The Licchavis of Nepal (also ''Lichchhavi'', ''Lichavi'') was a kingdom which existed in the

Kathmandu Valley The Kathmandu Valley ( ne, काठमाडौं उपत्यका; also known as the Nepal Valley or Nepa Valley ( ne, नेपाः उपत्यका, Nepal Bhasa: 𑐣𑐾𑐥𑐵𑑅 𑐐𑐵𑑅, नेपाः गाः)), ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

from approximately 450 CE to 750 CE. The Licchavi clan originated from the Licchavis of Vaishali in modern-day

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...

, and conquered the Kathmandu Valley. The Licchavis were ruled by a ''maharaja'', aided by a prime minister and other royal officials, but in practice local communities were controlled by caste councils. The ruling period of this dynasty was called the Golden Period of Nepal. A table of the evolution of certain Gupta characters used in Licchavi inscriptions prepared by Gautamavajra Vajrācārya can be found online.

Records

It is believed that a branch of the Licchavi clan, having lost their political fortune and military power in Vaishali (

), came to

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

and married with the ruling Queen, Mandeva Shree Vogini of the

Nagvanshi Nagavanshi (IAST: Nāgavaṃśī) refers to any of the several Indian Kshatriya dynasties or ruling groups claiming descent from the mythical Nāgas. Along with Suryavanshi, Chandravanshi and Agnivanshi, the Nagavanshi clans form a part of the Ks ...

clan beginning their rule in Nepal
Source
They also battled with local militias in

Chyasal Chyasal (Nepal Bhasa:च्यास:) is an ancient town in the District of Lalitpur in Bagmati Zone in Nepal and a section of the city of Lalitpur. Also known as Yala in Nepal Bhasa. The 800 Kiratis are said to been slained in this Dabu by ...

to gain control of Nepal. In the Buddhist

Pali canon The Pāli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school. During th ...

, the Licchavi are mentioned in a number of discourses, most notably the Licchavi Sutta, the popular

Ratana Sutta The Ratana Sutta ( my, ရတနာသုတ်) ( si, රතන සූත්‍රය) is a Buddhist discourse ( Pali:'' sutta'') found in the Pali Canon's Sutta Nipata (Snp 2.1) and Khuddakapatha (Khp 7); with a parallel in the Mahavastu. In t ...

and the fourth chapter of the

Petavatthu __NOTOC__ The Petavatthu () is a Theravada Buddhist scripture, included in the Minor Collection (''Khuddaka Nikaya'') of the Pali Canon's Sutta Pitaka. It ostensibly reports stories about and conversations among the Buddha and his disciples, an ...

. The

Mahayana ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...

Vimalakirti Sutra The ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa'' (Devanagari: विमलकीर्तिनिर्देश) (sometimes referred to as the ''Vimalakīrti Sūtra'' or ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra'') is a Buddhist text which centers on a lay Buddhist meditat ...

also spoke of the city of Vaishali as where the

lay Lay may refer to: Places *Lay Range, a subrange of mountains in British Columbia, Canada *Lay, Loire, a French commune *Lay (river), France *Lay, Iran, a village *Lay, Kansas, United States, an unincorporated community People * Lay (surname) * ...

Licchavi

bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...

Vimalakirti Vimalakīrti ( sa, विमल ' "stainless, undefiled" + ' "fame, glory, reputation") is the central figure in the ', which presents him as the ideal Mahayana Buddhist upāsaka ("lay practitioner") and a contemporary of Gautama Buddha (6th to 5 ...

was residing. In the 4th century CE, during the reign of the

Gupta Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by se ...

emperor

Samudragupta Samudragupta (Gupta script: ''Sa-mu-dra-gu-pta'', (c. 335–375 CE) was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India, and is regarded among the greatest rulers of the dynasty. As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the Li ...

, the "Nepalas" are mentioned among the tribes subjugated by him:

was a son of the

Emperor

Chandragupta I Chandragupta I ( Gupta script: ''Cha-ndra-gu-pta'', r. c. 319–335 or 319–350 CE) was a king of the Gupta Empire, who ruled in northern and central India. His title ''Maharajadhiraja'' ("great king of kings") suggests that he was the firs ...

and the Licchavi princess

Kumaradevi Samudragupta (Gupta script: ''Sa-mu-dra-gu-pta'', (c. 335–375 CE) was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India, and is regarded among the greatest rulers of the dynasty. As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the L ...

. Gold coins bearing portraits of Chandragupta and Kumaradevi have been discovered at

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located approximately north of Agra, and south-east of Delhi; about from the town of Vrindavan, and from Govardhan. ...

Ayodhya Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya, also known as Sāketa, Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and ...

Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and division ...

Sitapur Sitapur is a city and a municipal board in Sitapur district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located 90 kilometres north of state capital, Lucknow. The traditional origin for the name is said to be by the King Vikramāditya from Lord ...

, Tanda,

Ghazipur Ghazipur is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Ghazipur city is the administrative headquarters of the Ghazipur district, one of the four districts that form the Varanasi division of Uttar Pradesh. The city of Ghazipur also constitute ...

, and

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

;

Bayana Bayana is a historical town and the headquarters of Bayana tehsil in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan in India. Hindaun City is nearest city of Bayana - 33 km. It was the site of famous Important Battle of Bayana in 1527 between the Rajput ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

; and

Hajipur Hajipur (, ) is the headquarters and largest city of Vaishali district of the state of Bihar in India. Hajipur is the 16th most populous city of Bihar, besides being the second-fastest developing city, next to Patna. It had a total population ...

. The obverse of these coins depicts portraits of Chandragupta and Kumaradevi, with their names in the

Gupta script The Gupta script (sometimes referred to as Gupta Brahmi script or Late Brahmi script)Sharma, Ram. '' 'Brahmi Script' ''. Delhi: BR Publishing Corp, 2002 was used for writing Sanskrit and is associated with the Gupta Empire of the Indian subcon ...

. The reverse shows a goddess seated on a lion, with the legend "''Li-ccha-va-yah''" ( Gupta_ashoka_l

𑁊, "the Lichchhavis"). The earliest known physical record of the kingdom is an inscription of Mānadeva, which dates from 464. It mentions three preceding rulers, suggesting that the Licchavi dynasty began in the late 4th century.

Government

The Licchavi were ruled by a ''

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

'' ("great king"), who was aided by a prime minister, in charge of the military and of other ministers. Nobles known as ''

samanta Samanta was a title and position used in the history of the Indian subcontinent between 4th and 12th centuryThe Journal of the Bihar Research Society, Volumes 69-70, p.77 to denote a vassal or tributary chief. The term roughly translates to ''neig ...

'' influenced the court whilst simultaneously managing their own landholdings and militia. At one point, between approximately 605 and 641, a prime minister called

Amshuverma Amshuverma or Amshu Verma (595 CE - 621 CE; Devanagari: अंशुवर्मा) rose to the position of ''Mahasamanta'' (equivalent to prime minister) about 595 CE when King Sivadev I was ruling in the Licchavi (kingdom) of Nepal. By 604 A ...

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. Many kings ruled but the popular ones were

Manadeva King Mānadeva (464–505 AD), also Mandev or Mandeva (Nepali: मानदेव), was the first historical king of Licchavi in present-day Nepal. An inscription dated to 464 AD at the temple of Changu Narayan Changu Narayan is an ancient ...

etc.

Economy

The economy was agricultural, relying on

rice Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima ''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...

and other grains as staples. Villages (''grama'') were grouped into ''dranga'' for administration. Lands were owned by the royal family and nobles. Trade was also very important, with many trading settlements.

Geography

Domain

Settlements already filled the entire valley during the Licchavi period. Further settlement extended east toward

Banepa Banepa ( ne, बनेपा) is a municipality and historical town in a valley situated at about above sea level in central Nepal which is at about east from Kathmandu. At the time of the 2011 Nepal census, it has a population of 55,528. The ...

, west toward Tistung Deurali, and northwest toward present-day

Gorkha The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with endonym Gorkhali ), are soldiers native to the Indian Subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of Northeast India. The Gurkha units are composed of Nepalis and Indian Gorkhas and are recruit ...

Rulers

The following list was adapted from The Licchavi Kings, by Tamot & Alsop, and is approximate only, especially with respect to dates. Nepal30008

*185 Jayavarmā (also ''Jayadeva I'') *Vasurāja (also ''Vasudatta Varmā'') *c. 400 Vṛṣadeva (also ''Vishvadeva'') *c. 425 Shaṅkaradeva I *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 Gaṅgādeva *575/576 Mānadeva II (few sources) *590-604 Shivadeva I *605-621 Aṃshuvarmā *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 Shaṅkaradeva II *756 Mānadeva III *826 Balirāja *847 Baladeva *875–879 Mandeva IV

References

Sources

* *

External links

Tamot, Kashinath and Alsop, Ian. "A Kushan-period Sculpture, The Licchavi Kings", Asianart.com

"Nepal: The Early Kingdom of the Licchavis, 400–750", Library of Congress Countryreports.org (September, 1991)

{{Authority control Licchavi kingdom Former monarchies of Asia States and territories established in the 5th century States and territories disestablished in the 8th century Dynasties of Nepal Empires and kingdoms of Nepal 8th-century disestablishments in Nepal 4th-century establishments in Nepal