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Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu , India ( info ) The religious centre of Mamallapuram (formerly Mahabalipuram) was founded by a 7th-century-CE Pallava king, Narasimhavarman, also called Mamalla ("great wrestler"), for whom the town was named. The Pallavas, a 4th-9th-century dynasty, began as indigenous subordinates of the Satavahanas in the Deccan, moved into Andhra, and then to Kanchi ( Kanchipuram today), where they rapidly adopted Tamil ways. Their genealogy and chronology, however, are highly disputed. Their rule was marked by commercial enterprise and a limited amount of colonization in Southeast Asia. Ancient Chinese, Persian, and Roman coins found at Mamallapuram attest to a flourishing seaport.
Vimāna is a word with several meanings ranging from temple or palace to mythological flying machines described in Sanskrit epics . [ edit ] Etymology and usage Sanskrit विमान vi-māna literally means "measuring out, traversing" or "having been measured out". It can refer to (ref Monier-Williams [ 1 ] ): The palace of an emperor or supreme monarch The adytum of a Rama temple, or of any other temple A temple or shrine of a particular form, see Vimanam (tower) From that meaning, "a god's palace" From that meaning Pushpaka or Dandumonara; the flying machine (flying palace) of king Rāvana of Lanka.
