Rana of Kiragrama

Who he is

Name

Lakshmanachandra (named in the stones of Saka 1126, which is 1204 or 1205)

Title

Rajanaka (rana) of Kiragrama

Since

not pinned

Born

not known

Family

Under the raja of Trigarta. The temple was built by two merchant brothers, Manyuka and Ahuka (the Wikipedia reading of the 1204 stones).

Confidence

low

The Baijnath stones, as reported by Hutchison and Vogel and Wikipedia; the stones themselves not seen.

Overlord

the raja of Trigarta (named Jayachandra in the stones of 1204)

What it holds

• The valley of Kiragrama round Baijnath
• The right to the temple of Vaidyanatha (founded by merchants) and its offerings

How it was acquired

Hereditary under Trigarta.

Allies and rivals

Serves Kangra; its merchants trade on the Kangra-Mandi road.

How things stand that morning

A valley lordship and a pilgrim place, four years before the stones that name it.

Wealth

Pilgrim offerings and valley rents; a merchant community able to pay for a stone temple in 1204.

Threats

• None named

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

1. 1204 (Saka 1126)The merchants Manyuka and Ahuka complete the Vaidyanatha temple and set up the eulogies.Depends on: A peaceful valley. Stopped by: Nothing named.

Places of note

• Baijnath (Kiragrama): Vaidyanatha temple, eulogies of 1204

Where the sources disagree

• The campaign board entry has two Baijnaths in its hill list: baijnath-kartikeyapura (Kumaon) and baijnath-kiragrama (Kangra). They are different places 300 km apart; do not mix their histories.
• The campaign board entry note on Kiragrama: the stone temple is not yet standing; two merchants raise it in 1204 and the stones name the reigning raja and call the district Nagarkot. We agree.

Evidence: Two stones of 1204 and nothing before them.

"The campaign board" is OMNIA's working map. These notes record where its earlier claims were checked against the sources.

On the map: A small valley lordship drawn inside the Trigarta block.

Primary sources for Hill rajas

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• The River of Kings, with Jonaraja's continuation, Kalhana; continued by Jonaraja (Kalhana 1148 to 1150; Jonaraja about 1459). Kalhana's chronicle stops in 1149, so for 1200 the witness is Jonaraja, writing three centuries later and very briefly. Read online
• The Gopala Raja Chronicle, and the Nepalese colophons, Anonymous (chronicle); various scribes (colophons) (the chronicle about 1389; the colophons are contemporary notes of the 11th to 14th centuries). The Nepal valley in 1200 is known chiefly from dated manuscript colophons and short inscriptions, which name the reigning king with the Nepal era year, and from the Gopalarajavamsavali, a chronicle written about 1389 that lists the kings with regnal years.