Tag: our golden past

India is called "Bird of Gold" in ancient times as India was rich in resources which led favourable trade in India. India received Gold and silver against the export of goods and it accumulated gold from all over the world in India. 

The Indian coastline is vast and stretches over 6,100 kms. The eastern coastline is called the Coromandel Coast, whereas the western coastline is referred to as Konkan and Malabar coast. The numerous ports on this coastline had attracted the Romans from time immemorial. Foreign trade was carried on in those days only through sea-routes. Thus these ports developed and became the cause for the rise of powerful kingdoms in the South like the Pandyas, the Cheras and the Cholas. 

The Sangam literature connotes the ancient Tamil literature and is the earliest known literature of South India. The Tamil tradition and legends link it to three literary gatherings around Madurai (Pandyan capital): the first over 4,440 years, the second over 3,700 years, and the third over 1,850 years before the start of the common era. Hence, Option A is correct.

In the Sangam Age, a well-known unit of territory yielding tax was a variyam (Vari meant tax). Hence, Option A is correct. The village itself in the Sangam times had two assemblies for managing its affairs, Ambalam or Avai and Manram or Podiyil and an officer-in-charge of collecting the tax from that unit of land was called a Variyar. Brahmadeya (given to Brahmana) was a tax-free land gift either in form of single plot or whole villages donated to Brahmanas in early medieval India. It was initially practiced by the ruling dynasties and was soon followed up by the chiefs, merchants, feudatories, etc. Hence, the rest of the options are incorrect. 

In the Ancient period, the region ranging from Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh to Kanyakumari was called Tamilakam. Tamilakam refers to the geographical region inhabited by the ancient Tamil people. Tamilakam covered today's Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Lakshadweep and southern parts of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. 

There are a number of Chola kings as mentioned in the Sangam literature with different surnames like Kill, Valavan, Senni, and Cholan. One of them was Karikalan who ruled in southern part of India during Sangam Period. He is considered to be the greatest of the early Cholas. The name Karikalan means " a man with the charred leg". 

The origins of all the classical languages are really old and unclear. Tamil language is older than 1st century BC when "Tolkappiyam"-one of the world's oldest works on grammar was written. Hence, it makes the present Tamil language nothing less than 2500 years.

According to the Tamil tradition, three Sangams were held at Madurai, Kapatpuram, and Madurai between BCE 300 and CE 300. All Sangam works were believed to be compiled during this period.The poems belonging to Sangam literature were composed by Tamil poets, both men, and women, from various professions and classes of society.

Jayadeva wrote Gita Govinda. He is most known for his epic poem Gita Govinda which concentrates on Krishna's love with Radha in a rite of spring.

Tolkappiyam, an early book on Tamil grammar and poetics, was believed to be written by Tolkappiyar. Tolkappiyam actually consists of three books- the Ezhuttadikaram, the Solladikarama and the Poruladikaram. The book divides the society of Sangam age into four castes as Brahmanas, kings, traders and farmers in its third book called Poruladikaram. It also divides the Tamil language into Sentamil and Koduntamil.