01 Nov RAJARAJA CHOLA | Raghavan Srinivasan
Rajaraja Chola or Arulmozhivarman was born to Sundara Chola in 947CE and that marked change of the entire Chola Empire.
We see in this book the events that happened before the arrival of the great king Rajaraja Chola as well as his reign at the age of 38, his administration and his socio-political tactics. The victories and defeats of the chola empire have also been written and their sources have also been mentioned. The building of many Shiva temples including the famous Brihadeeshwara Temple at Tanjavur was a sign of Chola’s legacy and they being ardent devotees of Lord Shiva.
The book is not a smooth read as as a regular fiction reader I did find it quite tedious to attach the different kings and their conquests to the main focus of the book. (eventhough there is a map and a chronological chart). The author have done a tremendous job and I am quite impressed by the amount of work he has done gathering the information about a great king like Rajaraja Chola. It is quite difficult to find a complete genuine article of this king and there a few or none( if I can say that) about the king in detail.
Do go in for the book if you are a history buff as the insights are quite marvelous. I have always been a lover of the Brihadeeshwara temple at Tanjavur and this book was a delight to read about the king who sanctioned the building of the 1011 year old temple!
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