The Chola system was headed by a king, who was the highest power in the state. Religion and culture played an important part in the Chola administration, with considerable energies of the state being used in building temples and patronizing priests. An interesting development was the cult of the god-king. Deceased Chola kings were often depicted on temples and were worshipped by the people. The king in the Chola form of government was assisted by an assembly of councillors and the rajguru (priest of the royal family). There does not appear to have been any regular ministerial councils.
The administrative set up of the Chola period was a well organized one. Although the kings word was law, before it could be implemented it would have to be written down. The entire kingdom was divided into a number of provinces known as mandalams . These were divided into districts or valanadus . The districts were then further divided into groups of villages known as kurram, naddu or kettam . A big village would sometimes be administered as a single unit, and such a unit would be known as a taniyur . The Chola villages retained the administrative machinery as it was during the Gupta period, and in fact one remarkable feature of the Chola period was the amount of autonomy given to the village government. While
Chola officials were present, their role was more of observers then of administrators, and their responsibilities were few, for the Chola philosophy was of letting the villages be ruled by the villagers themselves. A village would have a number of assemblies. The ur as composed of the tax paying members of the village. The sabha was for the Brahmins and the nagaram was for the trading community. These assemblies were able to cover almost the entire population of the village and hence the villagers were able to govern themselves quite effectively. The village government had some important central responsibilities as well. It was responsible for the collection of revenue and assessing the tax structure. Certain pieces of land or individuals were exempt from tax, and the village government was responsible for maintaining the accuracy of this list. Also since this was a period following the great cultural revival of the Gupta period, there was tremendous interest in temple building, and villages were supposed to supervise the building of these structures in their area. Land was either owned by the village as a whole or by individuals. Regular assessment of taxes was done and the tax was paid to an officer of the Chola administration. The Chola had also developed a fairly well organized judicial system. Besides the existing village courts, the Cholas constituted royal courts as well to further increase the availability of justice. Evidence was presented and witnesses were heard. It was not uncommon for reluctant witnesses to be forced to testify. Punishments were harsh, and in many cases fines and imprisonment were imposed. Capital punishment was reserved for the worst of crimes and was usually carried out either by decapitation or by being trampled to death by an elephant
The Chola system was headed by a king, who was the highest power in the state. Religion and culture played an important part in the Chola administration, with considerable energies of the state being used in building temples and patronizing priests. An interesting development was the cult of the god-king. Deceased Chola kings were often depicted on temples and were worshipped by the people. The king in the Chola form of government was assisted by an assembly of councillors and the rajguru (priest of the royal family). There does not appear to have been any regular ministerial councils.
The administrative set up of the Chola period was a well organized one. Although the kings word was law, before it could be implemented it would have to be written down. The entire kingdom was divided into a number of provinces known as mandalams . These were divided into districts or valanadus . The districts were then further divided into groups of villages known as kurram, naddu or kettam . A big village would sometimes be administered as a single unit, and such a unit would be known as a taniyur . The Chola villages retained the administrative machinery as it was during the Gupta period, and in fact one remarkable feature of the Chola period was the amount of autonomy given to the village government. While Chola officials were present, their role was more of observers then of administrators, and their responsibilities were few, for the Chola philosophy was of letting the villages be ruled by the villagers themselves. A village would have a number of assemblies. The ur as composed of the tax paying members of the village. The sabha was for the Brahmins and the nagaram was for the trading community. These assemblies were able to cover almost the entire population of the village and hence the villagers were able to govern themselves quite effectively. The village government had some important central responsibilities as well. It was responsible for the collection of revenue and assessing the tax structure. Certain pieces of land or individuals were exempt from tax, and the village government was responsible for maintaining the accuracy of this list. Also since this was a period following the great cultural revival of the Gupta period, there was tremendous interest in temple building, and villages were supposed to supervise the building of these structures in their area. Land was either owned by the village as a whole or by individuals. Regular assessment of taxes was done and the tax was paid to an officer of the Chola administration.
The Chola had also developed a fairly well organized judicial system. Besides the existing village courts, the Cholas constituted royal courts as well to further increase the availability of justice. Evidence was presented and witnesses were heard. It was not uncommon for reluctant witnesses to be forced to testify. Punishments were harsh, and in many cases fines and imprisonment were imposed. Capital punishment was reserved for the worst of crimes and was usually carried out either by decapitation or by being trampled to death by an elephant
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