THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: An aura of blissful silence fills the pathways, bylanes and the past-tinted buildings of Valiyasala in the capital city. As though reflecting the bygone years when it was home to scholars and students who sat in erudition and studies.
The liberating, serene space around the landmark Shiva temple in Valiyasala once held the Kantaloor Sala, one of ancient India’s famed universities, where keen minds researched sciences, arts and even military strategies.
Historians recall the mention of the university in inscriptions found in Sucheendarm temple and Thiruvaleeswaram temple in Tirunelveli.
“There are several temples in Tamil Nadu where the mention of Kantaloor Sala can be found. The inscriptions praise the kings such as Raja Raja Chola, his descendants Rajendra Chola, Rajaditya Chola, and Kulanthunga Chola’s general Naraloka Veeran for destroying the university that flourished during the Chola reigns in the early AD centuries,” says historian M G Sashibooshan.
“There are also inscriptions found in Munchira in Tamil Nadu where it is said that the Parthivapuram school established there in the 8th century by Karunanthadakkan, the Ay king, was modelled on the Kantalor Sala. These are the earliest records implying the university existed even before the Nalanda, Vikramashila and Takshila in the north.”
The Kantaloor Sala also finds mention in the Jain text Kuvaleyamala as ‘Sarva Chattanam Matham’ (a place for learning) where a royal scion from the north goes to study.
“There is mention of a place called Vijayapuri understood to be the current Vizhinjam, where the Sala was initially said to be housed. But later it was found to be in and around the Valiyasala temple which in records is known as Kantaloor Siva temple. The areas in the vicinity of the temple even now bear a lot of that identity — Valiyasala (probably where the varsity had its main centres), Aryasala, Chinnasala, the market area around Chala (Sala means school), etc. The later text Kuvaleyamala Katha Sankshepam also has its mention,” Sashibooshan says.
The historian also claims to have identified a figurine in the Valiyasala temple that belonged to Sangramadheera Ravi Varma or Kulasekharaperumal, the ruler of the Venad dynasty. “Some inscriptions on him and Rajendra Chola were found from the temple, which are missing now,” he says.
Dr T P Sankarankutty, in a paper titled ‘Keralathile Salakal’ included in a government publication titled ‘Kerala Samskara Padanangal’ states the relevance of Kantaloor Sala as one of the four important centres of learning, the others being the Parthivapuram Sala, Moozhikulam Sala, and Thiruvalla Sala.
Of this, the Kantaloor Sala was the most prominent, Dr Sankarankutty finds from Huzur records at Thiruvananthapuram. Its model, called Kantaloor Maryada, was probably emulated by the others in setting academic disciplines, the selection process of students, the conduct of the students, as well as in the penalty imposed for violation of rules.
“The Sala taught 64 subjects in 34 departments, ranging from philosophy and architecture to astrophysics and arts. The Sala also played a prominent role in shaping the Kerala School of Mathematics, which gained prominence in the medieval centuries,” says Dr P C Muraleemadhavan, director-in-charge of the Kantaloor Sala revival project.
It is said in the Kuvaleyamala that the university had students from 18 kingdoms across the subcontinent. What could have caused its decline is the skill the university imparted in administration and military strategies to its scholars.
Dr Sankarankutty, in his article, also quotes the Travancore Archeological Series to ground the institution’s role in imparting military training to the students during times of conflict during the 9th and 10th centuries.
Rajadhiraja Chola mentions about the Kantaloor Sala, as the school near the sea, which was instrumental in empowering the Cheras against the Chola empire. This could have led to the Cholas attacking the Kantaloor Sala and eventually starting its decline.
Revival programme
Its revival saga began in 2019 when scholars and history enthusiasts came together knowing about the historical significance and formed a trust.
The initial days saw conferences being held in a makeshift facility in West Fort, and soon the Kantaloor Sala revival project went online, forming an academic council that has experts from across India.
“We also offer diploma courses in seven disciplines and have organised over 100 online seminars and conferences attended by experts in relevant disciplines from universities across the world including Harvard and Cambridge. There are hundreds of videos of those lectures on YouTube,” says Narayanan Potty K, president of the revival project.
The Kantaloor Sala now dreams of a revival akin to the Nalanda University in Bihar and plans to apply for Deemed University status in future, offering higher research facilities and courses in subjects that were offered in the Sala’s earlier edition and exploring their relevance in the modern systems.
‘Centre of conflict zones’
In 2023, the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation had set aside around `25 lakh for the project take-off but the grant could not be availed of by the trust.
“We plan to apply for Central government grants once we complete three years of functioning in December this year,” says Dr Pradeep Jeothi, treasurer of the project. Plans are also afoot to have a university campus for the Kantaloor Sala, probably in the border areas of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
“This apart, we are also trying to source funds through grants from state and central government, and apply for CSR funds,” says a trust member.
The members of the trust are steadfast in their moves to see Kantaloor see a resurgence akin to the revival of Nalanda University, an ancient centre of learning that invasions had destroyed, as proposed by former president APJ Abdul Kalam in 2006.
Historians say the university was in the southern region, and probably hence Nalanda and Takshila found more mentions in the annals of history. Or probably, Kantaloor was even older than Nalanda and Takshila, and began its decline as their relevance picked up. An archaeological study into the subject and a museum dedicated to showcasing the evidences of the Kantaloor Sala were also proposed.
“But all these got mired in procedural delays. The issue is the antiquity and the complete destruction it faced due to which the evidences are scattered. It was only when the Parthivapuram inscriptions were decoded and mentioned in Kerala Bhasha Institute’s Pracheena Shila Shasanangal that the Kantaloor Maryada came to be known,” says Narayan.
There was an effort in 1944 by the archeological department to survey certain spots to find out more. Further explorations into the subject came only after its mention in Kuvaleyamala.
“More mentions were also found by Sooranadu Kunjan Pillai and Nalankal Krishnapillai from the Manipravala Krithi Ananthapuram Varna written in 1100 AD. We need to remember that the Sala was in the centre of several conflict zones leading to its total decline in 1200 AD,” Narayanan adds.
“Only now, we are trying to piece all these together and try to revive the centre of learning that was the pride of the region.”
A remnant
There are inscriptions found in Munchira, Tamil Nadu, where it is said that the Parthivapuram school established there in the 8th century was modelled on the Kantallor Sala. These are the earliest records implying the university existed even before or probably alongside the Nalanda