Muzhankol or measuring rod of a carpenter
Dr Suvarna Nalapat
People who have gaped in wonder at the golden treasures of Sri Padmanabha do not wonder how the architect made a underworld of serpents in the ocean’s bed on earth,and on it placed the Anantha serpent and Sr I Padmanabha as guardian deities and the sky represented above the lotus and the creator Brahman in it .Reconstructing the entire padmanithi and sankhanithi of Vishnu in the protected world of serpents as depicted in the purana and ithihasa ,the ancient architects have done a marvelous job.The stapathyaveda and systematic townplanning and temple constructions started in India right from the Paleolithic cavedwelling periods and had reached perfection by Mohenjodaro –Harappan times .We find townships from BC 8000- 7000 onwards and the carpenters,architects,metalworkers ,ivory and ceramic workers,and grocers all use the same measuring scale which was used by the Indus people even now .Not only the materialistic mundane measurements but also the measurements of starry heavens(Jyothisha) and Music (science of sound) and rhythms are using the same proportions and this proportions are mentioned in the veda itself .The Muzhankol or measuring scale of a carpenter depends on his or his master’s hand measurement .The measurement of Indus people is a geometric progression and the Muzhankol also use it .
1.½ . ¼ . 1/8 .1/16 ………is a geometric progression used by Indus valley people .This in the decimal system is 100; 50;25;12.5;6.25;3.125;1.5625;0.78125 and so on.Thus fractions happen and it it never touches emptiness . The zero or the Poojya(worshippable) called Brahma the absolute truth of Indians is thus untouchable or unattainable by mundane standards. Therefore the Arabs rightly called it the Hind-sath or the truth of the Indians .A carpenter,s or architect’s scale divided in such a Indus ratio is found in the foot of the Branthachalam hill in Pattambi ,in Malappuram district of Kerala.This was once a prosperous learning center of Bhattanambi clan (hence called Pattambi) and the famous Narayanamangalathu Branthan ,a son of mathematician Vararuchi who is the astronomer Haradatha in disguise of a mad man lived here .On the hillock one can see a small temple and several ditches filled with fresh water ,and also two feet (considered to be that of Goddess Kaali ) and a trident in front of it .Another find is a very old tree which has grown over a strong iron chain which has not rusted even after exposed to several thousands of years of rain (like the Mehrouli stupa).

The picture below is the scale reconstructed on to the sapthaslaakaayanthra of Gargaparasaraavali .
There are 3 letters marked on the cave face nearby .One in the middle and two on the sides
The letters are similar to the Bhattiprolu type Brahmi script which is very ancient .
Picture shows the position and nature of the letters.
These three letters if read in all the three directions we get different readings (what we call prasthaaram in Sanskrit )
1 Thannikai
2 Pannikai
3.Channikkai
4 Ennikkai
Thanikai or the hand that cools is the Thanikachalam and the old records of Pattambi shows a hill called Thanika which is now not seen .Probably the old name of the hill had been Thanika before it was changed to branthachalam .The cool fresh water on the hilltop might have been used by travelers in long forgotten periods .Pannikkai or the hand of the Pani or Phani (Naaga tribe of Oviyar ) means the muzhankai with which the scale(muzhankol) is constructed .Pnnikai and Pandikai means the weights and measures of the Panya or merchandise as well as the Maathra (measurement of time) of the pan or the music .Channikai means the place where one finds the feet of the Goddess Chandika when she appeared before the Narayanathu scholar.Ennikkai is the Ganitha or mathematics as well as the En or Octave .With just three letters the old sthapathi conveys so many meanings to us.
(Recently I found that there had been two inscriptions from Tamil Nadu which mentions the word Muzhankai -both from Arittappatti which is 20 km away from the road from Madurai to Melur .It is said to be written in BC 200 and both are in Bhattiprolu script.One is read by scholars as Nelveli iy chizhivan athinan muzhaakai koduppithon and the other as Ilanjiy elamperaa aathan makan Emayavan Ivmuzhaukay kodupithavan .(The reference is from publication of Thamil Nadu Arasu tholliyal thurai 2006 by Sridhar- Thamil nadu Kalvettukal )The first one has the sangha names of Veliyan and second have Athan common names for the Chera princes and the second also shows the word Imayan ,Imayavaramban being the name for a Chera king of Sangam period who drew his emblem of bow and arrow on the Himalayan boundary .Also the same cave though called Kazhinjaamalai (the hill of Kazhanju or weight of a unit of gold) has a 9th century AD inscription in its hall which calls it Porkottupinayanmalai ( the hill where the alloys of gold are mixed ) .