Colin Mackenzie,
of Scotland arrived in India in 1783, with two letters of introduction - one to
Mrs. Hester Johnston, daughter of Lord Napier and the other to Lord Macartney,
the Governor of Madras.
Colin
Mackenzie was then employed by British Military as an engineer, and later became a lieutenant
and had worked in many places of Tamilnadu, serving in Coimbatore, Dindukkal,
Palakkad, Nellore, Mysore and so on.
He
visited Mrs. Hester Johnston, who was pursuing her study of Hindu Logarithms at
Madurai with his letter of introduction. Her father Lord Napier was then preparing
the biography of John Napier, credited to be the developer of the English
Logarithms.
Mackenzie was left with an impression that
valuable information on the history of India could be collected from the South.
He could inspire and command the loyalty of some Indians to assist him in his
endeavour over the next thirty-eight years.
As an
engineer and surveyor, he had done pioneering work on the topographical survey of over 40000 square
miles, had prepared general and provincial maps of India.
His huge
collection of old manuscripts in various languages – Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu
and Kannada contain valuable information on many aspects of India’s past. The
famed Mackenzie collection has a manuscript on Padur then known as Padavore.
From University
of Madras Publication 2011 - Mackenzie Manuscripts Vol I Edited by T V
Mahalingam
Manuscript
No 57 – Padavore Gramam Koil Kaifiat (
Note – These manuscripts were collected before 1821 CE and could have been
written as things existed much earlier)
Kaifiat of
Padur Gramam, West of Kovalam
“There is
a ruined Siva Temple on the bank of the village tank and the image of or the linga
of the temple is facing the south. There is an image of Perumal near the temple.
Formerly
the temple of Perumal was in the middle of the village. It is now completely
ruined, and the Garuda Pillar alone remains.
On the
west bank of the tank, south of the village, is found a Jain image and a stone
inscription on the pasture ground of the village.
There is
a heap of earth known as KOttaimedu where, it is said a fort was in existence
long ago.
The Stone
Pillar near the temple of Pidari by the side of the large sluice of the tank,
south of the village, has an inscription engraved on it.
There is
one more stone inscription over the paddy fields to the north east of the
village. The village has got four stone inscriptions.
There
are 80 Paandukuzhis of which four are covered with stone slabs. One of them is
said to have been examined by the agents of the Durai.”
The last
part of describes the megalithic site in the village and the Archaeological Survey
of India has published the content of the inscriptions in the year 1934-35.
Manikantheeswara
Temple - Era Vikrama Chola –
1.
AR No 4 - Registers a gift of land after purchase by Aattrulaan Venkadan
Madhuranthakan of Kulappaakam in Puliyur Kottam for perpetual lamp before the
God Sirukaaleswaramudaiya Mahadeva at Paduvur in Paduvur Nadu a sub division of
Aamur Kottam
2.
AR No 5 - Registers another gift of land for a perpetual lamp, made tax
free by Bharadvaji Sankhanidhi, a Siva Brahmana of the village Paduvur alias
AnavaratasundaraNallur.
3.
AR No 6 - 1000 Kuzhis of tax-free land by Kaavulaan Sankan Ranakesari
and Sankan Sadi, two residents of the village for perpetual lamp in the temple
of Sirukaalmaniswaramudaiya Mahadeva
4.
AR No 7 - Tax free gift of land by Kaliyan Arattan Vaiginaan
AR No 8
- The beginning of this inscription is lost, but from palaeography and the
letters, it may be assigned to Nandivarman III. It is dated in the 18th year
and registers the gift of 96 sheep by the shepherds (kottaanradis) of
Amur-kottam for burning a perpetual lamp before the god Peruma[na*]digal who
was pleased to stand at Vilupperundaya-Visnugriham in Paduvur.
In
Pallava times, 96 sheep were donation for lighting one perpetual lamp.
The
numbers are generally dependent the hours the lamp has to burn. The Donation for
the lamp to be lit only during Sandhya Kaalam could be much lower.
The
village has since seen much ‘development’ and the pastures and paddy fields may
have disappeared, but the temple tank and the temples have stayed alive, thanks
to devotees who have never given up their Gods.
The mud forts that had existed in many of the locations in this area needs more research.
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