Ilanaga, also known as Elunna, was King of

Anuradhapura Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...

in the 1st century, whose reign lasted from 38 to 44. He overthrew and succeeded his aunt Sivali as

King of Anuradhapura The Anuradhapura Kingdom ( Sinhala: , translit: Anurādhapura Rājadhāniya, Tamil: ), named for its capital city, was the first established kingdom in ancient Sri Lanka related to the Sinhalese people. Founded by King Pandukabhaya in 437 B ...

and was succeeded by his son Chandamukha.

Conflicts with the Lambakarnas

Shortly after Ilanaga's coronation, he and his entourage went to Lake Tissa to bathe. The king's servants, who belonged to the Lambakarna dynasty (an ancient clan of Sri Lanka), were very arrogant. They waited until the king went down into the water, and then left the king alone. The king was very angry and tried to break their pride. The Mahavamsa states that he built a dagoba near the Tissa Lake and used Lambakarnas to dig stones and tread clay for it, and deployed

Chandala Chandala ( sa, चांडाल, caṇḍāla) is a Sanskrit word for someone who deals with disposal of corpses, and is a Hindu lower caste, traditionally considered to be untouchable. A female member of this caste is known as a ''Caṇḍ� ...

s as their acting officers. Infuriated by this, the Lambakannas revolted against the king and captured him. The chronicle states that when the queen of King Ilanaga heard of this, she placed her son, prince Chandmukha near the elephant, and said to the king's inaugural elephant in his arms: "This infant prince is the son of your great king. This prince deserves to die at the hands of you, the king's friend, rather than at the hands of the king's enemies. So trample this prince to death." Realizing all this, the inaugural elephant immediately entered the palace, broke through the prison where the king had been imprisoned, took the king on his back and ran towards the shore with great speed. After greeting farewell to the elephant, the ships set sail for the

Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...

country. The Mahavamsa states that the grieving elephant went to the upcountry forest in the middle of the country. King Ilanaga went to the

Chola kingdom The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...

and stayed there for three years. Later, King Ilanaga brought an army from the Chola kingdom, landed near Hambantota and gathered an army from

Ruhuna The Principality of Ruhuna, also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri Lanka. Magama, Ti ...

. He then invaded

, fought against the treacherous Lambakarna dynasty, defeated them and regained the

kingship King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

. The Mahavamsa states that King Ilanaga brutally avenged his treacherous Lambakarnas and killed them. It is said that he could have killed all the Lambakarna dynasty had it not been for the intervention of King Ilanaga's mother. But they were severely punished and king Ilanaga shattered their dignity. But nevertheless, the power of the Lambakannas would continue to grow, and prince Vasabha, a member of this clan would eventually end the House of Vijaya in 65 A.D.

References

External links

Kings & Rulers of Sri Lanka

Codrington's Short History of Ceylon
Monarchs of Anuradhapura I I I {{SriLanka-hist-stub

Conflicts with the Lambakarnas

See also

References

External links