Ratnadhwajpal
Ratnadhwajpal (also known as Chatra-dhari, Khun-tiura), was the son of Birpal and the second ruler of the Chutia Kingdom in the 13th century. He reigned for almost 40 years and was responsible for making Shaktism a main religion of Chutia Kingdom.[1]
| Ratnadhawajpal | |
|---|---|
| Gaudinarayan | |
| Reign | 1220 - 1250 |
| Coronation | 1220 |
| Predecessor | Birpal |
| Successor | Vijayadhwajpal |
| House | Chutiya dynasty |
| Father | Birpal |
| Rulers of Chutia kingdom | |
|---|---|
| Part of History of Assam | |
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| Rulers of the Chutiya kingdom | |
| Nandisvara | late 14th century |
| Satyanarayana | late 14th century |
| Lakshminarayana | early 15th century |
| Durlabhnarayana | early 15th century |
| Pratakshyanarayana | unknown |
| Yasanarayana | unknown |
| ... | ... |
| Dhirnarayana | unknown - 1523 |
| Chutia monarchy data | |
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Biography
Ratnadhwajpal was the son of the founder of the medieval Chutia kingdom, Birpal who accomplished the task of reuniting the ancient Chutia kingdom which was divided due to internal conflict and the invasion of Mao general Samlungpha. He was one of the most powerful Chutia kings.
Birth
As per Chutia folklore, Birpal was an ardent worshiper of Kubera. It is believed that Kubera had come to his dream and foretold that a son would be born who would go on to become a great and benevolent king. Kubera gifted Birpal the royal heirlooms (golden cat, sword, shield and umbrella), which were found under a tree that he worshiped. Kuvera also warned him that if his descendants ever disrespected Kubera or the heirlooms, the umbrella would break and it will lead to downfall.
Early years
Although the exact year of birth of Ratnadhwajpal is not known, it can be predicted that he was born in the first decade of 13th century. With Kubera's blessings, he started building his kingdom by first uniting the independent Chutia kingdoms of hilly terrain like Kalgiri, Nilgiri, Dhavalgiri, Chandangiri, Rangalgiri, etc under a single banner and adopted the name Chatra-dhari. In 1223, he chased the forces of the Mao king Samlungpha out of Assam, which enabled him to expand to the plain territories. This expansion brought areas like Dhemaji, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, parts of Sibsagar, Lohit, Siang and Dibang under his reign.
Expansion
In about 1230 A.D., he expanded his kingdom to the south by annexing the kingdom of Bhadrasen (his father's uncle), Swetagiri and installing his son as a vassal chief. He then built his capital in the land around Majuli and named it Ratanpur. This brought Lakhimpur, parts of Biswanath and Majuli under his reign. During this period, the western part of Kamrupa was under political turmoil after the death of Raja Prithu in 1228 A.D. This led to the creation of several independent states, one of which was that of Nyayapal. Ratnadhwajpal made preparations to attack and conquer the kingdom of Nyayapal, whose territories were spread in present-day Darrang, Sonitpur and parts of Biswanath. Nyayapal bought peace by offering his daughter for marriage to him. The 1520 A.D. copperplate issued by king Dhirnarayan mentions Nyayapal as a minister in the Chutia court which indicates that the title Nyayapal remained a royal position held by descendants of Nyayapal (the first) until the downfall of the Chutia kingdom. After a few years, queen Ratneswari gave birth to a son who was named Vijayadhwajpal.
Later years
From among the local rulers of western Kamrupa, there emerged a strong ruler named Sandhya in 1250 A.D. Malik Ikhtiyaruddin Iuzbak, a governor of Gaur for the Mamluk rulers of Delhi, attempted an invasive attack on Sandhya's domain in 1257; and Sandhya, with the help of the spring floods that same year, captured and killed the Sultan.[2] Subsequent to this attack, Sandhya moved his capital from Kamarupanagara to Kamatapur (North Bengal) and established a new kingdom, that came to be called Kamata.[3]
During this time, Ratnadhwajpal sent an embassy to Kamateswar King Sandhya, asking him his daughter to give in marriage to Ratnadhwaj's eldest son. But, the Kamata king refused. This infuriated Ratnadhwajpal who then embarked upon an invasion of Kamata with a huge army, constructing a road and building a line of forts along it. He left his minister Vijayasen to control the kingdom in his absence. Upon reaching Kamatapur, he left one of his minister Jayadhwaj in-charge of a section of the army on the way and marched towards the capital city with the others. The Kamateswar was terrified by the strength of the Chutia army. He visited the camp of the Chutia king and surrendered by offering his daughter to the Chutia prince. The copper plate inscription found in Sadiya indicates that Ratnadhwajpal became the lord of Kamata kingdom and made it a vassal state. The ruler who followed Sandhya was named as Sindhu rai which literally means prince of Sindhuxetra/Sadiya.
After this campaign, Ratnadhwajpal visited Gauda (presently Bangladesh) where he had very cordial relations with King Keshav Sen. As a token of their friendship, the rulers exchanged waters from Parashuram Kund and Ganga for religious purposes. For this reason, he was also popularly known as Gaudinarayan. Further, Ratnadhwajpal sent one of his sons to Gauda for higher educations who unfortunately died there. During this period, Ratnadhwajpal was busy building a new capital Sindhuxetra (present-day Sadiya) which he named Pal/Pat Sadiya after his deceased son.
Death
Due to his friendship with the Gauda ruler, there was a significant exchange of culture and traditions among the two kingdoms. One of the results was the establishment of a Satra by a Brahmin saint named Shankarishan from Gauda on the banks of a river in Sadiya. Although it is commonly believed that the Satra monasteries were founded by the followers of the Vaishnavite saint Sri Shankardeva in the early 17th century, the first Satra was originally built in the early 13th century in Sadiya. This Satra was named as the Ghaimora Satra which later transformed over time to Gharmora Satra. According to the Assamese manuscripts stored in the Satra, the Satra was originally founded under the grants of a king of Sadiya (Ratnadhwajpal) in the early 13th century. Shankarisan had two princes of the Chutia king as his disciples. The elder prince later invited him to settle in Sadiya during his reign and offer his teachings to the common masses. The saint was donated a Vishnu idol and a monastery was built to worship Vishnu in the form of tribal tantric traditions. The old king Ratnadhwaj during his last days often visited the Satra and discussed philosophy and religion with the disciples of the Satra. The old king soon died while staying in the Satra and that is how the Satra got its name as "Ghai-mora" Satra or "the Satra where the king had died".
Contributions
Ratnadhwajpal was a good administrator and a patron of fine arts. He consolidated the Chutia territories from the Arunachal hills to Biswanath (north bank) and Disang (south bank), and build a line of forts, along the foot of the hills to check the inroads of bordering hill tribes. He dug large tanks and built many temples. The traditions centering around Ratanpur as a city of musical performances and varied amusements indicate the cultural pursuits of the Chutiyas under the patronage of the king. It was due to this culture that the Vaishnavite culture of Assam took form around this ancient city. Apart from Ratanpur, he build many other towns like Gohpur, Dhalpur, Chiding, Doding, Telahi, Sadarshi, Borahithan, Abhayapur, Manipur, Panbari, Gagoldubi, Bosa, Chariali, Kalangpur, Maluwal, etc. all over the kingdom. The road which he constructed from Sadiya till Kamata kingdom was later used by Koch general Chilarai for his campaigns against the Ahoms which is known as Gohain Kamal Ali today.[4]
References
- (Prakash 2007:267)
- (Sarkar 1992, pp. 39–40)
- (Kamarupa) was reorganized as a new state, 'Kamata' by name with Kamatapur as capital. The exact time when the change was made is uncertain. But possibly it had been made by Sandhya (c. 1250 – 1270) as a safeguard against mounting dangers from the east and the west. Its control on the eastern regions beyond the Manah (Manas river) was lax."(Sarkar 1992, pp. 40–41)
- (Prakash 2007:267)