Chandradeva

 ( Gahadavala Kings ) 

Chandradeva (IAST: Candradeva, ruled CE), also known as Chandraditya, was an Indian king from the Gahadavala dynasty. He ruled the Antarvedi country in present-day Uttar Pradesh, including Kanyakubja and Varanasi.

Although the Gahadavala inscriptions mention two of his ancestors, he was the first sovereign monarch of his family. Amid the chaos resulting from the decline of Kalachuri power and Ghaznavid invasions, Chandradeva established a government in the Kanyakubja-Varanasi region of the Ganges plains.

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According to the Gahadavala inscriptions, Chandradeva was a son of Mahichandra (alias Mahitala or Mahiyala), and a grandson of Yashovigraha.

The Gahadavala inscriptions give the titles and name of Chandradeva as "Parama-bhattaraka Maharajadhiraja Parameshvara Parama-Maheshvara Shriman Chandra-deva". They portray Chandradeva as the saviour of the earth (that is, the region which they ruled). The 1104 CE Bashai (Basahi) inscription states that Chandradeva saved the distressed earth, after the death of Bhoja and the destruction of Lakshmikarna's fame. The 1109 Rahin (or Rahan) inscription states that Chandradeva was born after the destruction of the solar dynasty and the lunar dynasty Kshatriya dynasties, when the voice of the Vedas had almost disappeared. These descriptions suggest that the region suffered from chaos during the interregnum following the deaths of Bhoja (r. c. 1010-1055 CE) and Karna (r. c. 1038-1080 CE), probably as a result of the Turkic peoples (Ghaznavid) invasions.

In these troubled times, Chandradeva established a new government, and brought peace to the region. The 1093 CE Chandrawati inscription states that Chandradeva's dynasty captured Kanyakubja, after the destruction of the descendants of the Gurjara-Pratihara king Devapala. In his 1090 CE Chandrawati inscription, Chandradeva assumes the imperial title Parama-bhattaraka Maharajadhiraja Parameshvara, which indicates that he had become a sovereign by this time.

The Yamuna river formed the southern boundary of Chandradeva's kingdom; the northern boundary probably did not go far beyond the Ganga river.

According to the 1104 CE Bashai inscription of his successor Madanapala, Chandradeva established his capital at Kanyakbuja. No other Gahadavala inscription mentions Kanyakubja as the kingdom's capital, and the vast majority of the dynasty's inscriptions have been found in and around Varanasi. According to Al-Biruni, most of the Kanyakubja city was in ruins by 1030 CE. Therefore, it appears that Varanasi was the chief seat of Gahadavala power. Chandradeva probably moved his capital to Kanyakubja, since that city was reputed as the capital of earlier emperors. Thus, Kanyakubja became a 'capital of honour' for the Gahadavalas, although Varanasi remained their main seat of power.

The 1093 CE and 1100 CE inscriptions of Chandradeva mention that his vast army marched in the east (the East India). However, no records attribute any military successes to him in the east. It is possible that he unsuccessfully tried to invade the Pala Empire territory. According to Ramacharitam, Ramapala's feudatory in Magadha — Bhimayashas — defeated the ruler of Kanyakubja. This ruler was most probably Chandradeva.

The inscriptions of Chandradeva, discovered at Chandrawati (or Chandravati) in Varanasi district, record grants to hundreds of Brahmins. His 1093 CE (1150 Vikrama Samvat) Chandrawati copper-plate inscription mentions that he visited Ayodhya to worship Vasudeva (Vishnu) and perform other religious rites. The Ayodhya-mahatmya section of the Vrindavan manuscript of the Skanda Purana mentions that the Vasudeva temple at the Svarga-dvara in Ayodhya had an idol named "Chandra-hari", believed to be installed by a pilgrim named Chandra, who had visited Ayodhya to worship Vishnu. This may be a reference to Chandradeva's construction of a temple and the installation of an idol there.

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• Rana P. B. Singh (2025). 9781443815796, Cambridge Scholars. . ISBN 9781443815796