Medieval Period (600 1300)[edit] Kallanai or Grand Anicut, is an ancient dam built on the Kaveri River in Tiruchi rappalli,

Tamil Nadu, India. It was built by the Chola king Karikala Chola aroun d the 2nd Century AD[32][33] and is considered one of the oldest water-diversion or water-regulator structures in the world, which is still in use. It still sta nds as a symbol of Dravidian Engineering.[34][35]During the Kalabhras' rule Budd hism flourished in the land of the Tamils. The didactic work Naaladiyar was comp osed during their reign. It consists of moral sayings in the venpa meter, 400 in number in 40 chapters, each by one Buddhist ascetic, according to tradition. Fo llowing the tradition of Tamil Buddhism, Naaladiyar emphasises virtues such as c ontrol of the senses, Dhamma (Lord Buddha's teaching), renunciation, and other d esirable social qualities. Pali was the court language of the Kalabhras who were also called Kalapara or Kalaparaya according to the Koramangalam inscription.[c itation needed] Shore Temple built by the Pallavas at Mamallapuram during the eighth century, no w a UNESCO World Heritage Site.During the fourth to eighth centuries C.E., Tamil Nadu saw the rise of the Pallavas under Mahendravarman I and his son Mamalla Na rasimhavarman I.[36] The Pallavas ruled parts of South India with Kanchipuram as their capital. Dravidian architecture reached its peak during Pallava rule. Nar asimhavarman II built the Shore Temple which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Th ey came into conflict with the Kannada Chalukyas of Badami. During this period, The great Badami Chalukya King Pulakesi II extended the Chalukya Empire up to th e northern extents of the Pallava kingdom and defeated the Pallavas in several b attles.[37] Pallava Narasimhavarman, however, reversed this victory in 642 by at tacking and occupying Badami temporarily.[38] However, a later Chalukya King Vik ramaditya II took revenge by repeated invasions of the territory of Tondaimandal am and his subsequent victories over Pallava Parameswarvarman I and the temporar y occupation of Kanchipuram.[39] The Meenakshi Amman Temple in Madurai is one of the grand Hindu temples in India .The Pallava dynasty was overthrown in the 9th century by the imperial Rashtraku tas who ruled from Gulbarga. King Krishna III, the last great Rashtrakuta king c onsolidated the empire so that it stretched from the Narmada River to Kaveri Riv er and included the northern Tamil country (Tondaimandalam) while levying tribut e on the king of Ceylon.[40] Much later, the Pallavas were replaced by the Chola s as the dominant kingdom in the 10th century C.E. and they in turn were replace d by Pandyas in the 13th century C.E. The Pandyan capital Madurai was in the dee p south away from the coast. They had extensive trade links with the south east Asian maritime empires of Srivijaya and their successors, as well as contacts, e ven formal diplomatic contacts, reaching as far as the Roman Empire. During the 13th century C.E. Marco Polo mentioned the Pandyas as the richest empire in exis tence. Temples such as the Meenakshi Amman Temple at Madurai and Nellaiappar Tem ple at Tirunelveli are the best examples of Pandyan temple architecture.[41] The Pandyas excelled in both trade and literature. They controlled the pearl fisher ies along the south coast of India, between Sri Lanka and India, which produced some of the finest pearls in the known ancient world.