The Complex Concept of the Chakravartin -चक् रवर्तिन्

Prologue to Chakravartin:
Lav kush and the horse of King Ram

The idea of Chakravarti is based on the performance of a YAGNA of Ashwamedh or a

ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras chanted by Hindu priests in
Sanskrit and is an episode from the Ramayana where the wife of King Ram of city of
Ayodhya –SITA was sent to exile to the forest by Lord Rama. Sita got shelter in the
ashram of Sage Valmiki and this was the place where she gave birth to twin sons
called Luv and Kush. In this Ashwamedh Yagna a horse of the same name is sent out
to all lands after the performance of the ritual and whosoever stops him fights with the
king’s armies if not all lands travelled by the horse belong to the one who performs the
YAGNA.

While Luv and Kush were growing up in the ashram of Sage Valmiki, Lord Rama
performed an Ashwamedh Yagna on the banks of the Gomti River.  For the proper
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completion of the yajna, Rama sent a horse that roamed all over many lands.
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Ashwamegha Yajna’ TO RIGHT LAV _KUSH and the Chakravarti Horse

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 2 carvings at Angkor showing the wheel of the Chariot- symbolizing the
morphed story of the ahwamegha horse

The Attack by the Twins:

The horse went near Sage Valmiki’s ashram where Sita’s twin sons were living now
exiled by Rama.. Luv spotted the beautiful horse and was awestruck at the beauty of
the horse. Soon Luv read the message which said that whoever would tie the horse, he
had to fight with the army. Luv tied the horse to a close by tree. The army of Rama
soon reached that place and saw Luv along with the horse. They burst out into
laughter to see a little child tying the horse to a nearby tree.The little child already
knew what would the consequence be and was ready to face it.  Hence, he called out
for a fight against the army of Rama. As the war began, Luv did not give any
opportunity to the army to shoot the arrows, instead, he shot the arrow called
Jrumbhkastra.  The commander of the army could not believe his eyes and was
astonished to see the bravery of the little boy. He was pleased to see the skills of the
boy and approached him. He requested the boy to set the horse free and at this point,
Kush came. Kush did not want to free the horse and instead challenged the army to
prepare for a fierce battle.

Sugriva and Hanuman came to rescue Rama’s army and battle the children out. Soon
the two brothers outnumbered Sugriva and Hanuman and dragged Hanuman by its
tail to their ashram. They wanted to show their bravery to their mother.
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Luv and Kush/ Luv and Kush tying their horse

As soon as Sita saw Hanuman she could recognize him and told the kids that the
horse belonged to Lord Rama who is their father. She ordered the kids to release the
horse. Hearing of their bravery, Ram invited these unknowing their identity to
Ayodhya, but their arrival in the city was noticed by the citizens who informed Ram
about the identity of his sons.

Rama was overwhelmed to see his sons and thanked Valmiki from the core of his
heart.

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The ruler whose chariot could roll in all 4 directions
unhindered( without any enemies) was to be known as Chakravartin.
Therefore, it is very probable that the Khmer kings had heard of the Indian
polity of Chakravartin and wanted that glorious title to be bestowed upon
themselves. The first time we hear about the word Chakravartin in the Khemer
of “Cambodian” context is in the inscription from the Sdok Kak Thom temple
recounts that at Mahendraparvata, the Mount Kulen or holy mountain of the
Khemer, Jayavarman II took part in a ritual conducted by the Brahman
Hiranyadama, and his chief priest Lord Sivakaivalya. This ritual was the
christening or coronation of the Kings as devaraja which would place him as
a chakravartin, Lord of the Universe.

There have been 2 other Chakravartin in India. King Ashoka and king
Chandragupta both of them belonged to different dynasties. Ashoka also
known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty,
who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from c. 268 to 232 BCE.
Chandragupta, r. c. 319-335 or 319-350 CE) was a king of the Gupta dynasty,
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who ruled in northern India. His title Maharajadhiraja ("great king of kings")
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suggests that he was the first emperor of the dynasty. The concept of
'Chakravarti' occurs in the literature on ancient Indian polity. The sovereign
ruler whose chariot could roll in all four directions without any obstruction was
known as Chakravarti. Thus, Chandragupta Maurya was the first Chakravarti
Emperor. That is also contentious because Ashoka was born and ruled before
Chandragupta and he too, some say, was called a Chakravartin. In fact, a
popular TV serial was broadcast fromm2015 to 2016 on Indian TV titled
CHAKRAVART SAMRAT ASHOK; Samrat being another title which means
greatest of all kings.

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Th titular term CHAKRAVARTIN or CHAKRAVARTY is owned by 3 religions-
Hindus, jains and Buddhists and that is why there in multi-layered and
overlapping nuances that need to be understood and separated in order to
understand what it is all about. Hence, this paper is not about the Angkorean
Chakravartin but the idea –the concept- of Chakravartism.

Chakravartin, Pali chakkavatti, the ancient Indian conception of the world

ruler, derived from the Sanskrit chakra, “wheel,” and vartin, “one who turns.”
Thus, a chakravartin may be understood as a ruler “whose chariot wheels roll
everywhere,” or “whose movements are unobstructed.” The word itself
Cakravartin is an ancient Indian term used to refer to an ideal universal ruler
who rules ethically and benevolently over the entire world. Such a ruler's reign
is called sarvabhauma. It is a bahuvrīhi, figuratively meaning "whose wheels
are moving", in the sense of "whose chariot is rolling everywhere without
obstruction". It can also be analysed as an 'instrumental bahuvrīhi: "through
whom the wheel is moving" in the meaning of "through whom the
Dharmachakra ("Wheel of the Dharma) is turning" (most commonly used in
Buddhism and Hinduism).

The first references to a cakravala cakravrtin appear in monuments from the

time of the Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE), dedicated to Chandragupta Maurya
and his grandson Ashoka. It has not been generally used for any other historic
figure. In Buddhism, the chakravarti came to be considered the secular
counterpart of a buddha. In general, the term applies to temporal as well as
spiritual kingship and leadership, particularly in Buddhism and Jainism. In
Hinduism, the term generally denotes a powerful ruler whose dominion
extended to the entire earth.

Buddhist and Jain sources distinguish three types

of secular chakravartin: chakravala chakravartin, a king who rules over all four
of the continents posited by ancient Indian cosmography (i.e., a universal
monarch); dvipa chakravartin, a ruler who governs only one of those continents
and is, therefore, less powerful than the first; and pradesha chakravartin, a
monarch who leads the people of only a part of a continent, the equivalent of a
local king. The first reference to a secular king who achieved the status of
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a chakravala chakravartin appears in texts and monuments from the Mauryan

dynasty that praise the exploits of King Ashoka (3rd century BCE). Buddhist
and Jain philosophers of this period conflated the notion of the universal
monarch with the idea of a king of righteousness and maintainer of moral law.
In Buddhism, for example, the chakravartin was considered to be the secular
counterpart of a buddha (“enlightened one”), with whom he shared many
attributes.
CHAKRAVARTIN: In Indian religions, he is an ideal universal ruler, especially
one who rules the entire Indian sub-continent (as in the case of the Maurya
Empire, despite not conquering the southern kingdoms). The first references to
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a Chakravala Chakravartin appear in monuments from the time of the early
Maurya Empire, in the 4th to 3rd century BCE, in reference to Chandragupta
Maurya and his grandson Ashoka. The word cakra-vartin- is a bahuvrīhi
compound word, translating to "one whose wheels are moving", in the sense of
"whose chariot is rolling everywhere without obstruction". It can also be
analysed as an 'instrumental bahuvrīhi: "through whom the wheel is moving"
in the meaning of "through whom the Dharmachakra ("Wheel of the Dharma) is
turning" (most commonly used in Buddhism). The Tibetan equivalent Tibetan:
"monarch who controls by means of a wheel". In Buddhism, a chakravarti is
the secular counterpart of a buddha. The term applies to temporal as well as
spiritual kingship and leadership, particularly in Buddhism and Jainism. In
Hinduism, a chakravarti is a powerful ruler whose dominion extends to the
entire earth. The Indian concept of chakravarti later evolved into devaraja
concept of divine right of kings, which was adopted by the indianised Hindu-
Buddhist kingdoms of Southeast Asia through Indian Hindu Brahmins
scholars deployed in courts. It was first adopted by Javanese Hindu-Buddhist
kingdoms such as Majapahit and through them the Khmer Empire, and
subsequently by the Thai monarches.
The nature of the the kingdoms assailed by Jayavarman II and their extent
is subject to debate. It may have had limited or entirely notional influence over
some of the tributary states, Geographical and economic constraints suggest
that rather than a regular centralised authority, the outer states were most
likely to have been connected mainly by trade connections, which were
probably a royal monopolyAt various times in History Kings took upon
themselves fancy named to increase the majesty of their position.
Similar Indic concepts

 Chakraborty
 Chhatrapati
 Devaraja
 Kalachakra
 Maharaja
 Rajamandala- circle of kings
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 Samraat
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 Maharaja
 Raja
As one can see there was a tendency to intermix religious dogma and societal
concepts because none of the migrated religions had taken deep root. The fear
of challenging, manipulating,being mischivious and making a tardy use of
religion to suit a purpose was the order of the day amongst the Rulers. See how
the Khemer switched their religion from Hinduism to Buddhisn as one
changes one’s garments. For example, Dvaravati a period that lasted from the
6th to the 11th century was a disparate conglomeration of principalities of Mon

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people.but it is also the name of Dvārakā, also known
as Dvāravatī (Sanskrit द्वारका "the gated [city]", possibly meaning having many
gates, or alternatively having one or several very grand gates), which was a
sacred historic city and in  Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism the name
Dvaraka is said to have been given to the place by Bhagavan Krishna, a major
deity in Hinduism. It being one of the Sapta Puri (seven sacred cities)
of Hinduism. In the Mahabharata, it was a city located in what is now Dwarka,
formerly called Kushasthali, the fort of which had to be repaired by
the Yadavas. In this epic, the city is described as a capital of the Anarta
Kingdom. According to the Harivamsa the city was located in the region of
the Sindhu Kingdom. In the Hindu epics and the Puranas, Dvaraka is called
Dvaravati and is one of seven Tirtha (pilgrimage) sites for spiritual liberation.
The other six are Mathura, Ayodhya, Kashi, Kanchipuram, Avantika (Ujjain)
and Puri.

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The first references to a Chakravala Chakravartin appear in monuments from
the time of the early Maurya Empire, in the 4th to 3rd century BCE, in
reference to Chandragupta Maurya and his grandson Ashoka.
The word cakra-vartin- is a bahuvrīhi compound word, translating to "one
whose wheels are moving", in the sense of "whose chariot is rolling everywhere
without obstruction". In Buddhism, there is a more passive connotation-
exemplified by what is derived from Tibetan- khor los sgyur ba'i rgyal
po translates "monarch who controls by means of a wheel”- an 'instrumental
bahuvrīhi: "through whom the wheel is moving" in the meaning of "through
whom the Dharmachakra ("Wheel of the Dharma) is turning" (most commonly
used in Buddhism).
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 The city is described as near the sea, in modern-era Gujarat; a painting of the city in
the 19th century
14 Ratnas of Chakravartin, 17th century manuscript.

In Buddhism, a chakravarti is the secular counterpart of a buddha. The term

applies to temporal as well as spiritual kingship and leadership, particularly
in Buddhism and Jainism. In Hinduism, a chakravarti is a powerful ruler
whose dominion extends to the entire earth.
The Indian concept of chakravarti later evolved into devaraja concept of divine
right of kings, which was adopted by the indianised Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms
of Southeast Asia through Indian Hindu Brahmins scholars deployed in courts.
It was first adopted by Javanese Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms such
as Majapahit and through them the Khmer Empire, and subsequently by
the Thai monarches.
BUDDHISM: It was believed that once a chakravarti emerged the "Future
Buddha" Maitreya would appear on earth.
In early Buddhist art there are more than 30 depictions, all from the Deccan.
In most the Cakravarti King uses the "Royal Gesture" in which the king
"clenches his left hand at his chest and reaches up with his right hand". He is
surrounded by his seven attributes: the Chakraratna wheel, his state elephant,
charger horse, "the octagonal gem which is so luminous it can light the path of
his army by night", his queen, defense minister and finance minister. [3]
The early Buddhist Mahāvastu (1.259f) and the Divyāvadāna, as well as
the Theravadin Milindapañha, describe the marks of the cakravarti as
ruler: uṣṇīṣa, chhatra "parasol", "horn jewel" or vajra, whisk and sandals. These
were the marks of the kshatriya. Plastic art of early Mahayana Buddhism
illustrates bodhisattvas in a form called uṣṇīṣin "wearing a turban/hair
binding", wielding the mudras for "nonviolent cakravarti rule".
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Tibetan mandala of the six chakravartis

Hinduism: According to the traditions "Vishnu, in the form of Chakra, was

held as the ideal of worship for Kings desirous of obtaining Universal
Sovereignty",a concept associated with the Bhagavata Puranas, a religious
sanction traceable to the Gupta period, which also led to the Chakravartin
Concept. There are relatively few examples of chakravartins in both northern
and southern India.

RURAL BRAHMANISM
In Southern India, the Pallava period beginning with Simhavishnu (575 CE –
900 CE) was a transitional stage in southern Indian society with monument
building, establishment of (bhakti) sects of Alvars and Nayanars, flowering of
rural Brahmanical institutions of Sanskrit learning, and the establishment
of Chakravartin model of kingship over a territory of diverse people; which
ended the pre-Pallavan era of territorially segmented people, each with their
culture, under a tribal chieftain. The Pallava period extolled ranked
relationships based on ritual purity as enjoined by the shastras.[9] Burton
distinguishes between the Chakravatin model and the Kshatriya model, and
likens kshatriyas to locally based warriors with ritual status sufficiently high
enough to share with Brahmins; and states that in south India the kshatriya
model did not emerge. As per Burton, South India was aware of the Indo-
Aryan Varna organized society in which decisive secular authority was vested
in the Kshatriyas; but apart from the Pallava, Chola and Vijayanagar line of
warriors which claimed Chakravartin status, only few locality warrior families
achieved the prestigious kin-linked organization of northern warrior groups. [9]
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Statue of Bharata Chakravartin at Shravanabelagola

During the each motion of the half-cycle of the wheel of time, 63 Salakapurusa
or 63 illustrious men, consisting of the 12 Chakravartin regularly appear.
The Jain cosmology or legendary history is basically a compilation of the deeds
of these illustrious men. As per Jain cosmology, Chakravartins are Universal
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Monarchs or World Conquerors. Golden in complexion, they all belonged to
the Kasyapa gotra. The mother of a Chakravartin sees some dreams at the
time of conception. A chakravartin is considered an ideal human being
endowed with thirty-two major signs of excellence and many minor signs of
excellence.
The list of 12 chakravartin of Avasarpini as per Jainism is as follows[-

1. Bharata, son of Tirthankara Rishabhanatha

2. Sagara, ancestor of Bhagiratha as in the Puranas
3. Maghava
4. Sanatkumara
5. Tirthankara Ajitnatha
6. Tirthankara Shantinatha
7. Tirthankara Kunthunatha
8. Tirthankara Aranatha
9. Subhauma[
10. Padmanabha
11. Harishena
12. Jayasena
13. Brahmadatt
In Jainism, a Chakravartin Samrat was characterised by his possession
of Saptaratna, or "Seven Jewels”

1. Ratna-Chakra, a miraculous diamond serrated discus that never misses

its target
2. Empress
3. Divine Jewellery
4. Immense Wealth
5. Huge Army of War-Chariots
6. Huge Army of Cavalry
7. Huge Army of Elephants
Some lists cite navaratna or "nine jewels" instead, adding "Prime Minister" and
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"Son"
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According to the Jain cosmology, the śalākapuruṣa (Sanskrit: शलाकपुरूष)

"illustrious or worthy persons" are 63 illustrious beings who appear during
each half-time cycle. They are also known as the triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣa (63
illustrious persons). The Jain universal or legendary history is a compilation of
the deeds of these illustrious persons. Their life stories are said to be most
inspiring.
1. The śalākāpuruṣa comprise.
2. 24 Tirthankaras (Teaching.Gods),

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 3. twelve Chakravartin (universal monarchs, emperors of six continents),
nine Balabhadras (gentle heroes),
4. nine Narayanas (warrior heroes) and
5. nine Prati-narayanas (anti-heroes).

According to Jain cosmology, time is without beginning and eternal.

The Kālacakra, the cosmic wheel of time, rotates ceaselessly. The wheel of time
is divided into two half-rotations, Utsarpiṇī or ascending time cycle
and Avasarpiṇī, the descending time cycle, occurring continuously after each
other. Utsarpiṇī is a period of progressive prosperity and happiness where the
time spans and ages are at an increasing scale while the Avasarpiṇī is a period
of increasing sorrow and immorality with decline in time spans of the epochs.
[6]
 During each such time cycle, these 63 illustrious persons appear and
establish the religion and order in society. According to Jain cosmology, since
time is eternal, infinite kalacakras have elapsed and will occur in future and
hence infinite sets of these 63 illustrious persons have appeared, and will
appear, to establish order and religion in their respective eras.
The word salakapurusa is often translated as illustrious persons or worthy
persons or mighty persons. It is derived from the Sanskrit compound of
words salaka and purusa. "Purusa" means person, but "salaka" is of
ambiguous etymology in this context. The primary meaning of the word salaka
(Sanskrit: Śalākā, Pali: salākā, Prakrit: salāgā, salāyā) is "stick". In the
Buddhist context it meant a ticket consisting of wooden sticks meant for voting
or to distribute food; but in Jain context it was used to mean a stick and also a
measurement and when combined with "purusa" to denote great heroes.
[8]
 According to 11th century Jain author, monk Acharya Hemachandra, these
persons are called salaka as they have been specially marked among men. This
emphasised that the names of the salakapurusas were underlined or specially
significant due to their deeds. John Cort also quotes another author, S. D.
Parekh, who emphasises the root meaning of voting sticks and concludes that
a salakapurusa is a great person, as his greatness has been accepted by
general public. Certain Śvētāmbara texts use the
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word Baladeva, Vāsudeva and Prativasudeva to
refer Balabhadra, Narayana and Pratinarayana respectively. A 1975 treatise,
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detailing Mahavira's life and doctrine seems to imply the voting-etymology of

the word, i.e. they are called salakapurusa, because they are men-that-count.

The tradition of salakapurusas or Jain universal history started with the

biographies of the Tirthankaras. Kalpasutra gives the names and brief
biographies of only tirthankaras. It does not use the word salakapurusas or
mention them by name, but does say that the categories
of Arihants, Chakravartins, Balabhadras and Vasudevas are always born in

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royal families, thus foreshadowing 54 of the 63 salakapurusas. Furthermore,
Jaini traces the origin of list of Baladeva and Vasudeva to
the Jinacharitra (lives of the Jinas) by Bhadrabahu (3–4th century BCE).] A
notable hagiography of these individuals
is Hemachandra's Triṣaṣṭiśalākāpuruṣacaritra.
The following Jain texts chronicle the deeds of the salakapurusas:
Digambara texts

 Satkhandagama (1st century) – This gives a description of Jain universal

history in a rudimentary form.
 Tiloya Panatti by Yativṛṣabha (7th century) – This text gives descriptions
of other Jain heroes i.e. 9 Naradas, 11 Rudras and 24 Kamadevas,[14] but
specifically states that there are only 63 salakapurusas.
 Adipurana by Acharya Jinasena and Gunabhadra (9th century) – This
text is also known as Trisastilaksanamahapurana (The great purana
describing 63 great heroes). By this time the number of heroes had come to
be fixed at 63.
 Harivamsa Purana composed by Acharya Jinasena.
Śvētāmbara texts

 Kalpasutra – Devoted mainly to stories

of Rishabhanatha, Neminatha, Parshvanatha and Mahavira. It names other
tirthankaras and also mentions the categories of Chakravartins, Baldeva
and Vasudeva without giving individual names.
 Samavayanga Sutra – This text gives description of sixty-three and fifty-
four salakapurusas in different places.
 Paumacarya' by Vimalasuri (2nd century) – This is the Jain version of
Ramayana. The story of Rama the eighth Baladeva is narrated within the
context of 63 salakapurusas. The later texts were influenced by
Paumacarya.
 Cauppanamahapurisacariya by Silanka (9th century) – This narrates the
deeds of fifty-four great heroes.
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 Trisastisalakapurusacaritra by Hemacandra (11th century) – The deeds

of 63 illustrious persons, and one of the most popular text of Jain universal
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history.
 Kahavali by Bhadresvara (13th century) — This text raised the number
of salakapurusa to 72 by adding 9 Naradas.
All traditions of Jainism now agree to the figure of 63 salakapurusas. However,
the number of persons is 60 as three persons
(Shantinath, Kunthunath and Aranath) were Chakravartins who later on
became Tirthankaras.

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Tīrthankaras (also known as Jinas) are Arhatas who are teachers and
revivers of the Jain philosophy. There are 24 Tīrthankaras in each half time
cycle; Mahāvīra was the 24th and last Tīrthankara of the current descending
time cycle and Rishabha was the first Tirthankara. Tīrthankaras are literally
"the ford makers", who have shown the way to cross the ocean of rebirth and
transmigration and hence have become a focus of reverence and worship
amongst Jains. The Tirthankara provides all creatures with the means to
liberate the soul from the confines of the body and to rise towards bliss,
enlightenment and release from the eternal cycle of rebirth. He advocates
continence, truth, non-violence, simplicity and purity for those who seek
liberation. Tīrthankaras ultimately become Siddhas on liberation.

Mahavira was the last Tirthankara and Salakapurusa of this descending time
cycle as per the Jain Universal History

The twenty four Tīrthankaras of this descending time cycle are:

1. Rishabha or Adinatha
2. Ajitnath
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3. Sambhavanath
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4. Abhinandannath
5. Sumatinath
6. Padmaprabha
7. Suparshvanath
8. Chandraprabha
9. Pushpadanta
10. Sheetalnath
11. Shreyansanath
12. Vasupujya
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 13. Vimalnath
14. Anantanatha
15. Dharmanatha
16. Shantinatha
17. Kunthunatha
18. Aranatha
19. Mallinath
20. Munisuvrata
21. Naminatha
22. Neminathaa
23. Parshvanath
24. Mahavira Swami

14 Ratna (jewels) of Chankravartin. Miniature from the 17th century, Saṁgrahaṇīratna by

Śrīcandra, in Prakrit with a Gujarati commentary. Jain Śvetāmbara cosmological text with
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commentary and illustrations. 17th century miniature painting showing 14 ratna's of a

Chakravati. The names of 14 ratna's are: Gaj, Ashav, Grahpati, Sthapati, Senapati, Pattrani,
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Purohit, Chatra, Asi, Dand, Chakra, Kaakini, Chintamani and Charm.

A Chakravartin (Universal Monarch) is the emperor of the world, lord of the

material realm. Though he possesses worldly power, he often finds his
ambitions dwarfed by the enormity of the cosmos. Jain purunas give a list of
12 Chakravartins who flourished in this descending time cycle. Golden in
complexion, they all belonged to Kasyapa gotra. ] One of the greatest
Chakravartis mentioned in Jain scriptures is Bharata in whose memory India
came to be known as "Bharata-varsha". After conquering the whole world, King
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Bharata, brimming with pride, sought to inscribe his great feat on the slopes of
Mount Meru. To his great dismay, he found the names of many other kings
carved on Meru. Like him, they too had conquered the world. He was not the
first man to do so. He was not the last. There were many before him, there were
many after him. Bharata, humbled by the experience, returned to his kingdom
to do his duty, aware that his actions were not unique and that his existence
was not special. The names of the twelve Chakravartins as per Jain Texts are:

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Lord Shantinatha, the sixteenth Jain Tirthankara was also a Chakravarti

1. Bharata - Tirthankara Rishabha's son.

2. Sagara - Ancestor of Bhagiratha as per Hindu Puranas.
3. Maghava
4. Sanat Kumara
5. Shantinatha - (also a Tirthankara)
6. Kunthunatha - (also a Tirthankara)
7. Aranatha - (also a Tirthankara)
8. Subhuma
9. Padmanabha
10. Harishena
11. Jayasena
12. Brahmadatta
In Jainism, a chakravarti was characterised by possession of saptaratna, or
"seven jewels":

1. Sudarshana Chakra, a miraculous wheel that never misses its target

2. Queen
16

3. Huge army of chariots

4. Jewellery
Page

5. Immense wealth
6. Huge army of horses
7. Huge army of elephants
Some texts cite navaratna or "nine jewels" instead, adding "prime minister" and
"son". Some texts even further expands to 14 Ratna, jewels.

16
Triad of Baladeva, Vasudeva and Prativasudeva

TOP_ Weapons and symbols of Vasudeva or Narayana. Miniature from the 17th
century, Saṁgrahaṇīratna by Śrīcandra, in Prakrit with a Gujarati commentary. Jain Śvetāmbara
cosmological text with commentary and illustrations.

BELOW_Chakravarti, from Amaravati Stupa, 1st century CE, using the "Royal Gesture" and
surrounded by his attributes. Possibly represents Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire.
17Page

In every half time cycle, there are 9 sets of Balabhadras (gentle

heroes), Vasudevas (violent heroes) and Prativāsudevas (anti-heroes).  Unlike
in the Hindu Puranas, the names Balabhadra and Narayana are not restricted

17
to Balarama and Krishna in Jain puranas. Instead they serve as names of two
distinct classes of mighty half brothers, who appear nine times in each half of
the time cycles of the Jain cosmology and jointly rule half the earth as half-
chakravarti. Ultimately Prati-naryana is killed by Narayana for his
unrighteousness and immorality. Jaini traces the origin of this list of brothers
to the Jinacaritra (lives of the Jinas) by Bhadrabahu swami (3-4th century
BCE). Jain Ramayana is based on the stories
of Rama, Lakshmana and Ravana who are the
eighth Baladeva, Narayana, Pratinarayana and respectively.
Similarly Harivamsa Purana is based on the stories
of Balarama, Krishna and Jarasandha, who are the ninth and the last set
of Balabhadra, Narayana, and Pratinarayana. However, the main battle is not
the Mahabharata, but the fight between Krishna and Jarasandha who is killed
by Krishna.
According to Jain texts, Narayana are generally of dark complexion and wear
yellow garments. There are seven weapons and symbols of Narayana, namely:
conch, discus (sudarshana chakra), club, bow, sword, jewel (kaustubha mani)
and a garland of flowers (vanamala). Baladevas, half-brothers of Vasudevas,
are described as fair in complexion and wear garments of dark blue and have a
banner of palm tree. Their symbols or weapons are: bow, plough, pestle and
arrow. The two brothers are inseparable and they jointly rule three continents
as half-Chakravarti. Although Narayana is the mightier of the
two, Balabhadra is depicted as superior for his non-violent ways and he
achieves liberation. According to the Jain puranas, the Balabhadras lead an
ideal Jain life. Out of nine Balabhadra, eight attain liberation and the last one
goes to heaven. On the other hand, Narayana go to hell on account of their
violent exploits, even though they did these in order to uphold righteousness.
18
Page

18
Rama and Lakshmana are the eighth set of Baladeva and Vasudeva
according to the Jain universal history

The list of Baladeva, Vasudeva and Prativasudeva are-

No Vasudeva / Prativasudeva /
. Baladeva / Balabhadra Narayana Pratinarayana

Tripushta (or
1 Acala Prishtha) Asvagriva

Dvipushta (or
2 Vijaya Prishtha) Taraka

3 Dharmaprabha (Bhadra) Svayambhu Naraka

4 Suprabha Purushottama Nisumbha

Nara (Purusha)
5 Sudarsana simha Madhukatiabha

6 Nandi (Ananda) Pundarika Prahlada

7 Nandimitra (Mandana)[21] Dattadeva Bali

19

8 Rama Lakshmana Ravana

Page

9 Rama (Balarama) Krishna Jarasandha

Hierarchy: Out of the above five classes of illustrious persons, Tirthankaras

are placed at the top. They establish the religion and attain liberation. The
Chakravarti attain liberation if they renounce their kingdom, or else go to hell if
they indulge in sensual pleasures. Next in rank are Baladevas who are gentle
heroes and devout laymen, who attain liberation corresponding to
19
Tirthankaras. Vasudevas are also devout Jain laymen and ultimately attain
liberation, but are first reborn in hell because of their violent actions.
The mother of a Tirthankara sees 16 auspicious dreams (14 dreams in some
traditions) when the soul descends into her womb. The mother of a Vasusdeva
sees seven dreams, while that of a Balabhadra sees only four dreams. The
mother of a Prati-vasudeva sees no dreams.
Certain Jain texts also depict the comparative powers of Salakapurusas in the
following manner:

 A bull is as powerful as 12 warriors.

 A horse is as powerful as 10 bulls.
 A buffalo is as powerful as 12 horses.
 An elephant is as powerful as 15 buffalos.
 A lion with a mane is as powerful as 500 elephants.
 An octoped (Astapada mythical eight limbed animal) is as powerful as
2,000 maned lions.
 A Baldeva is as powerful as 1 million octopeds.
 A Vasudeva is as powerful as 2 Baldevs. (A Prati-vasudeva is slightly less
powerful that a Vasudeva)
 A Chakravartin is as powerful as 2 Vasudevs.
 A Nagaraja (king of serpent gods) is as powerful as 100,000 Chakravartins.
 An Indra is as powerful as 10 million Nagarajas (kings of serpent gods).
 The power of innumerable Indras is insignificant as compared to that of the small finger of
a Tirthankara.
In Jain universal history, other than these 63 Salakapurusa, there are other classes of 106 people who,
though not depicted as salakapurusas, are important enough to be mentioned separately. They are:

 9 Narada

No Lifespan (Total
Name Height Narka
. Age)
20Page

1 Bhima 80 dhansha 84 lakh years 7th

2 Mahabhima 70 dhanusha 72 lakh years 6th

3 Rudra 60 dhanusha 60 lakh years 6th

20
 No Lifespan (Total
Name Height Narka
. Age)

4 Maharudra 50 dhanusha 30 lakh years 6th

5 Kala 45 dhanusha 10 lakh years 6th

6 Mahakala 29 dhanusha 65,000 years 6th

7 Durmukha 22 dhanusha 32,000 years 5th

8 Narakamukha 16 dhanusha 12,000 years 4th

9 Adhomukha 10 dhanusha 1,000 years 3rd

 11 Rudras (Bhimabali, Jitasatru, Rudra, Visvanala, Supratishtha, Achala, Pundarika, Jitadhara, Jit
anabhi, Pitha, Satyaki)
 24 Kamdevas (Bahubali, Prajapati, Sridhara, Prasenacandra, Candravarna, Agniyukta, Sanatkum
ara, Vatsaraja, Kanakaprabha, Meghaprabha, Shantinatha, Kunthunatha, Arahanatha, Vijayaraja, Sri
chandra, Nalaraja (male figure of the mythological couple Nalraja and
Queen Damayanti), Hanuman, Baliraja, Vasudeva, Pradyumna, Nagakumata, Jivamdhara, Jambusva
mi)
 24 Fathers of the Tirthankaras (For list refer Tirthankara Table)
 24 Mothers of the Tirthankaras. (For list refer Tirthankara Table)
 14 Kulakara (patriarchs) who teaches worldly deeds to people when Kalpavriksha declines as
per Jain Cosmology
21

Lifespan
Page

No. Name Wife Height Teaching

(Total Age)

1800 eliminated fear (due to lack of

1 Pratisvati Swyamprabha 87 lakh years
dhanusha knowledge) of Sun and Moon

2 Sammati Yashasvati 1300 explained fear (due to lack of 77 lakh years

21
 Lifespan
No. Name Wife Height Teaching
(Total Age)

dhanusha knowledge) Darkness and Stars

800 company of carnivorous

3 Kshemamkara Sunanda 67 lakh years
dhanusha animals should be avoided

775 defence from carnivorous

4 Kshemamdhara Vimla 37 lakh years
dhanusha animals

750
5 Simamkare Manohari limit of Kalpavriksha 17 lakh years
dhanusha

725 division ownership over trees

6 Simamdhara Yashodhara 67,000 years
dhanusha by marking

700
7 Vimalavahana Sumati how to ride an elephant, etc. 37,000 years
dhanusha

675
8 Chakshushment Dharini how to see a child's face 17,000 years
dhanusha

650
9 Yasasvin Kaantmaala how to name a child 1,200 years
dhanusha
22
Page

625 show a child moon etc., when

10 Abhichandra Shrimati 87 lakh years
dhanusha he cries

600
11 Chandrabha Prabhavati defence of children 77 lakh years
dhanusha

12 Merudeve Satya 575 transportation 67 lakh years

22
 Lifespan
No. Name Wife Height Teaching
(Total Age)

dhanusha

550
13 Prasenachandra Amitmati how to cure diseases 37 lakh years
dhanusha

525
14 Nabhi Marudevi how to cut umbilical cord 17 lakh years
dhanusha

In Buddhism, a chakravarti is the secular counterpart of a Buddha. The term

applies to temporal as well as spiritual kingship and leadership, particularly
in Buddhism and Jainism. In Hinduism, a Chakravarti is a powerful ruler
whose dominion extends to the entire earth.
The Indian concept of chakravarti later evolved into Devaraja concept of divine
right of kings, which was adopted by the indianised Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms
of Southeast Asia through Indian Hindu Brahmins scholars deployed in courts.
It was first adopted by Javanese Hindu-Buddhist kingdoms such
as Majapahit and through them the Khmer Empire, and subsequently by
the Thai monarches.
King Bharata was the first chakravartin (universal emperor or possessor
of chakra) of avasarpini (present half time cycle as per Jain cosmology) in Jain
tradition. He was the eldest son of Rishabhanatha, the
first tirthankara of Jainism. The ancient name of India was named
"Bhāratavarsha" or "Bhārata" or "Bharata-bhumi" after him. He had two sons
from his chief-queen Subhadra named Arkakirti and Marichi. He is said to
have conquered all the six parts of the world and to have engaged in a fight
with Bahubali, his brother, to conquer the last remaining city. The Jain
23

chronology places Rishabhanatha (in historical terms), as someone who lived

millions of years ago. He is believed to have been born 592.704 x 1018 years
Page

ago and lived for a span of 8,400,000 purva. His height is described in the Jain
texts to be 500 bows (1312 ells), or about 4920 feet/1500 meters.That does not
help us much. The History of Yuan (Yuán Shǐ), also known as the Yuanshi, is
one of the official Chinese historical works known as the Twenty-Four
Histories of China. Commissioned by the court of the Ming dynasty, in
accordance to political tradition, the text was composed in 1370 by the official
Bureau of History of the Ming dynasty, under direction of Song Lian (1310–
1381)

23
 CHAKRAVARTIN- Possessor of the 7 Jewels
In Jainism, a Chakravartin Samrat was characterised by his possession
of Saptaratna, or "Seven Jewels."

1. Ratna-Chakra, a miraculous diamond serrated discus that never misses

its target
2. Empress
3. Divine Jewellery
4. Immense Wealth
5. Huge Army of War-Chariots
6. Huge Army of Cavalry
7. Huge Army of Elephants
Some lists cite navaratna or "nine jewels" instead, adding "Prime Minister" and
"Son"

Hayam Wuruk also known as Rajasanagara, ruled Majapahit in 1350–89. During this
period, Majapahit attained its peak with the help of the prime minister Gajah Mada.
Under Gajah Mada's command (1313–64), Majapahit conquered more territories and
became the regional power.
24

The Khemer kings subscribed to the doctrine of a parallelism between the

Page

microcosmon and the macro-cosmos by which according to which the forces from
the planets and stars coud bestow welfare and prosperity or wreck havoc. Thus, the
astrologocam significance on the lives of people was considered more than it is today.
Heine-Geldern, R. (1942). Conceptions of State and Kingship in Southeast Asia. The
Far Eastern Quarterly, 2(1), 15-30. doi:10.2307/2049276.

Prior to the “coming” of Jayavarman II, the area had already witnessed the
development of a couple of earlier states that shared many characteristics with
the later Khmer Empire, such as Funan and Zhenla. The period before 802 is

24
called the Pre-Angkorian Era. From the 1st century onwards, much of south-
east Asia began to adopt Indian influences. 
Chinese documents indicate that during the 1st century, major sea trade
routes developed between China and India., via south-east Asia. As a result,
the people of south-east Asia became involved in trade along the way. Along the
trade routes, ports soon developed to cater for the needs of the merchants,
bringing great wealth to the region. 

Funan
According to Nan Qi Shu, Funan, which was located in the Mekong Delta
region, became an important trading power on the trade route between China
and India during the period 100-550: 'The Funan market is the meeting place
of between eats and west … as Funan offers a place of passage from one ocean
to another.' 
Archaeological excavations at Oc Eo, a site in Vietnam, reveal evidence of an
important port, being called south-east Asia's 'first great cosmopolitan trading
city.' Numerous artefacts have been excavated at Oc Eo, including gold
medallions of the Roman Emperor Antonius Pius (c.152), iron from the
Philippines and mirrors from China, hinting at goods received from around the
world. Indian inscribed seal stones and Buddhist and Hindu statues
demonstrate influence of Indian religion and culture upon the Mekong
Delta region. 

Zhenla 
As Funan began to decline and the economy began to shift from trade to
agriculture, the territory to the north of Funan, called Zhenla began to prosper.
Stone inscriptions indicate that the area was not united as a single country but
was ruled by a number of regional leaders. Ishanavarman I of Sambor Prei Kuk
then managed to bring Funan, and much of the area covered by modern-day
Cambodia, under control. His great-grandson, Jayavarman I, continued to
expand the kingdom, controlling a large bureaucracy. However, after the
kingdom broke up into smaller competing states, the Khmer Empire then came
into existence under the unification of these states.
25

Let us consider once again the foundation of the kingdom under

Jayavarman the II nd. It has been oft written and I quote: Encyclopædia
Page

Britannica, Inc.

In 790 a young Cambodian prince, claiming to be descended from the rulers

of Funan, was consecrated in eastern Cambodia under the title Jayavarman II.
Part of the ceremony involved breaking ties with “Java,” which probably was a
reference not to the island of Java but to the kingdom of Srivijaya on the island
of Sumatra. Over the next 10 years, Jayavarman extended his power
northward into the Mekong River valley until, in 802, he was reconsecrated as
a chakravartin (the ancient Indian conception of world ruler) in northwestern

25
Cambodia. The capital seems to have been located in the Kulén Hills, north of
the present-day provincial capital of Siĕmréab, where he died in 835. Despite
the high status accorded him by subsequent Angkorean kings, Jayavarman II
seems to have left no inscriptions of his own, and the monuments that can be
dated to his reign were small and hastily built.

Khmer empire c. 1200.

Jayavarman’s real accomplishment was less tangible and lasted longer, for he

appears to have established what came to be called Kambuja-desa, a confident,
self-aware kingdom that superseded and came to control a range of smaller
states. He was Cambodia’s first nationally oriented king. It is not known
whether smaller states were forced into submission or joined of their own
26

volition. Despite the grandeur of the Angkorean temples that were built over
the next four centuries, Jayavarman II’s successors were often powerless or
Page

constrained by opposing forces. Revolts and usurpations were frequent, as

were foreign invasions. Rulers were the object of rival claims by family
members, priests, generals, and bureaucrats. Some kings, especially usurpers,
had more freedom of action than others. Those who ruled in periods of peace
were also in a better position to undertake building programs and public
works. Like their counterparts in medieval Europe, Cambodian kings were far
removed from ordinary people. The king was perceived primarily in religious
terms, and he ensured the fertility of the soil and the well-being of the kingdom
through the rituals he performed. In exchange for his protection, the people
26
were subject to intermittent military service and corvée duty and were also
called on to provide labour without payment for Buddhist and Hindu religious
foundations and for local elites.

During his rule, he established a new capital at Mount Kulen in north-western

Cambodia. Mount Kulen was regarded as sacred and Jayavarman II ordered
the construction of a three-tiered temple on the mountain. Jayavarman II
appointed a high priest and ordered that only the descendants of the family of
his high priest were able to become high priests in the future. While we do not
have reliable written records of the actions that Jayavarman II took to expand
the Khmer Empire, we do know that after his death, the extent of the empire
was quite large. As Jayavarman II's power grew, he felt increasingl secure and
moved his capital city from Mount Kulen to Hariharalaya, near the great inland
lake,Tonle.Sap.  

Jayavarman II's son, Jayavarman III, succeeded him, beginning construction of

an irrigation network, designed to help improve rice production. Jayavarman
III, was succeeded by his cousin,

Indravarman, who further expanded the system of artificial lakes and

irrigation canals. King Yasovarman I succeeded Indravarman, moving the
capital to Yasodharapura.

Toward the end of the 9th century, soon after Jayavarman II’s death, the
Cambodian capital shifted to the northern shores of the Tonle Sap, near
present-day Phumĭ Rôluŏs. A king named Indravarman I (ruled 877–c. 890)
constructed a large reservoir and several temples there, including a
pyramidical structure called the Bakong—the first Cambodian temple to be
built primarily of stone rather than brick. The so-called “temple mountain”
became the model for the many larger royal temples at Angkor that served as
monuments to the greatness of their patrons and, subsequently, as their
tombs.
27

The Khemer empire later was to claim relationships

with Champa, Cambodia, Siam, southern Burma, and Vietnam, and even sent
Page

missions to China. Going as far and including Sumatra, the Malay

Peninsula, Kalimantan, and eastern Indonesia, over which authority was
claimed in the Nagarakretagama.  (Although the Khemer rulers extended their
power over other lands and destroyed neighbouring kingdoms, their focus
seems to have been on controlling and gaining a larger share of the commercial
trade that passed through the archipelago.

27
Indravarman’s son and successor, Yaśovarman I (ruled c. 890–c. 910),
moved the capital again, now closer to Siĕmréab, to a location that
subsequently became Angkor—a name derived from the Sanskrit word nagara,
meaning “city”—which has become one of the world’s most-celebrated
archaeological sites (as well as a UNESCO World Heritage site), as well as the
popular name for Cambodia’s medieval civilization. The city that Yaśovarman
founded, Yaśodharapura, retained that name and remained Cambodia’s capital
until it was abandoned in the 16th century. His temple mountain, now
called Bakheng (literally “Mighty Ancestor”), was built on a natural hill that
overlooked a teeming city, the more-distant rice-growing plain, and the Tonle
Sap. The mountain occupied the centre of the city, just as Mount Meru, the
mythical home in India of the Hindu gods, was said to stand at the centre of
the universe. Yaśovarman built a large reservoir nearby. The city wall of
Yaśodharapura measured 2.5 miles (4 km) on each side. For such an
ambitious building program, the king needed to command a large labour pool.
Other evidence suggests that his reign was characterized by tolerance toward a
variety of Buddhist and Hindu sects that occasionally blended into local cults
honouring ancestral spirits and spirits of the soil. Indeed, for all the apparent
absolutism of its kings, a consistent feature of Angkorean civilization
unmatched in medieval Europe was religious toleration.

After several decades of warfare, dislocations, and disorder—

Yaśodharapura itself was abandoned for nearly 30 years—Rajendravarman II
(ruled 944–968) restored the capital and set in motion a period of peace and
prosperity that lasted nearly a century. During the reign of his
successor, Jayavarman V (968–c. 1000), the rose-coloured sandstone shrine
of Banteai Srei—arguably the loveliest temple at Angkor—was built on the
outskirts of the capital under the patronage of a wealthy priestly family, one of
whose members had been Jayavarman’s teacher. In Yaśodharapura itself,
Jayavarman V began work on the imposing temple mountain now called Ta
Keo, which was completed under his successor, Suryavarman I (ruled c. 1004–
c. 1050). Suryavarman I, an innovative and demanding monarch, was a
usurper with links to princely families in what is now northeastern Thailand.
His rise to power involved the subjugation of many areas that had become
semi-independent under his predecessors, and his reign resembled that
28

of Jayavarman II two centuries earlier. Suryavarman extended

Page

the Khmer empire westward into present-day Thailand, where he constructed

the large mountaintop temple known as Preah Vihear. During his reign the
number of cities ruled from Yaśodharapura grew from roughly 20 to nearly 50,
and foreign trade increased, along with tighter central bureaucratic control.
His successor consolidated those gains, put down a dangerous rebellion, and
was responsible for the temple mountain known today as the Baphuon.

The closing years of the 11th century were ones of turmoil and
fragmentation. At different times, two and even three “absolute

28
monarchs” contended simultaneously for the title of chakravartin. At the
end of the century, however, a new dynasty—which was to last for more than a
century—began to rule at Angkor. Its most powerful monarch took the name
of Suryavarman II (ruled 1113–c. 1150), although he probably was not
descended from the earlier king of that name. Like his namesake predecessor,
Suryavarman II was a formidable military campaigner. He avenged earlier
attacks on Angkor by armies launched from the kingdom of Champa, in what
is now south-central Vietnam, and led expeditions into northern and southern
Thailand. A campaign against Vietnam, which had recently declared its
independence from China, was less successful.

Suryavarman’s major accomplishment, from a modern perspective, was

the Angkor Wat temple complex, still the largest religious structure in the
world and one of the most beautiful. The temple, which eventually became his
tomb and probably was an astronomical observatory as well, was dedicated to
the Hindu god Vishnu. Its bas-reliefs, running for nearly a half mile inside its
third enclosure, depict events in the well-known Indian
epics Mahabharata and Ramayana—confirming that those texts were widely
known at Angkor—as well as Suryavarman himself holding court. The elegance
of the carvings, the hundreds of graceful statues of angelic dancers (apsaras)
that adorn the temple, and its reflection in the moats that surround it continue
to give Angkor Wat an awe-inspiring air; in the 12th century, when its towers
were gilded and its moats properly maintained, it must have been even more
breathtaking.

Chandragupta Maurya (reign: 323–298 BCE) was the founder of the Maurya

Empire in ancient India. Chandragupta built one of the largest empires on
the Indian subcontinent. Chandragupta's life and accomplishments are
described in ancient Greek, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain texts, but they vary
significantly. In Ancient Greek and Latin accounts, Chandragupta is referred
as Sandrokottos and Androcottus respectively.
Chandragupta Maurya was an important figure in the history of India, laying
the foundations of the first government to unite most of South Asia.
29

Chandragupta, under the tutelage of Chanakya, created a new empire based

Page

on the principles of statecraft, built a large army, and continued expanding the
boundaries of his empire until ultimately renouncing it for an ascetic life in his
final years.
Prior to his consolidation of power, Alexander the Great had invaded the North-
West Indian subcontinent before abandoning his campaign in 324 BCE due to
a mutiny caused by the prospect of facing another large empire, presumably
the Nanda Empire. Chandragupta defeated and conquered both the Nanda
Empire, and the Greek satraps that were appointed or formed from Alexander's
Empire in South Asia. Chandragupta first gained regional prominence in
29
the Greater Punjab region in the Indus. He then set out to conquer the Nanda
Empire centered in Pataliputra, Magadha. Afterwards, Chandragupta expanded
and secured his western border, where he was confronted by Seleucus I
Nicator in the Seleucid-Mauryan War. After two years of war, Chandragupta
was considered to have gained the upper hand in the conflict and annexed
satrapies up to the Hindu Kush. Instead of prolonging the war, both parties
settled on a marriage treaty between Chandragupta and Seleucus I Nicator.
Chandragupta's empire extended throughout most of the Indian subcontinent,
spanning from modern day Bengal to Afghanistan across North India as well as
making inroads into Central and South India. According to the Jain accounts
dated to 800 years after his death, Chandragupta abdicated his throne and
became a Jain monk, traveled away from his empire to South India and
committed sallekhana or fasting to death. Contemporary Greek evidence
however avers that Chandragupta did not give up performing the rites of
sacrificing animals associated with Vedic Brahminism, an ancient form of
Hinduism; he delighted in hunting and otherwise leading a life remote from the
Jain practice of Ahimsa or nonviolence towards living beings. Chandragupta's
reign, and the Maurya Empire, set an era of economic prosperity, reforms,
infrastructure expansions, and tolerance. Many religions thrived within his
realms and his descendants' empire. Buddhism, Jainism and Ajivika gained
prominence alongside Vedic and Brahmanistic traditions, and minority
religions such as Zoroastrianism and the Greek pantheon were respected. A
memorial for Chandragupta Maurya exists on the Chandragiri hill along with a
7th-century hagiographic inscription

one of the ancient texts mention when Chandragupta was

born. Plutarch claims that he was a young man when he met Alexander during
the latter's invasion of India (c. 326-325 BCE). Assuming the Plutarch account
is true, Raychaudhuri proposed in 1923 that Chandragupta may have been
born after 350 BCE.  According to other Greco-Roman texts, Chandragupta
attacked the Greek-Indian governors after Alexander's death (c. 323 BCE)
with Seleucus I Nicator entering into a treaty with Chandragupta years late.
30

Seleucus Nicator, under this treaty, gave up Arachosia (Kandahar), Gedrosia

(Makran), and Paropanisadai (Paropamisadae, Kabul) to Chandragupta, in
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exchange for 500 war elephants.

The texts do not include the start or end year of Chandragupta's
reign. According to some Hindu and Buddhist texts, Chandragupta ruled for 24
years. The Buddhist sources state Chandragupta Maurya ruled 162 years after
the death of the Buddha.[34] However, the Buddha's birth and death vary by
source and all these lead to a chronology that is significantly different than the
Greek-Roman records. Similarly, Jain sources composed give different gaps
between Mahavira's death and his accession. As with the Buddha's death, the
date of Mahavira's death itself is also a matter of debate, and the
30
inconsistencies and lack of unanimity among the Jain authors cast doubt on
Jain sources. This Digambara Jain chronology, also, is not reconcilable with
the chronology implied in other Indian and non-Indian sources.
Historians such as Irfan Habib and Vivekanand Jha assign Chandragupta's
reign to c. 322-298 BCE. Upinder Singh dates his rule from 324 or 321 BCE to
297 BCE. Kristi Wiley states he reigned between 320 and 293 BCE.
The early life of Chandragupta Maurya is unclear and varies by source.
According to the Sinhalese Buddhist tradition, Chandragupta's mother was
pregnant when his father - who was the chief of the Moriya clan - was killed in
a battle. His mother escaped to Patliputra with the help of her brothers. For
Chandragupta's safety, his maternal uncles helped a cowherd adopt him.
When Chandragupta grew up, the cowherd sold him to a hunter who employed
him to tend cattle.
According to the Digambara legend by Hemachandra, Chanakya was a Jain
layperson and a Brahmin. When Chanakya was born, Jain monks prophesied
that Chanakya will one day grow up to help make someone an emperor and
will be the power behind the throne. Chanakya believed in the prophecy and
fulfilled it by agreeing to help the daughter of a peacock-breeding community
chief deliver a baby boy. In exchange, he asked the mother to give up the boy
and let him adopt him at a later date. The Jain Brahmin then went about
making money through magic, and returned later to claim young
Chandraguptawhom he taught and trained. Together, they recruited soldiers
and attacked the Nanda kingdom. Eventually, they won and proclaimed
Patliputra as their capital.
Building the empire
According to the Buddhist text Mahavamsa Tika, Chandragupta and Chanakya
raised an army by recruiting soldiers from many places after the former
completed his education at Taxila. Chanakya made Chandragupta the leader of
the army. The Digambara Jain text Parishishtaparvan states that this army
was raised by Chanakya with coins he minted and an alliance formed with
Parvataka. According to Justin, Chandragupta organized an army. Early
translators interpreted Justin's original expression as "body of robbers", but
31

states Raychaudhuri, the original expression used by Justin may mean

mercenary soldier, hunter, or robber.
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The Buddhist Mahavamsa Tika and Jain Parishishtaparvan records

Chandragupta's army unsuccessfully attacking the Nanda
capital.Chandragupta and Chanakya then began a campaign at the frontier of
the Nanda empire, gradually conquering various territories on their way to the
Nanda capital He then refined his strategy by establishing garrisons in the
conquered territories, and finally besieged the Nanda capital Pataliputra.
There Dhana Nanda accepted defeat, and was killed by Buddhist accounts, or
deposed and exiled by Hindu accounts.

31
Conquest of the Nanda empire
Greco-Roman writer Plutarch stated, in his Life of Alexander, that the Nanda
king was so unpopular that had Alexander tried, he could have easily
conquered India. After Alexander ended his campaign and left, Chandragupta's
army conquered the Nanda capital Pataliputra around 322 BCE with
Chanakya's counsel.
Historically reliable details of Chandragupta's campaign into Pataliputra are
unavailable and legends written centuries later are inconsistent. Buddhist
texts such as Milindapanha claim Magadha was ruled by the Nanda dynasty,
which, with Chanakya's counsel, Chandragupta conquered to restore dhamma.
The army of Chandragupta and Chanakya first conquered the Nanda outer
territories before invading Pataliputra. In contrast to the easy victory in
Buddhist sources, the Hindu and Jain texts state that the campaign was
bitterly fought because the Nanda dynasty had a powerful and well-trained
army.
The conquest was fictionalised in Mudrarakshasa, in which Chandragupta is
said to have first acquired Punjab and allied with a local king named Parvatka
under the Chanakya's advice before advancing on the Nanda Empire.
Chandragupta laid siege to Kusumapura (now Patna), the capital of Magadha,
by deploying guerrilla warfare methods with the help of mercenaries from
conquered areas.[58][59] Historian P. K. Bhattacharyya states that the empire was
built by a gradual conquest of provinces after the initial consolidation of
Magadha.
According to the Digambara Jain version by Hemachandra, the success of
Chandragupta and his strategist Chanakya was stopped by a Nanda town that
refused to surrender. Chanakya disguised himself as a mendicant and found
seven mother goddesses (saptamatrika) inside. He concluded these goddesses
were protecting the town people. The townspeople sought the disguised
mendicant's advice on how to end the blockade of the army surrounding their
town. Hemacandra wrote Chanakya swindled them into removing the mother
goddesses. The townspeople removed the protective goddesses and an easy
victory over the town followed. Thereafter, the alliance of Chandragupta and
Parvataka overran the Nanda kingdom and attacked Patliputra with an
32

"immeasurable army". With a depleted treasury, exhausted merit, and

insufficient intelligence, the Nanda king lost.
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These legends state that the Nanda king was defeated, but allowed to leave
Pataliputra alive with a chariot full of items his family needed. ] The Jain
sources attest that his daughter fell in love at first sight with Chandragupta
and married him. With the defeat of Nanda, Chandragupta Maurya founded
the Maurya Empire in ancient India.
Conquest of north-west regions

32
Chandragupta had defeated the remaining Macedonian satrapies in the
northwest of the Indian subcontinent by 317 BCE.

The Indian campaign of Alexander the Great ended before Chandragupta came

into power. Alexander had left India in 325 BCE and assigned the northwestern
Indian subcontinent territories to Greek governors. The nature of early
relationship between these governors and Chandragupta is unknown. Justin
mentions Chandragupta as a rival of the Alexander's successors in north-
western India.[35] He states that after Alexander's death, Chandragupta freed
Indian territories from the Greeks and executed some of the governors.
[66]
 According to Boesche, this war with the northwestern territories was in part
fought by mercenaries hired by Chandragupta and Chanakya, and these wars
may have been the cause of the demise of two of Alexander's
governors, Nicanor and Philip. Megasthenes served as a Greek ambassador in
his court for four years.
War and marriage alliance with Seleucus
According to Appian, Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander's Macedonian
generals who in 312 BCE established the Seleucid Kingdom with its capital at
33

Babylon, brought Persia and Bactria under his own authority, putting his

eastern front facing the empire of Chandragupta. Seleucus and Chandragupta
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waged war until they came to an understanding with each other. Seleucus
married off his daughter to Chandragupta to forge an alliance.
R. C. Majumdar and D. D. Kosambi note that Seleucus appeared to have fared
poorly after ceding large territories west of the Indus to Chandragupta. The
Maurya Empire added Arachosia (Kandahar), Gedrosia (Balochistan),
and Paropamisadae (Gandhara). According to Strabo, Seleucus Nicator gave
these regions to Chandragupta along with a marriage treaty, and in return
received five hundred elephants. The details of the engagement treaty are not
knownAccording to one version, the marriage treaty involved an Indian
33
princess, while a different version states a Seleucid princess married into the
Mauryan family
Chandragupta sent 500 war elephants to Seleucus, which played a key role in
Seleucus' victory at the Battle of Ipsus. In addition to this treaty, Seleucus
dispatched Megasthenes as an ambassador to Chandragupta's court, and
later Antiochos sent Deimakos to his son Bindusara at the Maurya court at
Patna.
Southern conquest
After annexing Seleucus' provinces west of the Indus river, Chandragupta had
a vast empire extending across the northern Indian sub-continent from the Bay
of Bengal to the Arabian Sea. Chandragupta began expanding his empire
southwards beyond the Vindhya Range and into the Deccan Plateau. By the
time his conquests were complete, Chandragupta's empire extended over most
of the subcontinent.
Two poetic anthologies from the Tamil Sangam literature corpus
– Akananuru and Purananuru – allude to the Nanda rule and Maurya empire.
For example, poems 69, 281 and 375 mention the army and chariots of the
Mauryas, while poems 251 and 265 may be alluding to the Nandas. However,
the poems dated between 1st-century BCE to 5th-century CE do not mention
Chandragupta Maurya by name, and some of them could be referring to a
different Moriya dynasty in the Deccan region in the 5th century CE. According
to Upinder Singh, these poems may be mentioning Mokur and Koshar
kingdoms of Vadugars (northerners) in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, with
one interpretation being that the Maurya empire had an alliance with these at
some point of time
Names and titles
34Page

34
A modern statue depicting Chandragupta Maurya, Laxminarayan Temple,
Delhi

The king's epithets mentioned in the Sanskrit play Mudrarakshasa include

"Chanda-siri" (Chandra-shri), "Piadamsana" (Priya-darshana), and
VrishalaPiadamsana is similar to Piyadasi, an epithet of his grandson Ashoka.
The word "Vrishala" is used in Indian epics and law books to refer to non-
orthodox people. According to one theory, it may be derived from the Greek
royal title Basileus, but there is no concrete evidence of this: the Indian
sources apply it to several non-royals, especially wandering teachers and
ascetics.
There are no records of Chandragupta's military conquests and the reach of
his empire. It is based on inferences from Greek and Roman historians and the
religious Indian texts written centuries after his death. Based on these, the
North-West reach of his empire included parts of present-
day Afghanistan that Seleucus I Nicator ceded to him
including Kabul, Kandahar, Taxila and Gandhara. These are the areas where
his grandson Ashoka left the major Kandahar rock edict and other edicts in the
Greek and Aramaic languages.
In the west, Chandragupta's rule over present-day Gujarat is attested to by
Ashoka's inscription in Junagadh. On the same rock, about 400 years
later, Rudradaman inscribed a longer text sometime about the mid 2nd–
century.[93] Rudradaman's inscription states that the Sudarshana lake in the
area was commissioned during the rule of Chandragupta through his governor
Vaishya Pushyagupta and conduits were added during Ashoka's rule through
Tushaspha. The Mauryan control of the region is further corroborated by the
inscription on the rock, which suggests that Chandragupta controlled
the Malwa region in Central India, located between Gujarat and Pataliputra. ]
There is uncertainty about the other conquests that Chandragupta may have
achieved, especially in the Deccan region of southern India.[  At the time of his
grandson Ashoka's ascension in c. 268 BCE, the empire extended up to
present-day Karnataka in the south, so the southern conquests may be
attributed to either Chandragupta or his son Bindusara. If the Jain tradition
35

about Chandragupta ending his life as a renunciate in Karnakata is considered

correct, it appears that Chandragupta initiated the southern conquest.
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Maurya with his counsellor Chanakya together built one of the largest empires

ever on the Indian subcontinent.[3][27][96] Chandragupta's empire extended
from Bengal to central Afghanistan encompassing most of the Indian
subcontinent except for parts that are now Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Odisha.
Rule
After unifying much of India, Chandragupta and Chanakya passed a series of
major economic and political reforms. Chandragupta established a strong
central administration from Pataliputra (now Patna).  Chandragupta applied
35
the statecraft and economic policies described in Chanakya's
text Arthashastra.  There are varying accounts in the historic, legendary, and
hagiographic literature of various Indian religions about Chandragupta's rule,
but Allchin and Erdosy' are suspect; they state, "one cannot but be struck by
the many close correspondences between the (Hindu) Arthashastra and the two
other major sources the (Buddhist) Asokan inscriptions and (Greek)
Megasthenes text’.
The Maurya rule was a structured administration; Chandragupta had a council
of ministers (amatya), with Chanakya was his chief ministerThe empire was
organised into territories (janapada), centres of regional power were protected
with forts (durga), and state operations were funded with treasury (kosa).
[105]
 Strabo, in his Geographica composed about 300 years after Chandragupta's
death, describes aspects of his rule in his chapter XV.46–69. He had
councillors for matters of justice and assessors to collect taxes on commercial
activity and trade goods. He routinely performed Vedic sacrifices, Brahmanical
rituals  and hosted major festivals marked by procession of elephants and
horses. His officers inspected situations requiring law and order in the cities;
the crime rate was low.
According to Megasthenes, Chandragupta's rule was marked by three parallel
administrative structures. One managed the affairs of villages, ensuring
irrigation, recording land ownership, monitoring tools supply, enforcing
hunting, wood products and forest-related laws, and settling disputes. Another
administrative structure managed city affairs, including all matters related to
trade, merchant activity, visit of foreigners, harbors, roads, temples, markets,
and industries. They also collected taxes and ensured standardized weights
and measures.[  The third administrative body overlooked the military, its
training, its weapons supply, and the needs of the soldiers.
Chanakya was concerned about Chandragupta's safety and developed
elaborate techniques to prevent assassination attempts. Various sources report
Chandragupta frequently changed bedrooms to confuse conspirators. He left
his palace only for certain tasks: to go on military expeditions, to visit his court
for dispensing justice, to offer sacrifices, for celebrations, and for hunting.
During celebrations, he was well-guarded, and on hunts, he was surrounded
36

by female guards who were presumed to be less likely to participate in a coup

conspiracy. These strategies may have resulted from the historical context of
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the Nanda king who had come to power by assassinating the previous king.
During Chandragupta's reign and that of his dynasty, many religions thrived in
India, with Buddhism, Jainism and Ajivika gaining prominence along with
other folk traditions.
Infrastructure projects

36
Silver punch mark coin of the Maurya empire, with symbols of wheel and
elephant (3rd century BCE)

The empire built a strong economy from a solid infrastructure such as

irrigation, temples, mines, and roads. Ancient epigraphical evidence suggests
Chandragupta, under counsel from Chanakya, started and completed many
irrigation reservoirs and networks across the Indian subcontinent to ensure
food supplies for the civilian population and the army, a practice continued by
his dynastic successors. Regional prosperity in agriculture was one of the
required duties of his state officials.
The strongest evidence of infrastructure development is found in the Junagadh
rock inscription of Rudradaman in Gujarat, dated to about 150 CE. It states,
among other things, that Rudradaman repaired and enlarged the reservoir and
irrigation conduit infrastructure built by Chandragupta and enhanced by
Asoka.[116] Chandragupta's empire also built mines, manufacturing centres, and
networks for trading goods. His rule developed land routes to transport goods
across the Indian subcontinent. Chandragupta expanded "roads suitable for
carts" as he preferred those over narrow tracks suitable for only pack animals. [
According to Kaushik Roy, the Maurya dynasty rulers were "great road
builders".[114] The Greek ambassador Megasthenes credited this tradition to
Chandragupta after the completion of a thousand-mile-long highway
connecting Chandragupta's capital Pataliputra in Bihar to Taxila in the north-
west where he studied. The other major strategic road infrastructure credited
to this tradition spread from Pataliputra in various directions, connecting it
with Nepal, Kapilavastu, Dehradun, Mirzapur, Odisha, Andhra,
and Karnataka.[114] Roy stated this network boosted trade and commerce, and
helped move armies rapidly and efficiently. [114]
37

Chandragupta and Chanakya seeded weapon manufacturing centres, and kept

them as a state monopoly of the state. The state, however, encouraged
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competing private parties to operate mines and supply these centres. They
considered economic prosperity essential to the pursuit of dharma (virtuous
life) and adopted a policy of avoiding war with diplomacy yet continuously
preparing the army for war to defend its interests and other ideas in
the Arthashastra.[119][120]
Arts and architecture
The evidence of arts and architecture during Chandragupta's time is mostly
limited to texts such as those by Megasthenes and Kautilya. The edict
37
inscriptions and carvings on monumental pillars are attributed to his grandson
Ashoka. The texts imply the existence of cities, public works, and prosperous
architecture but the historicity of these is in question.{{sfn|Harrison|2009|
pp=234–235}}
Archeological discoveries in the modern age, such as those Didarganj
Yakshi discovered in 1917 buried beneath the banks of the Ganges suggest
exceptional artisanal accomplishment. The site was dated to 3rd century BCE
by many scholarsbut later dates such as the Kushan era (1st-4th century CE)
have also been proposed. The competing theories state that the art linked to
Chandragupta Maurya's dynasty was learnt from the Greeks and West Asia in
the years Alexander the Great waged war; or that these artifacts belong to an
older indigenous Indian tradition. Frederick Asher of the University of
Minnesota says "we cannot pretend to have definitive answers; and perhaps, as
with most art, we must recognize that there is no single answer or
explanation".

1,300 years Old Shravanabelagola relief shows death of Chandragupta after

38

taking the vow of Sallekhana. Some consider it about the legend of his arrival
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with Bhadrabahu/ A statue depicting Chandrgupta Maurya (right) with his

spiritual mentor Acharya Bhadrabahu at Shravanabelagola.

38
Chandragupta Maurya having 16 auspicious dreams in Jainism

The circumstances and year of Chandragupta's death are unclear and

disputed.  According to Digambara Jain accounts that, Bhadrabahu forecasted
a 12-year famine because of all the killing and violence during the conquests
by Chandragupta Maurya. He led a group of Jain monks to south India, where
Chandragupta Maurya joined him as a monk after abdicated his kingdom to
his son Bindusara. Together, states a Digambara legend, Chandragupta and
Bhadrabahu moved to Shravanabelagola, in present-day south
KarnatakaThese Jain accounts appeared in texts such as Brihakathā kośa (931
CE) of Harishena, Bhadrabāhu charita (1450 CE) of Ratnanandi, Munivaṃsa
bhyudaya (1680 CE) and Rajavali kathe. Chandragupta lived as an ascetic
at Shravanabelagola for several years before fasting to death as per the Jain
practice of sallekhana, according to the Digambara legend.
In accordance with the Digambara tradition, the hill on which Chandragupta is
stated to have performed asceticism is now known as Chandragiri hill, and
Digambaras believe that Chandragupta Maurya erected an ancient temple that
now survives as the Chandragupta basadi.. According to Roy, Chandragupta's
39

abdication of throne may be dated to c. 298 BCE, and his death to c. 297 BCE.
[58]
 His grandson was emperor Ashoka who is famed for his historic pillars and
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his role in helping spread Buddhism outside of ancient India.

Regarding the inscriptions describing the relation of Bhadrabahu and
Chandragupta Maurya, Radha Kumud Mookerji writes,
The oldest inscription of about 600 AD associated "the pair (yugma),
Bhadrabahu along with Chandragupta Muni." Two inscriptions of about 900
AD on the Kaveri near Seringapatam describe the summit of a hill
called Chandragiri as marked by the footprints of Bhadrabahu and
Chandragupta munipati. A Shravanabelagola inscription of 1129 mentions
39
Bhadrabahu "Shrutakevali", and Chandragupta who acquired such merit that
he was worshipped by the forest deities. Another inscription of 1163 similarly
couples and describes them. A third inscription of the year 1432 speaks
of Yatindra Bhadrabahu, and his disciple Chandragupta, the fame of whose
penance spread into other words.
Along with texts, several Digambara Jain inscriptions dating from the 7th–15th
century refer to Bhadrabahu and a Prabhacandra. Later Digambara tradition
identified the Prabhacandra as Chandragupta, and some modern era scholars
have accepted this Digambara tradition while others have not,  Several of the
late Digambara inscriptions and texts in Karnataka state the journey started
from Ujjain and not Patliputra (as stated in some Digambara texts).
Jeffery D. Long – a scholar of Jain and Hindu studies – says in one Digambara
version, it was Samprati Chandragupta who renounced, migrated and
performed sallekhana in Shravanabelagola. Long states scholars attribute the
disintegration of the Maurya empire to the times and actions of Samprati
Chandragupta – the grandson of Ashoka and great-great-grandson of
Chandragupta Maurya. The two Chandraguptas have been confused to be the
same in some Digambara legends.[
Scholar of Jain studies and Sanskrit Paul Dundas says the Svetambara
tradition of Jainism disputes the ancient Digambara legends. According to a
5th-century text of the Svetambara Jains, the Digambara sect of Jainism was
founded 609 years after Mahavira's death, or in 1st-century CE.  Digambaras
wrote their own versions and legends after the 5th-century, with their first
expanded Digambara version of sectarian split within Jainism appearing in the
10th-century.] The Svetambaras texts describe Bhadrabahu was based near
Nepalese foothills of the Himalayas in 3rd-century BCE, who neither moved nor
travelled with Chandragupta Maurya to the south; rather, he died near
Patliputra, according to the Svetambara Jains.
The 12th-century Svetambara Jain legend by Hemachandra presents a
different picture. The Hemachandra version includes stories about Jain monks
who could become invisible to steal food from royal storage and the Jain
Brahmin Chanakya using violence and cunning tactics to expand
Chandragupta's kingdom and increase royal revenues It states in verses 8.415
40

to 8.435, that for 15 years as king, Chandragupta was a follower of non-Jain

"ascetics with the wrong view of religion" (non-Jain) and "lusted for women".
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Chanakya, who was a Jain follower, persuaded Chandragupta to convert to

Jainism by showing that Jain ascetics avoided women and focused on their
religion. The legend mentions Chanakya aiding the premature birth of
Bindusara. It states in verse 8.444 that "Chandragupta died in meditation (can
possibly be sallekhana.) and went to heaven". According to Hemachandra's
legend, Chanakya also performed sallekhana.

40
The Footprints of Chandragupta Maurya on Chandragiri Hill, where
Chandragupta (the unifier of India and founder of the Maurya Dynasty)
performed Sallekhana.

According to V. R. Ramachandra Dikshitar – an Indologist and historian,

several of the Digambara legends mention Prabhacandra, who had been
misidentified as Chandragupta Maurya particularly after the original
publication on Shravanabelagola epigraphy by B. Lewis Rice. The earliest and
most important inscriptions mention Prabhacandra, which Rice presumed may
have been the "clerical name assumed by Chadragupta Maurya" after he
renounced and moved with Bhadrabahu from Patliputra. Dikshitar stated there
is no evidence to support this and Prabhacandra was an important Jain monk
scholar who migrated centuries after Chandragupta Maurya's death. Other
scholars have taken Rice's deduction of Chandragupta Maurya retiring and
dying in Shravanabelagola as the working hypothesis, since no alternate
historical information or evidence is available about Chandragupta's final years
and death
A memorial to Chandragupta Maurya exists on Chandragiri
hill in Shravanabelagola, Karnataka. The Indian Postal Service issued
a commemorative postage stamp honouring Chandragupta Maurya in 2001
41
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41
 I am the true God, the embodiment of the wheel of life, the Spinner of all
Mantra.
— Chakravartin

THE KINGDOM OF ASURAS Chakravartin Video Game

When I read about this game and played it it has an uncanny resemblance to the Khmer
charaters not just 1 but many. Hence I reproduce here the details of this amazing game
where the hero is CHAKRAVARTIN

Chakravartin (転輪王, Tenrinjōō; Sanskrit: चक् रवर्ति), also known as the Golden Spider, was the
42

God of Mantra and the mysterious ruler of Naraka. Chakravartin accompanied Asura after his

fall, which was later revealed to be his plan for choosing an ideal ruler for Gaea. Chakravartin
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is the true main antagonist of Asura's Wrath. He is the archenemy of Asura.

Earlier in the story, Chakravartin appears as a spider-like entity made of gold plating and
small thin legs.

After possessing Mithra, Chakravartin uses the full extent of his powers and assumes the
shape of an androgynous, multi-armed giant wielding two large staves. In this form, he wears a
mukut, is barefoot while wearing long golden robes, and emits an eerily powerful golden glow.
He possesses a multitude of arms, and a large intricate halo that constantly floats behind his
back.

42
Personality
As the God of Mantra, Chakravartin is a calm, benevolent, all-seeing and wise individual. As
the Golden Spider, he showed a knack of teasing Asura by playing and preying with his wrath,
speaking in riddles and questioning him on his motives and the reason of his anger. He is also
shown to be very cold and ruthless, as he did not hesitate in killing Olga to protect Mithra and
the role she would fulfill in his plans.

Chakravartin likes to place his creations on "trials" to see if they are truly worthy of living,
typically without paying attention to any collateral damage and suffering his trials entail, along
with showing a great lack of empathy. This includes creating and releasing the Gohma on
Gaea, which sparked the conflict between the Demigods and the Gohma, and Deus's betrayal
to gain enough power to create a new world. Chakravartin is also Machiavellian, as he caused
widespread misery for the people of Gaea simply to look for an "heir", with absolutely no care
for the suffering of the inhabitants of the planet caused by the Gohma instead of properly
taking care and guiding his creations. Ultimately, due to his unchecked actions, he is
responsible for the misery and despair of both Gaea and Asura. He explains that he put Asura
on a trial to choose him as the "new god" of Gaea, so that he can move on to other worlds
under the false pretense of 'saving' them, implying that he is tired of having to look after Gaea.

Being the Supreme Being of all the Universe, he developed a God complex. He believed
himself above any kind of morality. When Asura denies and fights the god, he reacts in an
extremely calm yet disappointed manner, saying that he would have to destroy Gaea and make
it anew, implying he has performed this process in the past. Even during its fight with
Asura, he maintains a calm and patronizing manner towards the demigod, maintaining
complete confidence in his abilities. However, as Asura continues to withstand its attacks and
damage the god, his calm and polite demeanor is gradually destroyed and he begins to display
visible anger and frustration, and his arrogance grows even further, resorting to increasingly
more aggressive means to kill Asura as he finds himself unable to either get Asura to become
his heir or destroy the demigod. Chakravartin's arrogance was his downfall, leading him to
severely underestimate Asura's power. Eventually as he transforms into his final state and
both combatants go all out in a fist-fight, Chakravartin starts to display an increasing degree of
disbelief at the extent of the injuries he sustains, claiming to the end he is the one true god and
that everything must bend to his will and his commands must be followed. Chakravartin is
very determined in his goals and his beliefs, not giving up when he fought Asura, even when he
was slowly overpowered and still claiming he has all the rights because he is the creator.

Deep down, beneath his facade of wisdom lies a calculating darwinist and firm believer
that might makes right, as he believed Asura to be the perfect being after he had demonstrated
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his might, seemingly not caring about any other attributes other than having the strength to
lead. By proxy this is the main reason why he believes he is in the absolute right despite the
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ample evidence to the contrary. A perfectionist to a fault, his trials and guidance are thus,
nothing more than a farce to purge out imperfections from his idealized worlds.

Plot
The Golden Spider appears when Asura first falls into Naraka, following Deus' attempt to
destroy him. There the Spider appears, questioning Asura's motives as well as the reason for
his anger and incites him to climb the tower and leave Naraka. He would later repeat this same
role the second time Asura fell into Naraka after being cleaved in two by Yasha.

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Chakravartin as the Golden Spider
Eventually, the Spider appears on the Karma Fortress, after Deus and Viltra were destroyed,
preventing Olga from killing Mithra and destroying her himself. He then wraps Mithra in a
cocoon of golden mantra strings and ends up taking control of her body, changing Mithra's hair
color from dark to golden and speaking in a dual voice. After taking control of Mithra, the
mysterious entity reveals its true form and separates itself from Mithra's body to appear as the
primordial God, Chakravartin, the source of all Mantra. Chakravartin explains that the events
transpiring between the Gohma and the Demigods has all been a part of his plan to find a new
heir to inherit Gaea, as he had grown tired of the planet. As he explains his plan, Asura leaps
to attack him since Chakravartin is the reason for all the tragedies that have occurred in the
world and is the "one [he] should kill". Chakravartin calls this attack another test and battles
both Yasha and Asura, defeating them both and forcing them to flee (partly due to Asura
wearing himself out attempting to rescue the captive Mithra). Disappointed, Chakravartin
declares it will have to remake the world as it has done countless times in the past, and
subsequently plummets the Brahmastra towards Gaea in fiery ruin before taking on a new
planet-sized form to destroy the planet.

After completing his planet sized transformation, Chakravartin destroyed multiple planets
using a beam of concentrated Mantra that he fired towards Earth, but the attack was quickly
absorbed by Asura at the last moment. Amused, Chakravartin beckoned Asura to face him
while firing multiple projectiles (i.e. suns, planets, comets, etc.) to test his abilities. Upon
breaking through the structure and appearing in his pocket dimension, Chakravartin calmly
congratulated Asura on exceeding his expectations and declared him the one truly fit as a
perfect being to rule Gaea stating the planet must be "ruled by one of its own". As part of
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Asura's reward, Chakravartin returned Mithra to Asura while stating he was planning on
traveling to other worlds in need of his "guidance". As a gesture of good will, Chakravartin
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stretched out his hand to Asura to have his heir accept his offer only to be struck in the face by
the angry demigod who refused to take part in the destructive god's plan.

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Mithra is the only witness of the final legacy of Chakravartin as the large golden statue of his
likeness disappears along with its maker
Enraged at being spurned for his offer, Chakravartin attacks Asura only to be angered at his
inability to destroy the demigod and the latter's ability to cause him harm. Losing his
composure, Chakravartin takes Mithra back and viciously attacks the demigod, throwing away
his staves and engaging Asura in a fistfight that damages both fighters, but it quickly knocked
away by the demigod. No longer tolerant of his foe's insolence, Chakravartin declares he will
erase Asura's very existence and transforms into his most powerful form to deal a grievous
amount of damage to Asura. As the battle continues, the Mantra God grows more tired, while
Asura continues to beat Chakravartin to the point where he finally shatters his composure. In
a final bout, Chakravartin uses whatever strength he had left to battle the demigod only to be
shrugged off and outmatched in might, all the while questioning in disbelief how a demigod
could become so powerful. In a final attack on the weakened god, Asura delivers a final punch
to Chakravartin's face which shattered the tyrannical deity's face and caused him to vanish a
whirlwind of energy and screaming anguish. With his death, all traces of Mantra disappeared
from the world, ending the threat of Chakravartin forever, but also meaning that without
Mantra, it meant Asura would cease to exist as he fades away into the heavens to his late wife
and to later be reincarnated with the other demigods.

Powers & Abilities

As the original creator and source of Mantra, as well as the God of Mantra and "Spinner of
Mantra", Chakravartin is, in theory, the most powerful being in the Universe. Through the
absolute manipulation of Mantra, Chakravartin is shown to be capable of accomplishing
virtually any feat imaginable without any sort of effort required.

While Chakravartin is not completely indestructible (as proven during his battles with Asura
and Yasha), Chakravartin's durability and resistance to damage alone has shown to be far
greater than any other character present in the story, with only the strongest of beings capable
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of doing any sort of perceivable harm to Chakravartin (with the only being who has shown this
capability being Asura himself.) Throughout the various forms he manifests in, Chakravartin is
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shown to boast exponentially overwhelming levels of strength, speed, durability and endurance,
able to easily hold its own against even Destroyer Asura as well as simultaneously dealing
critical level damage to the demigod all at once. As the most powerful being in the universe,
Chakravartin possessed immortality and was unable to age, likely having been alive since the
beginning of the universe. Futhermore, as a godly being, Chakravartin could also survive in
areas such as outer space or the moon unaided and without any form of discomfort.
Chakravartin also could not be killed by conventional methods, and could only be destroyed by
Asura.

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Chakravartin has demonstrated the ability to possess the bodies of individuals, referring to
them as "vessels", as seen when Chakravartin took possession of Mithra's body. Chakravartin
also has the ability to create illusions and pocket dimensions, as seen on the final battle with
Asura in which he created an illusionary pocket reality of Naraka.

As the origin and tether of Mantra, Chakravartin's destruction would mean all Mantra and
mantra-related creations (such as the demigod race) would inevitably disappear, as seen with
Asura's death in the end.

Transformations
In addition to his unfathomable physical power as well as his ability to shapeshift into several
powerful and even colossal forms, Chakravartin, as the origin of all Mantra in the universe, has
displayed the unique ability to manifest his Mantra in different shapes and forms in sync with
whatever form he was currently inhabiting.

The Golden Spider

Chakravartin
In this form, Chakravartin's Mantra is golden in appearance and he can manifest it in the form
of enormous beams, a massive golden pillar-shaped explosion around himself, enormous orbs
of mantra, mantra slashes which travelled horizontally above the ground, and can generate a
powerful shockwave of mantra that can force Asura even in his Destroyer form and Yasha
back. Chakravartin also has the ability to stretch his limbs to long distances and at high
speeds. Chakravartin is also capable of producing extremely powerful and almost impenetrable
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forcefields/barriers that were able to restrict Asura in his Wrath form from reaching Mithra,
among other feats. Chakravartin also possesses extremely overwhelming levels of durability
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and strength in this form, as he did not sustain any visible damage given by noteworthy
injuries from Destructor Asura's punches and he even managed to completely shatter four of
Destructor Asura's arms when enraged, albeit with some effort and minor damage to his own
limbs. Chakravartin in this form was already powerful enough to overpower Mantra Asura and
Yasha with ease, although it should be noted that they have sustained considerable damage
and was very tired from defeating Gohma Viltra and Viltra's Core. Chakravartin was also able
to effortlessly dismantle the Karma Fortress and manipulate it to fall on Gaea.

As the Golden Spider, he was able to knead and manipulate a large amount of mantra
composed strings strong enough to disarm, restrain and ultimately constrict Olga to death
with apparently no effort at all.
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Golden Chakravartin

Golden Chakravartin
After sending the Brahmastra crashing down onto Gaea, Chakravartin creates a
colossal golden statue version of himself in a lotus meditation position with dozens of galaxies
around it. The statue was so unthinkably gigantic, that Asura in his Destructor form was not
visible when he punched its forehead. Its function is near-identical to that of the Karma
Fortress, but its size and the power of its blasts far outclasses that of the Brahmastra. Its
colossal beams were capable of pulverizing multiple planets along their path without losing
momentum, and it was capable of creating, controlling and using planets and stars as
projectiles as a show in the fight against Asura. The inside of the statue is a pocket dimension,
referred to as the Event Horizon. In this space, Chakravartin can freely manipulate the
reality inside it to create perfect illusions to fool Asura, even as far as creating an illusion of the
whole realm of Naraka. Even when Asura assumes the form of Destroyer, he still struggles
against the Mantra God to maintain an advantage in their fight.

Chakravartin, The Creator

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Final Form: Chakravartin, the Creator

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During his final battle with Asura, he assumes a new form. In this form, he is only slightly
taller than Asura, his body is much thinner and much more sinister in appearance, having a
decorated silver body with a black and red skeletal-like inside that starts at his face and
extends into his chest area. This is Chakravartin's most powerful form in all aspects, as he was
able to destroy all of Asura's arms in his Destroyer form with a single finger, reducing the
demigod to his most basic form and easily overpowering him, but later on beginning to be
overpowered by making Asura angrier. In this form, his combat style changes radically. His
mantra energy becomes dark greyish in color and he can manipulate mantra to unleash an
incredibly destructive ray of mantra from his finger, giant throwing blades, mantra waves,
massive mantra spheres, among others. He can also seemingly stop time to better focus his
attacks on Asura and get him off guard. In this form, Chakravartin's movements becomes akin

47
to that of an ice skater, moving with grace through the battlefield. He also becomes a fierce and
extremely proficient hand-to-hand combatant, as he was able to go toe-to-toe with Asura in a
brutal, prolonged display of martial arts, showing tremendous strength, speed, agility, combat
prowess, durability, endurance and stamina, before eventually succumbing to defeat at the
demigod's hands.

Quotes
 "You have done well to come this far. Who am I? I am the true God, the embodiment of the
wheel of life, the spinner of all Mantra. I hold everything in the palm of my hand. I
bestowed the power of Mantra on you, and I unleashed the Gohma upon the world to test
you. And you have proved yourself worthy by overcoming these trials. That is why you
are here. You may go now, back to the wheel of life. You have exceeded my expectations
and are worthy of my praise. Hmm? You wish to remain in this world? You are no longer
needed here. But, if you insist..." --Spoken line at the ending of Episode 18; disguised
as ???
 "I am the true God, the embodiment of the wheel of life, the Spinner of all Mantra. At last,
you have passed my trials, Redeemer Asura. You have defeated the will of the planet and
proved yourself worthy."--Congratulating Asura for his victory over the Gohma
 "I am the guide of all beings. The one who bestowed Mantra upon your ancestors. I had
the planet's will give birth to Vlitra and scattered the Gohma around this world to test you.
All to shape you into a suitable vessel. The one who controls the planet is the one fit to
guide it" --To Asura about his plan and his orchestration of the conflict on Gaea
 "I am Chakravartin. It is I who keeps the wheels of this planet in motion...Now give me
your hand, Redeemer Asura. Receive the Mantra's power and with it create a new world
order!"--Beseeching Asura to take up his position as the ruler of Gaea
 "Everything is as I have intended it." --To Yasha
 "Knowing the differences in power between us will also lead you to true understanding"--
To Asura and Yasha
 "Another failure. In that case, I shall bring an end to this world and begin it anew. Just as
I have always done. I will eventually rebuild this world. Until then, enjoy the rest of your
lives. It matters not to me what you do." --To himself after defeating Asura and Yasha
 "You are the Redeemer. You must become the god of this world!" --To Asura
 "You must accept your fate. If you do not, this world will come to an end!" --To Asura
 "If you will not inherit this world...Return to nothing!"--To Asura
 It must! You will accept your fate...If you do not, this world will come to an end!" --To
Asura; response to, "Not everything bends to your will!"
 "The suffering this world has seen was all to choose my heir! And the one who overcomes
my trials shall be the Redeemer of this world!"--To Asura
 "Arrogant Destructor! I shall erase your very existence!" --To Asura

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"Weak. Very Weak!" --To Asura

 "You shall not defy me!" --To Asura
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 "You are a fool! The reckoning has come!" --To Asura

 "Why so angry?" --To Asura
 "Resistance is futile!" --To Asura
 "You are not worthy!" --To Asura
 "I am the only god!" --To Asura
 "This is not my destiny!" --To Asura (Last Words)

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