Kingdom of the Mahabharata
Videha (Mithila)
विदेह
Kingdom of Janaka
Videha (Mithila) (Present-day Mithila region, Bihar-Nepal border): Kingdom of Janaka, located at coordinates 26.73°N, 85.92°E.
Key Facts
| Type | Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Sanskrit name | विदेह |
| Coordinates | 26.73°N, 85.92°E |
| Modern location | Present-day Mithila region, Bihar-Nepal border |
| Significance | Kingdom of Janaka |
About Videha (Mithila)
The ancient kingdom of King Janaka, famous for its philosophical traditions. Its capital Mithila is identified with the Janakpur region on the Bihar-Nepal border.
Why it matters: Kingdom of Janaka
Rulers and Custodians
- Janaka
- Satakatru
Details
- Capital
- Mithila or Janakpur
- Philosophy
- Famous for Upanishadic wisdom and Janaka's court
On the Map
Videha (Mithila) sits at 26.73°N, 85.92°E, in Present-day Mithila region, Bihar-Nepal border.
View on the full mapEvents at Videha (Mithila)
- The Woman Who Out-Argued a KingYear 48King Janaka of Mithila prides himself on having attained liberation while still ruling a kingdom. The woman ascetic Sulabha comes to test him - and when he meets her with objections rooted in rank and gender, she turns them against him: if you truly saw the one Self in all, why cling to such distinctions? She proves that true renunciation is inward, of the ego, and humbles the famous king.
- The Sage Who Knew the SelfYear 52The great sage Yajnavalkya silences the wisest at King Janaka's court, is questioned by the woman philosopher Gargi about the ground of all existence, teaches the way of neti neti, and before renouncing the world teaches his wife Maitreyi that the Self alone is dear and deathless.
- The King Who Lived in the EyesYear 75King Nimi will not wait for his preceptor Vasishtha and begins his sacrifice under another priest; the two quarrel and curse each other, both losing their bodies. Nimi, unwilling to be reborn, is granted a dwelling in the eyelids of all beings - the origin of blinking - and a son churned by the sages founds the line of Videha.
Stories Set at Videha (Mithila)
The Righteous Butcher
The Wisdom of the Vyadha
The Sage of Eight Bends
Ashtavakra and the Court of Janaka
The Son Who Flew to Freedom
Shuka, Vyasa, and the Inward Renunciation
The Woman Who Out-Argued a King
Sulabha, Janaka, and the Inward Freedom
The Sage Who Knew the Self
Yajnavalkya, Gargi, and Maitreyi at Mithila
The King Who Lived in the Eyes
A quarrel of king and priest, and the origin of blinking
The Song of Parashara
Vyasa's father on birth, work and the fruit of acts
Vasishtha and Karala Janaka
The count of what a person is made of
The Test in the North
Ashtavakra goes for a bride and is stopped by a woman
The Queen's Answer to the Beggar King
Janaka shaves his head, and his wife takes his renunciation apart
The Yajus Taken From the Sun
A goddess entering a man's mouth, and the fee split in two
Three Doors and Fifty Women
The son of Vyasa is made to walk, and then made to wait
The Night Janaka Opened the Sky
Before the battle with Pratardana, the king of Mithila shows his army heaven and hell
The Five Forms of Marriage
Bhishma on how a daughter is given, what a dower does not buy, and the honour owed to women