Tamil Buddhism

Buddhism amongst Tamils was historically found in Tamilakam and the Jaffna Peninsula.

The ancient Tamil Buddhist poem Manimekalai by the poet Chithalai Chathanar is set in the town of Kaveripattanam.

Ancient ruins of a 4th-5th century Buddhist monastery, a Buddha statue, and a Buddhapada (footprint of the Buddha) were found in another section of the ancient city, now at Pallavanesvaram.

The heritage of the town of Nākappaṭṭinam is found in the Burmese historical text of the 3rd century BCE, and gives evidences of a Budha Vihar built by the great Ashoka.

Nākappaṭṭinam was a Buddhist centre of the 4th-5th century CE. Its stupa dates from this era. Buddhism disappeared from this city as of an unknown date, but was revided as of the 9th century. (H.P.Ray, The Winds of Change, Delhi 1994, p. 142) In the 11th century, Chudamani Vihara was built by the Javanese king Sri Vijaya Soolamanivarman with the patronage of Raja Raja Chola I. The "Animangalam Copperplate" of Kulothungachola notes that “Kasiba Thera” [Buddhist Monk] renovated the Buddhist temple in the 6th century with the help of Buddhist monks of "Naga Nadu". This "nagar annam vihar" later came to be known as "Nagananavihar. Buddhism flourished until the 15th century and the buildings of the vihara survived until the 18th century.

Kanchipuram is one of the oldest cities in South India, and was a city of learning for Tamil, Sanskrit, and Pali and was believed to be visited by Xuanzang. He visited the city in the 7th century and said that this city was 6 miles in circumference and that its people were famous for bravery and piety as well as for their love of justice and veneration for learning. He further recorded that Gautama Buddha had visited the place. It was during the reign of the Pallava dynasty from the 4th to the 9th centuries that Kanchipuram attained its limelight. The city served as the Pallava capital, and many of the known temples were built during their reign. According to Tamil tradition, the founder of Zen, Bodhidharma was born here,. Great Buddhist scholars such as Dignāga, Buddhaghosa, and Dhammapala lived here too.

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