The lower half of what appears to be a debusted statue of Buddha seated on a plank in a meditative posture stands at Pallianthoppu, some ten kilometres from Sikkal in Nagapattinam.
Pallianthoppu, a garden land tucked away in the outreaches of Vignapuram hamlet in Puducherry village, hosts the red-brownish sandstone _ 28 cms long, 40 cms broad and 28 cms wide _ remains of the statue. The land belongs to presiding deity Navaneedheashwarar Swamy of Sikkal Singaravelavar temple.
The find by K.Ramachandran, a revenue official, assisted by a bunch of enthusiasts of history and archaeology, could help sieve through historical significance of the archeologically virgin region of Nagapattinam, as it offers a geographical contiguity and a certain historicity to the find.
The moot point for this discovery was triggered off by an inscription at Anathanarayanan temple in the village of Avarani, also called Abarnadhari. Chitralekha Perumpalli reads the inscription on the northern Goshtam (northern wall of sanctum sanctorum) below the Brahma stone idol at Anathanarayanan temple. The temple which is about six km from Sikkal, has mooted points for further research on potential Buddhist sites in the area.
According to Mr.Ramachandran, historical curiosity led to the search after accidentally stumbling upon the inscription.
The inscriptions on the temple sandstone could have pointed out to a random clue as temple hosts assembled sandstones brought from elsewhere. But, according to Mr.Ramachandran, Perumpalli means Jaina or Buddhists sites.
"The region here is known for its Buddhist and Jaina linkages." That led to the search, and usually any evidence could fall within a few kilometre radius, he says.
A former Revenue Inspector in Thirukuvalai, he was aware that the revenue records did not point out to any Chitralekha Perumpalli in the area. Several visits and local queries led to Pallianthoppu that was surveyed as 226-1 in revenue records where the statue was found.
The statue is seated with folded legs on a wooden plank. According to Ramachandran, the plank invariably points to meditative posture. Further elimination was required as it could point to a Jain statue.
However, the folds of the cloth between the ankle and the folded feet, and the chipped portion of what is presumed to be the Bhoomi Spraiksha mudhirai (right palm in a meditative gesture pointing to the ground) on the right side of the statue strengthens the presumption of the identity of the statue as that of Buddha's.
According to him, the village is adjacent to Vadakalathur, the Shiva temple to which the famed Kalayanasundarar idol belongs.
Vadakalathur is a well-know Pallava settlement. Beheaded or de-busted statues may point to a transition (since any pointers to persecution should be researched) from Buddhism to Shaivism and the geographical contiguity of the sites can be a potential treasure trove for further research.
The finding can provide new insights into archaeological findings in the region and historical enthusiasts of Varalatru Arvalar Kuzhu(History Enthusiasts' Association), Nagapattinam of which Mr.Ramachandran is a member, now seek the intervention of department of Archaeology to fill the gaps.
Source: The Hindu
