Source: TW
Source: mostly ravilochana
Good signals
Self declarations
Unambiguous declarations and initiations clearly indicate religious affiliation. Examples
- kRShNadevarAya in Amukta-mAlyada declares himself to be a shrIvaiShNava. Krishnadevaraya declares that he holds other deities as inferior to Vishnu in his works.
- Kapilendea Gajapati in Puri inscription. As did most of the Gajapati incl Purushottama, Narasimha, Anangabhima etc.
Clear Sectarian partonage bias
When Chola kings built shrines for Sharabha and Lingodbhava (latter in the place of Vishnu in Shiva temples), they were very much showing that they held Vishnu to be inferior.
Noise
Indidental Deity and guru
Hindu kings were not iconoclasts. And even if they did belong to one sampradaya, they did not have any issue in supporting other sampradayas or even getting rituals done through the priests/acharyas of the other sampradayas.
Saiva Cholas had rituals to Vishnu done 4 their welfare. But that doesn’t make them non-Saiva or syncretic or Smarta.
There were sandhis (pujas) done in the name of Chola and Pandyan kings even in Jain temples for which these royals gave special endowments. They were certainly not Jainas either. History has to be understood properly
Virupaksha was propitiated as the deity of the capital, Pampa kshetra. But even a Vaishnava king would use a Saiva acharya for rituals in Siva temples or as per Saivagamas while a Saiva kings may use a Vaishnava acharyas for Vaishnava rituals.
Tanjore Marathas used service of Navalpakkam Tatacharyas for Vaishnava rituals and called them gurus.
We have Achyuta Raya calling a Vaishnavacharya of Srirangam as his guru during his stay in the town - because he made use of the Vaishnava’s services. Whereas his actual religious preceptor was Tatacharya.
Incidental mangala-shloka-s
kRShNadeva-rAya’s hampi inscription has a prayer to gaNesha. This should not be taken to indicate his religious affiliation as he declares himself to be shrI-vaiShNava.
By such absurd logic, Sundara Chola was a parama Vaishnava since Anbil plates starts with mangala sloka which talks about Vishnu paratva. Anbil plates of Sundara Chola do say that Vishnu is superior to Siva and Brahma.
Kulottunga III inscriptions mention Sriranganatha as kuladhanam of the Cholas. Narasimha is held as Kuladeva by Kulottunga I.