Arpakkam
village
Arpakkam is located in Tamil Nadu
Arpakkam
Arpakkam
Location in Tamil Nadu, India
Arpakkam is located in India
Arpakkam
Arpakkam
Arpakkam (India)
Coordinates: 12°44′02″N 79°45′40″E / 12.734°N 79.761°E / 12.734; 79.761
Country India
StateTamil Nadu
DistrictKanchipuram
BlockKanchipuram
Area
[1]
 • Total8.3407 km2 (3.2204 sq mi)
Elevation
65 m (213 ft)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total2,937
 • Density350/km2 (910/sq mi)
Languages
 • OfficialTamil
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)

Arpakkam is a village in the Kanchipuram district of Tamil Nadu, India. According to the 2011 census of India, it has a population of 2937.[2]

History

The Arpakkam inscription, dated to the fifth regnal year of the Chola ruler Rajadhiraja II (r. c. 1166–1178), states that a Chola chieftain had granted the village to a religious leader named Umapati-deva (also known as Jnana-Siva and Svamidevar). The inscription states that Umapati-deva was a native of the Dakṣina Rāḍha (present-day West Bengal), and had migrated to the southern Chola kingdom. Around this time, the Sinhala army captured the neighbouring Pandya kingdom, and then began offensives against the Chola feudatories.[3] The Chola chieftain Edirilisola Sambuvarayan appointed Umapati-deva to offer prayers and conduct worship rituals, in order to avert this crisis. After 28 days of worship, Sambuvarayan received a letter from the Chola general Pillai Pallavarayan, informing him that the Sinhala generals Jayadratha, Lankapuri and others had retreated. Believing that Umapati-deva had divine powers, Sambuvarayan granted him the village of Alpakkam (modern Arpakkam), comprising 167 velis of land, as a tax-free endowment.[4][5]

Temples

Arapakkam has 1000-year old Jain, Shiva and Adi Kesava Perumal temples.The Perumal temple housed 3 statues of Buddha as well.

Idol theft

On the Nalanda Trail, ACM Singapore

A seated Buddha statue from the Perumal temple was stolen on the night of 25 November 2003 and smuggled abroad.[6] The statue was then spotted in the exhibition named On the Nalanda Trail at Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore, where it was advertised as Nagapattinam Buddha.[7] The so-called Nagapattinam Buddha was later seized in New York by the Homeland Security in 2012.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 "District Census Handbook: Kancheepuram (page 212)" (PDF). Directorate of Census Operations. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  2. ↑ "Census of India 2011: Kancheepuram district" (PDF). Directorate of Census Operations. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  3. ↑ "Arpakkam Inscription of the Fifth Year of Rajadhiraja II". Lanka Pradeepa. 11 May 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  4. ↑ S. R. Balasubrahmanyam (1979). Later Chola Temples: Kulottunga I to Rajendra III (A.D. 1070-1280). Mudgala Trust. p. 255. OCLC 847060842.
  5. ↑ Siba Pada Sen (1976). The North and the South in Indian History. Institute of Historical Studies. p. 5. OCLC 557834681.
  6. ↑ R., Sivaraman (30 December 2022). "Tamil Nadu police trace three stolen idols abroad". The Hindu. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  7. ↑ S., Vijay Kumar (27 August 2022). "The stolen Buddhas of Tamil Nadu". Times of India. Retrieved 21 August 2023. ... We have cracked the Subhash Kapoor ACM Nalanda Way Manmohan Singh Buddha case last week, and he was not taken from Nagapattinam, but closer to Chennai, from the village of Arapakkam ...
  8. ↑ R., Sivaraman (10 August 2022). "Stolen Chola-era Buddha idol now stuck in the U.S." The Hindu. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
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