SOCIAL SCIENTIST Sivaskandvarman and the Allabahad Pillar inscription of Samudra Gupta also mention Vishnugopa of Kanchi.2 Thus the various inscriptions and literary sources give a clear picture of Kanchi as a centre of various religions. Parts of it were also known as Siva Kanchi, Vishnu Kanchi and the Jaina Kanchi. It is to be noted that Kanchi was a religious centre for Saivism, Vaishnavism, Jainism and Buddhism and how in spite of differences it remained an integral whole for different religious sects. The conflict between two religious sects, the Jains and Saivites during the reign of the Pallava rulers is not unknown. Similarly, conversion from Jainism to Saivism was very common. For example, Mahendravarman I, after his conversion to Saivism, built many temples and donated funds for the proper upkeep of the Saivite temples. Following the Pallavas, the Cholas also had shown religious activities and patronised Saivism. An interesting contribution of Rajendra Chola I to Saivism was that he brought Saiva Brahmanas from the banks of the Ganges to his empire and settled them in Kanchipuram.3 Though most of the rulers of the Pallava and Chola regions were Saivites and a few were Vaishnavites, they showed tolerance to other religions. The Pallankovil Copper plates refer to the royal grant of a village by the Pallava Simhavarmana to Vijranandi, a Jain monk for the worship of Jainendras and Munindras at the holy place of Vardhamanesvara dbaramatritha* Buddhism, a religion of India, was followed in the Tamil country even in the pre-Christian era. But the earlier reference where Kanchi is associated with Buddhism is found in the Manimekalai, one of the five Tamil epics.5 Hiuen-Tsang visited Kanchi in seventh century AD and for twelve years he was in India visiting places connected with Buddha. He writes in his Siyuki about the presence of other religions in India and describes how Buddhism continued to have its place in Kanchi. He was himself in Kanchi around AD 639 and he had the opportunity of meeting three hundred Buddhist monks from Sri Lanka. It is believed that in the seventh century there were innumerable Buddhist monasteries in Kanchi. When excavations were conducted, Kanchi was found to be a great Buddhist centre and many status of Buddha were found. Hiuen-Tsang refers to the visit of Buddha to Kanchi where he convinced and converted the local people to his faith. Asoka the Great, the Mauryan emperor, erected stupas at various spots where Buddha had preached and converted many people into its fold.6 The above mentioned descriptions of different religions as survived in Kanchi without communal divide suggests that it accommodated