The nexus between business and government isn’t a modern phenomenon. This fascinating piece about Indian history gives us a glimpse of one of India’s dominant kingdoms, almost a millennium and a half ago, when trade flourished and contributed to the success of the rulers. It refers to the Chola empire and its famous merchants, collectively known as the Aihole-500.
“The 500 merchant lords were known as Ainuruvar in Tamil, Ayyavole in Kannada, and Aryarupa in Sanskrit. They were not just ordinary merchant lords—they functioned more like a trans-regional corporation directly involved in the expansion of the Chola Empire.
They initially had humble beginnings in the 8th century. Rather than controlling the empire outright, they began by manipulating trade networks in Aihole, Karnataka. By the late 8th century, they became known as the Aihole-500 and gradually spun their web across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala.
They were no sages and practiced no austerities but they nevertheless styled themselves as the ‘Five Hundred Swamis,’ governing themselves by a charter known as the Pancha Sata Vira Sasanam, which translates to ‘The Edicts of the 500 Heroes.’ Though ‘Five Hundred’ became their title, their actual numbers often far exceeded that figure as they hired people from different regions in the subcontinent.”
These merchants had their own code of conduct governing ethics, commerce and justice: “The Ayyavole 500 had such a code fulfilling all these categories, which they called Samayadharma . The guild can tax its members. If they ask for payment, you have to pay up to keep your perks; otherwise, you can just take a hike and deal with not being a part of the circlejerk. The guilds also had permanent town settlements called pattinams, where merchants lived. They had their presence in many places: 30 small market towns and 18 big cities. They held meetings at 64 special places called yoga-pithas. This system they made helped them organize trade efficiently and maintain their grip over key markets across regions.”
And they spread their trade beyond the Indian shores: “They had trade networks that stretched across South Asia, from ports in Sri Lanka and the Maldives to the coasts of Sumatra, Java, and the Malay Peninsula. Pearls and Tamil textiles were sent to China, and the 500 received special trading privileges there as well, just like any other foreign merchant. Throughout history, India and China did not have much conflict, so this kind of exchange was fairly normal, the emperor of song dynasty encouraged foreign trade. Inscriptions of the Ainuruvar have been found in Quanzhou (China), Kedah (Malaysia), and Barus (Sumatra), attesting to how far their influence spread across nations.”
And finally, their quid pro quo with the rulers: “…they also contributed to the sanguine tide of war by supplying armies with oil for flaming arrows.
They contributed to temple construction to win over the royalty—Chola kings were big on temples and not so much on castles. They even used temples as fronts for their business operations….they were key players in Rajaraja’s campaign in Sri Lanka. The horse merchants also acted as spies, tipping the balance of war in the Cholas’ favor.
They funded the naval fleets responsible for capturing Kedah in the Malay Peninsula. They also acted as cultural ambassadors, spreading Tamil culture across Southeast Asia.”
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