Place · Mahabharata kingdom · India
Manipura / Manipur
/ˌmənɪpʊɹ/
Manipura appears in the Mahabharata as the kingdom ruled by King Chitravahana, whose daughter Chitrangada became Arjuna’s wife. Their son Babruvahana later became ruler of the kingdom. Traditionally associated with the northeastern region, Manipura demonstrates the extraordinary geographical reach of the Mahabharata beyond the Gangetic heartland into India’s eastern frontier.
- Periods
- Second Urbanisation
- Function
- Authority & administration
- Confidence
- Qualified / contested — The identification of epic Manipura with the modern region is a later court tradition, not an ancient attestation.
- Location
- 24.807, 93.938 (approximate)
Worth knowing
The identification with the epic's Manipura was adopted by the Meitei court in the eighteenth century along with Gaudiya Vaishnavism, which gave the dynasty a Sanskrit genealogy descending from Arjuna's son Babhruvahana. The Ras Lila and the state's Sanskritised name both follow from that decision rather than preceding it.
The epic identification is a court adoption of the eighteenth century and later, not an ancient attestation.
Connections (2)
- Site adjacencyLoktak Lake
Manipura kingdom and Loktak Lake are connected through the geography of the Manipur Valley. Loktak lies south of Imphal and has long been embedded in the region’s ecological and cultural landscape. The lake and surrounding wetlands formed an important part of the natural environment within which the Manipur kingdom developed.
- Mythic sequenceKangla Fort, Imphal
The Meitei court at Kangla adopted Gaudiya Vaishnavism in the eighteenth century under Garib Niwaz and with it the identification of Manipur with the Mahabharata's Manipura, giving the dynasty a Sanskritised genealogy descending from Arjuna's son Babhruvahana. The Ras Lila, the royal chronicle's framing and the state's name in Sanskrit all follow from that decision rather than preceding it.
On these journeys
Sources
Wikipedia, “Manipura (Mahabharata)”. Archaeological Survey of India and State Archaeology monument records, and the standard regional literature.
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