Licchavi
Encyclopedia
Licchavi was an ancient kingdom in Nepal
, which existed in the Kathmandu Valley from approximately 400
to 750
. Centuries earlier, at the start of the Buddhist era a powerful republic
known as Licchavi existed in what is today Bihar
. There is no conclusive evidence of any ethnic or historic links between the two states. The language of Licchavi inscriptions is Sanskrit
, and the particular script used is closely related to official Gupta script
s, suggesting that India
was a significant cultural influence. This was likely through Mithila
- the northern part of modern Bihar
, India. The term 'Licchavi' term probably derives from Rikshavi possibly Sanskrit
ized to Rkshvavati. Riksha or Rksha in Sanskrit
means Star
. A table of the evolution of certain Gupta characters used in Licchavi inscriptions prepared by Gautamavajra Vajrācārya can be found online.
, the Licchavi are mentioned in a number of discourses, most notably the Licchavi Sutta, the popular Ratana Sutta
and the fourth chapter of the Petavatthu
.
The earliest known physical record of the kingdom is an inscription of Manadeva 1, which dates from 464. It mentions three preceding rulers, suggesting that the Licchavi dynasty began in the late fourth century.
("great king"), who was aided by a prime minister, in charge of the military and of other ministers.
Nobles, known as samanta
influenced the court whilst simultaneously managing their own landholdings and militia.
At one point, between approximately 605 and 641, a prime minister called Amsuvarman actually assumed the throne.
The population provided land taxes and conscript labour (vishti) to support the government. Most local administration was performed by village heads or leading families.
and other grains as staples. Villages (grama) were grouped into dranga for administration. Lands were owned by the royal family, nobles, temples or groups of Brahman
s. Trade was also very important, with many settlements positioned along trading routes. Tibet
and India
were both trading partners.
, west toward Tisting, and northwest toward present-day Gorkha.
Khoprngrama) along the main trade route. This is the precursor to Bhaktapur.
Yambu), and Dakshinakoligrama ("South Koli Village", Nepal Bhasa Yangala) straddling the main Kathmandu Valley trade route.
Yupagrama). It is probably the oldest center of Nepal, though building remains are scarce.
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, which existed in the Kathmandu Valley from approximately 400
400
Year 400 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Stilicho and Aurelianus...
to 750
750
Year 750 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 750 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Asia :* Gopala is proclaimed as the first ruler of...
. Centuries earlier, at the start of the Buddhist era a powerful republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
known as Licchavi existed in what is today Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
. There is no conclusive evidence of any ethnic or historic links between the two states. The language of Licchavi inscriptions is Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
, and the particular script used is closely related to official Gupta script
Gupta script
The Gupta script was used for writing Sanskrit and is associated with the Gupta Empire of India which was a period of material prosperity and great religious and scientific developments. The Gupta script was descended from Brahmi and gave rise to the Nagari, Sharada and Siddham scripts...
s, suggesting that India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
was a significant cultural influence. This was likely through Mithila
Mithila
Mithila was a city in Ancient India, the capital of the Videha Kingdom. The name Mithila is also commonly used to refer to the Videha Kingdom itself, as well as to the modern-day territories that fall within the ancient boundaries of Videha...
- the northern part of modern Bihar
Bihar
Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
, India. The term 'Licchavi' term probably derives from Rikshavi possibly Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
ized to Rkshvavati. Riksha or Rksha in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
means Star
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
. A table of the evolution of certain Gupta characters used in Licchavi inscriptions prepared by Gautamavajra Vajrācārya can be found online.
Records
The Lichhavi, having lost their political fortune in India, came to Nepal, attacking and defeating the last Kirat King Gasti. In the Buddhist Pali canonPāli Canon
The Pāli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the only completely surviving early Buddhist canon, and one of the first to be written down...
, the Licchavi are mentioned in a number of discourses, most notably the Licchavi Sutta, the popular Ratana Sutta
Ratana Sutta
The Ratana Sutta is a Buddhist discourse found in the Pali Canon's Sutta Nipata and Khuddakapatha ; with a parallel in the Mahavastu. In the Pali it is seventeen verses in length, and in the Sanskrit version nineteen...
and the fourth chapter of the Petavatthu
Petavatthu
The Petavatthu is a Theravada Buddhist scripture, included in the Khuddaka Nikaya of the Pali Canon's Sutta Pitaka. It is composed of 51 verse narratives describing specifically how the effects of bad acts can lead to rebirth into the unhappy world of petas in the doctrine of karma...
.
The earliest known physical record of the kingdom is an inscription of Manadeva 1, which dates from 464. It mentions three preceding rulers, suggesting that the Licchavi dynasty began in the late fourth century.
Government
The Licchavi were ruled by a MaharajaMaharaja
Mahārāja is a Sanskrit title for a "great king" or "high king". The female equivalent title Maharani denotes either the wife of a Maharaja or, in states where that was customary, a woman ruling in her own right. The widow of a Maharaja is known as a Rajamata...
("great king"), who was aided by a prime minister, in charge of the military and of other ministers.
Nobles, known as samanta
Samanta
Samanta was a title and position used by the Indian nobility. The institution of Samanta finds mention for the first time in epigraphs of northern India dating to the 6th century...
influenced the court whilst simultaneously managing their own landholdings and militia.
At one point, between approximately 605 and 641, a prime minister called Amsuvarman actually assumed the throne.
The population provided land taxes and conscript labour (vishti) to support the government. Most local administration was performed by village heads or leading families.
Economy
The economy was agricultural, relying on riceRice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
and other grains as staples. Villages (grama) were grouped into dranga for administration. Lands were owned by the royal family, nobles, temples or groups of Brahman
Brahman
In Hinduism, Brahman is the one supreme, universal Spirit that is the origin and support of the phenomenal universe. Brahman is sometimes referred to as the Absolute or Godhead which is the Divine Ground of all being...
s. Trade was also very important, with many settlements positioned along trading routes. Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
and India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
were both trading partners.
Domain
Settlements already filled the entire valley during the Licchavi period. Further settlement was made east toward BanepaBanepa
Banepa is a Municipality town located 26 km east of Kathmandu, Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 12537 and had 1956 households in it. The main attraction of Banepa is the temple of Chandeshwori, located approximately 1 km northeast of the town along the...
, west toward Tisting, and northwest toward present-day Gorkha.
Bhadgaon
Bhadgaon was a small village called Khoprn (SanskritSanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Khoprngrama) along the main trade route. This is the precursor to Bhaktapur.
Kathmandu
Modern day Kathmandu consisted of the two villages of Koligrama ("Village of the Kolis"; Nepal BhasaNepal Bhasa
Nepal Bhasa is one of the major languages of Nepal, and is also spoken in India, particularly in Sikkim where it is one of the 11 official languages. Nepal Bhasa is the mother tongue of about 3% of the people in Nepal . It is spoken mainly by the Newars, who chiefly inhabit the towns of the...
Yambu), and Dakshinakoligrama ("South Koli Village", Nepal Bhasa Yangala) straddling the main Kathmandu Valley trade route.
Patan
Patan was called Yala ("Village of the Sacrificial Post"; SanskritSanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Yupagrama). It is probably the oldest center of Nepal, though building remains are scarce.
Rulers
The following list was adapted from The Licchavi Kings, by Tamot & Alsop, and is approximate only, especially with respect to dates. No complete, reliable chronology of Licchavi rulers yet exists.- 185 Jayavarmā (also Jayadeva I)
- Vasurāja (also Vasudatta Varmā)
- c. 400 Vṛṣadeva (also Vishvadeva)
- c. 425
- c. 450 Dharmadeva
- 464-505 Mānadeva I
- 505-506 Mahīdeva (few sources)
- 506-532 Vasantadeva
- Manudeva (probable chronology)
- 538 Vāmanadeva (also Vardhamānadeva)
- 545 Rāmadeva
- Amaradeva
- Guṇakāmadeva
- 560-565 Gaṇadeva
- 567-c. 590 Bhaumagupta (also Bhūmigupta, probably not a king)
- 567-573
- 575/576 Mānadeva II (few sources)
- 590-604 Shivadeva I
- 605-621 AṃshuvarmāAmshuvarmaAṃshuvarmā was a monarch of the Nepali kingdom of Licchavi between 605 and 621. He is credited with opening trade routes to Tibet, though he is most famous for one of his daughters, Bhrikuti, who married a Tibetan ruler named Tsrong-tsong Gompo . She was instrumental in spreading Buddhism...
- 621 Udayadeva
- 624-625 Dhruvadeva
- 631-633 Bhīmārjunadeva, Jiṣṇugupta
- 635 Viṣṇugupta - Jiṣṇugupta
- 640-641 Bhīmārjunadeva / Viṣṇugupta
- 643-679 Narendradeva
- 694-705 Shivadeva II
- 713-733 Jayadeva II
- 748-749
- 756 Mānadeva III
- 826 Balirāja
- 847 Baladeva
- 877 Mānadeva IV
External links
- Tamot, Kashinath and Alsop, Ian. "A Kushan-period Sculpture, The Licchavi Kings", Asianart.com
- History of Nepal, Thamel.com
- "Nepal: The Early Kingdom of the Licchavis, 400-750", Library of Congress Countryreports.org (September, 1991)
- Vajrācārya, Gautamavajra, "Recently Discovered Inscriptions of Licchavi, Nepal", Kailash - Journal of Himalayan Studies, Volume 1, Number 2, 1973. (pp. 117-134)