Maharaja Bhagya Chandra Biography In English Life Story 1748-1799

Maharaja Bhagya Chandra Biography In English

• Ningthou Ching-thang Khomba (Maharaja Bhagya Chandra) was a Meitei emperor in the 18th century AD.
• The inventor of the Manipuri Rasa Leela dance, with his daughter Shija Lailobi playing as Radha in the first performance, he is a popular figure in Manipur, and most of his actions as a king were legendaryised.
• He is also credited with spreading Vaishnavism in the state of Manipur after his grandfather Pamhiba had made Hinduism the official religion and for creating a unified Manipur.

Birth Details –

Place – Moirangkhom, Imphal

Date of Birth – 1748

Marital Status: Married

Nationality -Indian

Family –

Father- Samzai Khurai-Lakpa

Brothers – Ministers Anand Sai and Chitsai

Wife – Akham Chanu Bhanumati

Early life –

• Ching-thang Khomba was the son of Samzai Khurai-Lakpa, whose two brothers were ministers Ananda Sai and Chitsai.
• Ching-thang had several siblings, the most famous of whom was King Gaurisiam of Manipur until his death in 1763.
• Maharaja Bhagya Chandra ascended the throne of Manipur in 1759 at the hands of his uncle Chitsai, a few years after the death of his grandfather Pamhiba and his father Samzai Khurai-Lakpa.
• In 1762, Manipur was attacked by the Burmese, assisted by Chitsai. He, along with the Rani (queen) and some loyal attendants fled to Ahom, where they lived under the protection of the Ahom ruler, Rajeshwar Singha.

Life In Assam

• Bhagya Chandra’s cunning uncle wrote a letter to the Ahom king Rajeshwar Singha saying that the man who took refuge in his court was not the real Bhagya Chandra.
• Uncle advises Rajeshwar Singha to get rid of him. Raja Rajeshwar Singh was somewhat impressed by this letter and started looking at Bhagya Chandra with suspicion.
• In Meitei legends, the real Bhagya Chandra was said to have supernatural powers. To see if the usurper was right, Raja Rajeshwar Singha, at the behest of his court, devised a test.
• In a public area, Bhagya Chandra had to capture and tame a wild elephant while unarmed.

First Epiphany

• Faced with insurmountable odds, King Bhagyachandra prayed to Lord Govinda (Krishna) for guidance.
• Govinda appeared to him in a dream and instructed him to enter the arena wearing a rosary while chanting. At the end of the instructions, Govinda assures him of victory.
• After installing the deity, Govinda said that the king should arrange for the performance of a rasa-lila, in which Krishna would be worshiped with song and dance. Bhagya Chandra also got a complete plan to execute Raas Leela from this point of view.

Test Of Power

• Bhagya Chandra entered the arena, donning a rosary and chanting as he was instructed in the vision.
• In the ensuing fight, onlookers saw that the elephant appeared as if it had been killed by a ghost. King Bhagya Chandra said that he “saw Lord Krishna in the form of a mahout”.

Return of Manipur

First Campaign

• After the duel, Bhagya Chandra appealed to the Ahom king Rajeshwar Singha for military assistance. Rajeshwar Singh agreed to send an army to overthrow Chitsai and restore Bhagya Chandra.
• The expedition had several roadblocks in Nagaland where they were attacked by Naga tribesmen and poisonous snakes. Rajeshwar Singha closed the failed venture in 1767.

Second Campaign

• In November 1768, Bhagya Chandra and Rajeshwar Singha decided to make another attempt to invade Manipur.
• This time Bhagya Chandra led 10,000 Ahom soldiers through the Kachari Kingdom to the Mirap River.
• Several battles took place between the Ahoms and Meiteis on one side and the Nagas, Chitsais and Burmese on the other. In 1773, Bhagya Chandra was reinstated as Ningthou of Manipur.

Cultural Work

• The credit for the tradition of Raas Leela in Manipur goes to Ching-thang. The first Manipur Maha Rasleela was performed in 1777.
• It was his daughter Shija Lailobi, who first performed the role of Radha in the Manipuri Raas Leela dance. Under the influence of Bengali missionaries, he also started the tradition of Sankirtan in Manipur.

Literary Work

• Lathok Likha Jogi

Other Information –

Date of Death -1799

Place – Murshidabad, West Bengal

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