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Emperor Khāravela and the Jaina Tradition in Orissa
Dr. Krishna Chandra Acharya
After the invasion of Kalinga by the great emperor Asoka the history of Kalinga is somewhat obscure. But in about 1st century B. C.
rged the great Kalinga empire having Khāravela as its great sovereign ruler. The inscription in the Hāthīgumphā cave in the Udaygiri hill near Bhubaneswar details the manifold achievements of Khāravela. The damaged condition of the rock leaves many more events of Khāravela's reign unknown, yet whatever remains is enough to give clear evidence of the glorious rule of Khāravela, whose eventful career is a landmark in the history of Kalinga, nay in the history of ancient India.
Khāravela belonged to third generation of the royal Chedi dynasty of Kalinga. From his title, Mahārāja and Mahāmeghavāhana it appears that he was a very powerful king during his time. He was endowed with all auspicious signs of a ruler and was well-versed in the art of writing, accountancy, law and administration. At the age of sixteen he was installed as Yuvarāja and took the responsibility of administration. Eight years later he was crowned king,
Khāravela was not merely a great conquerer. He was a good administrator as well and ruled his kingdom with perfect peace. For public welfare he spent large sums on irrigation, gardening and house building. His own palace, Mahāvijayaprāsāda was also magnificently built. He repaired and enlarged a canal which was originally excavated by a Nanda king three centuries ago. This Nanda king was probably Mabāpadmananda. Another curious incident was that the great image of Jina Rşabhadeva which was carried away by this Nanda king to Magadha from Kalinga at the time of his invasion, was again brought back to Kalinga by Khāravela.' Thus he avenged the wrong done to Orissa and its people through centuries by Magadha emperors. Khāravela being a devout Jaina patronised Jainism. He excavated a number of caves in the Kumārī Parvata (Khandagiri hill) and also a monastery in
1. See K. P. Jayaswal, JBORS Vol. III Dec. 1917 pp. 425-85.
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