Nanyadeva

Nanya is a word of Karnatic origin and Sanskritised form of Nanniya.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KfYJAQAAIAAJ&q=Nanniya |title=Mithila Under the Karnatas, C. 1097-1325 A.D |last=Sinha |first=Chandreshwar Prasad Narayan |date=1979 |publisher=Janaki Prakashan |language=en}} Nanyadeva means "the dearest of god" (Nanya means "dearest" and deva means "god").{{Cite web |url=http://sajha.com/sajha/html/sharearticle.cfm?articleid=989460 |title=नेवार थर र सिम्रौनगढ |trans-title= Newar and Simraungadh |website=Sajha |access-date=2019-04-18}} The Andhratharhi inscription of his minister, Shridhardas refers Nanyadeva as Mahasamantadhipati, Dharmamavaloka and Sriman Nanyapati.{{cite journal | title=Nanyadeva and his Contemporaries | author= Radhakrishna Choudhry | journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume = 14| year=1951 | pages=130–134 |jstor = 44303952}}

Little is known about Nanyadeva's early life although it is believed that Nanyadeva arrived in Mithila as part of the Chalukaya invasions of North India during the second half of the 11th century. The Chalukyas would likely have been accompanied by many military adventurers who carved out small principalities of their own in Northern India and Nanyadeva would have been among them in capturing land in the Mithila region of North Bihar. Inscriptions from the Sena dynasty of neighbouring Bengal refer to Nanyadeva as "Karnata-Kulabhusana" indicating an origin from the area around modern-day Karnataka in India. His original stronghold in Mithila was Nanapura in Champaran district of Bihar however he later shifted his capital to Simraungadh which would remain as the main capital until the end of the Karnat dynasty.

In Vidyapati's Purush Pariksa, Nanyadeva is confirmed to have gained control of Mithila by 1097 CE. Nanyadeva was a contemporary of Ramapala of the Pala Empire with whom he had fallen into conflict and then subsequently gained independence for Mithila. Following on from the Varendra rebellion, the Pala Empire was in a state of disintegration with the Sena dynasty establishing a power base in the Radha region. Both the Karnatas and the Senas coveted the Pala territories of Gauda and Vanga and a conflict began between Mithila and the Senas with the Senas coming out victorious as per the Deopara inscription. Following on from this conflict, local tradition in Mithila confirms that parts of Mithila came under Sena hegemony however these were later regained by Nanyadeva's heir and son, Gangadeva in a later conflict.

To compensate for these losses, Nepalese traditions assert that Nanyadeva launched attacks into the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal which at the time was under the Thakuri dynasty. He may have extended his territory into parts of Nepal although the overall goal seems to have been to capture loot rather than land. The territories west of Nanyadeva's Kingdom were ruled by the Gahadavalas and Nanyadeva maintained peaceful relations with them and even sent his son, Prince Malladeva to serve in the army of the Gahadavalas.

Many modern scholars, as well as the people of the region, view Nanyadeva as a "son of Mithila" who liberated the region following the fall of the Videhan monarchy. The Karnata rule is not viewed as foreign as they established their power in Mithila itself, unlike others who ruled from outside.{{cite journal |last1=Thakur |first1=Nisha |title=SITUATING BUDDHISM IN MITHILA REGION: PRESENCE OR ABSENCE? |journal=Journal of the Asiatic Society |date=2018 |volume=LX |pages=39–62 |url=https://asiaticsocietykolkata.org/uploads/Journal%20Vol.%20LX.%20No.%204_2018.pdf |accessdate=2 August 2020}} He was succeeded by his two sons, Gangadeva and Malladeva.{{cite journal | title=A Critical Evaluation of sources for identification of Gangeyadeva of Tirabhukti | author= CPN Sinha | journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume = 35| year=1974 | pages=39–42 |jstor = 44138754}}

He cultivated several melodies and recorded his knowledge in two Sanskrit musicological treatise{{cite book|author=Professor Richard Widdess|title=Dāphā: Sacred Singing in a South Asian City: Music, Performance and Meaning in Bhaktapur, Nepal|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QWcIzK4VHusC&pg=PA5|date=2 December 2013|publisher=Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.|isbn=978-1-4094-6601-7|pages=5–6}} called the Sarasvati Hridayalankara and the Bharatabhasya.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KYLpvaKJIMEC&dq=Nanyadeva+reigned+on+1097&pg=PA280 |title=Medieval Indian Literature: Surveys and selections |last=Paniker |first=K. Ayyappa |date=1997 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=9788126003655 |language=en}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UvuJyvtsCjwC&dq=A+tradition+about+Nanyadeva,+is+still+preserved+in+Mithila&pg=PA20 |title=Madhubani Painting |date=2003 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |isbn=9788170171560 |language=en}} These works are an in-depth assessment of different musical notes and how they can lead to certain feelings and sentiments ranging from heroism to anger.{{cite book|author=Emmie Te Nijenhuis|title=Saṅgītaśiromaṇi: A Medieval Handbook of Indian Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kGzESuCeK-sC&pg=PA10|year=1992|publisher=BRILL|isbn=90-04-09498-9|pages=10–11}} He completed these works following his ascendance to power in Mithila. Nanyadeva's knowledge of musicology was well-regarded and he is cited as an authority on the subject by the 13th-century Indian musicologist, Śārṅgadeva.{{cite journal |last1=Widdess |first1=D |title=Tāla and Melody in Early Indian Music: A Study of Nānyadeva's Pāṇikā Songs with Musical Notation |journal=Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London |date=1981 |volume=44 |pages=481-508 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/616610}}

After the fall of the Karnat dynasty in 1324 and the power vacuum that followed, the Maithil Brahmins with the patronage and protection of the Tughlaqs came to power and formed the Oiniwar dynasty. The Karnats mainly split into two branches with Nanyadeva's descendant, Harisimhadeva fleeing to Nepal and marrying into the reigning Malla dynasty.

Evidence also exists of Karnat descendants still maintaining control in parts of Mithila. In Champaran, the ruler was Prithvisimhadeva and his successors including Madansimhadeva. Their territory extended up to Gorakhpur district. Prithvisimhadeva is considered to be a descendant of Harisimhadeva.

Other remnants of the Karnat dynasty were also found in Saharsa and Madhepura districts, where inscriptions have been found that refer to a ruler called Sarvasimhadeva.{{cite journal | title=Decline of the Karnatas of Mithila | author= CPN Sinha | journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume = 32| year=1970 | pages= 79–84|jstor = 44141053}}

Two musicological-related treatises written in the Sanskrit language have been attributed to Nanyadeva:

• Sarasvati Hridayalankara
• Bharatabhasya

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Category:Kings of Mithila

Category:11th-century Indian monarchs

Category:12th-century Indian monarchs

Category:Karnata dynasty