VELLORE: The Javadhu Hills in the district continues to provide ample information about the historical and cultural heritage to the seekers. Recently, a team led by Professor Mohan Gandhi of the Sacred Heart College in Tirupattur stumbled upon a twin ‘sati stones’ in Nimmiyampattu village in the hills.
Observing their look and style, Mohan Gandhi said the stones could belong to the Vijayanagar period. People, who had been living in hilly regions, reared cattle as one of their big source of income, besides worshipping them. Historical evidences pointed out that kings from others regions used to wage wars to grab the cattle, he noted.
Tamil literatures had made elaborate documentation of such wars and how the soldiers in the villages used to fight back. If these soldiers had to succumb to the war, the grateful villagers, in a bid to express their gratitude to the slain soldiers, erected stones, which are identified as ‘hero stones’. Rarely, one could come across the stones depicting women, who ended their lives by committing sati, after their spouses had been slain during wars.
Two such sati stones, each measuring 4 feet by 3.5 feet in size and facing east, had been identified in the village, the professor said. In one of the stones, a soldier is seen seated with a leg folded and a lotus-like object is found on his thigh and hand. Next to him stands a women figure, who might have committed ‘sati’ after her husband’s death. In another stone, which is facing north, the soldier holds some object on one hand and a sword on the other. A pot-like object is seen next to him. On the other side, stands a woman, who might have died along with him.
“Going by the sculptural manifestations, I think these stones could have been erected during the Vijayanagar period, when the incidents of sati had been reported in large numbers. Tamil literature Purananooru has mentioned about the practice of sati by women, when their husbands had been killed in wars,” he said.
These stones were a treasure of information and would give a lot of insight for the new generation on how the yesteryear ancestors had lived. The government must take a special programme to preserve these stones, he added.
Vijayanagar period
Going by the sculptural manifestations, these stones could have been erected during Vijayanagar period, when the incidents of sati had been reported in large numbers, expert said