Telegu Inscription

[N. Ganesan]

Some Chola inscriptions talk of soldiers from Kongu country
(Coimbatore region) offered their heads at Srisailam on their
own. (NavakaNTham offering)

A useful reference could be:
N. Subrahmanian, Self-immolation in Tamil society.
Madurai, 1983, 107 p. (Many US libraies have this)

Kalingattup paraNi, a prabandham describing Kulottunga I's war
war in Kalinga country in 1112 AD has graphic details of self-oblation.
Soldiers willingly giving their heads at Kali's feet.

One of the many couplets:

  aTik kazuttinuTan cirattai arivaraalO!
   arin^ta ciram aNangin kaik koTupparaalO!
  koTutta ciram koRRavaiyaip paravumaalO!
   kuRai uTalam kumpiTTu niRkumaalO!

My thinking is medical treatment was not improved in those days.
Instead of suffering, they preferred to die. But of course,
some died because their religious cults.

N. Ganesan