava kings are found in the Sangam Period classics Ahananuru, Manimekhalai and Perumbanarruppatai. It is generally believed by many experts that the Pallavas were Kurumbar/Kurubas.(yadavas)
Ahananuru mentions the geographical region where two Tiriyans ruled. The elder Tiriyan was located in Gudur, Nellore and the younger Tiriyan was located in Kanchipuram. The younger (Ilam) Tiriyan finds mention in Perumbanarruppatai. A composition in Perumbanarruppatai traces the line of the younger Tiriyan (aka Ilam Tiriyan, Ilan Tiriyan and Ilandiraiyan) to the Solar dynasty of Ikshvakus.. However, later Tamil commentators identify him as the illegitimate child of a Chola king and a Naga princess.
Manimekhalai describes the birth and origin of Ilandiraiyan in detail. It attributes his birth to a liaison between the daughter of a Naga king of Manipallava named Pilli Valai (Pilivalai), with a Chola King Killivalavan who was lost in ship wreck and found with a twig (pallava) of Cephallandra indica (Tondai) around his ankle and hence named Tondai-man.
Apart from Ahananuru, Manimekhalai and Perumbanarruppatai, other Tamil literature also mentions the Pallavas. Kambar mentions Pallava King in Silaiezhupathu. Silaiezhupathu was written in front of the Pallava King. The word Pallava means "branch or twig" in Sanskrit and "a province of" or "a shared" (in general) and "raining (bliss), famous, bards, rock-men (hill tribe), embossed, peacock feather" (variant meanings) in archaic Tamil. The word is rendered as Tondaiyar in Tamil language meaning "in continuum". One view is that in archaic Tamil Pallavar denotes "donors of (Jain) cave assemblies/niches-palli". The territory of the Pallavas was known as Tundaka Visaya or Tundaka Rashtra in contemporary North Indian texts.
One version mentions that the first Chola King of Tanjore, Karikala Chola, had an extra-marital affair with a Naga Princess out of which was born Aa-Tondai who founded Tondaimandalam. Karikala Chola' son Adondai Chola (aka Aa-tondai and Aa-thondaimaan) destroyed the Kurumbar/Kuruba people of Tondaimandalam and annexed the region.
Read more about this topic: Origin Of Pallava
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