Madurai
Topic: Sangam Age and Early South India · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 6 "The Age of Reorganisation"
Meaning
Madurai was the capital of the Pandya kings. It stands on the Vaigai river in Tamil Nadu. In the Sangam age (c. 300 BCE – 300 CE) it was a rich city full of traders. Pandya kings ruled from here for several centuries BCE. Tamil tradition also says the Tamil Sangams met here. A Sangam was an assembly, or gathering, of poets.
Example
In the Tamil epic Silappadikaram, the Pandya king at Madurai has Kovalan put to death for a theft he did not commit. His wife Kannagi proves he was innocent and puts a curse on Madurai. The fire god then burns the city down.
Don't confuse with
- Vanji (Karur): Vanji was the capital of the Cheras, not the Pandyas. The Pandyas ruled from Madurai, and their emblem was the fish.