Raja Raja Chola I: Life, Conquests and Thanjavur

Raja Raja Chola I ruled the Chola kingdom from Thanjavur from 985 to 1014 CE and made it the leading power of South India. Born Arulmozhi Varman, he conquered the Chera and Pandya kingdoms and northern Sri Lanka, organised a careful administration, and built the Brihadisvara temple at Thanjavur, completed in 1010 and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. His son Rajendra I carried his empire further.

Rise to the throne

Arulmozhi was the younger son of the Chola king Parantaka II. His elder brother Aditya II, the heir, was killed about 969 in a palace conspiracy. The throne passed to their uncle Uttama Chola, and Arulmozhi became king only after Uttama's death, in 985. He took the name Rajaraja, "king of kings". His elder sister Kundavai remained an important figure at court and a patron of temples.

Conquests

His inscriptions list his wars in a fixed opening passage, the meykkirti, which he was the first Chola to use regularly.

• Kerala and the Pandyas. Early in his reign he defeated the Chera fleet at Kandalur Salai and brought the Pandya country under Chola rule.
• Sri Lanka. His armies took Anuradhapura and annexed the north of the island, ruling it from Polonnaruwa as a Chola province.
• The Deccan. He fought the Western Chalukyas, held Gangavadi and Nolambavadi in present-day Karnataka, and secured Vengi in coastal Andhra through an alliance; his daughter Kundavai married the Eastern Chalukya prince Vimaladitya.
• The Maldives. His inscriptions claim the conquest of "the old islands of the sea numbering twelve thousand", generally taken to mean the Maldives.

Administration

Chola inscriptions of his reign record a survey and assessment of land, about 1001, a standing army in named regiments, and village assemblies managing local affairs. His records are among the best-dated of any Indian king of the time.

The Brihadisvara temple

Raja Raja built the great Shiva temple of Thanjavur, which he named Rajarajeshvaram. Its inscriptions record that he gave the gilded finial for the vimana (tower over the sanctum) in his twenty-fifth regnal year, 1010. The vimana rises about 66 metres, the tallest of its time in India. The walls carry his long inscriptions listing gifts, the temple's staff, among them about four hundred dancers and many musicians, and the villages that supported it. With the later temples at Gangaikondacholapuram and Darasuram it forms the UNESCO World Heritage Site "Great Living Chola Temples", listed in 1987 and extended in 2004. Read more: Brihadeeswarar temple.

Faith and patronage

Raja Raja was a devotee of Shiva and took the title Shivapadasekhara, "he who wears Shiva's feet on his head". He also gave to Vishnu temples, and the Larger Leiden copper plates record his grant of a village to a Buddhist vihara at Nagapattinam built by the king of Srivijaya. Tradition links the recovery of the Tevaram hymns to his reign; see the Nayanars.

Death and legacy

He made his son Rajendra co-ruler about 1012 and died in 1014. Rajendra extended the empire to the Ganga and across the sea to Southeast Asia. The thousandth year of the Thanjavur temple was celebrated in 2010, and his birth star is still marked each year at the temple. Read more: Rajendra Chola I.

Frequently asked questions

When did Raja Raja Chola I rule?

From 985 to 1014 CE.

What was Raja Raja Chola's real name?

Arulmozhi Varman.

Who built the Thanjavur Brihadisvara temple?

Raja Raja Chola I; it was completed in 1010.

Which lands did Raja Raja Chola conquer?

The Chera and Pandya kingdoms, northern Sri Lanka, parts of the Deccan, and, by his inscriptions' claim, the Maldives.

Who succeeded Raja Raja Chola?

His son Rajendra Chola I.

What is Sadhaya Vizha?

The celebration of Raja Raja's birth star, Sadhayam in the month of Aippasi, at Thanjavur each year.

Sources

• K. A. Nilakanta Sastri, The Colas (University of Madras, 2nd edition 1955).
• UNESCO World Heritage Centre, "Great Living Chola Temples" (whc.unesco.org/en/list/250).
• Archaeological Survey of India, South Indian Inscriptions, volume 2 (Tanjore temple inscriptions).

Last reviewed: 12 November 2026.

Related: Famous Hindus · Rajendra Chola I · Krishnadevaraya · Rani Rudrama Devi