INSCRIPTIONS AS A SOURCE FOR RECONSTRUCTING KAKATIYA

HISTORY.

The Kakatiya, a known indigenous Andhra power. presided over the

destiny of northern Andhra Pradesh from 10° century CE to 14h
century CE. The literary text of Vidyanatha records that this family of
nulers was called Kakatiya as they were known to have worshipped
the goddess, Kakati. The Kakatiya's are also known as worshippers of
shiva. The Bayyaram tank epigraph mentions that Venna was the
earliest member of the family and he ruled from a town called kakati
and as such his descendants are called as Kakatiyas.
The epigraphs of Kakatiyas refer to them as lords of Kakatipura. The
epigraphy also states that Kakatiya were originally of some
Rashtrakuta family and hence were shudras. During 9th and 10
centuries, they were the subordinates of the Rashtrakutas. After the
overthrow of Rashtrakuta power by the western Chalukyas of
Kalyani, the Kakatiya's becarne their feudatories. Kakatiya ulers
served the western Chalukyan rulers. After the fall af the western
Chalukyan power, the Kakatiya ruler Rudradeva declared
independence. Thus, the role of Kakatiyas as sovereign power starts
from Rudradeva. Rudradeva was the founder of the Kakatiya lineage
as he declared independence and started independent rule.
The hanumakonda epigraph gives graphic details of his conquests
over his neighbours. Frorm Jalhana's Suktimuktavali and Hemadri's
Vratakhanda that he faced defeat in the confiict with Yadavas of
Devagiri. As Rudradeva had no children, he was succeeded to the
throne by his brother Mahadeva. Mahadeva was succeeded by
Ganpatideva, who successfully united the entire Telugu speaking
people
As Ganpatideva had no sons he selected his eldest daughter
Rudrama to succeed him. The assession of Rudrama to the Kakatiya
throne was a remarkable and memorable event of medieval south
India as she was the first worman ruler of Andhra region. She
sucesstully repulsed the Yadava attadk and drove Yadavas up to
Devagiri as is known from bidar epigraph.
Polity -
The Kakatiya polity was based on monarchical system. The Kakatiya
ruler was the pivot of the entire administrative structure, yet he was
not an absolute autocrat. Generally. the process of succession was
hereditary with the first born succeeding to the throne.
The power appears to be decentralized between the ruler and the
subordinates who owed allegiance to the ruler. P.V. Parabrahma
Sastry observes, "The subordinates were allowed to have their
freedom in all respects except military matters. The only concern for
the king was to check their overgrowth in power".
Cynthia Talbot, after a thorough discussion of the suitability of the
models - feudal, segnentary and integrative, declares the Kakatiya
state as best understood as a fluctuating political network composed
in large part of amultitude of personalities between lords and under
lings. Sorme of the fibres in the fabric of Kakatiya polity united the
rulers directly to their primary subordinates, others led from these
subordinates to different tiers of ssociates in a densely ramified
pattern.
Talbot views the Kakatiya polity as a regional variant of a pan-tndian
complex, a dynamic and an expansionist world. There is also a view
that Kakatiya polity is an integrative polity. The Kakatiya rulers were
assisted by a council of ministers and a host of oflcers at the centre
as well as the provincial and local level. They took care to see that
the territorial segments were property divided and rujed effectively
by loyal oficials. Mandala, Nadu, Sthala, Seema and Bhumi were the
names of the territorial divisions.
The Kakatlya state was a mlitary-state ready to face the threat of
Internal and external enemies. The military organization of the
Kakatiyas was based on Nayanakara system. In this system the ruler
assigned fiefs to the Nayaks in lieu of their salaries and the Nayaks
were to maintain some army for the ruler's use. Apart from the army
that was supplied by the Nayaks, the Kakatiyas also maintalned a
standing army under the control oft the commanders, who were
directly responsible to the ruler.
The military organization enabled the Kakatilyas to be aggressive and
rapidly expand as an Andhra power. The relationships between
Nayaks and rulers are marked by layers of lord-subordinate
relationshlps loosely bound through personal loyaltles of allegiance
and service.
Soclety
Relying on the evidence furnished by the Dharmasastric literature,
traditional historians perceive the society as based on the
Varnasramadharma model and divided into fourfld Varnas:
Brahman, Kshatrlya, Vaisya and Sudra.
Rulership was not the monopoly of the Kshatrlyas alone and the
prominence of the Kshatriya community as rulers appears to have
diminished to a large extent. Anyone could become a ruler, provided
he had the necessary qualities and abilities. One of the prominent
features of medieval Andhra was the emergence of Sudras as the
new political elite and the other social groups accepted the
superiority of the Sudras as rulers.

Cynthia Talbot rejects the image of a static village and a caste-based

organization during this period as Varna and Jati are less visible in the
Kakatiya lithic records and hence she argues that the idealized
paradigm of Varna and Jati are not relevant.
Talbot is of the view that the individual reputation, military service
and administrative ranking were the main basis for identities, and
claim to social importance.
Temple epigraphs testify to the practice of Saani being added to the
women of the royal family and those attached to the temple.
Eplgraphs also record donation of livestock, ternple buildings and
metal items used in ritual worship, along with irrigational facilities
and cash.

Soclal rigidity was less noticeable due to dynamism and fluidity

witnessed ln social relations. Merchants and artisan assoclation
appear to be the largest category of collectlve donors known from
the eplgraphs of the Kakatiyas. Social relationships appear to be
based on common interest and occupatlons rather than Varna or jati.
Economy:
Kakatlya eplgraphs bear testimony to the economic development
witnessed by Andhradesa due to the cumulative etfect of the steps
taken by rulers and feudatories and oflclals from AD 1158 to 1324.
Both agriculture and trade and commerce, partlcularly long-distance
trade acted as a catalyst in carrying the Kakatlya state and making lt
economicaly sound.
Though the core area of the Kakatiyas was ecologically in dry zone
with scanty ralnfal, with soll not very fertile, the Kakatlyas paid much
attentlon to agriculture, the main occupation of majority of its
population, They employed tank irrigation as a necessary technique
to provide water for cultivation.
The multitude of historical traces confirms that a boom in the
building of tanks occurred in inland Andhra while the Kakatiyas were
ruling. The tank foundation inscriptions are distributed throughout
Telengana, the southern coastal districts, and in Cuddapah of
Rayalaseema. They are more concentrated in the districts of
Khammam and Warangal. Along with tanik construction, there was
construction of temples with a tank in the interior as well as addition
of a tank to the existing temples.
The temple construction also led to the growth of new settlements
of people who brought uncultivated virgin land into cultivation. By
these processes of tank construction and ternple construction, the
Kakatiyas achieved the twin objective of improving productivity by
bringing new areas unxder cultivation and also the formation of
Andhra as a regional society. noted by Talbot.
Land was surveyed and measured. where the ruler collected one
fourth to one-half of the produce as revenue. The revenue was
collected either in cash or in kind. The Kakatiyas levied ditterent
taxes like tax on grazing. property tax, income tax, profession tax,
marriage tax, tax on herds of sheep and tax on salt. Heavy taxation
by the state appears to be the feature of Kakatiya polity.
In the Kakatiya Andhra, trade was carried on by well-organized
guilds. Both the merchants and artisans had their Own guilds.
Epigraphs refer to guild of weavers, agriculturists. oil pressers, mat
makers, smiths. potters and jewelers.
KakatByas recognized the importance of long-distance trade. One
Indication that they wanted to encourage maritime trade, comes
from the famous Mompalli epigraph.
Thus, flourishing agriculture and surplus produce and long-distance
trade carried on by guikds like Pekkandru was the base for the sound
economic position of Kakatiya Andhra.
Religion:
The earty Kakatiya rulers were adherents of Jainism of the Digambara
sect. They are credited with the construction of Padmakshi temple at
Hanumakonda. Saivism was the most predominant faith in Kakatiya
Andhra. During the reign of Ganapati Deva, the Pasupata sect of
Saivism had become very popular and Visveswara Sivacharya became
the Rajaguru of Ganapati Deva.
The Malakapurarn inscription of Rudramadevi helps us to know
about the growth of Pasupata sect and Golaki Matha activities in
Andhradesa. In the past three decades, western scholars like Herman
Kulke and Burton Steln have stressed that religions patronage by
royalty was a critical element of state formation. Further scholars like
Spencer, Brackenbridge. and Appadurai also opine that by religlous
patronage, kings enhanced their royal authority.