| Parākramabāhu I (Parakramabahu the Great) |
King of Polonnaruwa |
The statue in Polonnaruwa traditionally held to be of Parākramabāhu the Great |
| Reign |
1153–1186 |
| Born |
1123 |
| Birthplace |
Punkhagama |
| Died |
1186 |
| Place of death |
Polonnaruwa |
| Predecessor |
Gajabahu II |
| Successor |
Vijayabâhu II |
| Consort |
Queen Lilavati |
| Royal House |
Polonnaruwa Kingdom |
| Father |
King Manabharana |
| Mother |
Queen Ratnavali |
Parākramabāhu I (Sinhala: මහා පරාක්රමබාහු
Maha Parākramabāhu (
Parākramabāhu the Great); 1123–1186) was
king of Sri Lanka from 1153 to 1186. During his reign from his capital Polonnaruwa,
he unified the three sub kingdoms of the island, becoming one of the
last monarchs in Sri Lankan history to do so. He oversaw the expansion
and beautification of his capital, constructed extensive irrigation
systems, reorganized the country's army, reformed Buddhist practices,
encouraged the arts and undertook military campaigns in southern
India and in
Myanmar.
The adage "not even a little water that comes from the rain must flow
into the ocean without being made useful to man" is one of his most
famous utterances.
Parākramabāhu spent much of his youth in the courts of his uncles
Kitti Sri Megha and Sri Vallabha, the kings of the principalities of Dakkhinadesa and
Ruhuna respectively, as well as in the court of the King of
Rajarata,
Gajabahu II. He succeeded his uncle Kitti as king of Dakkhinadesa
around 1140 and over the next decade improved both Dakkhinadesa's
infrastructure and military. Following a protracted civil war, he
secured power over the entire island around 1153 and remained in this
position until his death in 1186. During Parākramabāhu's reign, he
launched a punitive campaign against the kings of Myanmar, aided the
Pandyas against the
Chola Empire in southern India and maintained extensive trade relations with China and countries in the Middle East.
Within the island, he consecrated religious monuments, built hospitals,
social welfare units, canals and large reservoirs, such as the Sea of
Parakrama.
Background
Early 12th century
The island of Sri Lanka was in part dominated by the powerful Chola polity of South India, following Raja Raja Chola I's invasion of Sri Lanka in 993. These regions remained under Chola control until the reign of King Vijayabahu I
(1055–1100). Vijayabahu I successfully drove the Chola invaders out at
the beginning of his reign and shifted the capital of Rajarata from Anuradhapura to a new,
planned city, Polonnaruwa
(Pulatthinagara). By the reign of King Vikramabāhu I (1111–1132), the
island was divided into three kingdoms—Rajarata, Dakkhinadesa, and
Ruhuna. Vikramabāhu was however regarded as the greatest in dignity as
he possessed Rajarata with its sites of religious and historical
importance. However, Manabharana, king of Dakkhinadesa ("South
Country"), and his brothers Sri Vallabha and Kitti Sri Megha, the joint
kings of Ruhuna, were formidable rivals for the crown.
Furthermore all three were the descendants of Vijayabahu's sister, and
thus had a strong claim to the throne; they are referred to in the
Culavamsa as the Arya branch of the royal dynasty, whilst Vikramabāhu I is of the Kalinga branch.
Birth
Extent of the Chola Empire on the eve of Vijayabahu I's rebellion
According to the ancient chronicle Culavamsa, Parākramabāhu's birth
was predicted by a figure akin to a god seen in a dream by his father,
King Manabharana of Dakkhinadesa.A son was duly born to Manabharana's wife Ratnavali, and was named Parākramabāhu because of his "foe-crushing arms".Though the year of his birth cannot be known exactly confirmed, it is generally thought to be around 1123.The location would almost certainly have been the capital of Dakkhinadesa, Punkhagama.
Upon being informed of the child's birth, Vikramabāhu I in
Polonnaruwa ordered that the boy be brought up as the heir to his
throne. This kind of adoption may have been an
olive branch
of sorts on the part of Vikramabāhu, who wished to keep the throne
until his death, after which it would be passed on to Parākramabāhu.
Manabharana, however, rejected the offer, stating that "It is not
(prudent) ... to send away such a jewel of a son". He also speculated
that "...if the boy is taken thither, the party of Vikkamabahu... will
gleam with mighty, up-shooting flames, but our misfortune, alas so
great, will become still worse!" The schism that existed between the royal clans of Sri Lanka was too deep to allow for this manner of accommodation.
Soon after the child's birth, Manabharana fell ill and died. His
younger brother Kitti Sri Megha, who was joint king of Ruhuna, ascended
the throne of Dakkhinadesa, while Sri Vallabha was declared sole king of
Ruhuna. Parākramabāhu, his mother Ratnavali and his two sisters Mitta
and Pabhavati, were sent to live in Mahanagahula, the capital of Ruhuna,
under the care of Sri Vallabha.
Youth
In Ruhuna and Dakkhinadesa
The politics of Sri Lanka inevitably played a significant role in
Parākramabāhu's upbringing. Whilst he was still young, his eldest sister
Mitta was forcibly married to their cousin, Manabharana, the son of Sri
Vallabha of Ruhuna, against the wishes of Queen Ratnavali.
Ratnavali was herself of the Kalinga clan of the royal family, and
though she was the widow of a king of the Arya branch of the royal
family, she preferred to see her daughters married to a king from the
Kalinga clan. During his time at Sri Vallabha's court, Parākramabāhu met
his future
mahesi (queen consort) Lilavati, Sri Vallabha's daughter,
who following Parākramabāhu's death went on to rule the country in her own right.
In 1132, following the death of Vikramabāhu, Gajabahu II succeeded to
the throne of Rajarata. Taking advantage of the new king's youth, the
two monarchs of the Arya branch of the Royal family, Sri Vallabha and
Kitti Sri Megha, tried unsuccessfully to seize Rajarata by force.
Gajabahu established himself firmly as ruler and therefore nominally senior to the two Arya kings and neither Sri Vallabha nor Kitti Sri Megha would live to see the king of Rajarata dethroned.
After the end of the Arya-Kalinga civil war, Parākramabāhu left Sri
Vallabha's palace in Ruhuna and returned to Sankhatthali, the new
capital of Dakkhinadesa, where he took up residence with his uncle. The Culavamsa attributes the departure to his impatience and lack of stimulation in Ruhuna.
It may also have been caused by Sri Vallabha's plans to place
Manabharana of Ruhuna on the throne of Rajarata, which made
Parākramabāhu's position increasingly precarious in court.
In Dakkhinadesa, on the other hand, he was well received by Kitti Sri
Megha, who had no sons of his own, where he was essentially adopted; the
Culavamsa thereafter refers to Kitti as Parākramabāhu's father. During
his time at Dakkhinadesa, he studied important works of
Kautilya, and subjects such as grammar, literature, elephant-riding, martial arts, song and dance.
In Rajarata
Some time after his coming of age, the young prince left Dakkhinadesa
in secrecy and set out for Gajabahu II's realm in Rajarata. Having met
his allies at Badalattha (modern Batalagoda), he visited the
Senapathi(commander)
Sankha, on the border between Rajarata and Dakkhinadesa. When Sankha
tried to inform Kitti Sri Megha of the prince's journey, Parākramabāhu
had him killed.
Sankha had been his guardian and Kitti Sri Megha described him as
'mightiest vassal in my kingdom', making the murder all the more
serious. Parākramabāhu then seized Buddhagama (modern Menikdena Nuwara) and all of Sankha's property. He continued his journey, having evaded a force sent against him by
Kitti Sri Megha, who feared complications with the court of Polonnaruwa,
and traveled through the Malaya region to Gajabahu's court.
Few Sri Lankan kings built as many
dagobas as Parākramabāhu.
The reasons for Parākramabāhu behavior are considered uncertain, but
according to the Culavamsa, his journey was essentially one of
reconnaissance.
Although the three monarchs of the provinces were united, they all
harbored the wish the govern the kingdom of Rajarata. At the time,
however, it was suggested that none of them could take control of
Rajarata, due to the limited resources available in their small
provinces. Parakramabahu did not wish to believe this, and thus traveled to Rajarata to learn the conditions of the province himself.
The reason provided for Kitti Sri Megha's efforts to bring the prince
back to Dakkhinadesa are presented as nothing more than concern for the
well being of his nephew as well as concerns that Parākramabāhu may
reignite hostilities between the Arya and Kalinga factions. However,
that the king of Dakkhinadesa was "tenderly attached" to his nephew is
regarded as "fiction", and it is pointed out that "the spirit in which
the accounts of these conflicts are conceived is irreconcilable with the
theory of untroubled relations between uncle and nephew."
During his time in Gajabahu’s court, the Parākramabāhu did two things
of significance. The first was to enmesh the court of Gajabahu in a web
of espionage and the other was to marry one of his sisters called
Bhaddavati, to King Gajabahu. Through this marriage, and various other
acts.
, Parākramabāhu managed matters that the ruler (Gajabahu I) completely trusted him, as much as he did the royal family. Nevertheless, he retained the entirety of Bhaddavati’s dowry
for himself, and entered into secret negotiations with Gajabahu’s
general Gokanna. Gajabahu eventually grew suspicious of Parākramabāhu’s
activities, and Parākramabāhu departed Rajarata in secrecy by night and
returned to Dakkhinadesa.
Return to Dakkhinadesa
In Dakkhinadesa, Parākramabāhu was reluctant to enter the capital
Sankhatthali to see his uncle, King Kitti Sri Megha, until persuaded by
his mother Ratnavali to do so. Kitti Sri Megha however died soon after
Parākramabāhu's return and the
Culavamsa
notes that the prince "was not mastered by the agitation called forth
by the grief at his father's (sic) death"—perhaps a sign of lingering
ill feeling between the two. Parākramabāhu was now king of Dakkhinadesa.
King of Dakkhinadesa
Government
Parākramabāhu's objective for Dakkhinadesa was to expand it so that
it would surpass the greatness of other kingdoms, in a short period of
time. He started a huge program of construction and renovation, the remnants of which can still be seen in
central
Sri Lanka today. It is mentioned of him as having restored an ancient
causeway called the Kotabaddha, over the Deduru Oya (Deduru Lake) near
modern
Kurunegala.
The new king's personality was illustrated when the architects
commissioned to the project informed him that it was well-nigh
impossible to carry out, to which Parākramabāhu replied that "What is
there in the world that cannot be carried out by people of energy?". He ordered the construction of canals and dams, and cleared a large area of forest around them for new fields. Most notably, he constructed the Parakrama Samudra
(Sea of Parakrama), a giant reservoir from which a large swathe of
territory derived its water supply. On islands in the middle of the
reservoir he constructed a palace and a
dagoba.
Ruins of the royal palace of Polonnaruwa, beautified during Parākramabāhu's reign
He transformed the
royal court,
making it a hub of cultural activity, attracting young nobles skilled
in various arts such as riding elephants or horses, swordsmanship, in
the use of foreign tongues and in dance and song. He reformed the
government of Dakkhinadesa, creating two ministries; the military
affairs and the internal administration to which he later added a third
department, which oversaw the management of mines. Trade was an
important component of Dakkhinadesa's income since the island of Sri
Lanka, given its geographical position, had always been at the junction
of several major
trade routes. Chinese silk was a significant import and was used in the consecration of statues and shrines. Pearls and gems (of which the king took particular interest) constituted an important part of the island's exports, as did cinnamon (which remained, until the 19th century, Sri Lanka's major export), and
war elephants. Most trade was carried out through the main seaports of the principality, Kalpitiya, Halaavatha (Chilaw) and Colombo.
Preparation for war
Parākramabāhu's army had a diverse ethnic make-up. Some of his
officers were from the two grand old clans of Sri Lanka, the Moriya and
the Lambakanna, who had between them dominated Rajarata from
Anuradhapura. A group of
Tamil
soldiers from near Kurunegala also rallied to him, under a man styling
himself the king of Malaya (modern Dumbara). By the time hostilities
broke out between Dakkhinadesa and Rajarata, the former's forces also
included
Veddas, Cheras, and people from the lower
castes
not traditionally involved in martial activities. The Culavamsa places
the number of soldiers at somewhere around 100,000 people, but the real
figure was probably lower.
[33] Parākramabāhu would have been able to field war elephants, cavalry, and
siege engines, and his force represented a serious threat to Gajabahu's power in the north.
Conquest of Rajarata
War with Gajabahu
Around 1150, Parākramabāhu made his first move by seizing control of
Malaya, strategically securing his eastern flank. He then moved his
forces against various chieftains on the border of Rajarata. The final
stage of this early campaign was the defeat of an army of Gajabahu
himself, after which there was a brief ceasefire between the two sides.
A temple bearing a striking similarity to
Khmer architecture, reflecting the ethnically varied populace of the country
Hostilities resumed soon afterwards. Gajabahu had resorted to
securing support from abroad, and by the time hostilities resumed
between him and Parākramabāhu, the army of Rajarata included nobles of
heretical faith from abroad.
Parākramabāhu himself did not participate in the invasion of Rajarata,
but was responsible for the overall strategy of the campaign, which was
based on the writings of Kautilya.
The forces of Dakkhinadesa struck at the fortress of Mallavalana near
the mouth of the Kala Oya, seizing it and occupying the western coast
of Sri Lanka. The army then sailed up to the north and landed at a place
called Muttakara or Mutukara ('Pearl-mine') near modern Mannar.
In the meantime, Gajabahu's senior general Gokanna suffered several
defeats in the vicinity of Kala Vewa and was forced to appeal to the
king of Rajarata for reinforcements.
Despite receiving these and meeting with some success in Malaya,
Gokanna was again defeated by Parākramabāhu's general Mahinda, a rout so
total that Gokanna fled the battle scene leaving behind his umbrella,
an important status symbol in medieval Sri Lanka. The remnants of his force constructed a fortress in a jungle and took no further part in the war.
By 1153, Parākramabāhu's forces were in a position to take
Polonnaruwa. Rakkha and a junior general named Sukha inflicted another
defeat on Gajabahu just 15 kilometres (9 mi) from the city, seizing the
capital of Rajarata soon afterwards.
The king and his two sons, Colaganga and Vikramabāhu, were imprisoned.
Parākramabāhu was magnanimous in defeat, and laid out clear orders for
the treatment of both the former king and the townspeople to his
generals:
| “ |
If the heads of districts and
the officers, grown insolent by their victory in fight, slay the King
(Gajabahu) whom they have captured, that is not right. And if they
plunder the town and ill-treat the people and become unbridled, that is
likewise not right. The gaining of the royal dignity takes place for the
welfare of the order (Sangha)
and the people alone, but not for the purpose of slaying... Therefore
thou must go there, hold the unbridled in check, take the King under thy
protection and make the town secure |
” |
However some members of Parākramabāhu's army are known to have
disregarded his commands and broken open house doors in Polonnaruwa,
plundered goods and stole raiment and ornaments from the people of the
city.
The pillaging of Polonnaruwa was to have dire consequences for
Parākramabāhu. Angered by the actions of the forces from Dakkhinadesa,
the nobles and allies of Gajabahu—including his general Gokanna—appealed
to Manabharana of Ruhuna, who was at Sorabara, in the center of the
country, for assistance. Despite having an alliance with Gajabahu,
Manabharana had remained neutral in the war up till that point. Then, on
the eve of Parākramabāhu's victory, he stepped into the conflict and
launched an invasion of Rajarata.
War with Manabharana and Gajabahu
Parākramabāhu sent his
Senpathi (commander) Deva to restore
order to Polonnaruwa, but he found himself in battle with Manabharana
before he could reorganize his troops.The king of Ruhuna kept to his word and delivered Parākramabāhu's
forces a crushing blow, driving them from Polonnaruwa. For the Kalinga
clan however, the alliance with Manabharana backfired as it was soon
made clear that Manabharana intended to keep the city for himself. He
put to death many of Gajabahu's senior officials, and imprisoned
Gajabahu in a dungeon.
Manabharana's mother, Sugala (the niece of Vijayabahu I), and his wives
were soon summoned from the south to live in Rajarata. The sacred Tooth Relic and the Alms Bowl Relic, long kept in the south, were now returned under his aegis to the north.
Gajabahu then appealed to Parākramabāhu for assistance, and
Parākramabāhu ordered his troops to cut off grain supplies to
Polonnaruwa and harass travelers on the roads between Ruhuna and
Rajarata. As a result, all the people in the town with King Manabharana
became "weakened birds in a cage".
With the sporadic attacks from Dakkhinadesan forces slowly grinding
down his power in the north, Manabharana left Polonnaruwa to attack a
force commanded by Rakkha that had been wreaking havoc in western
Rajarata. In his absence Parākramabāhu's forces seized Polonnaruwa,
liberated Gajabahu II, and took into their possession the entirety of
Manabharana's treasury. The disheartened king of Ruhuna returned to the
south with his family and the sacred relics.
Gajabahu, who had been set free, left Polonnaruwa before
Parākramabāhu arrived and decided to leave the country by ship. However,
an attack by some of Gajabahu's followers on Parākramabāhu's troops
reignited hostilities between the two, and Parākramabāhu sent his army
to capture Gajabahu. By late 1153, after suffering a number of defeats,
Gajabahu realized his capture was imminent, and appealed to the Sangha
to intervene.
They persuaded Parākramabāhu that the ailing king no longer posed a
threat, and that he should be allowed to live out the rest of his days
in peace. Manabharana tried to woo the king back to the battle against
Parākramabāhu, but Gajabahu refused,
having the words "I have made over Rajarata to Parākramabāhu" inscribed
on a stone tablet to confirm his abdication in favor of Parākramabāhu.Gajabahu moved to Gantale (Kantalai), where he died in the 22nd year after his coronation as king of Rajarata.
Coronation and defeat of Manabharana
Parākramabāhu's reign was remarkable for the flowering of art forms, as seen in the moonstones of Polonnaruwa.
Parākramabāhu was immediately crowned king
of Rajarata, but the war was far from over. Manabharana struck again,
sending his armies to the Mahaweli River and attempting to cross into
Rajarata via two fords.
In the meantime, Narayana, a chieftain based at Anuradhapura, rose in
rebellion, and Parākramabāhu's hold in the north was again threatened.
On this occasion Parākramabāhu decided to vanquish Manabharana once
and for all; "Not even in Rohana will I permit King Manabharana who is
here crushed in war, to find a hold".
[49] Rakkha was commanded to hold the fords at the Mahaweli River,
whilst Parākramabāhu himself attacked from Dakkhinadesa into Ruhuna.
Narayan's rebellion was suppressed by another force, leaving Rakkha, who
had successfully held the fords at the Mahaweli River, free to invade
from the north.
If Parākramabāhu had hoped for a swift victory, it did not happen.
Manabharana defeated Rakkha's army and drove them back to Rajarata.
Parākramabāhu found himself facing dissension within his own ranks and
the defeat of his forces in Malaya; Manabharana even recaptured
Polonnaruwa and with it most of Rajarata.
[50]
Despite this Parākramabāhu persevered with the offensive, withdrawing
from his southern campaign and concentrating his forces in the north.
Manabharana once again found himself besieged in Polonnaruwa. Both sides
were exhausted by the incessant warfare of the preceding years, and
Manabharana eventually fled the city for Ruhuna. His forces were
overtaken at the Mahaweli River by Parākramabāhu's army and annihilated;
the king returned to the south in time to pass away from a combination
of disease and exhaustion.
[51]
Parākramabāhu was finally the unquestioned lord of the entire island
of Sri Lanka, even though it had been at the cost of around five years
of incessant warfare. In years to come the king himself was to regard
this war as one of the most significant events of his reign, mentioning
it in several of his edicts carved on stone, such as the one near
Devangala.
[52]
He celebrated by summoning Manabharana's son to Polonnaruwa and
concluding a peace with him, followed by a lavish coronation ceremony.
[53]
| Timeline of accession of Parākramabāhu to the throne |
| Kingdom |
Monarch |
| 1090 |
1100 |
1110 |
1120 |
1130 |
1140 |
1150 |
1160 |
1170 |
1180 |
| Rajarata |
|
Vikramabāhu I |
Gajabāhu II |
|
| Dakkhinadesa |
Vijayabāhu I |
Manabharana |
Kitti Sri Megha |
Parākramabāhu I |
| Ruhuna |
|
Sri Vallabha & Kitti Sri Megha |
Sri Vallabha |
Manabharana |
|
Reign
Parākramabāhu established himself at Polonnaruwa (Pulatthinagara as
mentioned in the Chulavamsa) from 1153 onwards and ruled over the
entirety of Sri Lanka for the next 33 years. During this time he
undertook much of the work he is best remembered for, most significantly
in the areas of religious reform, construction, and war.
Religious reform
The Vatadage, Parākramabāhu's Temple of the Tooth Relic
During the reign of king Vatta Gamini Abhaya (king Valagamba) (104 BCE, 88 BCE – 76 BCE), the sangha (Buddhist monks) of the country had divided into three rival orders—the Theravada order of the Maha Vihara, the order of the
Abhayagiri Vihara and the order of the Dhakkina Vihara. One of Parākramabāhu's ambitions was the reunification of these groups into one order, as had existed at the time of King
Dutugemunu.
Furthermore, much of the sangha had become corrupted over the years,
with monks marrying and having children, and in many cases behaving much
like
laymen in their pursuit of worldly gain.
Around 1165, a council was called in Polonnaruwa to discuss the reform of the sangha. Parākramabāhu's chief agent in the enterprise was to be the Mahathera Kasyapa, an experienced monk who "knew the Tipitaka and was exceedingly well versed in the Vinaya".
There was immense resistance to Parākramabāhu's efforts, in particular
from the Abhayagiri sect who now adhered to the heretical Vetullavada
tradition, and whom the king found to be particularly corrupt. Many
monks moved abroad rather than participate in the reforms, whilst others
simply abandoned the cloth and returned to lay life. In this they may
well have been encouraged by Parākramabāhu, who seems to have felt that
the "purification" of the priestly orders depended as much on the
expulsion and exclusion of the corrupt as it did on the rewarding and
encouragement of the orthodox.There are several references to individuals being given "lucrative
positions" in order to keep them out of their respective Orders.
Finally, the king summoned the leaders of the sangha on the island once
a year, centering the visit on a ritual on the banks of the Mahaweli
river—possibly a practical means of keeping up-to-date with their
progress and their standards.
Following the crushing of Queen Sugala's rebellion
in 1157, Parākramabāhu had the Tooth Relic and the Alms Bowl Relic
brought to Polonnaruwa; the former was placed inside a jewel in the
Temple of the Tooth Relic in Polonnaruwa.
[59]
Such constructions became a hallmark of Parākramabāhu's reign; his
buildings for the sangha are described in great detail in the Culavamsa
and comprise an impressive body of work, often accompanied with
inscriptions stating his intentions and accomplishments, such as at the Gal Vihare.
Construction
The Parakrama Samudra (Sea of Parakarama), the largest irrigation tank built by Parakramabahu.
Parākramabāhu's constructions work made up a significant chunk of the material
history of Sri Lanka.
Much of the remnants of Polonnaruwa date from his reign, as well as
sites in western and south-eastern Sri Lanka. One of Parākramabāhu's
first projects was the restoration of Anuradhapura, the ancient capital of Sri Lankan Kings which had been utterly destroyed by the Chola army, including the restoration of Thuparamaya (which had been lost to the jungle),
Mihintale, and
Ruwanweliseya.
Then, having founded an administrative center called Parakramapura, he
turned his attention on Polonnaruwa. Unsurprisingly, due to the
near-yearly sieges, the city had suffered and had reached a state that
nothing but its name remained. It is perhaps because of this that so
little of pre-12th century Polonnaruwa remains today.
The king initially divided the city into four districts or suburbs, each marked with its own alms-giving house for the clergy, containing "vessels of bronze, cushions and pillows, mats, carpets and bedsteads". He ordered the construction of hospitals, which he visited on several occasions. He also expanded Polonnaruwa's city walls,
constructing an elaborate three-walled complex featuring turrets for
archers and fourteen gates. None of which has survived till modern
times. Beyond the city precinct it is believed he constructed or
renovated three smaller townships, in addition to Parakramapura -
Rajavesi Bhujanga, Raja Kulantaka (Sinhapura), and Vijitapura.
Extensive gardens were also laid down around Polonnaruwa, featuring
ponds and bathing-pools, one of which, the Twin Pools, survives till
this date. One such garden, the 'Island Garden', extended into the
middle of Thupa Vewa ('Vewa' meaning 'tank' or 'reservoir' in Sinhala)
on a promontory.
Much else survives, such as the Gal Vihare, or "Stone Shrine", near
Polonnaruwa. The Culavamsa attributes the monument in its entirety to
Parākramabāhu, though in truth his contribution may have been extensive
refurbishment.
The Vatadage, or "Circular Temple", was constructed around 1157
following the suppression of Queen Sugala's revolt in Ruhuna, to host
the recently recovered Tooth Relic and Alms Bowl Relic. The Lankatilaka
Temple, Alahena Pirivena,
Jetavanaramaya
and the Demala Maha Cetiya were also constructed in his reign. At the
center of Polonnaruwa Parākramabāhu expanded and beatified the royal
palace. Little of it remains today, but its soaring walls hint at the
grand scale of the king's vision.
Gal Vihare ('The Stone Shrine') features three statues of the Buddha in three different poses carved from the same large rock.
Parākramabāhu also continued his program of hydraulic works begun in
Dakkhinadesa, including the renovation and reconstruction of reservoirs
and canals wrecked during the Chola invasion. Inscriptions detailing his
work can be found at the Maha Vewa near Uruwela, Padaviya Vewa and
Panda Vewa in North-Western Province. A column discovered at the bottom
of the Padaviya Vewa in the 19th century included the inscription "Made
for the benefit of the whole world by the prosperous Sri Parakrama-Bahu,
born at Sinhapura, minded of what was fit to be done". Though the Culavamsa attributes the
construction of various tanks to him, it has been suggested that much of Parākramabāhu's work was
renovation, and indeed that some of the projects undertaken by his successor
Nissanka Malla may have been attributed to him.In all Parākramabāhu is said to have restored or constructed over 216 reservoirs and tanks.
Despite their magnificence, Parākramabāhu's works exacted a heavy
toll on the populace and the treasury. For much of the work in
Anuradhapura he utilized Tamil
prisoners of war seized during the Pandyan War. Nevertheless taxation and
rajakariya (a feudal
system in which work was owed to the king by commoners) contributed in
large part to the projects. An interesting indicator of the burden of
taxation is the disappearance of larger
gold coins towards the end of Parākramabāhu's reign.
Military campaigns
Parākramabāhu's reign is memorable for two major campaigns—in the
south of India as part of a Pandyan war of succession, and a punitive
strike against the kings of Ramanna (Myanmar) for various perceived insults to Sri Lanka. He also had to suppress revolts against him in Ruhuna on several occasions.
Revolts
In 1156, Queen Sugala of Ruhuna, the mother of Manabharana of Ruhuna
who had fought Parākramabāhu bitterly for the throne, joined a revolt
against Parākramabāhu. The situation turned dire when a group of
mercenaries took the opportunity afforded by the absence of
Parākramabāhu's army, and his most formidable general Rakkha, to revolt
in 1157.
Whilst the insurrection continued in the north, Parākramabāhu
dispatched another general, Bhuta, to assist Rakkha, who had become
bogged down in conflict in Ruhuna. The Culavamsa mentions the soldiers
in Bhuta's army wearing "doublets made of buffalo hide"
to protect themselves against arrows. Despite reinforcements Rakkha and
Bhuta appear to have become stuck in a war of attrition not unlike
Parākramabāhu's wars for the throne. Certainly it outlasted a
simultaneous rebellion in the north, which after three months of
fighting ended after an engagement in the vicinity of Dik Vewa. The only
major victory of this early phase of the rebellion in Ruhuna was the
seizure of the Sacred Relics in late 1157.
The tide finally turned when reinforcements arrived in Ruhuna,
probably in early 1158, through Sabaragamuwa, and from the western
coast.
Mahagama was seized and Queen Sugala captured. The forces of
Parākramabāhu then inflicted something of a bloodbath on the nobility
and citizens of Ruhuna, seemingly with the king's approval. "They caused
many foes to whom severity was due, to be brought before them, and at
villages and market-towns they had numbers of stakes set up on which
they impaled many hundreds of the enemy. Many other foes they had hanged
on the gallows and burnt and showed forth in every way the majesty of
Parākramabāhu".
It may well have been the case that the king was tired of the constant
animosity directed at him by the kingdom. The brutal suppression of the
rebellion ensured that, apart from a brief insurrection in 1160, Ruhuna
remained quiet for the rest of his reign. The fate of Queen Sugala is
not recorded. The only other rebellion of Parākramabāhu's reign occurred
in the region of modern Mantota in from 1168–1169.
War with Bagan, 1164–1165
Bagan, the capital of the kingdom against which Parākramabāhu launched an invasion in 1164
The kingdom of Bagan (Arimaddhanapura) in what is now Myanmar, and Sri Lanka had enjoyed a cordial relationship based on trade and a common faith (Theravada Buddhism)
for a long time. Bagan emerged as a power in the 9th century and by the
11th century its capital city, Arimaddhanapura, was a centre of
Buddhist learning.
However with the accession of Narathu (1160–1165), the grandson of
Alaung Sithu, to the throne, the situation changed dramatically.
Initially he deprived the envoys of the King of Sri Lanka the
maintenance they were previously granted.
He also issued an order prohibiting the sale of elephants to foreign
countries and did away with the age old custom of presenting an elephant
to every foreign vessel which brought him gifts. He later had the Sri
Lankan envoys imprisoned and tortured, and had all their possessions,
including their money, their elephants and their vessels confiscated. He
later summoned them and declared,
| “ |
"Henceforth no vessel from
the Sinhala country shall be sent to my kingdom. Give us now in writing
the declaration that if [messengers] from there are again sent to us, in
case we should slay the envoys who have come here, no blame of any kind
will attach to us. If ye give not the declaration ye shall not have
permission to return home." |
” |
It is not certain whether this was part of a particular moved against
Sri Lankan merchants, or a general closing down of Baganese borders.
Whatever the reason, Parākramabāhu was incensed. Assembling a fleet at
Pallavavanka, he dispatched to Bagan a formidable force. The size of the
army is not known, but it is recorded as containing a year's supply of
grains, specially modified arrows, and Sri Lanka's fearsome war
elephants. Despite setbacks en route, including the sinking of one ship
and the loss of a few others, the army arrived at the city of Kusumiya
(modern Pathein) on the banks of the Bago river, and captured it. Thereafter, the armies captured several other cities, including
Arimaddhanapura, killed Narathu, and restored relations between the two
countries to normal.
The account of the campaign in Bagan is possibly exaggerated,
particularly as Burmese chronicles do not contain any information on a
massive invasion from Lanka. Nevertheless there is evidence to indicate
that there was some form of campaign undertaken, and that it was a
successful one. The story of a Sri Lankan invasion that dethroned
Narathu is known in Myanmar.
Furthermore, contemporary inscriptions from Devanagala mentions the
awarding of land to the general Kitti Nagaragiri for his leadership in a
campaign to 'Ramanna', naming the king of Bagan as 'Bhuvanaditta', a
possible Lankanization of 'Narathu'.
Pandya War, 1167–1183
Parākramabāhu's alliance with Parakrama Pandya contributed in significantly shrinking the Chola empire by 1120
In 1167 the
Pandyan
king Parakrama appealed to his namesake in Lanka for assistance against
an alliance of his rival Kulasekhara Pandya and the Cholas. Such an
appeal was not unusual, as the Pandya had long found allies in the Sinhalese
against the Cholas, and their nobility had spent some time in exile at
the court of Mahinda IV (956–972) after the invasion of their land by
Parantaka Chola II.
On this occasion however the Sri Lankan help came too late. By the time Parākramabāhu's general
Lankapura arrived in
Pandya Nadu, Kulasekhara had captured the capital Madhurai
and killed King Parakrama's wife and children. His son Prince Virapandu
however had managed to escape. Rather than head for Madhurai, Lankapura
landed in the vicinity of Ramanathapuram and captured the city of Rameswaram, which remained in Sri Lankan hands for the next thirty years or so.
Here they built a fortress called Parakramapura. In this early phase of
the war they fought Kulasekhara on several occasions, eventually laying
siege to him in Madhurai and seizing the city. Virapandu was restored
to power, but apparently only as a puppet, as the Sri Lankan army under
Lankapura remained in Madhurai and continued to engage the Chola across
south India.
The Culavamsa dedicates much of chapter LXXVII to a description of
the ensuing war between Lankapura and Kulasekhara, who apparently fought
on with assistance from the Cheras. The Lankan effort was so successful
that Parākramabāhu appears to have established a near-permanent
authority over Pandya Nadu (the chapter is entitled
Conquest of the Pandya Kingdom), even establishing a city called Panduvijaya in commemoration of the conquest.
However the account ends abruptly. No mention is made of Lankapura's
return to Sri Lanka, nor of whether Virapandu III succeeded on hanging
on to power.
The remainder of the story can be gleaned from inscriptions in south
India and by inference. The Sinhala army is known to have scored a
number of victories over the Chola army. However, the Pallavarayanpettai
inscription indicates that Lankapura was defeated in 1171 and his head
was nailed to the gates of Madhurai by
Rajadhiraja Chola II (1163–1178).Nevertheless the forces of Parākramabāhu appear to have remained in
Pandya Nadu, scoring victories over Rajadhiraja II in 1176. It was not
until 1181 when Virapandu III was defeated that the Sri Lankan army
withdrew from Pandya Nadu, retaining only the area around
Rameshwaram.
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