King Mānadeva (464–505 AD), also Mandev or Mandeva (Nepali: मानदेव), was a king of Licchavi dynasty in present-day

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. He was the son of Dharmadeva, grandson of Shankardeva and the great grandson of Vrsadeva. He suppressed the feudal chiefs of the east and west and also conquered Mallapuri. He minted coins called Mananka and constructed the palace of Managriha for himself which later became a center of administration of the Licchavi kings.

Reign

Mandev's father died when he was young and he was crowned as the king in his early age. His mother Rajyabati, upon her husband's death, chose to assist her son in ruling the kingdom rather than going Sati. After he ascended the throne, the Thakuri governors of the eastern provinces tried to revolt with the aim of gaining independence from the Licchavi rule. Manadev marched with a huge army and suppressed the rebellion forcefully. After crushing the rebels, he, along with his maternal uncle, marched towards west and conquered Mallapuri, Nabalpur and various other tiny states. He expanded his kingdoms up to the Himalayas in the north, to the other side of

Gandaki River The Gandaki River, also known as the Narayani and Gandak, is one of the major rivers in Nepal and a left-bank tributary of the Ganges in India. Its total catchment area is , most of it in Nepal. In the Nepal Himalayas, the Gandaki is notable f ...

in the west, and to the

Kosi River The Kosi or Koshi is a transboundary river which flows through China, Nepal and India. It drains the northern slopes of the Himalayas in Tibet and the southern slopes in Nepal. From a major confluence of tributaries north of the Chatra Gorge o ...

in the east. He installed 14 inscriptions during his reign. His inscription in the

Changu Narayan Temple Changu Narayan is an ancient Hindu and Buddhist temple, located on a hilltop of Changu (also called Dolagiri) in Changunarayan Municipality of Bhaktapur District, Nepal. The temple is considered to be built in the 4th century AD and is one of ...

is dated 464 C.E making it the earliest inscription from not only the Licchavi period but from the ancient period of Nepal. He ruled for more than 41 years without any challenge to his authority was succeeded by his son, Mahideva.

Personal life

He had at least three queens: Bhogini, Ksemasundari, and Gunavati. Although he was an ardent worshipper of Lord

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

, he was tolerant of other religions as shown by the installation of Lord

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

's images by his queens and his daughter.

References

External links

{{Licchavi kings Licchavi kings of Nepal Nepalese monarchs 505 deaths 5th-century monarchs in Asia