Arpakkam | |
Settlement Type: | village |
Pushpin Map: | Tamil Nadu#India |
Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Tamil Nadu, India |
Coordinates: | 12.734°N 79.761°W |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | India |
Subdivision Type1: | State |
Subdivision Name1: | Tamil Nadu |
Subdivision Type2: | District |
Subdivision Name2: | Kanchipuram |
Subdivision Type3: | Block |
Subdivision Name3: | Kanchipuram |
Unit Pref: | Metric |
Area Footnotes: | [1] |
Area Total Km2: | 8.3407 |
Elevation M: | 65 |
Population Total: | 2937 |
Population As Of: | 2011 |
Population Density Km2: | auto |
Demographics Type1: | Languages |
Demographics1 Title1: | Official |
Demographics1 Info1: | Tamil |
Timezone1: | IST |
Utc Offset1: | +5:30 |
Arpakkam is a village in the Kanchipuram district of Tamil Nadu, India. According to the 2011 census of India, it has a population of 2937.[2]
The Arpakkam inscription, dated to the fifth regnal year of the Chola ruler Rajadhiraja II (r. c. 1166–1178), states that a Chola chieftain had granted the village to a religious leader named Umapati-deva (also known as Jnana-Siva and Svamidevar). The inscription states that Umapati-deva was a native of the Dakṣina Rāḍha (present-day West Bengal), and had migrated to the southern Chola kingdom. Around this time, the Sinhala army captured the neighbouring Pandya kingdom, and then began offensives against the Chola feudatories.[3] The Chola chieftain Edirilisola Sambuvarayan appointed Umapati-deva to offer prayers and conduct worship rituals, in order to avert this crisis. After 28 days of worship, Sambuvarayan received a letter from the Chola general Pillai Pallavarayan, informing him that the Sinhala generals Jayadratha, Lankapuri and others had retreated. Believing that Umapati-deva had divine powers, Sambuvarayan granted him the village of Alpakkam (modern Arpakkam), comprising 167 velis of land, as a tax-free endowment.[4] [5]
Arapakkam has 1000-year old Jain, Shiva and Adi Kesava Perumal temples.The Perumal temple housed 3 statues of Buddha as well.
A seated Buddha statue from the Perumal temple was stolen on the night of 25 November 2003 and smuggled abroad.[6] The statue was then spotted in the exhibition named On the Nalanda Trail at Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore, where it was advertised as Nagapattinam Buddha.[7] The so-called Nagapattinam Buddha was later seized in New York by the Homeland Security in 2012.[8]