Tarabya တရဖျား
Tarabya portrayed as the Mintara nat (spirit)
King of Ava
Reign	April –c. October 1400
Predecessor	Swa Saw Ke
Successor	Minkhaung I
Chief Minister	Min Yaza of Wun Zin
Born	22 December 1368 Friday, 13th waxing ofPyatho 730ME Ava (Inwa)
Died	c. October 1400[note 1] before 9th waxing ofNadaw 762 ME Ava
Consort	Min Hla Myat
Issue Detail	Min Nyo Min Hla Htut
House	Pinya
Father	Swa Saw Ke
Mother	Shin Saw Gyi (orKhame Mi)
Religion	Theravada Buddhism

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Tarabya (Burmese:တရဖျား,pronounced[təɹəbjá] or[təjəpʰjá]; 22 December 1368 –c. October 1400) was king ofAva for about seven months in 1400. He was the heir apparent from 1385 to 1400 during his father KingSwa Saw Ke's reign. He was a senior commander in Ava's first three campaigns (1385−91) againstHanthawaddy Pegu in theForty Years' War. He was assassinated seven months into his rule by his one-time tutor, Gov.Thihapate of Tagaung. The court executed the usurper, and gave the throne to Tarabya's half-brotherMin Swe.

Tarabya is remembered as theMintara (Burmese:မင်းတရား,IPA:[mɪ́ɴtəjá])nat spirit in the Burmese official pantheon ofnats.

The future king was born inAva (Inwa) on 22 December 1368^{[note 2]} to KingSwa Saw Ke of Ava and QueenShin Saw Gyi (or QueenKhame Mi).^{[note 3]} Because he was born on the same day as the birth of awhite elephant, considered highly propitious symbol of Burmese monarchs, he was given the title "Hsinbyushin" (Lord of the White Elephant). The name was retained although the baby white elephant died soon after.^[1] His nickname was Min Na-Kye ("Lord Wide Ears").^[2] He had either two full siblings (one younger brother and one younger sister)^[3] or four full siblings (one younger brother and three younger sisters).^[4]

Swa Saw Ke groomed his eldest surviving son^{[note 4]} to be his heir-apparent.^[5] But Tarabya saw his two younger half-siblings,Min Swe andTheiddat who were Swa's sons by a concubine as rivals. Because Tarabya kept picking on his half-siblings, the king had to send his two younger sons away from the Ava Palace in 1381/82.^[6] Nonetheless,c. April 1385, the king appointed Hsinbyushin his heir-apparent, and married him toMin Hla Myat, the only daughter of the powerful Gov.Thilawa of Yamethin.^[7]

The only extant record of his years as the heir-apparent concerns his military service in theAva–Hanthawaddy War (1385–1391). The war was Swa's attempt to take over a dividedMon-speaking kingdom in Lower Burma. Its young kingRazadarit controlled only the province, and was facing two rebellions in Martaban and in the Irrawaddy delta.

Tarabya was the overall commander of the 1385–86 campaign which came close to defeating Razadarit. The Ava forces missed their opportunity to finish off Razadarit as Min Swe, the commander of the Second Army, disobeyed Tarabya's order.^[8][9] (Although he and Min Swe were the commanders-in-chief of the two invasion armies, they were aided by Ava's best commanders, including Tarabya's father-in-law Thilawa andTheinkhathu Saw Hnaung.^[10]) Tarabya was second-in-command in the next Hanthawaddy campaigns. His army did not achieve any meaning battlefield successes in either of those campaigns. The war then entered a hiatus in early 1391 as the two sides agreed to a truce.^[11]

In April 1400, King Swa died, and Tarabya succeeded.^{[note 5]} But Tarabya's reign was short. According to the chronicles, he became insane five months into his reign after a hunting trip toAung Pinle (near modern Mandalay). The king was convinced that the beautiful fairy he made love to in the forest was a representation of AngelThuyathadi (Saraswati). The king's behavior became totally erratic, and the court now entertained the murmurs of replacing him. Pretenders to the throne began circling. One such pretender, GovernorYazathingyan of Sagaing, had already amassed a force to take over the Ava throne before dying in a freak accident as he disembarked from his war boat at the Ava harbor.^[12] The king, who was totally oblivious to the surroundings, was assassinated by his one-time tutor, GovernorThihapate of Tagaung.^[13][14]

Thihapate, known by his given name Nga Nauk Hsan, proclaimed himself king. But the court led by Chief MinisterMin Yaza of Wun Zin did not accept the usurper, and executed him.^[13] The court gave the throne to Min Swe, who ascended the throne asMinkhaung I on 25 November 1400.^[15]

Because of his violent death, Tarabya entered the official pantheon ofnats (spirits) as theMintaranat.^[16] He is portrayed sitting on a throne, wearing his royal garments with a fan in his right hand and his left hand resting on his knee.^[16]

Tarabya had two children both by his chief queenMin Hla Myat.^{[note 6]} His elder child,Min Nyo later became king of Ava from 1425 to 1426. His daughterMin Hla Htut was the first wife of Prince (later King)Thihathu of Ava, and later the chief consort of Gov.Saw Shwe Khet of Prome.^[12]

Tarabya was descended from Pagan, Myinsaing and Sagaing royal lines.

• Hla Thamein."Thirty-Seven Nats". Yangonow. Archived fromthe original on 2006-06-24. Retrieved2010-08-28.
• Harvey, G. E. (1925).History of Burma: From the Earliest Times to 10 March 1824. London: Frank Cass & Co. Ltd.
• Htin Aung, Maung (1967).A History of Burma. New York and London: Cambridge University Press.
• Kala, U (2006) [1724].Maha Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (4th printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
• Maha Sithu (2012) [1798]. Myint Swe; Kyaw Win; Thein Hlaing (eds.).Yazawin Thit (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3 (2nd printing ed.). Yangon: Ya-Pyei Publishing.
• Nyein Maung, ed. (1972–1998).Shay-haung Myanma Kyauksa-mya [Ancient Burmese Stone Inscriptions] (in Burmese). Vol. 1–5. Yangon: Archaeological Department.
• Pan Hla, Nai (2005) [1968].Razadarit Ayedawbon (in Burmese) (8th printing ed.). Yangon: Armanthit Sarpay.
• Royal Historians of Burma (1960) [c. 1680]. U Hla Tin (Hla Thamein) (ed.).Zatadawbon Yazawin. Historical Research Directorate of the Union of Burma.
• Royal Historical Commission of Burma (2003) [1832].Hmannan Yazawin (in Burmese). Vol. 1–3. Yangon: Ministry of Information, Myanmar.
• Sandalinka, Shin (2009) [1781].Mani Yadanabon (in Burmese) (4th printing ed.). Yangon: Seit-Ku Cho Cho.
• Than Tun (December 1959). "History of Burma: A.D. 1300–1400".Journal of Burma Research Society.XLII (II).

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