Karaikkal Ammaiyar (Sri Lankan Bronze)
An ancient Hindu bronze figurine representing Karaikkal Ammaiyar (Tamil: காரைக்கால் அம்மையார்) , a devotee of Shiva was discovered from the Ancient City of Polonnaruwa , Sri Lanka and it is presently on the display at the Polonnaruwa Museum . Story of Karaikkal Ammaiyar
The Periya Puranam of Cekkilar (12th century A.D.) is the only source available on the life sketch of Karaikkal Ammaiyar (Subramanian, 1996). "Karaikkal" is a maritime trading city in Tamil Nadu in South India. According to legends, Karaikal Ammaiyar, who is believed to have lived in Karaikkal around 550 A.D., was born to a merchant community by the name Punitavatiyar (Chandrajeewa, 2019; Subramanian, 1996). She was married to Paramadattan, a wealthy merchant from Nagapattinam (Chandrajeewa, 2019).
One day Paramadattan sent home two mangoes for his midday meal (Craddock, 2010). But before mealtime, a Shiva yogi appeared in front of the home for searching alms and therefore, Punitavatiyar gave him one mango and k…
