Janaka

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Kingdoms of late Vedic India

Janaka (जनक) was an ancient Indian king of Videha, approximately in the 8th or 7th century BCE,[1]. The rulers of the Videha kingdom were all called Janakas. He later appears as a character in the Ramayana.

Jat clan

History

His original name was Seeradhwaja and he had a brother name Kushadhwaja. His father name Hroshhoroma. King Nimi was the first ruler of Videha kingdom. Then king Mithi, supposed the name Mithila came after him. His son king Janaka(1st), he was the first janaka. Then after three successor came king Devraat and after Devraat the 15th successor was Hroshhoroma.

Janaka is revered as being an ideal example of non-attachment to material possessions. He was intensely interested in spiritual discourse and considered himself free from worldly illusions. His interactions with sages and seekers such as Ashtavakra and Sulabha are recorded in ancient texts. His relationship with adopted daughter Sita led her to be called Janaki Mata. The city of Janakpur is named for him and daughter Sita.[2]

The Videha (or Mithila) kingdom was located between east of Gandaki River, west of Mahananda River, north of Ganga river and south of Himalayas.[3][4]

Kingdom of the Videha

The Kingdom of the Videhas (also known as Mithila and Tirabhukti[5]) was an ancient kingdom in Late Vedic India[6] which rose to prominence under King Janaka (c. 8th-7th centuries BCE). The ancient kingdom's territory is presently located in Mithila region of Northern and eastern Bihar of India and the eastern Terai of Nepal.[7]

During the late Vedic period (c. 900 – c. 500 BCE), Videha became one of the major political and cultural centers of South Asia, along with Kuru and Pañcāla.[8] Late Vedic literature such as the Brahmanas and the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad both mention Janaka, as a great philosopher-king of Videha, renowned for his patronage of Vedic culture and philosophy, and whose court was an intellectual centre for Rishi (sages) such as Yajnavalkya.[9] Raychaudhuri suggests 8th- to 7th-century BCE range, while Witzel suggests c. 750 to 500 BCE for the Brahmanas and Upanishads composition period in Videha.[10] The Vedic school of Aitareyins probably moved to Videha and other centers of scholarship, during the late Vedic period.[11]

The region and culture of Videha is often mentioned in Hindu literature. The texts mention the idea of royal dynasty and the tradition of philosopher-kings who renounce, with examples including Nami (or Nimi in some texts), Janaka and other kings. Their stories are found in ancient surviving Hindu, Buddhist and Jaina texts, suggesting that renunciation by kings was a respected tradition before the birth of Buddha, and that this tradition was also broadly accepted in regions other than Videha, such as in Pancala, Kalinga and Gandhara. King Nimi or Nami of Videha is included as the 21st of the twenty four Tirthankaras in Jainism (not to be confused with closely spelled Nemi, the 22nd Tirthankara).[12]

Towards the end of the Vedic period, Videha likely became part of the Vriji (Pali: Vajji) confederation and subsequently into the Magadha empire.[13] The Videha kingdom is also mentioned in the Sanskrit epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. In the Ramayana, Sita is the princess from Videha[14], who marries Rama creating an alliance between the kingdoms of Kosala and Videha.[15] The capital of Videha, is believed to be either Janakpur (in present-day Nepal),[16] or Baliraajgadh (in present-day Madhubani district, Bihar, India).[17]

External links

References

  1. Raychaudhuri, Hemchandra (2006), Political History of Ancient India, Cosmo Publications, ISBN 81-307-0291-6, pp. 41–52.
  2. Raychaudhuri 2006, p. 44.
  3. Jha, M. (1997). "Hindu Kingdoms at contextual level". Anthropology of Ancient Hindu Kingdoms: A Study in Civilizational Perspective. New Delhi: M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. pp. 27–42.
  4. Mishra, V. (1979). Cultural Heritage of Mithila. Allahabad: Mithila Prakasana. p. 13.
  5. Dilip K. Chakrabarti (2001). Archaeological Geography of the Ganga Plain: The Lower and the Middle Ganga. Orient Blackswan. pp. 207–. ISBN 978-81-7824-016-9.
  6. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 17 116-124, 141-143
  7. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 17 116-124, 141-143
  8. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 141-143
  9. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 141-143
  10. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 13, 39-46, 141-143
  11. Michael Witzel (1989), Tracing the Vedic dialects in Dialectes dans les litteratures Indo-Aryennes ed. Caillat, Paris, pages 76-77, 125
  12. Geoffrey Samuel, (2010) The Origins of Yoga and Tantra: Indic Religions to the Thirteenth Century, Cambridge University Press, pages 69-70
  13. H.C. Raychaudhuri (1972), pp. 70-76
  14. Geoffrey Samuel, (2010) The Origins of Yoga and Tantra: Indic Religions to the Thirteenth Century, Cambridge University Press, pages 69-70
  15. H.C. Raychaudhuri (1972), pp. 70-76
  16. H.C. Raychaudhuri (1972), pp. 70-76
  17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 26 October 2017.