| Vijaya | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Coronation of Prince Vijaya; detail from theAjanta Caves mural of Cave 17[1] | |
| Reign | c. 543 – c. 505 BCE |
| Successor | Upatissa |
| Born | Sinhapura |
| Died | 505 BC Tambapanni |
| Wives |
|
| Issue |
|
| Dynasty | House of Vijaya |
| Father | Sinhabahu |
| Mother | Sinhasivali |
Prince Vijaya (Sinhala:විජය) (c. 543–505 BCE) was a legendary king ofTambapanni, based in modern daySri Lanka. His reign was first mentioned inMahāvaṃsa. He is said to have came toSri Lanka with seven hundred followers after being banished fromSinhapura. However, there is no archaeological evidence of this.
After arriving on the island, Vijaya and his settlers defeated ayaksha near "Thammena" (Tambapaṇṇī) displacing the inhabitants. Eventually Vijaya marriedKuveni, a daughter of a yaksha leader legitimizing Vijaya’s rule over the region.
Four versions of the legend explain the origin of the Sinhalese people. In all the versions, a prince comes to the island of Lanka and establishes a community which gives rise to the Sinhalese people. TheMahavamsa andDipavamsa identify the prince as Vijaya, and the other two legends have different names for the prince.[2]
According to theMahāvaṃsa, the king ofVanga (the historicalBengal region) married a princess named Mayavati of neighbouringKalinga (present-dayOdisha). The couple had a daughter, Suppadevi, who was prophesied to mate with the king of beasts. As an adult, Princess Suppadevi left Vanga to seek an independent life. She joined a caravan headed forMagadha, which was attacked by Sinha ("lion") in a forest in theLala (or Lada) region. TheMahavamsa calls the Sinha a lion; according to some modern interpreters, however, Sinha was a beastly, outlaw human living in the jungle. Lala is identified as Bengal'sRarh region (part of the present-dayIndian state ofWest Bengal) orLata, part of present-dayGujarat.[3][5]
Suppadevi fled from the attack, but encountered Sinha again. Sinha was attracted to her and she caressed him, mindful of the prophecy. He kept Suppadevi in captivity in a cave, and they had two children: a son namedSinhabahu (or Sihabahu, "lion-armed") and a daughter named Sinhasivali (or Sihasivali). When the children grew up, Sinhabahu asked his mother why she and Sinha looked so different. Upon learning about her royal ancestry, he decided to go to Vanga. While Sinha was away, Sinhabahu escaped from the cave with Suppadevi and Sinhasivali. They reached a village, where they met a general of the Vanga Kingdom—a cousin of Suppadevi—who later married her. Sinha began ravaging villages to find his missing family. The king of Vanga announced a reward to anyone who could kill Sinha, and Sinhabahu killed his father to claim the reward. By the time Sinhabahu returned to the capital, the king of Vanga was dead. Sinhabahu was crowned the new king, but later passed the kingship to his mother's husband (the general). Returning to his birthplace in Lala, he founded the city ofSinhapura (or Sihapura). Sinhabahu married his sister, Sinhasivali, and they had 32 sons (16 pairs of twins). Vijaya Singha ("the greatly victorious") was their eldest son, followed by his twin Sumitta.[3][6]
The location of Sinhapura is uncertain. It has been identified withSingur, West Bengal (in the Rada, or Rarh, region) or Singhpur, near Jajpur (Sinhapura, Odisha).[5] Those who identify the Lala kingdom with present-day Gujarat place it in present-daySihor.[7] Another theory identifies it with the village ofSingupuram, nearSrikakulam inAndhra Pradesh.[8] It has also been placed in present-dayThailand or on theMalay Peninsula.[9]
.jpg)
Vijaya was made theprince regent by his father, but he and his band of followers became notorious for their violent deeds. After their repeated complaints failed to stop him, prominent citizens demanded that Vijaya be put to death. King Sinhabahu then expelled Vijaya and his 700 followers from the kingdom. The men's heads were half-shaved, and they were put on a ship that set out to sea. The wives and children of the 700 men were sent on separate ships. Vijaya and his followers landed at a place called Supparaka; the women landed at a place called Mahiladipaka, and the children landed at a place called Naggadipa. Vijaya's ship later reached Lanka, in the area known asTambapanni, on the day thatGautama Buddha died in northern India.[3][6] Those who think that Vijaya set out from the west coast of India (Sinhapura was in Gujarat) identify present-daySopara as the location of Supparaka.[10] Those who think that Sinhapura was in the Vanga-Kalinga region identify it with locations off the east coast of India;S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar speculates that Supparaka might have beenSumatra.[11]
According to theMahavamsa, Gautama Buddha asked the lord of gods (identified asIndra) before he attained Nirvana to protect Vijaya in Lanka soBuddhism could flourish there. Indra gave the guardianship of Lanka to the lotus-coloured god (Upulvan), who came to Lanka in the guise of an ascetic to protect Vijaya.[12][13]Wilhelm Geiger identifies the lotus-coloured god asVishnu;uppala is theblue lotus.Senarath Paranavithana identifies him withVaruna.[14]
Vijaya tied a protective (paritta)thread on the hands of his followers. Later, a Yakkhini appeared before them in the form of a dog. One of the followers thought that a dog indicated habitation, and followed her. After some time, he saw a Yakkhini namedKuveni (or Kuvanna) who wasspinning thread. Kuveni tried to devour him, but Vijaya's magical thread protected him. Unable to kill him, Kuveni hurled the follower into achasm; she then did the same thing to all 700 followers. Vijaya went to Kuveni's place, looking for his men; he overpowered her, and forced her to free them. Kuveni asked Vijaya to spare her life, swearing loyalty to him. She brought food and goods from the ships of the traders she had devoured for Vijaya and his followers, and Vijaya took her as his consort.[3][13]
Vijaya woke up to the sounds of music and singing. Kuveni told him that the island was home to Yakkhas, who would kill her for sheltering Vijaya's men, and the sound was from wedding festivities in the Yakkha city of Sirisavatthu. With Kuveni's help, Vijaya defeated the Yakkhas. Vijaya and Kuveni had two children - Jivahatta and Disala. Vijaya established a kingdom which was namedTambapanni ("copper-red hands"), because the men's hands were coloured by the area'sred soil. Members of Vijaya's community were called Sinhala, after Sinhabahu.[3][13][15]
Vijaya's ministers and other followers established several villages;Upatissa establishedUpatissagāma on the bank of the Gambhira river, north of Anuradhagama. Vijaya's followers decided to crown him king, but for this he needed a maiden of a noble house as queen. His ministers sent emissaries with gifts to the city of Madhura, which was ruled by aPandya king (Madhura is identified withMadurai, a city inTamil Nadu). The king agreed to send his daughter as Vijaya's bride, and asked other families to offer their daughters as brides for Vijaya's followers. Several families volunteered, and were rewarded by the king, who sent a hundred noble maidens, craftsmen, a thousand families from 18guilds, elephants, horses, wagons and other gifts. The group landed in Lanka at a port known as Mahatittha.[3][13]
Vijaya then asked Kuveni, his Yakkhini consort, to leave the community because his citizens feared supernatural beings like her. He offered her money, asking her to leave their two children behind, but Kuveni brought the children along to the Yakkha city of Lankapura. She asked her children to remain behind as she entered the city, where other Yakkhas saw her as a traitor; suspected of spying, she was killed by a Yakkha. On the advice of her maternal uncle, the children fled to Sumanakuta (identified withAdam's Peak). In theMalaya region of Lanka, they married and began the Pulinda race (identified with theVedda people, not to be confused with thePulindas of India).[3][13]
Vijaya was crowned king. The Pandya king's daughter became his queen, and other women were married to his followers according to their rank. Vijaya bestowed gifts on his ministers and his father-in-law; he abandoned his evil ways, and ruled Lanka in peace and justice.[13]
Vijaya had no other children after Kuveni left. Concerned in old age that he would die without an heir, he decided to bring his twin brother Sumitta from India to govern his kingdom. Vijaya sent a letter to Sumitta, but died before receiving a reply. His ministers from Upatissagāma then governed the kingdom for a year while they waited for a reply. In Sinhapura, Sumitta had become king and had three sons. His queen was a daughter of the king of Madda (possiblyMadra). When Vijaya's messengers arrived, Sumitta asked one of his sons to go to Lanka because he was too old;Panduvasdeva, his youngest son, volunteered. Panduvasdeva and 32 sons of Sumitta's ministers reached Lanka, where he became the new ruler.[3][16]
In Sri Lanka, the legend of Vijaya has often been employed as political rhetoric to explain the origins and ancestry of the Sinhalese, and it is frequently treated as a historical account. Sinhalese scholars includingK. M. de Silva, have cited the legend to support theIndo-Aryan origins of the Sinhalese, distinguishing them from theDravidian populations.[citation needed] Tamil authors such asSatchi Ponnambalam have dismissed the legend as fiction aimed at justifying Sinhalese territorial claims in Sri Lanka.[17]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)Prince Vijaya Born: ? Died: ? 505 BC | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Kuveni Queen of Heladipa | King of Tambapanni 543 BCE – 505 BCE | Succeeded by |
